Few things could draw him from the sanctity of his abode. Deep within the sea, hidden by a bed of seaweed, Aegir had found a crevice in a rock formation that opened up into a modest sized cavern. Here he was safe from many of his breathern not that Aegir had cause to worry. He had made no enemies thus far though by contrast he had made no allies as well preferring the loner approach his dealings with the other beings that inhabited Shokushu had been somewhat limited. He had found some of their usual stomping grounds, determined where the beasts preferred to hunt and out of common curtosey avoided these spots to niche out his own hunting grounds.

Foregoing forays onto the island for the past two weeks Aegir had spent that time feeding off of the marine life between lengthy bouts of meditation. His long memory reflected back over the years renewing those matters that he had learned in the eons past. For days he fathomed how best to continue his research finding that his progress was slower than even he had anticipated. There was no rush for him to conclude his experiments, they were to be far reaching after all spanning numerous years and likely decades or even centuries. Aegir could harness the patience to carry out such lengthy plans, which, for an ageless being such as himself, had not been so long.

What Aegir found himself dwelling upon was primarily contact with his own kind. There were only a handful of his species left and while he had abhored them all Aegir had missed having contact with other sentients that shared in his experiences and unique abilities. He assumed that he had taken on too many human traits gorging himself on to many minds in the past. It was the primary reason why he had been exiled, deemed mad by his own kin.

Without the ability to change that Aegir found himself being stirred from his revelry. White eyes regained the sembelance of focus as he concentrated upon the telepathic intrusion that pressed against his mind. Evolution being as kind as it was to Aegir he and his kind had been immune to telepathic attack. The only psionic ability that they were subject to was telepathy their normal means of communication over vast distances though theirs had been a species that had once employed primitive speech.

The commincation had been from one of his nodes, a miniature extension of himself hardly the size of a half dollar coin. Another report upon a student Aegir showed some interest in. His spies had been good at keeping tabs upon a select few students probing into their minds from afar only to relay that information to their soverign. What he had learned was that one of the newer students was now alone.

After a small measure of internal thought Aegir determined that he had nothing to loose by at least checking the matter out further. Allowing the memories of his past to filter from his mind Aegir had his node keep tabs upon this student viewing the scenery through the nodes eyes. Recognizing the spot as one that he had frequented in the forest before Aegir compressed his body squeezing through the miniature crevice in the stone face exitting his abode. Jetting through the water Aegir knew that he needed to make up for the time that he would loose upon the surface for he moved far too slowly across such terrain. Still, he had a trick or two in mind to keep his subject in place should it seem that she grew too restless before he arrived on the scene.

She sat in a clearing, flowers bloomed nothing seemed out of the ordinary in the area. She wore the school uniform for the first time; it was kind of big on her; probably the first one to come to this school and them give uniforms larger than their size. though perhaps this had been on purpose as her skirt often seemed to slip off her hips and require her to tighten her belt whcih never tightened for too long.

Classes for her second day here had gone surprisingly well she had had a good deal of fun, after of course she had woken up in the nurses office having apparently knocked herself out when her legs gave way the previous day. she had dremt a strange water monster had taken her virginity at the olympic pool but, when she had checked her maiden head was in perfect condition. She knew that wouldn't be true if it hadn't been a dream but, what she didn't know was a slight genetic abnormality that increased her rate of healing and was the reason she could even still walk and why the nerves in her legs had partially replaced themselves after the damage & would repair even her hymin when it was torn.

She pulled the guitar from her back and sat with her skirt tucked under her and she sighed a little before strumming a little in a constant rythmn

'din dun dune din dune din dun dune' a gentle tune rythmic & soothing it seemed even the trees and flowers gently danced to it; and in fact they did somehow; another budding ability she had and had no idea about really, save for an oddity that plants she raised grew better than when raised by others.

And there she remained eyes closed playing her tune for herself and the plants.

... And the audience of one other. Aegir's node, this one his youngest of the five, Ri, swayed to the harmonics of the music being played. Hidden quite well due to its size the thing had virtually been swallowed hole by the grass surrounding it. At rest upon a stone a small distance away from the young student that grass about Ri may have well been redwood trees given how it towered over him. It had only been due to stretching upward from time to time that Ri had managed to keep an eye upon the girl. That was until she began strumming her guitar.

