15[20:02] Daana'd's Defiance makes good time across the deep Western sea, making use of hidden safe sea routes for ships well-stocked enough not to need to stop in at Wu-Jian and resupply, and aided in their voyage by the sky-soothing songs of the ship's sorceress. The fish caught to supplement their provisions grow steadily larger, stranger, and more vibrant as the Defiance plunges West, 15[20:02] and night by night the crew falls asleep under increasingly foreign stars. 15[20:02] What occupies the ship's Chosen over the days and weeks of their voyage? [20:03] 14Caedus, of course, when there's time, but more broadly Piu is interested in gathering information: on Caxi, on Salim, on anyone who might be more important than their station lets on. [20:03] 4And establishing her cover, of course. 15[20:04] What's she looking for, and how does she go about finding it out? [20:05] 14She's a people person. First she'll want to figure out what's going on with this Sadako: what she's eating, what she's doing, what Caxi is having her do. This is probably most easily accomplished by innocently hanging around Caxi. They are somewhat partners in crime now, in the assassination of... [20:06] 14...Salim, who is going to be a harder nut to crack. She'll spend time buttering up Ratel, but Piu doesn't expect Ratel to actually know anything. Mainly the footwork here is going to be determining who Salim does interact with and sending Caedus on fact-finding missions about them. He'll be trusted more and have a better cover story than she would. [20:06] 07Dryas has organized a bit of gambling to keep the nights busy. In the day, she's taken to bowfishing for any particularly large fish that stray near the boat. She'd wanted to take potshots at some of the larger and stranger seabirds and sea-raitons but was discretely discouraged by Ratel. [20:07] 14As for the third thing, that's an open-season sort of thing. Anyone who looks like they're looking too closely or too well 4at something other than Piu WANTS them to be looking at 14during the other two investigations is a good candidate for further review. [20:09] 6Zhangyu spends most of his time either exercising, observing Sadako - still not entirely sure what's going on with her - or hiding away in his room, sketching. The Cathaks aside, his crewmates are tolerable, and it's been liberating being back on the open sea again. 15[20:11] At first Caxi regarded Piu's presence while Caxi was probing the depth and breadth of Sadako's knowledge and education with well-concealed annoyance, but after a while the sorceress seemed almost pleased to have Piu around. [20:12] 14For a heretical, scheming slaver bound to demonic forces, Caxi's pretty cool. 15[20:12] Salim, from his vantage point on deck, bothers no one but misses scarcely anything that happens abovedecks, including the exercise, training, and sunbathing of the ship's Dynasts. [20:13] 4She'd like him better if he was a perv. But she knows he's actually a hunter. 15[20:19] Ratel, for her part, is extremely easy to get along with, as long as all the ship's work gets done and there's a minimum of drama. She takes a keen interest in ship morale, and there's only so many people onboard whose morale she can see to personally, so every once in a while everyone's invited to her study for drinks and conversation. Today, it's Zhangyu. How does he like these 15[20:19] meetings? 15[20:23] How much of an interest does Dryas take in young Sadako over the course of the voyage, and what effort does she make to make time with the girl, whose time is almost monopolized by Caxi? [20:24] 6He's wary, as he always is when meeting with superior officers. Especially when he's just been given a position in command that ended... well, it ended, and now there's a Sadako on board. Still, he does attempt to relax, these are social calls after all. [20:24] 4She could see to more if Piu weren't taking up so many office hours...but alas. 15[20:24] Command is a heavy burden. [20:28] 07Sadako! Great question. Caxi may try monopolize the poor thing, but Dryas has her own interests in the girl. Dryas questions her lightly from time to time - what does she remember of her life before? What does she wish to do? The rest of the time, Dryas sees to it that she keeps eating, and occasionally tries to figure out just how she does that trick whenever she borrows Dryas' pipe. 15[20:28] Well, we'll see how well Zhangyu relaxes with a mug of rum in hand and the Commodore asking, "Was that your first field command?" [20:31] 6...she thought it went that badly? "Yes," 6he starts. "I commanded in training, and we ran exercises, but this was my first time leading in the field." 6He takes a sip of rum, to avoid asking for her evaluation immediately. "Was it acceptable?" 