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A brief tale of a misty dawn stroll... You wake far earlier than usual, the dawn sun not yet touching the horizon. Despite how long you slept, you feel invigorated by a strange compulsion. Looking outside you see a low, light fog slowly roll in around where you took respite. Sensing the fresh scent of coming rain, you take a walk down a familiar path. The misty morning presented a natural filter to your surroundings, breathing deeply with life around you as you let your mind wander for a moment. The sun peering over the horizon brings you back from the awe inspiring morning, and you turn as if to return. However, the path you took is not as you remember. A misty lake with crystal clear turquoise water and sprawling mountain ranges now lay before you. While the sight was daunting, all your other senses noted a earie feeling of familiarity to your surroundings, and as you continue you begin to notice a reflection begin to appear in the glistening water. You gaze across the lake, searching for what seems to be shimmering in it's centre but cannot make out the object. The landscape appears as a moulded ideal of nature in balance; visually intense and yet calm and serene. Walking further along the path you come to a wooden bridge, painted red with bells and ribbons tied to each of it's posts. After crossing the bridge the figure in the centre of the lake becomes clear; a vast citadel, decorated with gold and brilliant shades of blue and purple. It's outer compound appears to be below the water's surface, with it's keep being accessed through a path leading across the lake, connected through islands and bridges between then. While you are acutely aware of the wonderous fantasy of what you are experiencing, the prevailing sense of being at peace calms your nerves. Hearing light footsteps approach from further along the path, you turn from looking upon the shining structure to see a woman, who beckons to you as your eyes meet. Her hair is dark, and she wears a white and red robe. On her wrists tied are bells and white ribbons; the same as those on the bridge, that seem to ring on with a soft echo as she continued her approach. "Welcome to Shin Shinkiro Seiiki; the New Mirage Sanctum" Your curiosity takes hold. "New Mirage Sanctum?" you query as the women walks up to your side. Matching her gaze, you look clearly upon the magnificent citadel. The sight fills you with an elation, and you indulge in your senses temporarily. "It is very impressive, but where am I?". "Not long ago, something happened. One day, our old sanctum vanished. We searched through the misty morass, but we couldn't find it." the woman replied, a note of longing in her voice. "This is our new sanctum, very much the same place, and yet entirely new." Missing vital pieces leaves you looking for clues. Not certain of the woman's demeanour, you moderate your response; "So, you built a new citadel?". The woman shakes her head, and you notice a curious misty smoke emanating from her earrings. Watching the smoke whisp away in the air you hear the chirping of birds and the singing of frogs; evidence of other life revealing itself for the first time. Alongside the sounds of flowing water and of the wind in the trees, the impression that this place is a wonder of life is embedded deep within you. "We didn't build it. We found it in the shrouded mists, just as you have" she said, closing her eyes in contemplation on the topic. The water seems to still for a moment, and you wonder about the peculiar situation you have found yourself in. Perhaps a dream, you wonder. Puzzled by her words, you press the topic. "Impressive, but strange. Where are we? What is this place?" you ask. The woman takes a deep breath before continuing. "We don't know, not anymore. You can walk it's bounds forever searching, and yet always find your way. The mists guide your steps and the path mirrors it's intent. The sanctum is as exactly as it appears to be..." she replies, trailing off as she leads to walk further along the path towards the next bridge. While crossing, you peer over the sides into the water and see an abyss of depth to the lake. Deep below the shimmering surface you see what appears to be a large fin darting in a shadowy crevasse. Unable to see whatever had caught your attention, your focus shifts to your own reflection. You recognize yourself in it's mirror like gleam, and inside you feel a sense of pride well from within. Your failures feel a little more manageable, and your victories warm your soul ever so slightly more. "A soldier long ago, said to be the visage of a goddess, honed her swordcraft for years through constant mortal combat. Later, when the sanctum revealed itself to her, she took upon many students, whom studied her style in it's grounds. The sanctum was a place where the the soldier's spirit could find rest for her soul, and immortality for her techniques." Noticing her vague and dismissive vernacular, you query it directly. "Who are 'we'?". You wander over to the edge of the water bank, and seat yourself on a large flat stone. The tone in the woman's voice changes to one of routine as she replies. "We are, or were, it's keepers. We manage it's Shrine and halls, and have devoted ourselves to achieving the same solace of soul the great soldier once did". You ponder the words of the Shrine Maiden. Vaguely cryptic conversation was less of the direct answer