IC Inbox
Is it all right? This arrangement.
Action ❀ Text ❀ Voice ❀ Video
Is it all right? This arrangement.
Action ❀ Text ❀ Voice ❀ Video
Entry tags:
Thread Tracking
September
01 - System Update | Various [ ☑ / ☒ ] Souza is uploaded in the system and underestimates how interesting a living sword's presence really is. [Threads with: Shinpachi, Motochika, Hijikata, Horikawa, Jin, Hotarumaru, Tosshi, Mikazuki, Florian, and Gintoki]
01 - Open Log | Atsushi Toushirou [ ☒ ] Atsu explores the system, tackling and checking up on everyone he knows. Souza is no exception.
?? - I Believe In the Fear of the Man Who Will Make The Discovery | Atsushi Toushirou [ ☒ ] Atsu doesn't tackle him this time, and they begin to touch base.
?? - I Believe In the Fear of the Man Who Will Make The Discovery | Tetsuya Kuroko [ ☒ ] Souza explores the system and finds someone asleep in the hot spring.
10 - Writers Will Cram Several Plots Into One 30 Minute Episode Just to Save Money. | Gintoki Sakata [ ☒ ] Nobunaga is an Evil CEO.
October
01 - Open | Kousetsu Samonji [ ☒ ] Unpleasant reunions.
15 - A Dark and Troubling Kind of Knowledge. | Mitsuhide Akechi & Motochika Chosokabe [ ☒ ] A troublesome graveyard visit brings up traumatic memories.
November
01 - Roll Call | Toshirou Hijikata [ ☒ ] Souza scares the pants off Hijikata with some corrupted audio.
04 - Home Sweet Home / Reflective Heat | Toshirou Hijikata [ ☐ ] Souza and Hijikata get trapped together in this glitch. Joint trauma ensues.
?? - Home Sweet Home / Don't Go Breakin' My Heart | Data-Roxas [ ☐ ] Souza and Roxas get trapped together in this glitch, and Souza learns far more about Kingdom Hearts than he ever knew he never wanted.
?? - Home Sweet Home / And You Will Be Remade | Mitsuhide Akechi [ ☒ ] thingsthathappen
December
08 - A Marvel Light, a Daze of Gold | Toshirou Hijikata [ ☐ ] Souza and Hijikata have to relive physical effects of fire trauma. Hijikata takes it much better.
January
01 - System Update 2.00 | Ash [ ☐ ] Souza confronts the dev about why certain people are deemed unworthy of staying and doesn't get a satisfactory answer.
14 - Event Open | Hijikata Toushirou [ ☐ ] The saga of encountering locked doors continues.
15 - Event Open | Nishiki Nishio [ ☐ ] thingsthathappen
Monad App
OOC Information
IC Information
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
IC Information
Name: Souza Samonji
Canon: Touken Ranbu
Gender: Male
Age: ~875 years old.
History:
[ Game ] [ Character ] [ Meta 1, 2 ] [ Swordsmith ] [ With Nobunaga ]
Personality:
"... Souza Samonji, present. Do you too, desire the Symbol of Conquerors in your service?"
Souza's line when you first obtain him sheds light on how jaded he is towards life - how he's used to being owned and kept and passed around from (important) person to person as a possession, rather than as a close 'brother in arms' as other swords would be. He thinks the saniwa will be just one more in the long line of people to have him only for what he is and what he symbolizes, and only very thinly veils his disdain for that, speaking often of what he believes to be the saniwa's motivations for doing anything with him at all.
"I'm aware of it. No matter what becomes of me, you'd have me at hand once you re-temper me, wouldn't you?"
"You want to boast about having me in possession, is that it?"
"You're showing off to your practice opponent, isn't it?"
Yet at the same time, he always finishes these statements with a question. While that might be a chance for the saniwa to deny his accusation - something he would surely disbelieve - it also shows there's still some small sliver of hope left in him for the saniwa to be the one person to care about him, over his status.
"Is it alright? To let a caged bird go outside... Just kidding."
"There is nothing I can do but come back to you."