6Shit! 15[20:33] The Commodore: "I think you did very well. Everyone got in and got out of a sinking cursed ship in one piece, and you picked up a curiosity for our trouble. But I'm more interested in your self-evaluation." 15[20:34] "I wasn't there, after all." [20:35] 6He instantly and visibly relaxes after she says 'very well,' and almost misses the rest until-- "Self-evaluation? I. Hrm." 6He taps against his glass thoughtfully. 15[20:37] One sunny afternoon while Sadako's getting some fresh air, and both Dryas and Caxi are watching over her, Dryas's cousin will turn and remark almost lazily, "So. We should work this out between us." [20:40] 07Dryas rolls up onto the balls of her feet, stretching, and looks out the corner of her eye. Her cousin is quite an enigma sometimes, but it's no surprise the sorceress is so curious about someone like Sadako. "We should," 07she replies. "What do you propose?" 15[20:40] Besides Salim, who after his chat with Piu that night early on has been either much more respectful or much more discreet, the people who've taken maybe the most pointed interest in Piu are the Cathak twins. How's she playing that? [20:40] 14Trying not to get the ship burnt down. [20:41] 4Which is to say an incorrigible flirt, but not playing favorites and not sleeping with either of them. [20:43] 6Slowly: "The team did well. Followed orders, acted as a unit, deferred to me without question. I am not sure if all of the orders I gave were correct, and much of the ship wasn't investigated... individually, top marks for all of them. I am not sure about me." [20:47] "I take comfort that any mistakes I made resulted in no injuries. But that is all." [20:49] 07Dryas: "I propose - given our House's interest in, ah, the tragic circumstances involving her father, for which she herself is nonetheless blameless - that she be treated as a ward of our House. We shouldn't allow the others to pry her away. As far as you and I, I am sure we can reach some equitable arrangement without involving my mother, or yours. I teach her, you question her? I have her while the sun rises and you while [20:49] it descends?." 15[20:51] Caxi, flatly: "She's too valuable to sell. We should be absolutely clear about that. We have no idea of her potential, but surely you can sense the power at work in the girl..." 15[20:52] Does Piu spend time with the two of them together, such that she might be around when Ito Pan and Ito Jun challenge Salim to spar? [20:53] 4Oh 14yes. 15[20:53] Ratel shakes her head. "I was worried about this." [20:54] 6He makes a noise best represented as "?" 15[21:00] The twins and Salim fan out, Pan and Jun falling into their well-practiced Fire Dragon katas while Salim takes on a floaty, graceful stance. [21:00] 14Unarmed? 15[21:00] All three of them. [21:01] 14Poor boys. 15[21:01] Salim's posture, one leg high, arms akimbo... it looks comical, but Piu recognizes it as the core stance of the Crane style. 15[21:02] A stylist's style, more fit for exhibitions and patronizing sifus than true blood sport. [21:02] 14Mmmmmm. Please. [21:03] 14A Crane master would be the perfect cover, wouldn't it? [21:04] 07Dryas: "Sell her? No, I think not. She's more like a Lost Egg, no-one to be given up that lightly." 15[21:05] Ratel: "You know, I almost didn't recognize you. But I remembered the skinny, serious kid who worked so hard in all my classes, who put in extra hours on the training rigs. You filled out." 15[21:07] Caxi visibly relaxes. It's odd; you'd have thought she was already as relaxed-looking as someone can possibly be. "So then the question is of education and training." 15[21:08] "I think we both ought to have a stake. She needs to understand the way the world works, after all. And you can teach her accounting, too." [21:08] 6Zhangyu agrees. "Most people don't. Recognize me, that is." 6Or they stopped mentioning it within his earshot after a while. "It's made things easier." [21:09] 07Drily: "They don't cover that at the Heptagram? 'As above, so below'?" 15[21:11] Salim beckons for Jun and Pan to come at once, and they find themselves trading blows with each other as Salim calmly redirects their attacks. "Such passion! Such vitality! But where's the focus?" [21:12] 14Well, at least someone's going to teach them this lesson. 15[21:13] Caxi: "I can't claim to have attended all my classes... my disrespect is not intentional, cousin. There are things each of us knows that the other doesn't. Sadako deserves to see both sides of the coin." [21:13] 14She will continue to study Salim's form for signs of something more...but she doesn't expect much. After all, she didn't show her hand when he was in this seat. 15[21:16] Ratel nods. "A real change in temperament, too." 15[21:16] "Do you like animals, Zhangyu?" [21:17] 07Dryas: "I understand - you're right, of course. We can divide the responsibility - for her, and to her." [21:18] 6Zhangyu: "Do I - what?" 6He frowns. "Some of them are acceptable." 