By the time Aegir had drawn himself out of the ocean he felt a strange wave over take him. Something was amiss ... something that he could not quite explain internally. What was it that made him feel somewhat uncomfortable? It took a full minute before it hit him. He had lost his connection with his node. Certain it was not dead for he would have felt it through the link he shared with his creation Aegir nonetheless felt cut off from it. Strange, for he had never experienced anything like this sensation in the past. While his mind reflected upon this mystery he had set himself into motion slithering over the sandy beach. The roar of the ocean had resounded in his ears as the foam of waves crashed down upon the rocky shore. He made his progress with a good deal of speed, at least for him.

While traveling he tried reaching out to his node to see and hear what it experienced for the node was an extension of himself in a great many ways. Nothing ... Aegir had been baffled for perhaps the first time in his life. Contemplating this mystery occupied much of his current thoughts until he had drifted far enough away from the beach to discern another sound rising up from the direction he had been heading in.

The tell tale strumming of cords called out to him ... a guitar no doubt given the resonance of its sound. The notes played in such a way that Aegir became somewhat lethargic. The closer he grew to the source of that sound the more lethargic he seemed to become. Tentacle-like legs felt heavy as they crawled, pulled and dragged his body across the earthen ground. Normally alert senses failed in comprehending his environment fully. Feeling like a lemming marching to its doom off a lofty cliff Aegir soon found himself in the forest itself. Trees were thin at first but thickened gradually. The foliage rampant though the signs of life outside of the vegetation that was seemed nonexistant.

Louder the sound grew though he should have been overjoyed that he had reached the spot in time his mental facilities had dulled themselves to the point that he had not been thinking like the predator he was. His approach was straight forward rather than one of stealth even if his subconscious was waging a silent war against him, urging him to stop, to assess the situation and reevaluate his actions before it was too late. Strength of will battled against a primitive weakness, a weakness that seemed to be winning out at present.

Emerging from the trees he could make out the diminitive student in the near distance. Trying to halt himself Aegir found that he simply kept proceeding forward until finally some sembelance of sense must have cracked through his psyche for he had come to a halt a stone's throw away from the girl. Mouth tentacles swished, in effect becoming the serpents that a snake charmer would attempt to hypnotise through movement and melody. Watching her Aegir had felt himself drawn into the elogant tune that she had begun playing. His white eyes were so focused upon her that he did not blink least she vanish like some mystical figment from before his very eyes.

She continued to play her melody once in awhile adding a note to it removing another the rythmn still no less docile & relaxing. Her eyes remained still as she played not seeing the creature that had arrived at first the feel of the grass swaying against her legs the wind wafting gently through the clearing eased her mind.

Finally she opened her eyes still playing that tune only to see An unusual being before her. She had hallucinations from time to time, ones that couldn't be explained medically or neurologically but this was lasting far too long and it's aura far too clear to be one of the half there beings she sometimes saw. She held no fear in her eyes as she looked upon Aegir his aura showing a complacent yet conflicted mood to the girl yet she dare not speak lest she change the being's mood in fear that it would suddenly change to anger.

For a time she sat playing that melody as she had before, examining the creature with her one extraordinary eye the other not as well seeing what she wished it to. She found Aegir to be a curious being at the least.

So enthralled had he been that he had not drawn upon his ability to alter the coloration of his skin. Normally the mauve flesh of his body would have shifted to a deeper brown while in these parts in efforts to blend in against the tree trunks. He would have employed slow movements creeping closer and closer while figuring out some way to cut her off from safety whether that be through generating a false illusion to make an escape route seem to be no more cutting it off in some fashion with a convincing illusion; by using telekinesis to cause the terrain to hinder her progress or simple mind control. He loathed using the other finding it more akin to penning game up only to shoot them for sport. Not very sporting stripping one of free will to accomplish your ends but sometimes it was very effective.

Neither did he pay particular attention to the terrain itself something that he would have keenly observed otherwise. How the plants danced at the rhythm she provided in much the same fashion he had found his body swaying from side to side. His limbs were lucid and while she had spotted him he found no adreniline rush gripping over him. No desire to immediately pounce or set a plan into motion ... for once he seemed to be content in his observations for the power of her music had stilled his hand at least thus far.

The aura that had surrounded him was easily readable. As a psionic entity he may have been able to delude her senses had not her music set him at such a state of contentedness. Serenity exuded from him with the underlying currents of want. The later was more upon a subconscious level buried deep within the recesses of his being such was the power of the right music over him.

