From Student to Teacher [Closed]

Erek heard the crashes-- and abruptly halted his movements. It could have just been a car accident, but that didn't mean it wasn't something else. Two steps forward and he squinted against the darkness- before his eyes narrowed on the shadows in the distance, the flash of blue energy filled the air-- Quincy. A loud one at that, she was screaming enough to let the whole neighborhood something was wrong, and that something was most definitely the Hollow-- her attacks didn't appear to be doing too much to its hide. A hierro using beast then.

She halted and the roar from the Hollow signified it intended to attack-- his eyes narrowed a bit, and he lowered his center of gravity before he was off like a blur. He had to thank Mei for the lessons when it came to Hirenkyaku-- flashing forward he became a blurring line, just in time for the beast to rear itself up, the woman was clearly preparing to fight. Erek's fists clenched, his veins blurring with blue energy-- before the beast roared. Its claws shot downward-- in time for Erek to slam into the beast from the side, his Hirenkyaku granting him the momentum-- and his raw power doing the rest.

His arm had extended, a lariat from the side-- his arteries pulsing with reishi as his pupils dilated, for a single moment Chieko had the completely alien view of a man wearing cargo pants, combat boots, and a black T-shirt with a biceps nearly as large as his head-- lariating a Hollow by the side of its neck. Then the world caught up, and the impact of Quincy's raw force of his surprise attack smashed into the Hollow. The large body shifted-- and then went flying head over heels into the side of the building instead as Erek landed-- skidding along the ground as he focused his eyes on the beast. He flexed his arm a few times.

"Damn you're dense as hell," he commented under his breath before he called back to the woman.

"Once you get a free shot, feel free to bombard it, I doubt that took it down!" Even as he spoke, Erek's eyes remaining on the dust cloud where the Hollow was currently floundering in, trying to get up. After a few moments it managed it-- hauling itself up, its shoulder that was connected to the side Erek had hit was bent awkwardly-- clearly having dislocated it, perhaps broken it as it hissed lowly in pain. Erek would shift himself, keeping himself between the woman and the beast as the blue glow that was focused on his main arteries spread-- instead shifting to coat his entire vein network as he prepared to go on the defensive now, he could use his spirit weapon if he needed too-- but he needed the practice with his Blut.

The only person he'd managed to test it with was Dresden briefly on instinct-- beyond that, he hadn't actually gotten to actively use it on anyone, just train with it with Frey's help. He made sure to stay out of the way of any attacks that Cheiko fired, and focused purely on egging the Hollow into attacking him, not her, lifting his hand up and giving a smug smirk as he gave the standard "Come on" to the beast as it snarled at him-- clearly displeased that he'd taken out the usage of one of its arms. Settling on him as it braced itself before it lunged-- large claws lashing outward to dig into his flesh, before Erek slammed his own hand forward to meet it, grasping the beasts razor like claw bare-handed and yanking. Hurling it over his shoulder in a Judo-toss into another building.

He clenched his hand a few times-- noting that he didn't have any cuts on his fingertips. So that meant it was probably safe to use Blut Arterie primarily then-- good, that meant he could beat the hell out of it. Clenching his fists, the reishi again shifted as his raw power increased, preparing to jump right after the beast and tackle it bare handed, but he didn't act yet-- for one he wasn't sure what the young woman would do, and for the other he couldn't see the Hollow through the dust cloud just yet. He briefly wondered if putting it in a headlock with blut arterie would allow him to shatter its mask and head in one fell swoop.

It was a plan that was worth a try if nothing else.

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Erek blinked a few times-- as with his interference it would appear the young woman would have no difficulty, now that the beast had focused on him it'd given her an excellent opening to land a direct hit utilizing her Ginto and Seele-- by the time everything cleared, the beast fell with a thud, disintegrating into particles as his head tilted a bit before he grunted and cracked his knuckles a bit. That hadn't been nearly as much of a test-drive as he had expected it to be, but that was fine, he doubted he wouldn't get other opportunities in the future. His gaze followed the young woman as she flickered to stand on the building as the light flashed around her-- she had clearly pushed herself judging from the sheen of sweat decorating her body-- but she appeared uninjured at the least.

