15[20:29] The first gentle rays of dawn are humbled by the mad violet light being cast off Hamoji, and the quaking of the restless island disturbs the seabirds, who wheel through the sky as the Defiance pulls anchor and draws free from the harbor, the island retreating swiftly behind them as fair winds bear them onward. [20:33] 4Free from this place. [20:33] 14And little else. [20:33] 4Piu is helping with the cast off, as a trade for getting to doing her stretches on a convenient spot of deck a bit earlier. [20:36] 07Dryas stands at the stern, watching Hamoji in the light and basking in its strange, magnificent beauty. [20:38] 10Daizo has mixed feelings about setting sail. The momentary taste of fame, even if it's fame as a villain, is tantalizing. But aboard the Defiance, things are simpler. The captain's word is law. There's no back alleys for people to disappear into. And you can see things before they're coming at you. Probably.  [20:39] 6Zhangyu is likely belowdecks being attended to, or grumpily staying in bed while unattended. It will heal fine on its own goes through his head repeatedly, which doesn't make the pain in his side hurt less when he shifts. [20:39] 10He'll take up Zhangyu's partos of any work in addition to his own, and let his cousin rest. [20:42] 07Dryas drums her fingers on the rail a few times, taking in the fresh air, before sighing and slinking down belowdecks, for Caxi's cabin. 15[20:42] Traitors, schemers, assassins, scoundrels, and Tepet Daizo face a new day and broad horizons. The next stop, based on a combination of Daizo's research and Cathak triangulation, is a trading outpost a week's sail north, the last place any of the ships in Furia's fleet were seen resupplying. [20:43] 4Piu grins from the rigging as she sees Cynis go. [20:43] 4Too bad. She'd finally worked up a sweat. 15[20:43] It takes Dryas a few knocks before she gets a response from Caxi, who opens the door bleary-eyed in her bedclothes. "What can you possibly want right now?" [20:45] 6If Piu's looking for a sparring partner, Zhangyu will claim to be fit! [20:45] "Cousin," 07she slips in through the open port and slides it closed behind her - "If you wouldn't mind, I was hoping to ask you for a favor. It's about Tepet Zhangyu..." [20:46] 4Sadly, he's not fit for either form of sparring she likes, and only down for one of them. 15[20:47] Caxi: "What did he do now?" 15[20:50] Daizo, meanwhile, works shoulder to shoulder with the sailors and the Cathak twins. "So what did you get up to last night? You all came in real late," asks Ito Pan. [20:52] 07Dryas: "Injured. In a fight, of course. I was wondering if perhaps you could take a look at it...?" 15[20:53] Caxi lets out a noise somewhere between a groan and a scoff. "How bad is it?" 15[20:54] The assassin 'Salim' is rarely seen abovedecks, staying instead in the ship's hold under guard by Samperson and his men. [20:54] 07Dryas ponders. "He was strong enough to win the fight afterwards...?" [20:54] 10Hup, hup, ho— "A little bit of entertainment, that's all. Something to take the edge off. Cousin found a lead on a fighting match down by the docks. Thought he could make a few connections by participating." [20:55] 4Piu helps up in the rigging, then on the mainmast, then down in the hauling and stowing of oars after they hit the mainline current. Feels good to be working. [20:55] 10Daizo: "Piu and I came to cheer him on, Dryas appointed herself his manager."10  15[20:57] Caxi rolls her eyes. "Alright. I'll see to him." [20:58] 07Dryas: "I owe you one!" 07wait - is Sadako in here? 15[20:58] Sadako is, as Caxi presumably was, still asleep. [20:58] 4She grins at the twins as she passes by them and Daizo. "Did a lot more than that. Later boys!" [20:58] 10Daizo: "You should've seen it. You can't bring weapons in, but this Gilana Crimson-Tide he fought? The girl's got claws. And teeth. And scales." 