In the past Aegir had limited success in shaking of such effects. He had also learned that when threatened the spell would be broken though the young woman before him continued to play and he continued to listen. Tentacle legs reached out and stretched themselves grasping at tree trunks, rocks and other vegetation pulling him along. Closer, closer, he then stopped before her coming to rest.

Fingers steepled together, his mouth tentacles flickering and weaving in the same fashion they would when he was submerged in the icy depths of the ocean. Slowly Aegir could feel only the slightest of his senses return to him. Perception was slow in cascading over him as the fog of contentment still clung over him. With slow movements Aegir brought his hands together in a soft round of applause.

Apollo with his lyre could not produce a sweeter sound then thine instrument plucks from the very air around thee, his mouth did not move, not that it really could be seen given the writhing nature of those mouth tentacles. Rather the words were projected telepathically. Please ... continue ...

His words were kind to her mind gentle almost though something itched at the back of her mind about his aura; something that flickered in and out now & again something she couldn't place. But she chose to ignore it and heed his request.

"Would be a pleasure."

She said in a singsong tone continuing with her simple classical tune with her electric/acoustic guitar; for some reason glad she owned one that would function as both at this moment eyes shifting down to her strings as her hands moved flawlessly along the frets changing the tune from four notes to six her eyes barely blinking as she watched this being react to her every note. she offered a subtle smile to the being she didn't know the name of. Perhaps her hallucinations had been real or this was an alien & that music truely was a universal language.

First Contact with an alien species, that'll look good on a resume.

she thought silently to herself as she played whether it was sarcasm to her thoughts or not it mattered little.

Befuddled, Aegir had not been use to having his focus hampered. Normally he would have been feasting upon her thoughts allowing his mind to press into hers drawing out what knowledge he could. Learning what he could of his prey before striking had been a standard method of operation for Aegir for he particularly enjoyed knowing all the capabilities of his target before hand least there be any undue surprises. Oddly though her music had a profound effect upon him casting aside his baser instincts. His focus, shattered like a mirror, had been fragmented into dozens of shards which made it exceedingly hard to concentrate on anything outside of the sound that pumped into his ears. The melody grew in complexity, the tips of his fingers pressed together while his white eyes drooped closed. Taken back by her musical talent Aegir found himself drawn into a realm that he had not often dwelt in. One of calmness, security, one of peace.

It had not quite occurred to him that she had not feared him. That was something that should have nagged at the back of his mind but it hadn't. Rather the knowledge was delegated to his subconscious for later analysis. Had he been alert he would have picked up upon her hallucinations and might have even played into that role. Victimizing her and leaving her to ponder whether or not the event had actually occurred would have been amongst his stream of thoughts though at this moment Aegir focused only upon the music. The harmony of the melody had crept into his mind's ear causing his tentacles to writhe. Tapping them softly against the ground almost as if he were caught up in a strange dance of some sort Aegir basked in the moment.

Trying to stir himself out from his stupor Aegir had found that he was having only limited success. A glimpse, than another, Aegir felt the flickering of Michael's thoughts pressing into his mind though he did not make any sort of move except on a purely involuntary level.

Sly Cooper is it? Or do you prefer Michael? Aegir knew her name, his nodes had elected to keep tabs upon her deeming in her qualities that they believed their parent would admire. They had not been wrong given that Aegir had traveled here from his sanctuary. Long have I yearned for such a taste of artistic talent for it seems like the ages have slipped past since I have had the joys to partake of anything so ... soothing. My ears are pleased to have made your acquaintance young one. But where are my manners? I am called Aegir though I am known by many names some of which may be familiar to you.

She didn't stop playing though there had been an obvious slip in her tune when he called her by her monicker, none knew her by that name and she never used it except on her calling cards she looked up at Aegir curiously wondering how he could have possibly known; various possibilities came up though none she could be sure of.

"Mike would be fine"

She offered her monicker not meant to be said aloud and her birthname a bit too awkward to hear from something who shouldn't have rightly known it.

"I am glad that I could bring you a bit of joy Aegir it's why I learned to play in the first place. Though may I be so bold as to ask perhaps what those other names may be?"

He had peaked her curiousity with that statement but, no way in this universe would she stop playing though her fingers weren't quiet used to extended play as the minutes ticked by; fifteen minutes straight thus far she'd have to stop for a minute or two soon or she'd pull something.

A spike of alarm filled the air at the mention of her monkier. Those long sinewy tentacles near his mouth writhed a bit more as if in delight though her aura reading would still find that he exuded a certain calmness about him even if he were a little more coherant than he was when he had first come upon her here. A burbling chortle escaped his mouth, the sound simply weird with no real comparison save for perhaps with the very sound that a human could make by clucking their tongue against the roof of their mouths or against their teeth in rapid succession.