6He thinks back to that cat from Grandmaster Mushi's test. 15[21:18] Caxi: "She remembers so much, and yet so little. All the education, none of the substance. It's like she was born anew with a head full of knowledge and no memories." 15[21:21] Salim: "You are skilled, to be sure, and schooled as well. But secondary school is over. To attempt to live in this world by passion alone is to invite certain destruction." The two of them press a momentary advantage in a synchronized attack that pushes Salim to the back foot, but opens them up for a counterattack that looks like it should hurt a lot more than it seems to, given how 15[21:21] swift Salim moved and how vulnerable the points he struck. 15[21:21] "Hone your heart to a killing edge," says he, "and you will never know defeat." [21:21] 14Well, let's hope they don't take that particular advice. [21:22] 14...Those strikes, though. [21:23] 07Dryas: "Perhaps less an education in terms of knowledge as an education in... responsibility? Decorum?" [21:23] "...Discretion?" [21:23] 14Unexpected precision. [21:24] 14Well, unexpected if you didn't know he was a trained killer. 15[21:29] Ratel: "I love animals. My father bred dogs for sport and play, and when my mother was at sea I would spend all my time with him at the kennels, playing with them and exercising them. I learned many things this way. But one thing stuck out to me. He would take in dogs he didn't breed himself, to train them, and these dogs, even the well-cared-for ones, were often sick and unruly and 15[21:29] cruel." 15[21:30] "I asked him why that was and he told me, most people, even good people, don't have the patience to care for something weaker than they are. They grow impatient. They grow tired. They grow cruel. They mistreat or strike the animal, out of frustration or because they think it will help them." [21:30] 14There is a danger to him that isn't necessarily conveyed in his blows, however. He's pulling those. It's conveyed in his words. Mnemon Salim is a deeply, deeply ideological killer. [21:30] 14Which, fair play. [21:30] 14And that makes him strong. 15[21:30] "My father said to me, a hit dog doesn't learn anything. A hit dog just gets mean." [21:30] 6Zhangyu sips at his rum quietly. 15[21:33] The twins' banter stops, and they fight with renewed focus. Pan comes in first, low for a debilitating sweep... and Salim sends him sailing clean across the deck, directly into his brother, where both fall to the wood, again with remarkable gentleness. 15[21:34] As To said, not a killing art. 15[21:34] Salim bows deeply. 15[21:34] "She has the manners of a patrician girl," Caxi agrees with some small disgust. [21:35] 6Eventually: "An interesting story," 6He pretends to not see the relevance. "And one I will keep in mind for the future." [21:35] 4Piu claps tidily, hard enough to be cheering her twins and not so hard to be cheering how hard they just got slammed. [21:35] 4She makes a point of not looking over at Salim. 15[21:37] Ratel: "I don't want to pass judgment on the kind of man you've become, though I won't insult your intelligence and say I approve of your demeanor. But you're smart, you're careful, you're strong and strong-willed, and you care about doing well, not just appearing to do well. You have all the makings of a good commander." 15[21:37] She finishes her rum. "Don't hit the dogs." [21:38] 07Dryas, nodding: "Not for long, I am certain." 15[21:39] Pan and Jun seem deeply shaken, but they bow in turn and step away to mingle with Piu. "I tell you, he didn't seem to be about much against those blood apes, but old Salim's no joke," says Ito Pan once they've got something cool to drink. [21:40] 14That's because he didn't want to show you what it looks like when he's killing. [21:40] 4Out loud: "Maybe he's just got an aversion to demons..." [21:40] 6He nods stiffly, and finishes his own drink. "Thank you, Commodore." 6And then, a second time, more sincerely: "I will keep that in mind." 15[21:40] Ito Jun: "Explains why he's avoiding that creepy girl you brought on board." 15[21:41] Ratel stands. "I have every confidence in you, Zhangyu." [21:41] 4Piu kicks a leg out. "Caxi says she's not a demon." 15[21:43] Ito Jun: "Yeah?" 15[21:43] Ito Pan: "What is she?" [21:44] 4Piu shrugs. "I dunno. But she's not bound on a deal or anything like that. Just some kinda creepy girl." [21:44] 14Her mind is still on the fight. [21:44] 6He stands as well. "I won't let you down." 6Oof, that's some rum, and he's not a heavy drinker... He's sitting back in the chair again. 