When sent out on expeditions, his bitterness shows through, covered up in lighthearted tones as always, but there all the same. He longs for freedom and agency of his own, and while going out seems to offer some taste of that - it isn't going into battle, or to PVP or the shops to be shown off - he can't simply run away from the saniwa, much as he might want to, because the saniwa is his current master, and that's not what swords do, that's not what caged birds do, and that's certainly not something Souza can do, because every time he's disappeared, he's been found by someone else who knows what he is, who uses him as he's come to expect.
There is; however, a certain level of trust offered to his brothers that isn't offered to the saniwa or, presumably, anyone else. In the Sword of Imagawa recollection, Kousetsu comments that Souza seems depressed, and instead of coming back with some quip or passive aggressive jibe as one might have come to expect from him, he opens up and comments on the 'what if's he's been thinking about - what if he hadn't been stolen by Nobunaga on the battlefield, what if he hadn't become the "Sword of Conquerors"?
"...I don't know. Whether I would have been happier being a sword of Imagawa to the end."
"So many things have happened... that I don't know anymore..."
His voice shakes as he talks about this, and it shows that he must have had an opinion on the matter once, when the events were closer at hand, that maybe he would have been happier, but that everything that has happened even colored his opinions of his masters before Nobunaga into something less than ideal, changed the 'I was cherished, once' into 'I have always only been a possession to be owned.' The fact that he isn't sure anymore also shows that he's unsure of himself, or what he would do with himself, if he had the freedom he craves so much - what would he do if he wasn't a caged bird? Who would he be? So much has happened that he doesn't know, and doesn't know what he would do with the knowledge if he did know, and can't long for the possibility, because it was so far out of reach, going through the three great unifiers, being burnt and reforged, passed from family to family as a symbol of what his previous masters had done, that letting history be changed - as would happen should the sortie on that particular map fail - would erase who he is forever. But succeeding in preventing the change of the flow of history means damning himself to everything that chipped away at his self-worth and chained him down, making him withdraw into his birdcage and become resentful of everyone who even gives him a second glance. It isn't a position he wants to be in, and isn't a comfortable thing for him to think about.
"Burnt twice, and reforged again after... But there is no next time. Aah... At long last, freedom."
He embraces death readily, because only in death is there freedom from everything that, to his view, causes him pain in the world - his reputation, people desiring him for such, the ordeal of being passed around and possessed, never cared for past status. There's no such pressures in death, and he's relieved to finally find the freedom he's longed for for so long - yet at the same time, he never did go ahead and break himself. There's a resilience there, whether he'll admit it or not, to have gone on for so long, even if he's relieved to finally be able to fly away.
Powers/Abilities: Souza is a tsukomogami - an object that has been bestowed with a soul, and was given a human appearance by the saniwa. Because of this, his true body is actually the sword, and its condition effects the condition of his human form - damage to the weapon will manifest as damage to him. But because of this, he is capable of withstanding more than an ordinary human, so long as the blade is able to be repaired.
He is an uchigatana, which means while he isn't as hard-hitting as larger swords, he is still capable on the battlefield, being quicker and better at scouting than the larger swords. He can also enter an 'Awakened' state after sustaining damage, which significantly boosts his stats to make him a formidable enemy in exchange for lowered defenses.
Keepsakes/Mementos:
All the basics:
❀ Sakura petals
❀ Layers and layers of clothing
❀ Raw materials
❀ Katana-kake
❀ The actual Souza/Yoshiwara/Yoshimoto/Oda Samonji sword
And the awful:
❀ Emblems of the Oda, Toyotomi, and Tokugawa clans
❀ Birdcage symbolism
❀ Fire, and swordsmithing tools
Sample: Their saniwa was getting careless, or desperate, sending one sword after another out ill-equipped and ill-prepared, never to come back to the citadel. The first several times had sent waves of shock and grief through the camp, followed with determination in the wake of it all, to avenge fallen comrades, to surmount this challenge presented them, to preserve the integrity of history as their saniwa intended. The losses were felt keenly by everyone as brothers and friends fell one by one. He'd taken his time to grieve, and in time, had grown numb to it all, spending his days in the citadel finding small amusements to pass the time. Idly, Souza wondered when his time would come. Idly, he wondered if it would ever come, or if he would remain at the citadel, kept close to the saniwa's side, never to be used.
