Match of the Millennium

Description: Kiyomi finally tracks down Echo for a business proposal. Guest starring: 2 stupid teenagers making out in a car!

[ECHO]
Having caught Koto around Chinatown, Echo had returned to her normal activities in Southtown, as well as other places. Of course, her nocturnal ministrations on the people, while not deadly, had certainly given the people a cause for alarm. As if the Spire hadn't done that already. Were the monsters increasing? Leaving the vicinity of the Spire? What? Tabloid newspapers, or 'dirt sheets', as some affectionately referred to them as, would have catalogued a fair bit of this news. More normal, 'respectable' newspapers were under political pressure and other concerns, like not printing stories of ghosts and boogeymen, but also were not eager to give the public alarm, despite how tasty the renewed sales numbers might be.

White bat monster in Japan's rural areas? It wouldn't be anymore weird than the werewolves that had been prowling around the place, anyway.

Which brings us to tonights... 'contestants'. A teenaged girl and boy, making out in a car near the park, somewhere secluded. As the boy began to lean over his seat and get the girl more 'horizontal', a white shape or blur emerged from just behind them... in the backseat?

"Whew, you should really spring for some better upholstry, this imitation leather is way too hot for comfort," Echo in her regular black dress, reached up to fix her long black hair as the two reacted to her presence slowly, disoriented. Had she just been hiding in the back seat, horror movie style??! Well, yes, yes she had.

"And speaking of trading up..." she licked over her white teeth, displaying long ivory fangs, her yellow eyes glinting, as if with fire as she narrowed her focus on the male.

This was about where they both began to scream, and the car rocked back and forth.

[KIYOMI]
The vixen's ears were always listening for the faintest snippets about others like her. Of creatures that lurk in the darkness, shunned by humanity, whether in distress or creatures that could prove to be valuable assets. Through the decades she spent wandering the world with her pack, Kiyomi had found many ways to hear the whispers and rumors of otherworldly and supernatural phernomenons.

One could say she was just like those Monster Hunters ~ probably even the best of them to hunt down her own kin. However, unlike them, she sought to rally them under her cause or to protect them from those who would do them harm.

All those little details in South Town lead her to believe that someone was on the prowl in this territory -- a hunter, possibly someone who could be a valuable asset to her in her crusade. It took her a while, but perseverance and patience finally lead her to this secluded place in the park...

From afar, Kiyomi silently witnesses what was about to occur, the scream from the car and the way it moves back and forth, the thin mist that covers the windows like a sort of perspiration from the car itself.

Such a hunt for her kin was similar to a ritual, one that was better not to be disturbed. The woman doesn't remain hidden though, she merely leans against a tree in plain sight and politely waits.

[ECHO]
A leather booted foot goes crashing through the passenger-side window as the car rocks back and forth, however it might not be the kind that's done by accident in a fit of passion. No, judging by the screams eminating from inside, it isn't--neither is the boot belonging to either of the two originally inside the car.

The girl bolts from the car, her pumps clicking frantically as she runs, soon meeting grass, and if one has tried to run on grass in heels before, well, it doesn't work--she quickly stumbles and begins to tumble down the grassy hill comically, winding up in a frantic, screeching heap at the bottom, before ditching the shoes and getting up again to run barefoot across the park area.

Echo meanwhile is busy with the driver of the car, who she's currently ontop of--her fingers interlaced with both his hands as he struggles to push her off him.

"Oh jeez, what a big crybaby--what's the matter, you don't like bat people?" she grinned and cackled, mouth yawning open to display white ivory teeth, the front ones seeming even sharper, with long white fangs--this is about where the boy screamed like a girl and shit himself. HOWEVA, before making a home run on the boy's neck, she looked up at the mist forming outside the car. That's odd, she didn't order any ominous mist--let alone cast it herself, what was the deal??

"Hello?" she frowned a little, as if the cleaning lady had just knocked on her hotel room door, right in the middle of a favorite show.

The driver-side door popped open and the boy ran off screaming, a load satcheled in his shorts, as Echo hauled herself out of the car. She was in one of her long black whispy dresses, nearly shoulder-less, and slit up one side of the skirt, showing off quite a bit of white-furred leg. She was wearing the black leather biker boots she wore when she needed to get rough, blinking as she looked at the kitsune nearby, a hand on her hip.

"Hmph, brief, like all the men in my life," she shrugged, looking over at Kiyomi now directly.

"Can I help you?" she smiled.

