[Beasts ran from what they feared. Sometimes, when they could not run or when they felt they had something they needed to protect, they would face that object of their fear and bare claws, teeth, tusks, whatever could be used to defend them against something they could not anticipate either victory or loss over. Men were strange creatures. In many ways they reacted the same to what they feared as an animal might; these were the simplest situations. Others grew entranced with the power that that thing had over them, perhaps wishing to wield it themselves so that they could gain control over others. And still others more grew fascinated, as men were both blessed and cursed with the capacity to do such a thing: to seek out what was unknown, whether it was wise or foolish to do so. They sought out demons. They struck down gods.
Ryo's question is a difficult one. He knew it would be. The young man was keen, perceptive, and their conversations were never simple landscapes to navigate. His position shifts a little bit, his elbows coming to rest on his knees, back bowed as if the weight of the question itself was pressing down upon it. His brows furrow, simulating the stormcloud of his considerations.]
It is difficult to say. [His left hand crosses over to grasp his right forearm, at first perhaps in remembrance, though there's a tension there as well - as if to hold it in place.] This mark gives me great strength, for it wants something from me: to kill and destroy, as it once did, and especially the root of its corruption. Another might give in to its sway, and there would be nothing gained from it but more suffering.
[Instead Ashitaka decides to be the one that suffers, bearing the agony of the mark and keeping it leashed and caged as best to his ability. COST's intervention helped, but it was not perfect; it still snarled and snapped at the scent of violent intent, little more than a shark drawn to blood in the water.]
Regardless of who bears the curse, we all bear its effects.
[He sighs, weary, and moves yet again, this time coming to rest leaning up against Yakul's flank. The elk's eyes flicker open for a moment, taking note of him before sinking closed yet again. Ashitaka is silent for a long moment, allowing the unsettling final question to sink in, feeling it like a piece of lead in his stomach. He looks troubled, expression growing severe again; clearly the type of young man that weighs his words very carefully, for one misplaced here could perhaps end up costly.]
I would say, [he eventually begins, to answer such an impossible question,] that it would be truly a terrible thing, to rest upon one given person.
[Its existence is a mere hypothetical for him, but it is one that makes the burden of the curse written onto his body and tangled in his soul feel comparatively lighter. It only desired his own life and, barring that, whatever lives he could take before it was finally snuffed out. In the grand scheme of things, it was a small and petty grudge, one that would only ever effect Ashitaka and the people he encountered on his quest to find some way to rid himself of it.
But the entire world? Ashitaka's understanding of the world had been so small, back home - just seeing the lands beyond the territory surrounding his village had seemed like something so large he couldn't grasp it. COST had changed his perceptions, modified his perspective.
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Ryo's question is a difficult one. He knew it would be. The young man was keen, perceptive, and their conversations were never simple landscapes to navigate. His position shifts a little bit, his elbows coming to rest on his knees, back bowed as if the weight of the question itself was pressing down upon it. His brows furrow, simulating the stormcloud of his considerations.]
It is difficult to say. [His left hand crosses over to grasp his right forearm, at first perhaps in remembrance, though there's a tension there as well - as if to hold it in place.] This mark gives me great strength, for it wants something from me: to kill and destroy, as it once did, and especially the root of its corruption. Another might give in to its sway, and there would be nothing gained from it but more suffering.
[Instead Ashitaka decides to be the one that suffers, bearing the agony of the mark and keeping it leashed and caged as best to his ability. COST's intervention helped, but it was not perfect; it still snarled and snapped at the scent of violent intent, little more than a shark drawn to blood in the water.]
Regardless of who bears the curse, we all bear its effects.
[He sighs, weary, and moves yet again, this time coming to rest leaning up against Yakul's flank. The elk's eyes flicker open for a moment, taking note of him before sinking closed yet again. Ashitaka is silent for a long moment, allowing the unsettling final question to sink in, feeling it like a piece of lead in his stomach. He looks troubled, expression growing severe again; clearly the type of young man that weighs his words very carefully, for one misplaced here could perhaps end up costly.]
I would say, [he eventually begins, to answer such an impossible question,] that it would be truly a terrible thing, to rest upon one given person.
[Its existence is a mere hypothetical for him, but it is one that makes the burden of the curse written onto his body and tangled in his soul feel comparatively lighter. It only desired his own life and, barring that, whatever lives he could take before it was finally snuffed out. In the grand scheme of things, it was a small and petty grudge, one that would only ever effect Ashitaka and the people he encountered on his quest to find some way to rid himself of it.
But the entire world? Ashitaka's understanding of the world had been so small, back home - just seeing the lands beyond the territory surrounding his village had seemed like something so large he couldn't grasp it. COST had changed his perceptions, modified his perspective.
He has been silent for a few more moments.]
Beyond this, I am unsure what else I could say.
[He has always acknowledged his own limitations.]