Just like always.
He wondered if, this time, he wouldn't mind being proven right, if the mission at hand was really so dangerous that the others were falling left and right, if keeping him back was some indication that the saniwa cared. It was a nagging little voice in the back of his mind, that thought, quiet and easily pushed down, pushed aside, quieted with thoughts that of course he would be kept back - he wouldn't be a very good trophy if he was broken, now would he?
He's almost disappointed, when he's assigned to the next party sent out. Almost disappointed, foolish for being disappointed, bitter for... what reason, exactly, as they walked off to what would surely be the end of one or more of them? He should be excited to finally find some use, inexperienced though he might consider himself to be. He should desire to prove his worth as a sword in his own right, rather than being whisked along on the coattails of his masters' reputations. He should stare death in the face and prepare himself to embrace it, because with death would come freedom.
No matter the outcome of the battle, he should relish it - vengeance for those lost, proof of worth, freedom long sought - so why was he afraid? Why was it that the closer they drew to the battlefield, the more he wanted to turn back, return to the saniwa, sit at peace beside them and lock the door to his cage?
But then he'd be a disappointment, would prove to himself, to everyone, that his only worth is in possession over use, that he matters less than the marks carved into his steel by the Demon King, setting him on the path of conquerors.
So his step is more sure as they approach the enemy, his hands don't shake as he draws blade and resolves to fight to the last, as arrows whip past and as the sharp crack of gunfire pierces the air on both sides. They manage well enough for a time, taking loss in troops and sustaining injury, though nothing they would be unable to recover from. It looks as though they'll be the ones to finally see the end of this... and then fatigue sets in. No one fights as well as they ought to, arrows find their marks and bullets rend through flesh and leave cracks and splinters in their wake and Souza is no exception.
But the end is in sight.
The end is in sight, and he understands why so few were returning, with victory so close.
Idle, useless thoughts fade away in the heat of the moment. Memories of flames and demons and loss melt away. One last step and sacrifices will be made worthwhile. One more fight. One final push. One last reach, and it will all be over.
It's over.
Between existing damage, fatigue, and the sheer difference in strength between himself and the enemy - to say nothing of comrades, voices fading away in the background - Souza finds himself on the wrong end of a blade. The guard presses up against his chest, and one more strong push from the enemy sends his feet scrambling for purchase on the ground before they fall out from under him, before his sword drops and he catches sight of how fragile he appears before having to desperately cling to the enemy's wrists as he's lifted, contorts as the blade is shaken once and more cracks, more splinters appear, twice and he can't even manage to scream in pain, though his hold slips, and, fittingly, ironically, it's the third swing that cuts his body free from the blade holding him upright.
He shatters. Falls. Looks to the sky in some futile hope of seeing the clear blue of freedom, fades away just as it begins to rain.
Mindset: Souza won't be sure what to think of all this - whether it is actually an afterlife, or if it is just another stage in life like when the saniwa brought life to them all, but he was certain he broke, and will not enjoy the idea of continuing to live on in whatever sort of state the world allows. But, as always, this will be faced with passive indifference, until something or other forces his hand and makes him care about mortality again - however briefly.
G̶̶l̨͡i̵͢t̷c͝͠h̕é͠s̷̷͡: Souza spends a lot of time stressing how he is merely an object or possession to be used, and is not a comrade in arms or anything as important as that to anyone at all, so while he acts jaded to the idea, objectification is something that really bothers him. Additionally, themes of imprisonment would also get under his skin, not just for him but for anyone even remotely close to him, which in this game would even extend to the other swords, not just the Samonji family. He was burnt twice, and this seems to have been a traumatic experience for him, as was being reforged, so that is another thing to keep in mind.
Canon: Touken Ranbu
Gender: Male
Age: ~875 years old.
History:
Personality:
Souza's line when you first obtain him sheds light on how jaded he is towards life - how he's used to being owned and kept and passed around from (important) person to person as a possession, rather than as a close 'brother in arms' as other swords would be. He thinks the saniwa will be just one more in the long line of people to have him only for what he is and what he symbolizes, and only very thinly veils his disdain for that, speaking often of what he believes to be the saniwa's motivations for doing anything with him at all.
