Underground Turf War Catch-all! [OTA! Come toplevel!!!]

[baofeng]

Who ⬤ Open to all!
What ⬤ Catch-all log for the Underground Turf War
When ⬤ Throughout April: Dates within
Where ⬤ The Underground
Content Warnings ⬤ Please tag any cws in individual toplevels / threads!




This is a post to facilitate shenanigans regarding the Underground turf war! Feel free to park your toplevels below and tag around!

Summary of what’s going on:
The Underground is the network of subterranean utility / sewer tunnels under the city, previously held by the Kappa tribe. After the April 2022 Event, the Underground has been cleared out by the Department of the Enma and is now mostly unattended.

The Tamamo Clan and Shuten Clan have received orders from their leaders to take over the Underground. Unfortunately, there's two of them and only one Underground, so the two clans are fighting over it. (Tamamo Meeting Log) (Shuten Meeting Log)

The Sutoku Alliance is not willing to fight for the territory, but are intending to work out a deal with whoever wins the turf war to get the kappa back to work. The Department of the Enma is also more interested in investigating the Daitengu’s assassination than the turf war, but that means their Lost Souls can bring popcorn and watch the show. (more info here.)

Comments

[narbrawl]

[There's a moment of silence, a strange and dangerous beat in which Childe considers the request. Comrade or not, a part of him is wary of getting too close to Majima in this state; it feels almost like something out of a folk tale and, where he's from, they seldom have happy endings.

But he was forged by liars and snakes of a more metaphorical kind and that's not what he sees here.

A metallic clatter rings out around the tunnel as Childe abandons the pipe and heads over and crouches beside Majima. This time, his gaze is curious. Pull off the mask? At first, it feels like a riddle but now that he's closer...]

May I? [Without waiting for a response, he reaches out to feel along his scaled brow. Sure enough, there's something there.] Ah, I see. It's under here, then?

[no_kyouken]

[ The snake opens its mouth with a lazy hiss. Yes, to remove this mask one has to risk the snake's fangs. But he's just teasing! Just a little reminder! The snake lowers its fangs, wide mouth pulling into an ugly smile. His good eye glimmers humorously.

He tilts his head slightly to one side to let Childe feel out the seam. The scales there are more papery and thin than the soft, smooth plate of the others. Like it could be perforated and torn. ]

If you please.

[narbrawl]

[Childe's never seen a snake smile before and frankly he's still not entirely certain that's what just happened but he'll take it as a playful gesture regardless. Not a friendly one, mind; he knows better than to assume any degree of genuine amity when it comes to colleagues.

But he's here to help regardless. Both of Childe's hands come to rest on the snake's head, all ten fingertips searching for the weaker spots. It's only when his thumb tears through a line of scales as he experiments with pressure that it dawns on him just what he has to do. His eyes flicker downwards and he whistles, low and disbelieving.]

Ah. [He shifts into a kneeling position. Something to give him better leverage.] How troublesome for you. If my mask were this hard to take off, I wouldn't even bother.

[And, just like that, he digs his fingers into the ridge. There's more power in that body than his youthful features might suggest and the steeliness in his mouth is almost unsettling.]

[no_kyouken]

[ The mask starts to part from the snake's face in a puff of steam. Liquid flesh stretches between the scaled over decoration and the face underneath. Then the snake's body starts to drip and melt. The size of everything is changing, shrinking. The dripping mask is human-sized in Childe's hands and the snake unfurls from around the human that was wrapped up inside of it. It is a humid, stinking mess of flesh and white scales.

Majima spits a mouthful of dreck into the sewer waters, coughing and wheezing. He's steaming in the cool tunnel, standing there shaking liquid flesh from his suit jacket. Fucking disgusting... ]

Thanks.

[ He lifts a hand to wipe the dreck off his face, but he's covered in it. It's a pretty useless endeavor. ]

[narbrawl]

[Childe is, if nothing else, possessed of a strong stomach- and maybe there's something about this whole situation that strikes a familiar chord with him too. Resisting flesh, contorting bones and sinew, organs twisting and warping in ways they were never meant to in accomodation of alien shapes. Foul Legacy takes a similar toll on his body. It's easy to grit his teeth and push through the nausea when he's been through something like it himself, even as viscera oozes into the cuffs of his shirt.

With one final tug, the mask rips free. The force of it sends Childe falling backwards onto his ass, still gripping the slimy remains of his transformation in his hands. His forearms are streaked with it but it's nothing compared with how thoroughly coated the once-snake in front of him is.

The Harbinger blinks at him dumbly for a few moments, eyes flickering across his dripping form-

- and flops onto his back with a laugh.]

Wow, that's revolting. You do that every time?

[no_kyouken]

Yeah, yeah.

[ He mutters wearily. Where the fuck are his cigarettes and can he even light them while covered in this disgusting dreck... He pats around for them until he finds the smashed package in his back pocket. They're ok, if squished, so he puts one in his mouth and lights it with a frown.

He shakes a glob off his arm fussily. ]

Your turn next time, right?

[ He's joking with no insight into how familiar the transformation might have already been. ]

[narbrawl]

Sure. I'll hold you to that.

[It's hard to tell whether he's joking in turn or not- Childe isn't so sure himself.

Regardless, Majima looks disgusting enough for him to take pity and slide his scarf free from the clips holding it in place. He offers it to him to wipe his face in one hand along with the mask in the other and, as soon as he's taken them, peels off his gloves. The fabric, newly coated in some kind of viscous bodily fluid he doesn't even want to know the name of, clings stubbornly to his fingers.]

It's worth it though, isn't it? [He doesn't look up as he speaks, merely stuffing the gloves into his back pocket.] Gets easier too.

[no_kyouken]

[ Honestly, not the first time. Soo Won had done the same the very first time he transformed. He was drowning under the lake and the only way they were going to make it to the surface before they suffocated was to work together; with everything they had. ]

...Comes in handy, yeah. Be a dead a couple times over without it.

[ And yes, he gave some of himself up for that power. Childe can probably see that. The snake isn't always visible on Majima, but when there's a particular inclination to look for him... Chijoku is the ghostly white serpent that wraps in, around, through Majima. They are a knotted thing, there's no separating them now. ]

Sorry 'bout your scarf.

[ He gives a grateful little wince. ]

Can buy ya a drink in exchange or somethin'?