[KIYOMI]
With her mind shrouded with her fright, the young girl barely noticed Kiyomi who stood near the car and watched the scene unfold. Perhaps it was her instinct of survival that commanded her to run as far as possible instead of reaching out for someone for help. The vixen merely stares at the young girl as she dashes clumsily, her mind overwhelmed with fear. Had she truly wanted, she could have easily caught her up, but it wasn't her place to interfer with this Darkstalker's hunt.

When Kiyomi's attention finally lingers from the running girl and goes back to the car, she realizes the main reason of her presence had finally noticed her. The mature woman does not react to Echo's first question, yet she soon realizes her presence as a mere voyeur ended up disturbing her hunting ritual in the end.

When Echo finally lets go of her second prey and let him loose, Kiyomi's gaze wander over him for a moment, waiting to see if the predator will allow him her mercy tonight or not. The kitsune did nothing to conceal her true nature ~ the myriad of tails were slowly waving back and forth in a disorganized yet tantalizing pattern behind her almost like a portal of fluff to another dimension or some sort of furry tentacled horror from beyond the realm.

Echo's comment is enough though to bring a smirk to the Kitsune's lips and she finally turns her eyes to Echo, locking her gaze with the Darkstalker for the first time, "What else would you expect aside from disappointment from men?" Kiyomi retorts casually.

Her smile widens at the next question and Kiyomi bows her head respectfully, "I suppose you could say that, in a way..." Kiyomi admits, "... My name is Renard, I am a hunter and a predator, much like you are, and I seek out those like me, to defend them against humans who would harm them..." She straightens herself up, her smile widening, "... But also other predators and hunters who would join us and fight against humanity,"

[ECHO]
"To be fair, if they're happy to see me, then it's usually *I* who have the problem," Echo coughed a little into her closed fist. Damn furries.

"I see, I didn't intend to violate your hunting ground, Miss Fox, I apologize for indiscretion," she bowed her head lightly, before looking up at the woman. Echo did not need to see the white tendril-like fox tails looming from behind her to know that she was nowhere near human. She was of the eastern race of shapeshifters, nogitsune, or kitsune, one of such kind.

"As for myself, I am something of a sorceress, diviner and summoner of the dead," her greeting almost seemed like a sales pitch, with her tone. This was something she had learned early on after settling into life in America. Everyone was always trying to sell you something. That kind of approach was innocuous and not unusual.

"Against those who would harm us? Yes, I am aware we're not exactly... welcome. I have bested one of their champions, just the other day," Echo grinned. Curiously, her speech pattern and mannerisms seemed to be able to go from modern and contemporary saleslady to archiac easily. She was not native to this world.

[KIYOMI]
The mention of the hunting ground is casually dismissed with a wave of a hand. Obviously, no harm were done here but Kiyomi's hunting ground was always shifting and moving. Her ears do perk up and betrays her interest when Echo mentions her particular talent. Kiyomi arches a brow and she moistens her lips, "Is that so, hum?" She queries.

Kiyomi studies Echo's mannerism carefully and the more she speaks, the more questions arise in the kitsune's mind and the more interesting this particular hunter becomes. "A good thing, you have my thanks ~" The kitsune slowly approaches Echo, taking a few steps closer. The woman then extends one hand in Echo's direction, palm upward, reaching out for her and offering her her hand, "... Your talents would be a perfect addition to our cause. Your powers could help us fight humans using the very weapons they have made and could use to destroy us, turn it against them..."

Her smile widens, betraying Kiyomi's sadistic nature as she adds, "Join us ~ together we will make humans fear the Children of the Night and allow us to take our rightful place in this world."

[ECHO]
"That is correct," Echo nods in affirmation at Kiyomi's question about her vocation. Echo extends her own hand--she has a white-furred, five-fingered hand, tipped with red, pointed nails--taking Kiyomi's hand in hers with a gentle pressure as she shakes her hand. That is the gesture she'd seen humans do, anyway, and it's not like it was only native to this world.

"You want to fight humans to protect our own kind? Humans are only so concerned with things that go bump in the night when they, well, bump--like that Spire in Tokyo, it's not supposed to be there. The humans would go back to sleep soon enough if it were gone, would make my job much easier," Echo smiled, keeping a hand on Kiyomi's hand.

"As for me, I like to carve out a nice and profitable niche for myself, their world is... quaint, comfortable, if people were smarter we'd all be able to get along together, I think... But if you want me to use my magic to help you, I think something could be arranged, yes, for a price, of course," she grinned and her eyes widened a bit, in glee.