Your secret is safe with me. Aegir's pupil less eyes focused upon her as his tentacles continued to writhe about. It is the very least that I could do in exchange for these melodies that you have so freely offered up to my ears.
As he drew his wits about himself as if it were a shawl meant to keep the biting cold at bay Aegir could find himself dashing his thoughts slightly ahead though found that the music that interupted such thoughts had dissolved them before they could manifest themselves into something far more tangible.

Chalchiuhltlatonal. Enki. Naun. Those are but some of the names I have used in the past. I have even been called Chthulu if you would believe that! There are far too many to list, far too many years that have spun on by to recount all of my experiences even if you had the rest of eternity to sit and listen to them.
Something shifted within him. The perking of his attention as he gathered the brief flicker of her thoughts. He knew she could not keep up her playing for long though interestingly enough he had been tempered out of a quick strike. Rather he let his eyes peek open in small slits at first. Both regarded the musician before him. My, don't tire yourself out on my account. Take your rest from playing before you develop callouses on your fingers.

She offered a sigh of relief at his offer to keep her identity a secret. Having stolen from a museum in the past surely would have meant she'd have been arrested by interpol if she had of course still been on earth to begin with.

The names he listed all struck cords somewhere in her though she had never heard them before the cord struck not in her mind but, in her essence, much older than her human body perhaps older than most people's but, that was a fact neither her nor this being would be able to see.

Next she thought about his words, he told her she could rest her tired hands before she wounded herself and indeed that was a tempting offer she took without a fourth thought the music stopped and she put her guitar to the side with a hefty sigh the plants stopped their swaying and all leaned towards her so slightly though noticably more than likely to Aegir from the grass to the trees they all leaned towards her expectantly.

"Once my hands stop hurting I'll play again for you alright Aegir?"

With the ceasation of that melody Aegir's senses began to return. Attempting to stir himself from a deep sleep was more difficult than it sounded and it was that that Aegir was trying to accomplish in the here and now. Even so he did not get worked up into a frenzy the second that harmonious melody came to a close. What he noticed was the instant movement of the plants that surrounded them. How they had pulled themselves more or less into her direction leaning towards her as if she were as radiant and nourishing as the sun itself. Only now did his senses return to him full force. Only now was he able to sink his mind into her own trying to fish through her memories though he felt something that could only serve to place him at ease.

Ri was nearby, unharmed and fully operational. His link with the node had been reistablished almost instantly and while he may not have made an immediate move Aegir had nevertheless contemplated it for a few seconds. Truth be told was that he had became a little more than complacent. He knew that an opportunity like this was a rare thing indeed, that he should have taken advantage of the matter while he had the time to do so. Rather than leap into matters he simply allowed his lethargicness to ease past knowing full well that his reaction time would have suffered greatly otherwise.

I find it ironic that in order to play for long periods of time you must harm yourself to do so. Callouses need to be developped to play for greater and greater lengths ... I will never, should I live to witness the birth of another nebulae, understand why humans have such masocistic tendacies.

His babbling stopped as focus became as clear to him as water. His mind reaching out to brush lightly against her before exerting a slight push in an effort to delve deeper. A speunkler at work delving into the depths of the earth so too had Aegir found himself in such a state bringing the full weight of his mind to bare upon the tiny Michael. Searching for her defensive and offensive capabilities should have been second nature to him, though here he was too wrapped up or perhaps too lethargic to think straight.

I would like that though there is something further that I believe I would enjoy even more than music, his tentacles began to writhe again.

Her mind was a strange thingactually; creatures that existed within dimensions other than this her 'hallucinations' as most called them were much much more, glimpses into other realities; other time frames past, preasent & future events from all over the universe; experiences her mind was to young to have had even still something stranger; memories of death hundreds & thousands of memories of dying hundreds & thousands of times locked away where her conscious mind couldn't access, like thousands of locked doors all without keys.

She scratched her cheek slightly at his first question offering a slight nod.

"Normally I use a set of dull silver claws that fit on my hands to play but, they confiscated them before I came to the school said something about them being able to be used as a weapon, and all my picks broke."

Her abilities over plants & paper would become evident, her abilities to tap into the energies of the multiverse itself would also become quite obvious though none of them were in the forefront of her knowledge; all far too raw and untrained to be more than potential.

