Current Energy: 9
Current Training: Onmyodo (9/10)
Friday, January 21st, 2011
Oathbound Headquarters, Brockton Bay
"Feng Shui isn't real." Your Master insists as you point out all the different portions of her base that inhibit the flow of positive energies.
You didn't start out on this topic, having, in fact, begun the short teaching session with your Master by forcing her to go back over the Japanese you've had her learning for the last little while. Somewhere during the tedium, however, your Master had asked you what exactly Onmyodo was.
"Magic, of course." You had answered tiredly, trying to figure out how you could arrange for your Master to fall asleep in such a way as to act as your pillow. You could have just asked, but that would be embarrassing. Better that she simply wake up that way.
"Okay but... what kind of magic?" Your Master had pressed, leaving you momentarily confused. As far as your Emulation is concerned, Magic is Magic. You manipulate supernatural forces to get what you want using a variety of means and processes. There wasn't really any set way to go about doing that, but you had to know where to start or nothing you did afterward would really matter.
The part of you that keeps a micron of itself plugged into the hundreds of thousands of holes into other realities, for once, had an actual answer to that.
"It's a kind of Shamanism I suppose." You had mused aloud, causing your Master to pause and look at you in confusion.
"I... thought this was Asian Magic?" She had put forth carefully, obviously trying to find a palatable way to say it.
"Shamanism is the practice of appeasing spirits to achieve a practical effect dear. Onmyodo is just a very formal version of that." You had explained.
"...I still don't get it." She had stated bluntly. You had no doubt she understood the concept, she wasn't an idiot after all. No, the problem your Master seemed to be having was seeing how one got from writing squiggles on a piece of paper, to throwing fireballs. Which was... fair.
So you had taken it upon yourself to explain the very basics of spiritualism to her. Spirits, or Kami, existed in all things. Spirits of air and stone, spirits of objects, spirits of places. There were probably more spirits in the three block area surrounding the Heap than there were people in the entirety of the city.
Usually, these spirits were more or less mindless. They just existed, ambiently around whatever it was they represented. If they were powerful, or old enough, they could subtlely influence things around that object or place, usually to the objects better.
Onmyodo then, was the practice of coaxing these spirits to do things. It was giving them agency. Inviting them into the physical world, but only if they did specific things. It wasn't the same as the Western concept of magic, wherein one had a well of power that they moulded to achieve varying effects. It was a relationship.
And your Master's base, had a terrible relationship with those spirits. You could practically feel the stagnation in the building as the local spirits of air and life failed to flow properly throughout the thing.
Which had led you to your current conversation.
"Master, I love you, but you regularly chokeslam people with your soul. Feng Shui is very real." You chastise her, drifting lazily over her head.
"...But it doesn't really... matter, right? Nothing bad will happen if we just leave the base like it is?" She asks carefully, squinting at you.
"It depends. Spirits like places of significance. They do more in places that matter, and they help more when they are well taken care of. Right now, this place must be to them what your own home is to you - slathered in Nazi symbolism and gasoline." You say airily, opening a single eye to gaze fondly down at your Master as she pulls out a blank piece of notepaper and begins to scribble different floor plans and improvements into it.
It isn't as though you hadn't started to teach her Feng Shui. It was a component of Onmyodo after all. But you do find it cute that her primary interest is in the spiritual wellbeing of the spirits themselves over the benefit they could provide to her.
It's a very Master-like way of behaving after all.
Saturday, January 22nd, 2011
Oathbound Headquarters, Brockton Bay
The next day you are unpleasantly awoken by the sound of someone trying to knock on the front door of the building. It's never come up before this, so you weren't sure Trainwreck actually made it possible for people inside to hear such a thing through the thick armor plating.
You are now unpleasantly certain that he did, if the hellacious sound of a gong ringing throughout the headquarters is anything to go by.
"I am going to send him to Antarctica." You declared frigidly as you and your Master jerk awake, your Master taking nearly no time at all to acclimate to wakefulness, unlike you.
"The guy at the door?" Your Master asks you, completely unbothered by being woken up at... whatever time of day it currently is.
"Trainwreck." You growl grumpily, disentangling yourself from your Master and allowing her to stand and walk towards the door.
Outside is what appears to be a door to door salesman. You are actually deeply confused by the development. What absolutely insane person would try to peddle wares here?