"I like to keep working, you know, I'm no deadbeat, heh--despite my talents," she grinned to herself at the cheesy joke. "I think we can do something though, if I can help..."

[KIYOMI]
The Kitsune seems a little taken aback at how Echo grasps her offered hand, turing it into a handshake. The gesture only reinforces Kiyomi's insight about how Echo belongs to a different caste of Darstalker than she does : one of the more priviledged one, stronger ones who came from otherworldly realms. The more the white furred creature speaks and the more it becomes apparent that Kiyomi's intuition might be true and it becomes obvious that Echo will not be swayed by arguments about fighting for a noble cause...

And Kiyomi doubts she might have much empathy toward the fate of the weaker Darkstalkers...

"You will have what you want, I assure you," Kiyomi replies with a slow nod of her head, "... Humans have taken it upon themselves to gather all mystical artefacts they could find and secure them inside of vaults, attempting to study them and then use them," Kiyomi nods her head slowly and adds, "With your powers, we could easily find out the location of such vaults, break into them and claim them as our own before they even have the time to react..." The Kitsune explains.

While Kiyomi doubts Echo would be sympathy toward her cause, she still takes the opportunity to expose her point of view : "In the end, humans will always fear us. They would rather we do not exist and treat everything they do not understand the same way : with fear and animosity," Kiyomi says with a slow nod, "That is why humans might strive to destroy the magical items they have found, or use their destructive powers against us if they can understand it," She adds.

"Humans have oppressed us through for centuries, and they will continue. No longer should we live in the shadows and in fear. It is time for humans to be the ones to cower in dread and to live in the shadows..."

[ECHO]
"Don't get me wrong, babe--if I see our kind in peril, I'll raise a hand, I'm just not a terrorist, as such, exactly--the human plane is like our third world, as the humans call it, we can exploit it or develop it as we wish," Echo grins, tilting her head for a listen.

"It's true, that's why I'm not interested in their approval, or comfort, not necessarily--if however certain ones become... unpleasant to our eyes, well," she shrugs with a grin, reaching up to brush her long black hair back. "You want to find something? treasure? Special things? Ooh, who do I have to kill--" Echo rummages around her dress. There is a brown leather belt with what looks like a pouch and... a bird skull attached to it? She produced a smart phone from said pouch, flicking it on with her thumb.

"Sure, lets do lunch, what's your number dear?~"

[KIYOMI]
No matter what caste a Darkstalker belonged to or what realm they came from, Kiyomi had the same consideration toward them, so long as they at least had a sense of broterhood and loyalty toward their own kin. Perhaps due to her maternal instinct, Kiyomi felt a lot more empathy and devotion toward those of this realm that suffered the same torments as she did and knew the reality of a life shared in a world filled with humans. Nonethless, she finds in Echo a perfect ally to help her further her goals.

When the mention of the magical items catch Echo's attention so swift, Kiyomi can't help but arch a curious brow and lean in a bit closer, staring at the the pouch as if expecting to see a trick of sorcery first hand... Until Echo takes out a smart phone. Kiyomi can't help but smirk -- of course, what did she expect.

With a grin, Kiyomi reaches out to grab Echo's phone while she glances at her. She grabs it and then takes the time to add herself as one of Echo's contact on her phone while having a chance to take a peek at her own list of contacts before she hands it back to Echo. "I'll find you a suitable meal that won't run away ~" Kiyomi says with a slow nod of her head.

Such things were a commodity and Kiyomi had one even if she hated everything related to man kind... But in order to destroy humanity, she had to infiltrate it and act as one of their own more often than she would have liked.

[ECHO]
"Ah good, I was hoping I wasn't dealing with someone... well, a little behind the times, aheh," Echo would accept her phone back, before pocketing it.

"Ohh? Then we'll dine in!" The bat lady smiles, nodding her head, at the offer of food of some sort. Usually nourishment wasn't so difficult, but she had been feeling adventurous tonight, and Kiyomi had run into her.

"I love the kimono, by the way, the tabi-socks and sandals are a nice touch, I think there were some tailors and botiques downtown somewhere, how'd you like a new dress, dear?" the bat woman's arm slipped behind Kiyomi and around her waist, the bat seemingly much more friendly now that there was business to be discussed.

And what business it would be!

Log created on 14:24:22 12/29/2018 by Echo, and last modified on 21:28:41 12/29/2018.