"I don't think I have anything else to give but, my music Aegir."

The road map of her mind proved to be an interesting matter. It had confused him in that the layout was most similiar to his own kind, a fact that caused a small measure of discomfort for at once he begun to believe that this had been a trap to snare him. No ... if it had been the others would have struck by now not to mention they would have been just as susceptible to the sweet melody that had cascaded over his ears.

So if she was not one of his kind then what was she? That, in and of itself, had been an excellent question. He dug for an answer inbetween their exchange. There were numerous possibilities that he could think of starting with the mundane and expanding outwards to the ludicris. From genetic manipulation to being a reincarnated soul that had returned from the void of death thousands of times hadn't mattered in the grand scheme of things.

The monstrosity flickered his eyes over her chosing that moment in which to reach out to her. Two of his eight leg tentacles danced rapidly through the distance setting upon her wrists. The rubbery flesh of those tentacles attempted to loop about her there though it would seem only to secure a loose hold. His grip had not tightened nor had it been overly secure either giving her more than a good chance to slip free from it should she put up a struggle. Apparently he had not sought to cage her up with that touch but rather make contact, his smooth silky skin pressing against the warmth of her own would be the first pangs of flesh against flesh contact he would illicit from her.

Your music is a golden gift but there is something further that I would find far more precious. The tip of a tentacle brushed ever so slowly against the hem of her over sized skirt rubbing against the very edge of the material in a deliberately long drawn out fashion. Mike, I need not spell matters out for you, hm. The tip of that tentacle that had been playing with the hem of her skirt curled beneath it drawing the material up a hair's breath. Aegir's eyes naturally flowed to her legs glimpsing the barest portion of newly revealed flesh, a pleased burbling purr spilling from his lips as he regarded what became revealed to his sight. Not much but Aegir could fully anticipate unwrapping her with deliberate slowness basking in every passing second as he allowed his own anticipation to build.

A reincarnated soul or...perhaps even what many races considered a god that had forsaken all their power to live as a mortal over & over again as a way to watch over it's creations whatever the case was she was different.

At first she didn't understand what he meant the tentacles touching her arms not much cared for nor questioned as it seemed to not grip tightly. Still even as the tentacle traced the hem of her skirt she wonered what the being before her meant until very slightly very very slightly it nudged her skirt upwards her eyes widened slightly.

"You... you want oh no I- I can't give you that... I do hope I'm misunderstanding that you want me undressed for you to violate. the meer thought of acts like that turn my stomach."

she explained calmly though eyes just slightly widened looking over the creature she had only moments ago trusted like a dear friend.

Pleased that she had not attempted to draw herself away from his grasp Aegir found himself continuing. Her words captured upon his ears he peeled his eyes from the minute portion of reveaeled flesh lifting his vision up to her face. His white eyes met with her sea green ones while the tentacles about his mouth thrashed ever so slightly. Now she would be aware of a strange musky scent emitting from him as he released pheremones into the air. The pheremones would have no effect upon her and while a throw back to a time when his own species mated in the physical realm their release certainly hinted at his own arousal.

Letting his tentacles tighten gingerly upon her wrists he let another tentacle lift itself upwards. The very tip smoothed itself against the buckle of her belt tracing over the clasp as if caressing a lover with the tenderest of touches. A flickering motion with that tip allowed Aegir to hear that clasp being drawn away. Unfortunately his tentacle while prehensile wasn't quite up to the task of unhooking her belt buckle from the loop of her belt but that had not troubled him. Rather than employing brute force which may have been more of a hindrance in this regard Aegir drew upon his telekinetic power to remove the stud of her belt from one of several holes in her belt. Once unhooked as it was now he was at his leisure to draw that strip of leather from the loops of her skirt.

Ah, but I must. Regretfully there are so few of my kind left. The eons have not been kind to my species though I have discovered a means of salvation for my race. Aegir explained though his words were only partially true. Reproducing asexually now Aegir could technically repopulate his species alone if he had such an inclination in doing so. His main priority was to see how his nodes interacted with humans seeing if they could transform them into monstrous minions. The process took close to a decade and while he had to worry about how to spirit his chosen students past the ADD at some point such a matter was irrelevant should he be incapable of beginning the process at all.

Worry not my dear for you shall find the experience rather pleasant, Aegir instructed as he telekinetically brought a slow caress down against her smallish chest even as he deciphered the best way to strip her of her clothing to get at the tasty morsel beneath.