15[21:44] Ratel grins at this. "We'll make a sailor of you yet." [21:45] 14In its own way, his masterful deployment of the Crane style was the most concerning, deadly thing he could have done. Salim never entered an aura. 15[21:45] Caxi: "It may be necessary, though, to plumb your contacts, when we get ashore. You're well-connected among the Guildsmen, I trust?" [21:45] 14Forget the banner. He never had an aura. [21:46] 14What is this man? [21:48] 6He didn't even know his face was still capable of pouting. It's cute, and also very weird to see on him these days. He stands again, embarrassed, and shuffles quietly back to his own quarters. [21:48] 07Dryas: "I try to keep a close eye on them. And I like to think they try to keep a close eye on me. I'm sure they'll be almost as eager for news of the fate of that sorcerer as we'll be for information about how he was able to get away with such brazen piracy." 15[21:50] Caxi: "Mmm. I look forward to hearing more." [21:52] 07Dryas: "Has that demon given up anything that isn't too salacious to discuss abovedecks?" 15[21:52] Caxi waves a hand. "She's boring. Neomah always are." [21:54] "Too perfect?" 15[21:55] Caxi: "Too servile. Even their defiance is calculated to invite the extraction of obedience." 15[21:55] "If that interested me, I could've stayed at home and played with my husband." [21:56] 07Dryas stifles a chuckle but certainly doesn't question - or disagree. 15[21:57] The rest of the voyage passes more or less uneventfully. 15[21:59] Soon the sight of great Hamoji looms beyond the mists and fog surrounding the great Western island chains this time of year. The volcano glows violet in the morning light, towering above the city that curls up at its feet like a well-fed pet. [22:00] 4Ooooh. [22:04] 6Beautiful. Also, mildly concerning. 15[22:04] The light of the volcano stains sails of the hundreds of ships moving in and out of the bustling port; many bearing the colors of House Peleps and the Imperial Navy, fewer but still many with the colors of the Merchant Fleet (including the Defiance), and other banners more foreign and piratical. [22:06] 4Pretty. [22:06] 14Cool. [22:10] 07Dryas clambers up the mainmast and drapes herself across one of the spars to get a better look. "Hamoji! Looks so different from the Southern volcanoes..." 15[22:13] Ratel whistles around to get everyone's attention. "Sailors have got a day or two shore leave waiting for them once we're disembarked and our resupply is arranged. I'll be seeing to that. Officer Samperson, see to the needs of the crew. Senior staff, your task is to find leads. Anything you can see, hear, or learn in Abalone that can give us a fresh bearing or a sense of what the island 15[22:13] folk and the Imperials stationed here know or have heard about Furia's fleet. Discretion is the watchword -- better to let a lead slip through your fingers than give up too much of our intentions. We're being watched on all sides. Act like it." [22:15] "Understood, Commodore." 6Discretion. Well, that's not exactly one of Zhangyu's strong points... [22:22] 07Dryas: "And for our cover story?" [22:24] 6He very carefully does not react. 15[22:26] Ratel: "The story you're working with is that I'm facing political disgrace and I've assembled a team to clear my own name. Act like you're probing for allies and pressure-points within House and Naval politics; anything I might be able to use as leverage to improve my own standing, and then rain patronage down on my lovely assistants." 15[22:27] Ito Pan: "What'd you do?" [22:27] 07Dryas scans the room. Caxi, Piu, the twins... Zhangyu... damn, Commodore... .... 15[22:27] Ratel: "I'm sorry?" 15[22:28] Ito Pan: "Why are you disgraced? People are gonna ask." 15[22:30] Ratel: "Oh. Be circumspect. Imply espionage. Do you know what circumspect means?" 15[22:30] Ito Jun: "Yeah, in some cultures they cut the tip of--" 15[22:30] Ratel: "Finish that sentence and you're not allowed off the ship." [22:30] 6Cathaks. 15[22:30] Caxi snickers. 15[22:34] Ratel: "On second thought, you two boys stay with me. The rest of you, do what you like. Questions?" [22:35] 6Zhangyu shakes his head. He's got a few ideas of where to start... [22:37] 07Dryas, with Pale Moke and a team of porters in tow carrying the scrolls, books, and artwork, is off like a shot for the market. 15[22:37] Caxi follows her cousin. [22:43] 07Dryas and her retinue push their way through the crowds, lugging the goods. Eventually, at a particularly good spot in the port market, Dryas signals for them to halt. Pale Moke unfurls a scroll and begins shouting, first in High Realm, but also in less refined tongues-  [22:43] 4They don't do it in all cultures, though. It's a varied lot. [22:44] 4Piu has no questions for Ratel. [22:44] 6He's got enough of a reputation as Grandmaster Mushi's student and as a master mantis stylist that there's probably someone in town that could know something. Talk with them, maybe spar, and see what he can learn from that. Even if it's just a different name to follow. [22:45] 07Moke: "Princes of