15[20:59] Dryas can make out her leg sticking out from under a blanket. [20:59] 4This is where she'd usually rinse off in the seawater, but the Defiance is moving apace, and she's not about to slow it down on an anchor line. A simple cold bath will do. [20:59] 6He'll be reading something from town when she arrives - in fact, basically, whenever she arrives. He's begged off duty for today and is likely only to leave his room for meals, which means a LOT of time spent just. Local news, and maybe a primers of Mantis Style guide that he's had since he began training. 15[21:00] Ito Jun butts in. "Oh yeah? Is that why he's not up here working? Down in his cabin licking his wounds?" [21:01] 4Does he get that out before Piu's gone belowdecks? 15[21:01] Player's choice. [21:03] 14Piu's standing on the threshold to the lower decks when she hears that, then pushes off the moulding and turns-- 4Piu: "Do you need more help? Working?" [21:03] "Just asking if you're not enough!" [21:03] "Because I'm still game." 15[21:04] Zhangyu only has to wait about fifteen minutes from Dryas's entreaty for Caxi to let herself in. How does she find his cabin? How does she find him? [21:04] 10Daizo scowls. "It's not like that." 15[21:05] Ito Jun: "Nahhh, we got it. Though if you're free we don't mind the company, isn't that right Pan?" 15[21:05] Pan is suddenly very focused on his work. [21:06] "Good morning, Sadako," 07Dryas says as she returns to the port to follow Caxi out, assuming that Sadako is listening but quietly enough that if she's wrong it won't wake her." [21:06] 10Daizo: "Cousin will be back in it in a day or two. Until then, I'm doing his part. Do you want to get blood all over these nice clean sails?" [21:06] 4She grins. "Thought you boys were good. Thanks for your effort, Daizo!" [21:07] 10That's not intended as a threat, but he suddenly realizes how easily it could be taken as one… and lets it ride. [21:07] 6His cabin is perfectly neat and tidy, with the exception of a small pile of reading material on his bedside table. Zhangyu himself is lying in bed, hastily-done wrappings around his ribs and right arm where he was hit the worst. He looks up from one of the various holds that he's corrected the illustrations of - "Cynis Caxi. Hello." 6He seems vaguely uncomfortable. 15[21:12] Sadako groans. "It's too early," comes her voice muffled by pillows. [21:16] 4She 14winks 4to both the boys before she saunters downstairs. 15[21:22] Caxi looks Zhangyu up and down with a frown, pushing him onto his bed and peeling the bandages off, revealing clean, deep cuts. "Claws?" she asks, cleaning the wounds with something that stings. [21:23] "As a treat," 07Dryas replies softly and pads back out. [21:23] 6He puts up a token resistance before letting her work. "And teeth." 6He doesn't react to the sting. "She took me by surprise." 6Then a grin. "I won, though." 15[21:24] After Piu's gone, Jun turns to Pan: "Did you see that? She winked at me." 15[21:24] Caxi: "Oh? What did you win?" 15[21:25] "Where is your prize?" [21:25] 6With his uninjured arm, he gestures to the wounds. [21:25] 6After a moment: "And proof of commitment. Couldn't resist." 15[21:26] "Of course you couldn't," Caxi mutters. "Why would you be like that if you could help it? Hold still." [21:26] 6He does so. This is clearly not the first time he's been patched up. 15[21:28] Ito Jun: "...nice." 15[21:29] Caxi is dissatisfied with the obedience of Zhangyu's wounds. "Hmm... this is quite a nasty wound. Can you keep a secret?" [21:29] 4Boys. [21:30] 6Zhangyu: "Of course." 6They don't spend all their time training you to fight in the House of Bells, after all. [21:31] 14She changes and heads for wherever they're holding him. [21:31] 10Daizo: "She's not so bad once you get to know her." [21:31] 14The other assassin. [21:31] 14Caedus should be there. [21:31] 10Daizo: "Maybe I could put in a good word for you sometime." 15[21:34] The Defiance has a single-celled brig, but Salim is being held in somewhat more comfortable quarters in a locked storeroom in the cargo hold, with a bed fashioned of spare linens. Caedus is one of the guards, giving his sailors another shift of rest. He looks glad to see Piu. So do the other crew. 15[21:35] Ito Pan: "Ooh, look at the big man. What'd you do, take her to the library?" [21:36] 10Daizo sighs. "Never mind. The work isn't going to do itself." [21:36] 07Dryas makes her way back towards the deck, where the banter of the Cathaks and the Tepet catches her attention.  [21:37] 10Hup, hup, ho— 15[21:37] Caxi reaches into her robes and pulls out a small glass phial containing a live, wriggling caterpillar. "Not a word of this to anyone." She opens the vial, waving delicate fingers over the narrow opening. For just a moment, her eyes flash violet and she chants in a peculiar, echoing cadence. The insect shrivels and dies. Zhangyu's wounds burn and sizzle... but they close before his 15[21:37] eyes. 15[21:43] Ito Jun: "Does she not seem a little... off to you guys?" 15[21:43] "Like, total smokeshow, don't get me wrong. But... I dunno." 15[21:43] *Ito Pan: [21:45] "What makes you think that?" 07asks Dryas. 15[21:46] Pan is startled by Dryas's sudden appearance. "What? Think what? Who says I think anything?" [21:46] 6Zhangyu: "Not a word," 6he promises. "I don't know what that was, but --" 6He rotates his formerly-wounded arm. "Never a word." 15[21:46] Caxi smiles, wide and thin. "Good boy." [21:47] 6He scowls. "Don't push it." 6And besides, didn't she see the shirt? [21:48] 10Daizo: "No, you're right to wonder, I think. The person that she appears to be most of the time isn't the kind of person who would have the discipline to win the Five Day Fight. Or to punch a blood-ape." [21:48] 4She'll wink at the most forward of them, then stride over to Caedus and cough lightly into her fist. All business! "How's the prisoner?" 15[21:49] Caedus frowns at the locked door. "Quiet." 15[21:49] "Did you want to see him?" [21:50] 10Daizo: "Serious questions deserve a serious answer. But really, have you ever met anyone from the Great Houses who didn't surprise you now and then?" [21:50] 4She grins. "Yes. Doesn't seem like he'd respond well to alone time. Let's go in together." 15[21:52] The Chief Petty Officer produces the keys and lets them in. Salim is sitting in a lotus position, his back wedged in the corner, head bowed, eyes closed. "Good morning," he says quietly, his only acknowledgment of the visitors. [21:53] 4She'll turn to the boys. "You should wait a step back. Just in case." 4After flashing them a grin, she'll follow Caedus inside. [21:53] 07Dryas: "I don't think she's from a great House, to be quite precise. But I suppose that just makes her the more surprising..." [21:53] 14When the door is locked again: "Are they feeding you properly? Are they letting you relieve yourself as appropriate?" [21:54] 6Zhangyu's instantly healed, yes? So he'll slide out of bed, placing his reading material back in his chest before turning back to Caxi. "What do you want in return?" 6In his experience, people don't do anything for free. [21:55] 10Daizo: "Well, adopted in. You know what I mean." [21:55] "You heave to learn a lot of things very quickly if you weren't born to it." 15[21:55] Caxi chuckles - her skin is a little flushed. "Your health is its own reward. We need you, if you'll forgive me, ship-shape." 15[21:56] Salim: "I have no complaints." [21:58] 6Doesn't sound right, but. Take the gift. "Thank you." 6He says it with the uncertainty of a man who doesn't thank people for anything. 15[21:58] Ito Jun: "She seems fine to me..." 15[21:58] Ito Pan: "Forget it, it's nothing." [22:00] 14Piu kicks a chair away from the wall, lets it land, and sits down in it, leaning forward. "Where'd you go after you left us?" [22:00] "Running home in the rain." [22:01] "Because there's two different kills, right?" 15[22:01] Salim lifts his head. 15[22:03] "I fulfilled my appointed task to kill Sister Dusk. Once I was certain none of you would follow, I doubled back to the temple compound." [22:03] 6Zhangyu still looks uncertain, but: "What was that? Or should I not ask?" [22:04] 14Serenely: "For a second target?" [22:08] 10Daizo: "How does the line go again? 'Good speech does not seek faults'." [22:09] "Ah, very wise," 07replies Dryas sagely. 15[22:10] Caxi: "A simple word of healing. I wouldn't fret. But it's not something just anyone can do, so I'd prefer you keep it to yourself." 