Post by Alexander V. Terada on Jan 22, 2015 9:48:28 GMT -5
It sure was a sight, walking through this tunnel of light with twenty of so of his fellow class mates, each with a black hell butterfly fluttering in the air in front of them. They were heading for somewhere in the Human World, Japan specifically. Most of the people in the class had been looking forward to this, so there was a fair amount of excited chattering going on around him. It was only final years that got to do stuff like this.
"Okay. Quiet down now!"
They'd finally arrived in the Human World, and immediately Alexander could feel the difference, the ambient energy in the air was so much less dense here. It was some sort of large open construction site. There were huge sheets of blue plastic in all directions like walls of a single wide room, but no ceiling to speak of. The place was pretty bare, nothing had been built yet, with only piles of steel scaffolding rods, girders, and the occasional wheelbarrow. You could see the sun in the sky above. It must of been about midday, but with nobody around, no construction workers, the project had either been abandoned, or it was some sort of holiday or day of rest. The class instructor had taken up place in front of the rest of the group, and was giving a few final words before things got started.
"In our last lessons we covered basic Gigai operations. They're being brought through in a minute. In the meantime, does anyone have any questions regarding the use of these?"
The instructor's question was in regards to the memory altering, Kikanshinki device and to the Gikon both of which he held up for the class to see. There were no questions regarding them.
"I don't want to see either of these used. They are strictly for emergency use only. We're giving you one hour, anyone late back here gets a lap around the campus grounds, one for every minute they were overdue, so I suggest you get back here with time to spare."
Alexander took note of a tiny clock perched on a little table, along with a book, and a chair. It was one of those traditional alarm clocks, with the two mushroom bells on the top and the itty bitty hammer that'd thrash about between the two when a time was reached. Looking around, he also noticed some Shinigami coming through the Senkaimon that was still open behind them. They were coming through in pairs, carrying, drawn between them, by legs and shoulders, the Gigai that they'd be using. It was always unnerving, seeing them. Perfect copies of people you knew, limp and inert like dead bodies. The worst one came through with a particularly heavy set Shinigami carrying a pair of Gigai, one on each shoulder. Slung on to the ground, like a loose bag of rice, was Alexander's own Gigai. It went down on the ground with a soft thud. Looking at it, he couldn't help but wonder if someone had dressed it with some sort of twisted sense of humor, deliberately in a way that opposed Alexander's normal polite, and reserved personality. He didn't know too much about clothing in Human World, but a sleeveless shirt was kind of universal. It was wearing chain bracelets and a necklace, jeans and, was that gel in its hair? Then, of course, his mind went from, 'someone dressed my Gigai like this?' to 'someone dressed my Gigai.' Thinking about it, he was about to get into a body that anyone could have done anything to. What if... Ah, but he'd lost focus. He should be focusing on the lecture.
"Once you're in your Gigai, you'll notice that each one has in their pockets a small amount of local currency and a note detailing the approximate conversion rate. Keep an eye out for 'price displays' examples of which you've already seen in class. If you can't see them, go ahead and ask the staff in store, but keep social interaction here to a minimum. We are here to observe and to practice blending in. You'll also find a couple of tubes, they are spirit flares for if you find yourself in trouble. The green one is to be used if you're lost or injured, red is for immediate danger or Hollow attack. If any of you see a red flare fly up into the sky, then you are all to fall back here to this rendezvous site, immediately, without question. I want no heroics. Now, you may choose to pair up, or go out in small groups, or if you're feeling really brave, go out there by yourself. You might as well decide now while the Gigai are being brought through."
Alexander made the decision to go out by himself, since he felt he'd be able to move about easier and get a feel for the place that way. As the last of the Gigai came through the Senkaimon, members of Alexander's class started to get into them. He could only imagine how this would've looked to any normal human who'd seen this from the outside. A bunch of dead bodies suddenly appearing out of the air, floating along, before lining up on the ground and suddenly coming to life. Tentatively, Alexander went over to his Gigai, trying to flatten the hair a little bit before picking it up and getting into it.