Earth! Roughened barbarians! Ship-captains of taste and distinction: Suffer in darkness and ignorance, no longer! Cynis Dryas, who humbled the Thri-Kahn of Chiaroscuro and the Delzahn Bloodriders, has selected YOU - yes you - to consume her fine wares! Marvel at the finest, latest, most thrilling works, fresh from the Blessed Isle!" [22:46] 14Ugh. [22:47] "...The thickest novels! The hottest ero-scrolls, the most sumptuous works of art, are here to bring the light of the world and the flower of civilization to YOU, for a reasonable price! Inquire for details!" [22:50] "Sick of annotating the Thousand Correct Actions of the Upright Soldier for the ten thousandth time? Have you committed every passage in the Immaculate Scrolls to memory? Why not get yourself a little piece of home? Available today only, the hottest special in Abalone. Makes a good gift to impress your boss OR your sweetheart!" 15[22:51] Piu catches the Chief Petty Officer in a private moment after the ship has docked. "I'm going to be tied up here for a day at least, but we're meant to report in as soon as we've arrived." He hands Piu a small, seemingly blank ledger-book. "These are the substance of our daily reports over the trip. Ialtagan is a merchant prince with strong ties to the Guild. He is also Iselsi Lao, my 15[22:51] master. Code in with 'the aurora's shining early this year'." [22:52] 14Piu: "And his response?" 15[22:52] Caedus: "'We must go North before the weather turns.'" [22:53] 14She nods. "I will find him." 15[22:53] Caedus: "Good hunting." [22:53] 14Before she goes, she kisses him on the cheek. [22:54] 14When she's outside, she wraps her necklace discreetly around her right hand. [22:54] 14It moves in her grip. [22:54] 07Dryas waves, looking even more impeccably brilliant than she did the morning they left Bittern. This showy sale of pablum should build the hype necessary to get a really good deal on the actually valuable cultural works. 15[22:55] Zhangyu has to bum around a bit before he starts swimming in the right circles. But it's not long, all told, before he's in a dank and sweaty dojo, watching men square off beside an older man who knew Mushi well, as he put it, 'in another life'. "If they're sending the big man this far afield, it must be important. What are you after, warrior?" [22:56] 4Piu will be bubbly and available to help with anything, 14until she gets the chance to slip away,. 15[23:00] Piu's left to her own devices almost immediately. Ratel's very hands-off. Figuratively at least. [23:00] 6Zhangyu: "Right now? A good scrap, I've been cooped up on the ship for too long. Different sparring when you're not on solid ground." 6Probably not what he meant by 'what are you after,' but hey. Subtlety! Zhangyu's trying it! [23:01] 6Yes, "I want to fight" is subtle. 15[23:03] The dojo master grunts. "No one here's really on your level. If you want a real workout--" and here he leans close to Zhangyu. "--you'll want to secure an invitation to the Hinokuni. That's the only fighting worth mentioning that happens on this island." 15[23:08] Dryas and Pale Moke make an excellent team, and even Caxi's customarily languid presence seems to be attracting customers. They do brisk business -- so brisk, in fact, that Dryas completely misses the person coming up on her until she gets a brisk tap on her shoulder. [23:10] 07Dryas whirls around, hand on a small flamepiece she keeps up her voluminous sleeves for just this sort of occurrence. [23:11] 6He grins menacingly. "And how would I obtain one of those?" 15[23:16] Piu drifts through the streets of Abalone, unremarked-upon and, should she desire, unnoticed... between Caedus's directions and her own intuition, it's not hard to find the palatial estate with its stooped palm trees and sumptuous fountains positively spinning with revelers. This is a courtly party, for courtly people -- a social occasion, more for being seen than cutting loose. Men 15[23:16] and women drip with jewels and silk that glitter in the violet light of Hamoji. 15[23:17] The woman who touched Dryas's shoulder raises her hands in a placating gesture -- Dryas immediately notes that the last two fingers on her right hand are missing. "Dryas of House Cynis?" she asks. [23:18] 4Mmmm hmm hmm hmmmmm... [23:18] 14Ah. [23:18] 14She wasn't told to dress for a party, and consequently, she isn't. [23:19] 07The 'piece disappears back up the sleeve. "One and the same," 07she replies in High Realm. 15[23:20] What's Piu's approach? In through the servant's entrance? Climbing a tree to get at a second- or third-floor window? [23:20] 14Best not to be mistaken for a prostitute until she absolutely must. The upper-story entrance it is. 15[23:20] The dojo master grunts again. "Do you want to know the easy way or the fast way?" [23:21] 6Zhangyu: "I'm always up for a challenge." 