"Good morning! I represent Fortress Construction and -" The man, who looks like someone looked up the words 'Corporate Stooge' and then printed out the first image that turned up says cheerfully as your Master opens the door.
"She's not interested." You say with a smile, then slam the door in his face.
Your Master gives you a look. Then you sigh, and open the door again in time to catch the man about to attempt to knock once more on the door.
"Sorry, she's testy in the mornings." Your Master apologizes, earning a mild glare from you as you vanish from sight.
"That's... quite all right. Miss Hebert I presume?" The man says easily, holding a hand out and shaking with your Master.
"Yes. And you are...?" Your Master replies politely. The weirdness of seeing her answer the door to her Superhero Headquarters like a housewife answering a door to door salesman doesn't seem to dawn on her.
"Eddie Arslow. I work with Fortress Construction." He answers affirmatively.
"The... Endbringer Shelter guys?" Your Master offers after a second of thought. The man looks temporarily surprised that she's familiar with them but quickly returns to his unwavering smile.
"That's right! Most people don't know us very well - we aren't the only company that makes the Shelters after all. Very astute of you." Eddie compliments her. You roll your eyes.
"I figured I'd end up stabbing an Endbringer at some point in the near future so I looked up everyone who makes the Shelters in Brockton." Your Master answers easily. Again, the man seems taken aback by the casual way your Master describes 'stabbing an Endbringer' but continues with his spiel none the less.
"Well. As we're on the topic. Fortress Construction would like to offer you an endorsement deal. Funding for your team in exchange for use of your likeness when advertising our products - along with a few other things." He says smiling, and clearly expecting to be invited inside at some point.
'I'm getting Danny.' You say adamantly.
'Please!' Your Master pleads, obviously blindsided by the sudden offer. She was fine talking to the man right up until he reminded her she was pseudo famous. Honestly.
Thirty minutes later, you find yourself drifting behind Danny in the little office he was sleeping in, as he reads through the contract the salesman presented to your Master. It's probably for the best that you woke up her father - your Master seemed so flabbergasted by the man that he quickly moved to aggressively pushing for her to sign before she could fully read the thing. He was lucky her father hadn't physically attacked him by the time he was run off with a promise to phone after they had considered things.
"...Well?" Your Master asks anxiously, wringing her hands in front of her.
"It needs work," Danny answers immediately, pointing at several highlighted sections for emphasis.
"It says here they would own your likeness, not just be using it. You wouldn't be allowed to sell toys, t-shirts or anything else like that without changing your name and costume. They'd own it. There's also a sketchy clause near the bottom here that hints that you would be required to move to protect their Shelters above others in the event of an Endbringer attack."
"That's terrible!" Your Master gasps scandalized.
"It's probably fairly common, to be honest. I doubt they could enforce it. It's probably just there to make their Shelters more desirable to local governments. I wouldn't be surprised if all of the Shelter companies do this kind of thing." Danny answers pensively, flipping back and forth through the contract.
"Wonderful. If you want I can send that to the moon for you-" You begin, reach down to attempt to pluck the contract from Danny's grasp, only the be thwarted when he shifts it away from you.
"We can probably negotiate some of this. This is their best-case scenario but if we send a revised contract back they might accept it. Or they'll make their own revisions and put the ball back in our court. Leave it with me and I'll sort through it. If they can't accept the changes we don't lose anything." The man explains.
You scowl. It might be unreasonable to hold a grudge because of something as petty as waking you up early, but it's more than that. You simply don't like Fortress Construction. You just... can't explain why.
Annoyed, you eventually let it go, turning to your Master.
"So, oh illustrious face of Fortress Construction. What are we doing today?" You ask dryly. Your Master blinks at you for a second, then starts to laugh uproariously as if only just realizing something.
"Taylor?" Danny asks curiously, sharing a glance with you.
"It's just... Emma always used to brag about her job as a model - but she mostly did Winners catalogues and stuff like that. If this goes through I'll officially be a better model than her!" Your Master laughs, kicking her legs and holding her midsection as she cackles.
Eventually, she relaxes long enough to exhale, wiping a tear from her eyes and staring up at the ceiling pensively.
"Vicky wants to get together to celebrate tonight. Other than that, we don't really have anything pressing to do. Training?" She asks you, a glint in her eye.
Sometimes, just sometimes, you worry about what your Master considers 'fun' and 'relaxing'.