Straightening a bit, he glanced at the Hollow to make certain it was indeed dead-- before he would focus entirely on the young woman. A polite smile formed on her lips as she thanked him, raising a hand and shaking his head slightly as the blue veins pulsed rapidly, the reishi slowly beginning to fade from his body-- though he seemed to be constantly pulling the energy in on a subconscious level. How well she could sense that was down to her own ability to sense spiritual energy. As she introduced herself, stepping forward and offering her hand he would take it firmly-- giving her a single strong shake before taking his hand back and placing it behind his back as his posture straightened.

"Erek Blackmore, Knight of the Order. A pleasure to meet you miss Chieko," he would state smoothly, voice deep and gravely-- before he would tilt his head a bit at her statement on Quincy being in the area.

"Yes, this is my usual patrol grounds-- however there are none that violent under standard conditions, I'll have to make a note of it in my report-- Karakura is a high spiritual zone, so it's to be expected, but--" he scratched the scruff decorating his chin, making a mental note that he needed to shave as he contemplated the line of thought for a moment. "-- Well, they're supposed to be weaker right now," his eye glanced at the last of the spiritual particles disintegrating into the air as he released a sigh and shook his head, it was a thought for later, it wasn't like it was a secret, stating the obvious was a waste of time-- he must be tired of he was doing such things. Instead, he would bring his focus onto the blonde with a concerned look to his eye.

"You weren't hurt, were you? I tried to make sure I had its attention, but sadly my perception is too weak at the moment to fight blind in the dust cloud," his eyes looked her over once more-- she looked fine, but there was no harm in checking, the acid that the hollow tended to give off could leave nasty burns to those without a strong defence. The woman was quite attractive, and his eyes certainly lingered briefly on area's of her anatomy-- but he didn't spend time ogling. Simply making note of her beauty, before returning politely to her eyes as he noticed the fact she was very-- well-- bright.

From her hair to her eyes, even her outfit-- brilliant gold and blonde hues, now that he thought about it, her gun had also been golden. What an odd contrast with his own plain, normal outfit and appearance. Shaking such thoughts from his head he would allow a slight smile to form on his lips once more as he glanced around.

"You used quite a tubes in that battle-- though they were quite impressive, I doubt you have many left-- do you mind if I walk you back to a safer area?" his hands tucked behind his back-- unlike the young woman, he had no limitations based on the tubes or seele-- he had little use for the weapons, especially since he didn't like them too much even if he had some level of skill in their usage. It made it quite useful when it came to these situations, he could make sure he was able to keep his fellows safe. His voice was obviously concerned, and though his face was stern-- there was a slightly concerned frown decorating his harsh features.

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The young woman's face contorted into confusion as he mentioned The Order-- but he was allowed to continue his words, his hands retaining their position behind his back as she-- Cheiko-- would explain she hadn't intended to run into the beast. Unfortunately, this was the worst area to expect yourself to manage such a thing. Though before he could comment too heavily she had pulled out an interesting little seele that appeared to be some sort of miniaturized version, single handed and more dagger-like than sword-like. For a brief moment his mind went toward Rick's specialized seele-- though an altered version may be a bit more useful in Cheiko's case due to her spirit weapon, a firearm-- specifically a pistol of some sort if his eyes hadn't deceived him.

"There's a man named Rick that you may find is worth approaching, I'll give you the address to his shop-- he likes to talk, but he has some useful inventions. If you need customized selee that are more comparable to a bullet than a blade he can likely help you-- he's already designed some specialized seele that can explode on command. I'm sure a basic re-shape wouldn't be difficult for him." As he explained this he would smile as she approved of him walking her, inclining his head a bit in thanks before he would arch a brow as she questioned what The Order was. He had assumed it was common knowledge amongst Quincy-- but then, he supposed that was odd for him to assume considering how little he had known not a few months ago.

Still-- he had been a bit of a unique case. A newly awakened Quincy that had never known of the spiritual world wasn't exactly going to know anything-- despite that, he had no room to judge.

"I'd be happy to tell you about it-- I'm not sure how out of touch your family has been, but I can give a brief breakdown of the last two monarchs whose names actually matter," as he explained this he would let out a soft chuckle in response to her comment about getting down, nodding his head a bit as he stepped off the edge as a platform of reishi manifested underneath his footing. Glancing back and offering her to hop on, if she refused he would simply lower on his own until they were down on the ground, Erek's gaze glancing over the damage to the streets as he let out a brief sigh. Usually, they tried to keep the damage minimal-- he'd have to let the Order know some hush money may be needed along with the repairs considering the several blocks of damage from where the beast had been chasing her.