"You want to boast about having me in possession, is that it?"
"You're showing off to your practice opponent, isn't it?"
Yet at the same time, he always finishes these statements with a question. While that might be a chance for the saniwa to deny his accusation - something he would surely disbelieve - it also shows there's still some small sliver of hope left in him for the saniwa to be the one person to care about him, over his status.
"There is nothing I can do but come back to you."
When sent out on expeditions, his bitterness shows through, covered up in lighthearted tones as always, but there all the same. He longs for freedom and agency of his own, and while going out seems to offer some taste of that - it isn't going into battle, or to PVP or the shops to be shown off - he can't simply run away from the saniwa, much as he might want to, because the saniwa is his current master, and that's not what swords do, that's not what caged birds do, and that's certainly not something Souza can do, because every time he's disappeared, he's been found by someone else who knows what he is, who uses him as he's come to expect.
There is; however, a certain level of trust offered to his brothers that isn't offered to the saniwa or, presumably, anyone else. In the Sword of Imagawa recollection, Kousetsu comments that Souza seems depressed, and instead of coming back with some quip or passive aggressive jibe as one might have come to expect from him, he opens up and comments on the 'what if's he's been thinking about - what if he hadn't been stolen by Nobunaga on the battlefield, what if he hadn't become the "Sword of Conquerors"?
"So many things have happened... that I don't know anymore..."
His voice shakes as he talks about this, and it shows that he must have had an opinion on the matter once, when the events were closer at hand, that maybe he would have been happier, but that everything that has happened even colored his opinions of his masters before Nobunaga into something less than ideal, changed the 'I was cherished, once' into 'I have always only been a possession to be owned.' The fact that he isn't sure anymore also shows that he's unsure of himself, or what he would do with himself, if he had the freedom he craves so much - what would he do if he wasn't a caged bird? Who would he be? So much has happened that he doesn't know, and doesn't know what he would do with the knowledge if he did know, and can't long for the possibility, because it was so far out of reach, going through the three great unifiers, being burnt and reforged, passed from family to family as a symbol of what his previous masters had done, that letting history be changed - as would happen should the sortie on that particular map fail - would erase who he is forever. But succeeding in preventing the change of the flow of history means damning himself to everything that chipped away at his self-worth and chained him down, making him withdraw into his birdcage and become resentful of everyone who even gives him a second glance. It isn't a position he wants to be in, and isn't a comfortable thing for him to think about.
He embraces death readily, because only in death is there freedom from everything that, to his view, causes him pain in the world - his reputation, people desiring him for such, the ordeal of being passed around and possessed, never cared for past status. There's no such pressures in death, and he's relieved to finally find the freedom he's longed for for so long - yet at the same time, he never did go ahead and break himself. There's a resilience there, whether he'll admit it or not, to have gone on for so long, even if he's relieved to finally be able to fly away.
Powers/Abilities: Souza is a tsukomogami - an object that has been bestowed with a soul, and was given a human appearance by the saniwa. Because of this, his true body is actually the sword, and its condition effects the condition of his human form - damage to the weapon will manifest as damage to him. But because of this, he is capable of withstanding more than an ordinary human, so long as the blade is able to be repaired.
He is an uchigatana, which means while he isn't as hard-hitting as larger swords, he is still capable on the battlefield, being quicker and better at scouting than the larger swords. He can also enter an 'Awakened' state after sustaining damage, which significantly boosts his stats to make him a formidable enemy in exchange for lowered defenses.
Keepsakes/Mementos:
All the basics:
❀ Sakura petals
❀ Layers and layers of clothing
❀ Raw materials
❀ Katana-kake
❀ The actual Souza/Yoshiwara/Yoshimoto/Oda Samonji sword
And the awful:
❀ Emblems of the Oda, Toyotomi, and Tokugawa clans
❀ Birdcage symbolism
❀ Fire, and swordsmithing tools
Sample: Their saniwa was getting careless, or desperate, sending one sword after another out ill-equipped and ill-prepared, never to come back to the citadel. The first several times had sent waves of shock and grief through the camp, followed with determination in the wake of it all, to avenge fallen comrades, to surmount this challenge presented them, to preserve the integrity of history as their saniwa intended. The losses were felt keenly by everyone as brothers and friends fell one by one. He'd taken his time to grieve, and in time, had grown numb to it all, spending his days in the citadel finding small amusements to pass the time. Idly, Souza wondered when his time would come. Idly, he wondered if it would ever come, or if he would remain at the citadel, kept close to the saniwa's side, never to be used.