15[23:22] The dojo master: "Find someone who already possesses such an invitation and take it from them. By force if necessary. Off their corpse if desired. Then it's your invitation." 15[23:22] "I could give you some names..." [23:23] 6He nods. Yes, this will work just fine. "It would be appreciated." 15[23:26] Dryas's interlocutor: "I have a message for you from the Factor. He has the information you requested, and more, if you'd meet him." [23:26] 14The guards are the easy part: they don't look up. She makes it over the grounds guards quite easily on the walls and latticed rails and tree branches that connect the hidden world above most grunts' heads, and no one's really looking out the windows, either, are they? Sloppy, but then, they're mostly for show. [23:28] 14Revelers...they're a bit more difficult. Well, not the drunk boys and the party girls, but the snakes mixed in there. And the study's down on the first floor. It takes a creative stairwell descent, but it's done quick and efficiently -- and most importantly, Piu's pretty sure it's done well enough that she's not noticed by the actual security for Lao's estate: [23:28] 14Lao. [23:30] 07Her eyes flash with recognition. Excellent! Something on that strange petty officer. Dryas plucks a white flower from her hair and pins it to Moke's tunic. Now any who see him will know on whose behalf he does business. She takes a look at this interlocutor. "Excellent to hear, please lead the way." 15[23:30] Zhangyu gets two names: one is Chases-Waterfalls, a real piece of work who hangs out among the dockworkers. The other is Tolurin, an old man like the dojo master who can most likely be found in one of the city's temple gardens. 15[23:32] Piu's left to wait for quite some time. But eventually the door opens. How does she arrange herself? [23:32] 14Behind the door, obviously. [23:32] 14Assuming it swings in. 15[23:33] It does. Piu sees the broad silk-clad back of a man with short, dark hair. From this angle she's almost put in mind of an older, slightly bigger Caedus. [23:33] 6Got to go for Chases-Waterfalls. Nothing against beating up old men, but a dockworker could be a fun challenge. Besides, a fight on the docks is much simpler to explain away. You see? Subtlety! [23:34] 14Mmmmm. [23:34] 14Alone? 15[23:34] Alone. [23:34] 14When the door closes, without preamble: "The aurora's shining early this year." 15[23:35] Dryas is led past the parket into a stately house cut into the base of the mountain, past guards who tread that fine line between pretending not to notice her and paying the appropriate respect. "Shoes off, please. Rules of the house," says the interlocutor, demonstrating by slipping out of her own sandals and flexing bare toes against the cool stone. [23:36] 6He thanks the dojo master and is on his way soon, though not before scoffing at a particularly poor performance by one of the students. They'll get better, one assumes. Or get dead. 15[23:37] Iselsi Lao doesn't turn to face Piu just yet. His voice is deep and gravelly. "We must go North before the weather turns." [23:38] 14Piu doesn't relax, quite, but instead of approaching Lao in his blind spot she circles into his peripheral vision before approaching, and then placing the ledger-book on his desk. [23:38] "With the officer's compliments." [23:39] 07There are times you leave the shoes on to send a message, but this isn't one of them. Dryas can be humble as well as proud. Especially when the Factor has something she wants. 15[23:41] Lao picks it up, sparing barely a glance for Piu. "Caedus tied up with the ship, then?" [23:41] 14Piu: "I was in better social position to make the delivery." 15[23:43] Lao: "You'll be Piu, then. To spoke highly of you." 15[23:43] "I don't hold that against you." [23:43] 14Evenly: "Thank you." 15[23:47] Dryas is led through the house and to great double doors, which the interlocutor will knock on thrice before scurrying away. After a moment the doors swing open revealing a peculiar-looking man at the center. Close-cropped, delicate blonde hair, soft, almost childlike features and pitiless blue eyes. The biggest shit-eating smile Dryas has ever seen. "Cynis Dryas. What a vision. Your 15[23:47] aunt really undersells it. Come in, come in!" 15[23:47] "Do you want a drink? I am partial to the rum. We don't get it where I'm from. Sit, please!" 15[23:48] The office is lavishly appointed, with comfortable chairs, thick bookshelves, and a roaring fire. There's no desk, just chairs facing chairs and a low table between them. [23:49] "Rum would be splendid, thank you...?" 07Dryas replies as she glides over to one of the seats, running a finger along her talisman. 