It didn't help he'd hurled it into a building-- twice. He grimaced at that thought, he'd gotten far too excited about the idea of being able to use his blut in combat and now he was paying the price as it was-- or at least later he would when he got an earful.

Shaking his head, he would turn his gaze toward the young woman as he offered a polite smile, motioning her to lead-- since he had no idea where she wanted to go, he would then quickly fall in line beside her as his arms moved behind his back once more. Contemplating where to begin-- but he didn't want to repeat any information she may know, so he supposed a question was the first goal.

"According to your knowledge, do you recall who the last monarch was? Or is your knowledge not of Kings and Queens-- and instead based on the council?" as he inquired this, he would glance down at her curiously-- while keeping an eye on their surroundings, just in case they were attacked again. Sadly once one hit, it was like a smell-- often they just kept coming, attracted by the scent of blood and reishi. Hopefully this time they'd be off free considering the distance it had chased her across town.

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The girl blinked in confusion at the mention of Rick-- it would seem she had absolutely no idea about any of the other Quincy in the area. He would have to poke around for her a bit and see if he could get some information compiled for her to contact some others in the area-- glancing over his shoulder at the sirens he increased his pace just a bit until they rounded the corner. It wasn't like he didn't have ways of getting out of that, but he was most certainly not in the mood to deal with unaware police officers thinking he or Chieko had purposely started a ruckus and demolished half a block somehow.

Of course, then the next bit of information would be offered-- and the young woman would not only state that she had absolutely no idea of the monarchy but also seemed to think that somehow they had all fallen back into the ancient nomadic ways of the clans. That seemed overwhelmingly odd-- though it was true some had separated he knew, he didn't understand why she would think that unless she had been specifically told lies-- or perhaps those that told her had been ignorant somehow, but that seemed unlikely. Shrugging, he let it go and would instead contemplate the best way for him to explain everything-- this was interrupted however by the soft swearing in German.

His brow arched and caught the shift in her dialect as he instead would offer an amused rumble in the back of his throat-- it seemed despite her bright and effeminate appearance she was a bit of a rougher individual than he thought initially with a mouth on her like that. As they walked, Erek braced his hands behind his back, his posture straight and movements perfectly aligned-- clearly practiced. To anyone that had any experience in such things, the posture and movements were clearly military in origin. At her comment regarding her parents completely lying to her, he would shake his head a bit.

Notably, his dialogue would shift into fluent German-- partially because she was clearly slightly more familiar with it, and partly because it would increase the likelihood that they could talk privately without issue. Still, he kept his volume down to just below a normal tone of voice.

"If it helps, there was certainly a council-- but there hasn't been one for three monarchies now, though the only ones worth noting are Weylin von Wolfenstein-- the second crown king, and second monarch, and Freyleif Jökulsdóttir-- the first crown queen, and third monarch. The monarchy has been in power for quite some time-- but they weren't completely wrong. Some clans did separate from the Order and returned to nomadic or simply separate workings not wishing to work with a monarchy. But the Order is most certainly still alive and thriving." As he explained this, they walked along steadily along now familiar roads.

Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he blinked a moment as she inquired about any bar's, debating it a moment as his eyes trailed along the area-- after a few moments to find their position, he would nod with a slight smile. He liked a woman that could handle her booze-- especially right after a life threatening battle, they were always the most fun to be around, especially on the battlefield.

"Yes there's one I go to occasionally-- though usually, I go to the alcohol store next to it," he stated with an amused chuckle before he would move forward, leading the way now instead though he kept her close to his side just in case. As he moved he would glance back at the young woman curiously, arching a brow as a thought occurred to him.

"Perhaps your family is one of the clans that separated, due to being upset by the new monarchy system?" it was a possible reason why she had no idea about any of this-- and similarly it would explain why they would neglect to mention any details regarding the Order as a whole to her. Especially if they cut ties, it was entirely possible they had no idea it was still thriving in the least.