"It's nearly two o'clock now, that's when we'll start sending you out. Once some of you are done."
That last comment had been directed to a class mate still having difficulty climbing into his Gigai, despite the fact that everyone else had already gotten into theirs. Alexander didn't have much difficulty getting into his own body, nor any moving it. The sensation once he'd gotten into the Gigai was rather odd, it didn't feel quite right moving about, and it would take some getting used to. As a few of the students did, Alexander did a few experimental stretches.
"I'll say it again to make myself clear. I want you all back in an hour. Anyone who comes back after that clock there says three o'clock, has a lot of running to do. Now we've chosen an area that's not too densely populated, but it's the middle of the day, so it may be busy. Don't make a scene and you'll be fine. If you do decide to buy something, then you may be permitted to take it back with you. We haven't given you too much of the local currency however, so make it a small souvenir or something."
Alexander wasn't certain if he wanted to buy anything, but with little else to do, he'd probably take a look around and see if there was anything that caught his eye. He'd heard that the main high streets in the Human World were somewhat different then the market places in the Rukon districts. Hopefully what he'd been told would adequately prepare him for what he was about to encounter.
"Alright, now that we all appear to be ready, I'll start sending you out. To avoid drawing attention, you'll be going out a few at a time. So prepare yourself, and when I send you through, get going. Ah, and I almost forgot. This should go without saying, but I don't want to see any of you out there trying to use spiritual powers. Apart from drawing attention, these Gigai are made to suppress spiritual powers. This is to make it harder, though not impossible, for anyone or more likely anything to sense your presence. Remember, try not to stray to far, and even if you're not in a group, try and stay in sight of the others."
Of course, Alexander had noticed that as well, once he'd gotten into his Gigai, his spiritual powers felt muffled, like they'd been wrapped up in a big, thick wad of cotton. Examining the stuff he'd found in his pockets, checking it was all there, Alexander took a look at some of the 'local currency', taking it out and leafing through it. He skimmed the note showing the conversion rate. They really hadn't given them that much to work with.
He waited for a short while, as other members of his group went out, a few at a time, until it was eventually his turn. Stepping out, there was a high wooden fence. A little to one side was a gap where a couple of the planks had been removed and put to one side. There was a Shinigami keeping an eye out, giving the all clear when it was okay to go through the gap and into the street. There was an all clear signal, already there the moment he ducked out under the blue scaffolding sheet. Hurrying, Alexander squeezed through the gap and was out. He saw some other students in the distance off in one way, and the students that'd been just ahead of him going off the other way. No idea which way the high street was, he just picked a direction and started walking.
It only took a few minutes to get to what seemed to be the main street. This was 'not too densely populated'? There were people all over the place, and cars. Yes, he'd learnt about those, the middle of the street was basically reserved for them and you didn't walk there. It'd be difficult to keep other students in sight as had been suggested, but as long as he didn't get lost and got back to the construction site on time, he should be okay. Still, he wished that his Gigai hadn't been dressed so garishly. It made him feel uncomfortable. But he couldn't just stand there all day. He began to walk along the street, keeping to the side by the building as everyone else was doing. Of course that was the thing to do, see how everyone else was behaving and act like them.
The thing that struck him was how bright everything was, even in the middle of the day like this, there were some sort of artificial lighting inside the stores, glowing white panels on the ceilings. One place caught his eye, even the sign appeared to be made of light. The Big E restaurant. It had a big curvy, bright yellow, capital 'E'. People inside appeared to be eating food on trays. Mostly they appeared to be drinking black stuff out of strange cups, with straws, though not everyone appeared to be having this particular confectionery, all of the ones with drinks had these strange cups. The food looked odd as well. As Alexander observed, there was some sort of meat pate wedged between bread, which came wrapped up in paper, and little yellow sticks. After watching through the window for a little while, he checked his watch. It was good, all the Gigai having one, he'd know how long he had.
"I have enough time I think."
He wasn't even sure if he was that hungry, but he'd missed lunch and this place had a certain smell to it as well. Whilst he was here, he thought he might as well try something new.
GP: 37
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