Just like always.
He wondered if, this time, he wouldn't mind being proven right, if the mission at hand was really so dangerous that the others were falling left and right, if keeping him back was some indication that the saniwa cared. It was a nagging little voice in the back of his mind, that thought, quiet and easily pushed down, pushed aside, quieted with thoughts that of course he would be kept back - he wouldn't be a very good trophy if he was broken, now would he?
He's almost disappointed, when he's assigned to the next party sent out. Almost disappointed, foolish for being disappointed, bitter for... what reason, exactly, as they walked off to what would surely be the end of one or more of them? He should be excited to finally find some use, inexperienced though he might consider himself to be. He should desire to prove his worth as a sword in his own right, rather than being whisked along on the coattails of his masters' reputations. He should stare death in the face and prepare himself to embrace it, because with death would come freedom.
No matter the outcome of the battle, he should relish it - vengeance for those lost, proof of worth, freedom long sought - so why was he afraid? Why was it that the closer they drew to the battlefield, the more he wanted to turn back, return to the saniwa, sit at peace beside them and lock the door to his cage?
But then he'd be a disappointment, would prove to himself, to everyone, that his only worth is in possession over use, that he matters less than the marks carved into his steel by the Demon King, setting him on the path of conquerors.
So his step is more sure as they approach the enemy, his hands don't shake as he draws blade and resolves to fight to the last, as arrows whip past and as the sharp crack of gunfire pierces the air on both sides. They manage well enough for a time, taking loss in troops and sustaining injury, though nothing they would be unable to recover from. It looks as though they'll be the ones to finally see the end of this... and then fatigue sets in. No one fights as well as they ought to, arrows find their marks and bullets rend through flesh and leave cracks and splinters in their wake and Souza is no exception.
But the end is in sight.
The end is in sight, and he understands why so few were returning, with victory so close.
Idle, useless thoughts fade away in the heat of the moment. Memories of flames and demons and loss melt away. One last step and sacrifices will be made worthwhile. One more fight. One final push. One last reach, and it will all be over.
It's over.
Between existing damage, fatigue, and the sheer difference in strength between himself and the enemy - to say nothing of comrades, voices fading away in the background - Souza finds himself on the wrong end of a blade. The guard presses up against his chest, and one more strong push from the enemy sends his feet scrambling for purchase on the ground before they fall out from under him, before his sword drops and he catches sight of how fragile he appears before having to desperately cling to the enemy's wrists as he's lifted, contorts as the blade is shaken once and more cracks, more splinters appear, twice and he can't even manage to scream in pain, though his hold slips, and, fittingly, ironically, it's the third swing that cuts his body free from the blade holding him upright.
He shatters. Falls. Looks to the sky in some futile hope of seeing the clear blue of freedom, fades away just as it begins to rain.
Mindset: Souza won't be sure what to think of all this - whether it is actually an afterlife, or if it is just another stage in life like when the saniwa brought life to them all, but he was certain he broke, and will not enjoy the idea of continuing to live on in whatever sort of state the world allows. But, as always, this will be faced with passive indifference, until something or other forces his hand and makes him care about mortality again - however briefly.
G̶̶l̨͡i̵͢t̷c͝͠h̕é͠s̷̷͡: Souza spends a lot of time stressing how he is merely an object or possession to be used, and is not a comrade in arms or anything as important as that to anyone at all, so while he acts jaded to the idea, objectification is something that really bothers him. Additionally, themes of imprisonment would also get under his skin, not just for him but for anyone even remotely close to him, which in this game would even extend to the other swords, not just the Samonji family. He was burnt twice, and this seems to have been a traumatic experience for him, as was being reforged, so that is another thing to keep in mind.