”Good question, in fact, the one I was looking for” the judge stated.
”The land of both the dead and the living are going through the same problem; both of them are getting filled with bad spirits that won’t leave the casualties alone, causing troubles and harming other more peaceful spirits” the man paced around as he explained the situation.
”…and with that, we are also lacking spirits who are willing to take care of the situation so…” he turned back to face the dead people.
”Here’s an offer. I’ll be mixing your soul with a mythical spirit, giving you its abilities. Your duty is to take care of the bad spirits and do your best to give the living humans a more peaceful life. If you can satisfy us, the ten judges, we will give you a second chance to be reborn as a human again and one with a good life as well… does that sound fair to all of you?” the man had asked for everyone’s opinions.
Kaito was a little bewildered by the thought of having his soul mixed with another spirit though the offer did seem promising. Despite that, he waited for the others to answer first as he already agreed to the offer mentally.
(What time period will they be working in?)
(The modern world; mobile phones, electronics, fast internet and all that. As for location, that will be mentioned later)
(Now das gonna be interesting. Should i keep asnwering or wait for UnseelieKing to answer as well?)
(Let’s wait for the other two shall we?)
(Aight. Also, can we just pretend ma boi is still missing his eye? cuz i thought he alr woke up as a mixed spirit 😅)
(Ah, alright, I’ll make Kai notice that soon :P)
(As an exchange, can you have your character see a bloody mess on Kai’s chest?)
(aight, noted o3o also also, forgot to mention the poor and wet aspect cuz u kno, he drowned? :'> How did poor boi die? :'>)
(Fell from a chandelier while readjusting it, explained by his supine position when he woke up, pierced by the sharp edge of it, the bloody mess on his chest, and burned by the fire, explained by the lit shrine. A very gruesome death tbh, I do this to all my characters)
(Gruesome death ovo luv that)
(Ah, i see you're a man of culture as well Poor boi must be an entire bloody mess, not just his chest, perhaps even crushed, a chandelier is heavy shit xd)
(I just wanted to soften it a little bit, highlighting only the part that killed him otherwise Kai would probably be covered in blood XD)
(there's nothing wrong with being covered in blood, aside from the shock the other less unfortunate would have :'> )
Koki blinked her eyes, this wasn't the worst outcome she would've thought of. Well know I know for sure that magic is real, that's great…. She was trying to stay positive, which normally wasn't that hard for her, but she was dead! She had been crushed to death with a rock! She was only fourteen! "Not even a legal adult…" She muttered to herself.
(Sorry y'all, fell asleep.)
(Totally understandable)
Qinguang turned to the small female.
”Ah yes… fate can be cruel at times. I’m sorry but unless there’s an error, no one can change it” the judge confirmed.
“I’m interested” Kaito spoke up concisely with his hands in his pants’ pockets. He wasn’t in much of a stressed posture yet it seeped from his eyes that he was indeed afraid of the outcome though he supposed there wasn’t another better choice.
”Alright, the other three?”
"You know what, why the hell not!" Koki punched her fist into the air. She was dead now, she could swear without having to put her money in the swear jar. Well, she was worried about her family, but turning into a magical animal was kinda in the front of her mind instead of her family.
Jennifer inhaled sharply. Not that she needed to, but…Ohhh my god….gods…whatever it is now… She'd been killed. It wasn't that she'd forgotten or anything–she remembered being pulled into an alley, several sneering people, a gun, and then…waking up somewhere completely opposite to where she had been. "I…" she struggled for words, still grappling with the fact that she'd been killed, that now she was just going to be a statistic when people discussed muggings. And her family…Jennifer took a deep breath and looked at the other people in the room. Part of her wondered how they had died.
(sakdsnkvnon I wasn't aware that the scene they started with referenced the way they died, I thought the idea was just "they wake up somewhere different, there might be a shrine, and then they go to a hall" rip. Anyways, yeah, Jen was murdered for cash)
Ryuusei pulled at his wet tattered clothes, feeling almost bad for the dirty puddle he had created on the clean polished floor, his bare feet no longer feeling the tickle of the cold water, mixed with drops of blood seeping from his empty eye socket. He looked up at the judge.
Refuse the offer and be thrown back into the chaotic cycle, risking to be reborn as who knows what or take the offer and work as a spirit to help humanity, with the chance of a fresh start? The offer sounded very tempting, though the idea of combining his soul with a mythical creature's was pretty intimidating - Ryuusei had grown up fearing the evil spirits and praising the good ones. This guy was one of the ten judges of the afterlife, so he surely wouldn't mix him with a bad spirit right?
Plus, the prospect of a good life after rebirth did make his now still heart long for the things he had been denied all these years.
"I'm in."
Jennifer looked back at the judge and nodded; the opportunity to help people live peacefully and have a happy afterlife was a good one in her opinion. "I'll do it too," she said.
The judge smiled at each of them as they gave their answer.
”Very well, now before we begin the process as the one preforming the process is not here, what mythical spirit would all of you like to be mixed into your soul’s system? Let’s go in order from the one you agreed first… the black haired young man?” the judge turned to face Kaito with the face of kindness. It was first seen by the man whose chest was soaked in blood that after everyone had agreed to the offer, the judge’s eyes had turned gold which was mystifying for sure.
“Would a Baku or Dream Eater be an option?” The black haired soul asked in a calm tone.
”Absolutely, the youngest girl?”
Koki scratched her head, thinking for a moment. "Would a Zashiki-warashi work? Am I pronouncing that correctly?" Koki wasn't great at pronouncing things, as she still had a thick Italian accent from where she was born.
The judge narrowed his eyes a bit.
“A guest room child spirit, my lord” the older man who was familiar with the name helped the judge to understand.
”Ah, that is definitely allowed. I apologize as I usually work with spirits of a different region” the judge laughed a bit at his lack of understanding.
”Uh… next, the soaked man. Also, don’t worry about the carpets, I’ll get someone to replace them later” the judged reassured as he turned towards Ryuusei.
Ryuusei hesitated for a while, mentally flipping through the hundreds of spirit names he had memorized in his life, separating the good from the bad and reviewing all of their said abilities. There were so many options to choose from, so many it made his head spin.
The faint pain throbbing in his skull where his right eye had once been reminded him of what he had endured in his life, all the things he had gone through before meeting his end at the bottom of a watery grave. He now knew what he wanted.
"I… I dont know its name, but… It's a great beast living in the mountain tops, half dragon half fox, rumored to protect those who need it" he slowly spoke, trying to find his words and control the faint gurgling noise coming from his water filled lungs. He looked at the others with his remaining eye, sizing them up, observing their injuries and feeling something akin to pity and understanding.
"That's the one that i want."