15[23:49] Iselsi Lao flips through the ledger, running his fingers over the pages and mouthing words to himself. "Good work. Thorough. Anything you'd like to report that can't wait?" [23:53] 14Piu: "I merely wish to underline the skill with which the Black Lotus killer used the Crane style, and lack of effort he exerted. He was insufficiently exerted to even manifest an aura. And some of his joint-strikes were...only formally of Crane." 15[23:54] Lao: "Black Lotus, you say? He'll be well-schooled to conceal every trace of his true strength." [23:55] 14Piu: "Perhaps he concealed it too well. Perhaps he didn't." 15[23:55] "Is he an immediate threat? Do you and Caedus have an action plan?" 15[23:56] The Factor pours two drinks and lets Dryas take one before taking the other. "My name is Nn Tloc. You're familiar with the organization I represent." 15[23:58] Tloc: "First things first, we did some digging on your seaman. Samperson, right?" [23:58] "Mmmhmm," 07she says, taking a sip. [00:00] 14Piu: "He has been passive so far. He is in the guise of an Immaculate monk. He may even be an Immaculate monk. Regardless, his presence has terrified the ship's sorceress, a heretic and demon-lover who has just taken a neomah in her service. I have compromised her, and she believes she's bringing me in on a plan to lure him off alone somewhere and dispose of him." 15[00:00] Tloc: "I'll tell you, I get a lot of documents like this put in front of me and this was one of the more interesting. Purchased outright from a slave trawler out of Pneuma. Chosen, took the Coin, but he was pulled out of service in the Legions to take shit details in the Merchant Fleet. The name on these orders. V'Neef." 15[00:01] "Seven years of service, a transfer every year or so, always to a bigger ship. He got promoted fast at first, but his career's stalled. Loss of patronage? Interesting question!" 15[00:03] "We did some more digging, because now I'm interested, and it transpires that every one of his assignments passed through V'Neef's personal household. Got her big green stamp." 15[00:03] "For an enlisted petty officer." 15[00:03] "Isn't that something?" [00:04] "That's quite interesting. Goes beyond mere micro management." 15[00:04] Lao: "There's a lot of moving parts here. But I suppose given what's at stake we've got to expect that." 15[00:05] "The two of you are prepared to continue the work with all this complexity overhead?" [00:08] 14Piu: "We are committed. We perfected our workflow in the kill environment with the Bittern job. We will be able to adapt the model moving forward." [00:09] "...Is what To would want me to say. Plainly, we're on top of it." 15[00:09] Lao nods. "Good, good. No risks to either of your cover?" 15[00:09] Nn Tloc: "So that's the good news. Do you want to hear the better news?" [00:11] 14Piu: "We cover our meetings with an ongoing liaison, which is at this point expected and tolerated. Salim 'stumbled' onto us within half an hour of being on ship. The cover was reinforced, not compromised, but I do not like the timing." [00:12] 07She takes a much bigger draught. "I'm all ears," 15[00:13] Nn Tloc: "So I understand you're aiming to set down a commercial operation in the area. Whaling, is it? You've got the ship, you've got the sailors. Do I have that right?" 15[00:15] Lao folds his arms, briefly lost in thought. "...you're right to be suspicious. A killer of the Black Lotus... Damhan-allaidh mòr ann an lìon nas motha." [00:17] 14Piu: "Faodaidh lìn damhain-allaidh losgadh. So long as that's the mission." [00:17] 07She leans backwards. "You might say so. In this part of the world, I'm given to understand there's all sorts of impressive sea creatures. I want to bag a few. Might as well get the most out of it." 15[00:18] Lao: "It isn't... yet. The work remains. But use your judgment. If you think either the Commodore's mission or your own is at risk don't hesitate to burn him." [00:18] 14She nods. "Any notes or message to pass back along?" 15[00:21] Lao: "Tell him I'm impressed. Tell him..." He shakes his head. "I'll tell him the rest myself. You need cover for an exit?" [00:22] "No," 14Piu says, then slightly smiles. "But I would appreciate it." 15[00:23] Nn Tloc: "A hunting operation. Good! That'll take you all up and down these beautiful islands. A Cynis huntress's vessel, welcome at any port of call, and no one looks too closely at the paperwork. Perfect for a mutually beneficial shipping arrangement." 15[00:24] "What do you say? How would you like to turn your big game hunter into a money-making machine?" 15[00:25] Lao reaches into his robes and comes up with a blank and tattered scrap of paper. "These names are in Gant. Read them only in the dark. Each name only appears when the previous name can be crossed off." [00:26] 14Piu takes the paper and secrets it in a new space behind The Chain's 'amulet.' 15[00:27] Lao: "Ten minutes for me to call everyone to the back yard for a toast. Make any exit you like." Then he's gone. [00:28] 14She could poke around the study in the meantime...but she won't, both out of respect and because she's not that foolish. 