you were seeking, and desiring a more thorough understanding of your position incites another question; "Who are you? How can you speak for others?" A childlike grin appears across the woman's face for a moment as she turns to face you. She then bowed deeply, and spoke; I am ♦ Overview Given Name: Kagari Family Name: Amaya Gender: Female Bloodtype: AB ♦ Appearance Hair Colour: Black Eye Colour: Blue Height: 5'9" | 177cm ♦ Titles Occupation: Shrine Keeper of Mirage Sanctum Rank: Jounin Bingo Book Entry: A - Rank ♦ Traits & Personality Kind. Diligent. Excitable. Vengeful. Brash. Conniving. More fighter than lover Both scholar and soldier ♦ Pursuits & Hobbies Poetry. Art. Kenshibu. Shogi Debauchery. ♦ Skills & Talents Kagari as a child was born in a region suffering from a long drought. The people who lived there struggled to survive, and she grew small in stature as a result of a poor living. It was years into her childhood before she saw rain, and in her wonder of exhilaration at the sight and feeling of what she had come to know as a purifying, life bringing force, she wandered from her family home that misty morning. Her childlike wonder and joy guided her way, and the mists formed a passage to the Mirage Sanctum. The mists that purveyed it's grounds nurtured it's inhabitants, and the stunting that had diminished Kagari's early growth slowly began to reverse. There she met it's keepers, whom took her in and taught her of their history and ways. Soon she was told of the ancient heroes of Seiichi, and she learned of the first denizen of Mirage Sanctum; Mempo of the Shroud, and how her devotion to the Sanctum saw her become one with the mist itself. This was seen as an ascension of the physical body, beyond mortal coils. Mempo of the Shroud became the first Keeper to attain immortality of body through this process, and immortality of mind through spreading her techniques to her students. Thus the Shinkiro Kakure Dojutsu, the Hidden Mirage Way, was born, where mastery of and devotion to the Sanctum and it's ways could bring enlightenment and transcendence to a practitioner. Early on, Kagari presented as a good student, and learned their basic methods quickly. Her young mind absorbed all that was put before it, leaving her much time in the day to explore the other exploits of the Keepers. From them she learned of things useless to her as a child but vital in being courtly, such as politics, courtly manner and etiquette. As Kagari grew into her teenage years, she began to reject the finality of her devotion to the Sanctum, and sought to leave. However, whenever she attempted to escape the mists, the path would twist until it led back towards the citadel. Feeling stripped of her existence and detached from her image of self, she attempted to drown herself in the abyssal lake below Mirage Sanctum. Her body seemed to be welcomed by the ever darkening waters as she drifted deeper below. She let the glistening water into her lungs and suppressed her innate panic. As her vision darkened, and the sound of her slowing heartbeat began to echo in her mind, the icy water around her seemed to warm. A deep voice manifested in her mind. " Rare to see your kind come so deep. Perhaps you are... like she was... or perhaps not... " A flicker of consciousness sparked in Kagari's mind; she had yet to die after what had seemed like hours of drifting, completely surrounded by water. She sighed, coming to think that the Sanctum had bested her final attempt to return to her own people. Another flicker of thought then sent her mind into a web of logic that she could not come to understand. Now in a frenzy, unable to make sense of her situation, she scrambled to the surface. She could not tell if she was unable to hold her breath any longer and was frightened of drowning, or if the illogical panic she was thrust into had taken hold of her. After climbing to the surface and onto one of the banks of the Sanctum's many islands connected by it's bridge network, Kagari was again able to breath as was familiar to her. Confused and in a daze, she turned back towards the edge of the water, and stared at her reflection. Her mouth had filled with jagged, razored teeth, and slits had appeared on the sides of her neck. Kagari blinked to remove the water from her eyes, and as her vision cleared, her focus rested deep into the water, where a large fin flickered in the light far below the surface. As she tried to look more intently at the figure, her focus shifted again to her reflection, depicting only that of a cold, wet young woman. Kagari returned to her studies with a strange curiosity now planted deep inside her. Over a decade has since passed since Kagari's descent and her encounter in the abyss, and other such strange events that have moulded her character in many illogical ways. What new stories might her journals behold? No longer a young girl, both enlightened and deceived by the Mirage Sanctum and it's strange mechanisms, Kagari seeks to find transcendence as is the way of the Sanctum. Soon, through the misty path will come those capable or learning her teachings, and through cultivation of her arts and learning the secrets of the abyssal lake, she can attempt to unlock the history behind the disappearance of the old sanctum and the true meaning within the will of the mists. ♦ Goals - Take upon students who can travel freely to the Sanctum - Continue to learn of the Abyssal Lake and it's powers