"You're also welcome to ask anything you wish-- I'm happy to help," as he stated this, they would begin approaching a small bar tucked into the corner of two streets meeting, pushing the door open to a soft ring, the barkeep glancing up and raising a hand in greeting. Erek returned it, before motioning toward one of the small tables so they could have privacy-- though no one was in this late at night. The perfect private bar to talk, German or no.

"What would you like?" He inquired simply, pulling the chair out for her politely and obviously intending for her to sit before he went to get them both their drinks from the bar keeper.

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When it became apparent that Erek also spoke both Japanese and German through his chuckle, Chieko most definitely got quieter with her swearing. She wasn't quite sure if he understood what she was saying, but she didn't want to make herself look bad if he did. Of course, when he switched to speaking quite fluent German, she immediately felt the embarrassment wash over her. The only reason she had started swearing in German was because she had thought that she wouldn't have been understood. Still, she listened intently to what he had to say, filing the information away as best as she could. There had indeed been a council. But it was replaced by three monarchs..one of which was a queen. Interesting. Really, a Monarchy almost always would go to a man. That made for two Monarchies run by women that she knew of now. One that was part of the normal world, and one that was a a part of the world she resided in.

Still, she needed that drink. Thankfully, Erek seemed to agree with her sentiment, and started them off on a path towards a bar. God, now she really needed that drink to calm herself down. Still, it was good to know that there was some kind of order. Admittedly, she figured that joining up with other Quincy wouldn't be that bad of an idea. She only barely was paying attention when he mentioned that maybe her family had cut off from the Monarchy due to not approving of it. Admittedly, it made sense. Still, she simply shrugged the suggestion off. "Well, if it was, then I have no way of finding out. My father has vanished again. The only difference this time is that I have no idea where he is. I could as my mother, if she hadn't been killed by a Gillian before she could finish training me." She said, almost casually. She had grown to accept these issues. This just threw another bit of things she had to accept into the mix. It wasn't that big of a deal to her, really.

Of course, her primary distraction over this whole conversation had been that she was mulling over the idea of joining with a larger group of Quincy. On the one hand, it would be much more helpful for her to learn from more experienced Quincy. On the other hand, she'd likely have some kind of limitations put on her. Still, she couldn't help it. She was too curious about the order to pass this opportunity up. Still, she wasn't going to just randomly bring it up in the middle of a conversation. Luckily for her though, her companion actually said that if she had any questions, he would have no problem with answering them. She simply nodded at that, soon settling into the seat that her companion had pulled up for her with a quiet 'thank you'.

Of course, when asked what she wanted to drink, she simply smiled. "Have the bartender give you a regular glass, then have him fill it with a combination of chilled Vodka and Peppermint Khalua. Make sure he holds the ice too, I don't want my alcohol watered down, after all." She said as she leaned back into her seat. Really, that was a very large drink. And given her figure, drinking it all at once was bound to be a bad idea. But that wasn't her plan. She just planned to sip on it until they finished talking, and possibly just leave it there with however much of it was actually gone.

Once he returned, she thanked him once again, taking a long sip of her drink before putting it down onto the table. Oh yes, that was a good drink. She had a definite question for Erek, but she would at least let him sit down and relax for a few moments. She was admittedly still debating this, even though her natural desire to learn more was tugging her more in one direction than it was in the other. Still, she had decided. "So..lets say I'm interested in this Order. What would I need to do to become part of it?" She asked, her tone much calmer and quieter than it had been before.


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Erek didn't comment when it came to her parents, shrugging slightly-- though she claimed it wasn't a big deal he was also quite aware that there was practically no way anyone could be fine with the death of a parent. Even if they had accepted it-- the discussion was a minefield. He wasn't socially adept enough to try and dodge those mines either, better to simply let the subject slip and make a note that her knowledge was lacking as well now that he had a reasoning that made sense as to why. With this in mind, he would simply tuck his hands behind his back and continue walking along quietly-- letting the conversation ease into a halt, for now, he was certain she needed the time to think anyway.

Once she settled down-- her arched a brow at her order.

"So basically a Peppermint White Russian, hold the cream." he contemplated that, shrugging-- it seemed odd but everyone had different tastes, stepping toward the bartender and taking both their orders to the man before accepting the chilled-- but not iced drink, and his own Irish coffee-- he was hesitant initially, uncertain if they would make a good one in this area, but when he sipped it from the large glass he was pleasantly surprised and sat back with it resting lightly in his hands.