15[00:30] Piu can hear the people filing out back, even the lovers from the upper floors. [00:31] 14Sounds like a fun time. As soon as it's clear, she gets clear. [00:33] 07Dryas is interested but has a few critical questions. "Smuggling what goods away from whose watchful eyes? Is this just a way to undercut the Merchant Navy or are you trafficking in something that would get a Dynast in trouble?" 07Other than moving Anathema around there's not too many things that can get a Dynast in trouble. 15[00:35] Tloc: "It would be beneficial not to go through official channels. Administrative and shipping. Certain antiquities, boutique labor-brokerage... it's complicated, and has the potential to disrupt a lot of market actors." 15[00:44] Piu has a smooth trip back to the ship, or rather, to the comfortable hostels where the crew are bunked down for their leave. [00:44] 4Hi, boys~ [00:45] 14Has Caedus got his own room? 15[00:45] He does. It's stone, too. Thicker walls. 15[00:46] You know, for scheming. [00:46] 14Marathon scheming. [00:46] 4Piu spends enough time giggling and drinking with the boys, but will head off to assert her right to the Chief Petty Officer once he appears. [00:47] 07Dryas stares with a bit of shock at this proposal. Smuggling captured Anathema? Not that they don't deserve whatever they get... "I... need to think about it," 07she replies, into the cup. 15[00:50] Nn Tloc's grin gets stony and hard and terrible... but only for a moment. "Sure! This is a rapidly closing window of opportunity, however. If you delay too long, don't be surprised to find I've made other arrangements. But I really think we'd make an excellent team." 15[00:52] The music Dryas hears matches the upbeat energy the Factor projects. 15[00:52] Nn Tloc: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eauZzwt8Ci8 - We are vain and we are blind; I hate people when they're not polite. 15[00:53] Caedus is in his room. "How'd it go?" [00:55] "Got in and out with no one seeing me but Lao. And even he didn't see me until I made contact." 14She hands him the piece of paper. "List of targets, in something called 'Gant.' They'll reveal themselves one by one." [00:57] 07Dryas takes a deep breath and finishes the rum. "I'll be back tomorrow with your answer. And maybe we'll talk terms." 15[00:58] Caedus: "Gant is old tradecraft. Hard to make, so it's not widely used anymore. But Lao does love his toys. It's ink you can only read in the dark. Here:" He draws the curtain, blocking the moon and rendering the room essentially pitch black, and a single name in neat, tiny script appears on the paper: 11,5MNEMON DUSK 15[00:59] *Very* tiny script. Room for a lot of names on this piece of paper. [00:59] 14Piu gets closer than strictly necessary. [00:59] "Any idea who that is." 15[00:59] Caedus: "I heard that name while we were setting up. I think she's a missionary." [01:00] "Perhaps a contact of Salim's." 15[01:00] Caedus: "Maybe we can find out what she knows about him before we terminate." [01:00] 14Piu, in a rather definitive tone: "I'm not trained in torture." [01:01] "Speaking of Salim." 15[01:01] "Thanks for coming by! See you around!" Nn Tloc's voice carries farther than it should. Dryas swears she can hear him chuckling still as she crosses the threshold of the door and emerges into the night air. [01:01] "We have full blessing to kill if he interferes." 15[01:02] Caedus nods. "I wasn't picturing torture, by the way. There's safer and more effective methods." [01:04] 14Piu shrugs. "I'm not trained in those either. If you want to put together a safe house, we can build the operation around it." 15[01:05] Caedus: "I'm not sure how long we'll be in Abalone... Ratel's keen to move quickly. She's going to want to know what you found out today." [01:06] 07Who the hell was that guy? Dryas wonders as she stumbles back out into night air. [01:06] 14Piu: "Then I should get to work on a lie." [01:06] 14A pause. "Oh, and one more thing." 15[01:07] Caedus: "Mm?" [01:08] "Lao said he was impressed by your work. Then he stopped himself from saying something else complimentary and said he'd say it in person. My assumption is, based on the sort of man he presents as, that he won't. My further assumption is that he's proud." [01:08] 14She wouldn't go out of her way like this, but the man didn't try to fuck her and clearly dislikes To, and that's worth some points. 15[01:09] Caedus purses his lips and nods. "That... sounds like him." [01:09] 14Piu: "I imagined it might." [01:09] "Should I stay or leave?" 15[01:10] Caedus pulls her body against his. "We're on shore leave. Who cares what we should do?" [01:11] 14She grins. "I do so enjoy this cover." 15[01:11] NEXT TIME: The quick and the dead