15[22:10] Salim: "I'm sorry?" [22:10] 14Piu, smiling: "No you're not." [22:11] "Why return to the scene if not to use it to stage?" [22:11] "Are you a killer or aren't you, Salim?" [22:12] 10Daizo: "Merely leaning on the wisdom of our ancestors. I am far from wise." [22:12] 6He nods. "Understood. I'll -- remain here today, I think. I don't know how else to explain this away. But thank you." 15[22:13] Caxi looks askance at the pile of books. "What do you like to read? I've got more if you're bored." [22:16] 6Zhangyu: "...poetry. I didn't bring any with me." [22:16] "Surely that's the wisest move of all," 07suggests Dryas. 15[22:17] Caxi's eyebrows go up. "I'll be back in a bit." [22:17] 6Slightly less awkward than the first time: "Thank you." 15[22:17] Salim: "You assume that I had already been to see her when I met you outside the library. I had not." [22:18] 14She grins over at Caedus. "No shit!" [22:19] 14Then she leans back towards Salim after saying: "Dismiss the guards from the antechamber. No careful listeners." 15[22:19] Caedus steps out to give the guards a break. [22:20] 14To Salim, flat affect: "If they ask, he'll just tell them I'm a floozy whore." 15[22:20] Salim: "Many will believe him." [22:20] 14Smiling: "That's the point." [22:21] "You're scared of dying." 15[22:22] Salim: "If you were here to do me harm, you would have sent them away before you entered." [22:22] 10Daizo hefts a coil of rope the size of a prize ox. "Now you're just trying to flatter me, Dryas. I'm up to your tricks. I'm taking this down to stores and then I'm going to check on Cousin Zhangyu." 15[22:23] "Perhaps we can speak more plainly now." [22:23] 14Piu: "That proves my point well enough. You're on a ship to places unknown, and maybe -- not definitely, but maybe -- this isn't what you signed up for." [22:23] 14She moves the chair forward. "Let's do!" [22:23] "I killed Sister Dusk." 15[22:24] Salim: "Ah." 15[22:24] "You did very good work." 15[22:24] "I'm proud to claim it as my own." [22:25] "Who, me?" 07she pouts unconvincingly, and sighs. "So. How'd you two get to know so much about naval logistics?" 07she asks the twins. [22:26] "No. I put a child in harm's way unknowingly. The girl who delivered the dinner. I thought someone with more political pull would deliver. I didn't appreciate the Sister's facility for child slaves. That's on me." 15[22:26] Ito Jun: "There's this military academy, it's called the House of Bells. They teach future officers all kinds of stuff." [22:26] 14Piu: "But claim a fantasy if you wish. Clearly it's working out well." 15[22:26] Daizo bumps into Caxi on the way, who looks slightly flustered and is carrying a small stack of... perfumed?... books to Zhangyu's room. 15[22:28] Salim: "I offer no criticism." [22:28] 14Piu: "I noticed!" 15[22:28] "I will say that the only surprise to me is you." [22:29] 14Piu: "You already know who my lover is, so I'll take that genuinely." [22:30] "You're not Black Lotus. That's not a question. You don't have to answer." 15[22:30] Salim listens impassively. 15[22:32] Ito Pan: "What he means is, we were great with logistics. Not so much with leadership." 15[22:32] Ito Jun: "Or discipline." 15[22:32] Ito Pan: "Or showing up to class." [22:32] 10Oooof. That might not have ended well, but thankfully he just dislodges a couple of books from Caxi's arms. Daizo bends over to pick them up, and raises an eyebrow. "Prasadi tone poetry, and… a new rendering of The Epic of Zelgadis? Cousin Zhangyu asked you for this?" [22:32] 14Piu: "You're not a monk and you're not an assassin. I'm not sure I could kill you straight up, but I am sure me and the people I could depend on could. I don't want you thrown off the ship...unless you go demon hunting on the ship." [22:32] "You understand. I think they're more powerful than you." 15[22:33] Caxi: "I-- perhaps you should ask him!!" [22:33] 10Daizo, now a tad flustered himself, "Umm… all right? Shall I take these in for you?" [22:34] "Or courtesy?" 07she asks, slightly miffed. "Logistics is interesting though. There's jade to be made in logistics." 