Then, of course, came her question-- and he cocked a brow as she went straight to the heart of the issue, causing a soft chuckle of amusement to form from his lips as he intertwined his fingers around the glass.

"Simple, you ask," he stated simply as his fingers lightly drummed against the drink-- taking another sip before he would continue calmly.

"All Quincy are welcome in the Order-- we're no longer the elitist, purist fools that want everything to be perfect and pureblood-- we even accept aware humans that want to learn to harness reishi." A slight shrug would be added to this statement.

"Basically if you join you'll be named either as a new member or Knight, depending on your level of skill, experience, and trustworthiness-- you're given an access card that will grant you information, training, and general access comparable to your cards tier. From there, you earn rank through achievements, actions, and dedication-- just like any other professional organization. As you prove yourself, you gain access to more information-- it's pretty simple." Leaning back a bit, he waited-- figuring that this would spur on several more questions-- he was briefly reminded of his first interactions with Alex, causing a brief smile to play at his lips in amusement.

He'd been even less used to this role then-- at least this time around he had a bit more experience and understanding under his belt, answering questions would be a lot easier with what he knew now. It was a welcome distraction from the thoughts of Freyleif, and especially the questions of his own that had begun to boil to the surface-- unanswered. Giving others the answers to questions that they were seeking helped ease the strain, even slightly-- and push such thoughts from his mind.

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When Erek explained to her how simple it was to become part of this 'Order', Chieko blinked in her surprise. She had expected things to be a bit more difficult than merely asking. But she wasn't going to question that. Especially since that seemed to come from a member of the order itself. Of course, his explanation of everything actually made a bit more sense. Their elitist attitudes in the past had ended with everything falling apart, even if they had reached a new peak of power at the time. Their own unwillingness to cooperate when it mattered most had led to the Culling. So, in a way, it made sense to include anyone that was spiritually aware among their numbers as well. She knew from personal experience that some humans had a more potent power set than even a quincy could, which tended to stem from the fact that every person could develop a power that was wholly unique to them.

Still, as she listened to his explanation, Chieko stirred her drink a bit with the small straw that had come with it, allowing the vodka and the khalua to mix, creating a more pleasant taste than it would normally have. Sure, she could have just asked for peppermint vodka. But most places tended not to have that in stock until it neared the holidays, and she liked peppermint enough to figure out ways to get it in her drinks throughout the year. However, when Erek stopped, it became quite apparent that he was waiting for her to ask questions. She really only had one big question to ask. But she still figured she could ask a few others while she mentally processed the wording of how she was going to ask the big one.

She took another little sip of her drink, actually sipping from the large glass she had been given. "I see. Bolster our numbers by including those with inherently different powers than our own. It's a smart move." She said, her tone having shifted into an even more serious one as she worked to parse out the logic behind all of this. Really, she had plenty of intelligence to back up her curiosity. "So I suppose my first question would be how spread out this order is. I doubt it's centered in any one place. But if I had to guess, I would imagine that the headquarters is somewhere in Germany, correct?" She asked, her head resting in one hand while she idly stirred her drink with the straw a bit more. It wasn't quite properly mixed, and it really wouldn't be able to properly mix because of how it was being mixed, and the inherent differences in weight between the khalua and the vodka.

Of course, for every question she did ask, there were several in the back of her mind that she was tempted to ask, but wouldn't. Some because they were questions she had no business knowing about ahead of time. Others because they were too personal. Others still that simply didn't pertain to this discussion. Still, she didn't really stop asking questions, giving him no time before posing another question. "And with that on the table, I suppose I should probably ask if I would need to make a trip to the headquarters itself. I highly doubt that this Order of yours accepts new members without vetting them through the people at the headquarters itself. She said before falling silent, having realized that neither question would be answered if she didn't quiet down long enough for him to speak.

Really, she couldn't help it. This whole discussion had really piqued her interest. With her interest came those inherent notes of passion and curiosity that she was so well known for. She really was a touch different from most of the Quincy that she had met. She wanted to learn, but not at the slow pace that she had been forced to learn about her powers. She was intelligent, but most of that intellect was driven towards sating her curiosity. She was even different than Erek. Where he was cold and almost like a soldier, she seemed to be warm and inviting, almost carelessly cheerful. It was strange. But it was what she was. Still, she was going to wait. She took another sip of the mixture she had created, letting out a tiny shiver of pleasure as the liquid burned its way down her throat, the notes of peppermint hitting soon after.

