video; un: viktor

[mehanizovati]

[the video starts near one of the blood blisters, though by 'near' it's clear the video taker has no particular interest in getting close enough to be in a potential splash zone. the video itself is more focused on the pair of blood hounds gathered around it.

when a voice speaks it's with a heavy czech accent and only after scratching that sounds like he's writing something.] I suppose it is customary to make greetings here, as a new arrival, so hello. I am Viktor.

[he clears his throat like he's glad that's over with, onto what he apparently really wants to talk about. the video pans down to a pale finger tapping his notebook, one page blurred and off the the side with what looks like confused formulas trying to figure out how the hell an omni works in his frame of knowledge, the others with notes on the bloodhounds.

one noticeable feature to people without paleblood is he keeps drawing/referencing mushrooms on the beasts, which clearly aren't there.] I've been curious about this fungal growth, especially as I've noticed it on more than just the eh... stag dogs.

Comments

[tealeafs]

Ah.. unfortunately I haven't been here that much longer than you. I've been here for just about a month longer, I think.. [ Assuming he showed up here this month - but she's pretty sure he did, judging by the way he's speaking.

But despite that-- ]

I'd love to tell you anything I know all the same though. We're all stuck inside of this confusing situation, so.. it's the least we can do for each other in this place. [ In her opinion, anyway. ] I personally haven't noticed much yet other than.. um.. well, you know, the thing both of us noticed just now..

[ The shared hallucinations. ]

But from what I have heard from others, it seems that some palebloods have had visions of the future before, or they end up being really sensitive to other people's emotions.

[mehanizovati]

[ah well, it was still useful to compile what information they could as a collective. even still, useful to know another paleblood to call upon when odd effects are happening to their blood. so he nods.] I haven't gotten your name- unless it is common here to keep our names secret. If so I suppose I foolishly offered mine to the network.

[his lips are quirked at that, a 'what can you do' attitude. because really, what could they do with a lot of this besides keep moving?] I agree, collaboration is often the key to success in any endeavor. I suppose for some it is harder to accept that.

Emotions and the future? Hm. [he sits with that for a long moment before asking,] Do you have much experience with this... blood magic? I have heard there are those omens and certain abilities but I am afraid that is the extent of my knowledge.

[tealeafs]

[ Chizuru hums. ]

Sorry.. I haven't really used it. [ If anything, it would have felt stranger to her if she had already used it, so relatively soon after arriving here. After all.. ] I'm not sure what it's like in other places, but.. where I come from, things like magic don't exist. So the entire idea of it is still a little much for me, I suppose..

[ Does she feel a little bit like a weenie while saying that?

Sure. But it's also the truth. Going from no magic to suddenly having weird blood magic is a lot. ]

Oh, um, but-- my name is Chizuru. Chizuru Yukimura. It's nice to meet you regardless..

[ So, no, giving out names is perfectly fine here. Or at the very least, the girl doesn't seem to be making even a single attempt to keep hers secret. ]

[mehanizovati]

Ah, none at all? [he sounds fascinated by this- because he is, curious about what makes some worlds absent of what others seem to have in spades.] In my world magic exists but one must be born with the power. I am not certain where one would even start.

[and he keeps hearing odd things, corruption and blood pollution, beasthood. he's a risktaker but that doesn't mean playing with fire just for the sake of it.

regardless he nods his head in greeting.] It is nice to meet you, Chizuru.

[tealeafs]

Yes, none at all. [ She echoes back at him, confirming it. ] If anything, worlds like these where magic can exists so freely are the ones that seem a little odd to me.. It's like something straight from a fairytale.

[ Granted, there are odd things in her own world as well - but she only found out about those fairly recently before ending up here, so she doesn't feel like they count. They're still things that are rare and weird in her world rather than anything common, after all. ]

It's been a pretty big adjustment for me so far, but I've been trying my best to keep up with it.. After all, this place can be pretty dangerous, and I wouldn't want to put myself into danger just because I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around a place like this.

[mehanizovati]

I cannot imagine a world of magic from blood is a particularly welcoming first impression either. [especially just how much blood. even ignoring the blisters, which were hard to ignore.]

That is a wise way of handling it, I believe. At the very least this omen business is easy enough to master, and helpful besides. Now that is very much a magic I have never heard of before, even in old tales of it. Creating another being? Terribly odd.

[tealeafs]

[ It indeed is not a great first impression.. She's trying so hard, but.. it's a lot. ]

Really..? To me it's all just as odd.. [ But then again, she supposes that shows the difference in their backgrounds. Apparently Viktor is used to some magic, but not that, so of course it's going to seem much stranger to him. ]

But the omen thing is indeed a little easier to handle.. Especially since it doesn't really involve blood. Instead it's just like having a little friendly helper with you at all times!

[ .. she somehow managed to make it sound like a Disney movie. ]

What shape does yours have..?

[mehanizovati]

Oh- [he shifts his view to the side where a large lizard/axolotl of a sort is napping against some stones. she glances up with a slow blinks before huffing back to her nap.]

She is a piximander, or so I've been told. It... is odd. She is a creature I knew in my world, though I have come to understand many are not like that. [a pause and he offers,] Her name is Rio.

What of yours? I've been curious to see more of them.

[tealeafs]

[ Chizuru lets out a surprised little gasp when she sees that creature. It's not really like anything she has ever seen before - there weren't really lizards in the middle of a busy city like Kyoto, after all. Let alone ones that looked like this.

So it almost seems like something from a storybook come to life. It distracts her for long enough that it takes the girl a few moments to even realise what he's asking her. ]

Oh! Um..

[ She closes her eyes, concentrating, and then her omen seems to slip out of her in that familiar shadowy way. It seems to take shape on Chizuru's hand, since a moment later there's a small bird sitting on her knuckles. A sparrow, to be precise, though perhaps a little darker than most sparrows generally are. ]

Here. Do you have birds like these where you come from..?

[mehanizovati]

I was just as surprised when I first saw Rio as a child. [he looks at the creature fondly- yes, even in his world rio is pretty unique. rio trills and sniffs at the screen, curious as viktor rests a hand on her large head.

he hasn't actually seen anyone else summon a familiar, so it's fascinating to watch the process unfold. the little bird isn't one he immediately recognizes but it's familiar enough he nods.]

I believe so- I'm not sure if exactly like it but... oh, actually it looks a bit like a bird from farther north of where I am from. Mostly where I grew up there are sea birds and pigeons.

What is their name?

[tealeafs]

[ ...

Yeah, this is definitely the part where Chizuru looks a little awkward and goes quiet for a moment.. The reason for it becomes very obvious when she does finally speak up. ]

I.. didn't know they had names.

[ Apparently she hasn't been able to talk with hers yet. ]

So I don't know.. This one only makes bird sounds at me. [ While it does seem like he's been able to communicate with Rio somehow. ]

[mehanizovati]

[huh. frankly viktor isn't really sure they usually have names either, now that she says it.] Ah, well the only two I have seen, my own and the omen of a man named Allen, are reflections of creatures we knew.

[he puts his fingers to his chin as he considers.] Do you wish to name them? I suppose it would be your prerogative.

[tealeafs]

I'm.. not sure. I mean, they aren't really pets, are they..?

[ It doesn't feel like a pet, anyway. Not to Chizuru. There's the fact that it feels like the Omen is almost part of her that makes it feel so different, and that leaves her unsure whether naming it would be okay..

She seems to silently consider it for a moment, but then she lets out a breath that's almost a sigh. ]

There's a lot to think about. [ So much to think about in this place. ] I mostly hope that things like these will figure themselves out along the way somehow..