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She looked a bit surprised at his simple statement but seemed to roll along with the punch relatively well. Relaxing and coming up with her own questions instead-- predictably, they came quickly and without room for him to answer initially, he was patient and allowed her to speak as she wished-- paying attention to each question as it was fired at him. Sipping his drink lightly as he waited, once the initial wave had completed he would offer a slight smile at the passionate blonde before beginning.

"There are few aware humans that are non-Quincy as is-- so bolstering our numbers is a bit of an inaccurate statement. I think it's more the fact we can say that we're trying to move past old issues," he shrugged a bit, before continuing, "--As far as I'm aware, the Order is world wide. Clans, affiliated loosely or at least aware of the Order are across the world-- when I was found in New Mexico by a small clan, despite not being directly affiliated with the Order-- that is where they took me. So, even if it's indirect-- they are international."

Raising a hand he would tap the glasses rim lightly with a fingertip.

"Germany-- Berlin, specifically, is the headquarters, though I'm hoping to put in a recommendation shortly that will help ease that a bit-- having the main headquarters there is fine, but it's a bit difficult to just get too. I'm hoping to encourage Frey to build secondary command centers, with the Castle in Berlin being changed to High Command. It would make things far easier for everyone, I think." his gaze then trailed toward the drink as he contemplated the second question, before releasing a sigh with a slight nod.

"Honestly, yeah. I mean I can try to get you "phoned in" so to speak-- but you'd still need to meet them eventually to get your security clearance, and that's where much of the lore and everything is anyway, it'd be better to just go and get it all taken care of in one fell swoop," he scratched at his chin lightly, before he would allow his gaze to focus on her, blue eyes meeting violet eyes.

"Right now I think the best thing to do would be for me to contact them and let them know you're interested, give them basic information on you, and then set up a date for you to come and visit personally-- if you're interested in joining," he added the last part, because he didn't want to feel like he was pressuring her. As with Alex, he was content just giving information and helping his fellow Quincy out-- whether they were part of the Order or not. Pressuring someone into joining something that they weren't ready for only led to catastrophe after all.

With that, he would then motion for her to go on-- he was sure she had an overflowing amount of questions, and he offered a slight smile of amusement-- clearly not minding answering as many as she had. They had plenty of time, and he had a nice drink and a pretty face to go along with it. Sipping the alcohol lightly he would rest his chin in his palm, waiting patiently for whatever questions she had next-- he assumed they would be related to the Order, but there was no guarantee. She was the passionate, curious type-- they tended to bounce from one topic to the next looking for as many answers as they could.

Especially when they got riled up or excited-- he couldn't tell if she was going to go that route or not, but the alcohol was likely going to help in it either way-- of that he had little doubt. He would just have to wait and see how her personality meshed with the situation at hand, he supposed.

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Erek would nod as she clarified her joining was no longer hypothetical-- and offered a slight smile in response.

"I assumed so, but didn't want to pressure you," he clarified simply before he would sip his Irish coffee idly-- listening to her as she would then begin to ask questions regarding Rick, it was a fair enough question. She had obviously shown some interest previously in his comment about changing the seele into something more akin to a bullet. Though the fact she thought there would be a charged made him chuckle softly-- he supposed it was a safe way to look at things, but he wondered how many people considered this a business.

"I went to Rick myself for training-- I doubt he would ask for any sort of payment-- in fact, I'm almost certain that he would be happy to take you as a student-- keep in mind, he does like to talk quite a bit," A slight smile played at his lips, before he would allow his fingers to lightly play along the glasses edge in thought-- her other question was a bit more complex on who exactly Rick was. Scratching his chin a bit he contemplated it, before shrugging, and deciding to start at the basics.

"His name is Rick Rogers-- an American Quincy, blonde, quite tall-- an engineer, and mechanic by trade, specializing in Holy Artifacts and Soul Synthesized materials-- in terms of Reishi control he's probably in the top five Quincy I've met-- with Frey at the head." As he explained this he would take a sip of his drink to let her process, before he would tilt his head a bit and continue. "--He runs a little shop for the locals of Karakura-- I can give you the address of the place, he's usually happy to help-- though his training methods are a bit spartan if he handles you like he handled me." Briefly, he recalled the man trapping him in the airtight coffin to force him to awaken his reishi control, an amused smirk forming on his lips-- to a normal person he was fairly sure that would be terrifying.

Whether or not the girl was "normal" or not wasn't his call to make-- but he figured he should at least warn her beforehand.

"I would say that if you want to cut to the chase with him to catch his attention, the first idea that comes to mind is asking him about the explosive seele he's made-- and compacting them into bullets instead of what he has them at current. It would probably pique his interest and get your foot in the door if you know some about Holy Artifacts-- or are interested in knowing more. Get him talking about them and he probably won't shut up." A slight smirk formed on his lips, before he would shrug a bit as he then leaned back.

"Sadly I don't have much more to learn from him-- I'm not much of an artifact, long ranged guy, if you hadn't noticed," he chuckled softly as he sipped his drink-- obviously referencing his lariat on the Hollow. Though his artery had definitely been lacking a bit in that-- not nearly enough time to warm up. He briefly wondered where he would be if he had a bit of time to re-adjust-- well, it was worth a thought for the future. Glancing down as he noticed his cup empty he arched a brow, setting it to the side as he looked at her, sure she had more-- but a thought did occur to him.

"How long have you been fighting Hollow?" he was curious-- to date, he had yet to meet another Quincy that had only recently awakened-- it would appear he was truly an oddity, likely due to not being in a high "Spiritual Environment" for most of his life-- but still, it was odd to him. If she knew as little as it seemed, perhaps she hadn't been at this long either-- he knew that sometimes Quincy children were not born with their powers awakened, and it was forced depending on the clan. But it would be rude to assume anything-- better to just ask and be certain.

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A slight smile formed on his lips at her words and Erek inclined his head in agreement.

"Yeah, I prefer physical combat-- melee-- I'm a bit of a rarity among Quincy it would seem." A dry chuckle left his lips before he pondered her next answer to his question-- she'd been a Quincy for quite a while, but hadn't actually been an active participant in battling Hollow until the last year. So she still beat him out by quite a bit all things considered, but he supposed that just proved how much of an oddity he really was. Releasing a breath lightly he would place his fingers underneath his chin once more-- she clearly wasn't a stranger to Hollow combat.

He could tell that much because she wasn't a shaking, screaming mess after the battle. That meant she'd experienced life or death situations already in the past enough that it didn't affect her-- though the same could be said for him, in a way. He had no spiritual combat experience, but plenty when it came to combat experience in general. She then clarified that despite her years of experience-- she had little actual knowledge due to the spiritually thin area she lived in for most of her early life. He nodded his head a bit, expanding oneself into another country just to understand your powers was something he was intimately familiar with.

"I was in a similar situation-- so I can understand. I wasn't even a Quincy until two months ago-- got shipped from America to Berlin, and then to Japan. Luckily I was used to traveling due to my previous occupation." He chuckled drying in amusement as he rested his chin in his palm once more.

"I did figure you were a bit new to the combat-- or perhaps rusty. Usually, someone that's experienced won't run out of ammunition in a battle unless they underestimated the threat." As he spoke, he didn't sound mocking or judging-- simply as if he was speaking a natural fact. Straightforward and blunt, as he usually was as he arched a brow at the slight blush-- yet she had her wits about her still, it would seem the woman was no stranger to her alcohol at the least.

A slight grin formed on his lips as he would arch a brow, if the girl was rusty in her combat experience then he had an idea.

"I'm after training partners-- if you're up for it. I've been getting better but the issue is that I'm still pretty new to all this as well-- experience in spiritual combat goes a long way. Keeping a blade sharp every day instead of letting it dull and all that-- if you're willing, we could start hunting together-- and perhaps training together and offering one another pointers. Our combat styles are too different for me to actually teach you much-- but that doesn't mean we can't help one another out." It was a similar situation to what he had with Leon-- the more he trained with those that didn't fight like him, the more easily he could train new Quincy in the future that didn't fight like him as well.

It was valuable experience either way-- and to top it off it would help her grow as well and gain more skill-- while having a partner to help keep her safe if she messed up on a hunt or mission. The same, of course, could go be said for him.

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