15[22:34] Caxi shoves the books in his hands and strides away without a word. [22:34] 10What's her problem? 15[22:34] Ito Pan: "So we hear." 15[22:36] Salim: "I am not here to hunt demons." [22:36] 10A moment later, and he's knocking on the cabin door. "Cousin? Are you all right? Uh… I've got books from Caxi." [22:37] 14Piu: "Wasn't asking about what you did before. Just laying down terms. Go near Sadako again and we have problems." [22:38] 6Zhangyu's already returned to bed. "Come in." 6That was supposed to be at least somewhat under wraps!! Though there are worse people to know than cousin Daizo. 15[22:39] Salim raises an eyebrow. [22:39] 14Piu: "Are you surprised about me knowing about that, me caring about that, or me thinking it's a dealbreaker?" [22:40] "It's a buffet. Choose." 15[22:41] Salim: "I didn't come here to break the Cynis girls' toy. She's repulsive, certainly, but you know as well as I that we can't kill everyone we don't like." [22:42] 10The cramped conditions belowdecks mean Daizo's always a little hunched over, and he has to go a bit lower than that when entering cabins. "Sorry. I came down the stairs at just the wrong moment, nearly knocked her over. It was careless of me." 10He heaps the books on the bunk. "I didn't know you read this sort of thing." [22:43] "Your color's looking better. Did she give you medicine?" [22:45] "Perhaps you've heard that I'm a little interested in commerce. That's why I arranged to have a crew of craftsmen sent along with us, did you hear about that?" 07she asks. 15[22:45] Ito Pan and Ito Jun exchange a glance. 15[22:45] Ito Pan: "We heard a little." 15[22:45] Ito Jun nods. [22:46] 14Piu: "'Certainly,' he said...the shame of a gentleman. But that's not what you are. And that's what I like about you, Salim. There's not a single loss you won't eat, is there? So I can go to the captain and ask for desk privileges, which you'll use to signal...whoever it is you signal, without your dipshit guards knowing. And you can swear to me you won't kill anyone on this ship [22:46] while you're a guest, non-binding, and tell me where you were when Sadako was getting murdered outside the glitterman's palace." [22:46] "And you could lie." [22:46] "And we could kill you." [22:46] "So it would go." [22:46] 6Zhangyu: "I don't exactly advertise it, and she did. I should be up and walking around by tomorrow." 6He doesn't elaborate on what sort of care he received. "Pain's less, too. Next Hinokuni I want her in my corner alongside Dryas, if I can convince her." 15[22:46] Salim: "That's the job." [22:46] "They're whalers. Because as fun as commerce is - slaying great beasts is even better." 07she explains. 15[22:48] Ito Pan, a little uncertainly: "That... makes sense..." [22:51] 10Daizo: "Understood. If that's a secret, I won't spill it. As for Caxi…" 10He looks lost in thought for a moment. [22:51] "That way, I can hunt beasts, get some trophies, and whatever leftovers are valuable to some Guildsman somewhere those peasants can chop it up and send it to them," 07she explains. 15[22:51] Ito Jun: "Any leads?" [22:52] 6Zhangyu: "It's not a secret, I just - it goes against the image. You know?" 6He probably doesn't. Zhangyu breezes past that idea. "What about Caxi?" [22:52] "I haven't had time to dig in and find out," 07she laments. [22:53] 10Daizo: "…it might not be a bad idea to have a little extra in our corner. That one I was up against, Sia the whatever. I 've never even heard of the techniques she was using before." 15[22:53] Ito Pan: "I thought you had all sorts of business meetings." [22:53] 14Piu grins, almost on his lap now. "There are so many things you know about the job." [22:54] 14Then she backs away. [22:54] 6Zhangyu scowls: "Neither did I. I don't like it." [22:54] 10Daizo: "It was like I hit her, dead on… and then I didn't. Felt weird too." 15[22:54] Salim reacts to Piu's closeness the way one might if someone uncaged a viper in this tiny room. [22:54] "I thought for sure you had, too. And I don't like being wrong." [22:55] "Sure, but not with people who know the land or what there is to find out there. Not really," 07she explains. 15[22:55] Ito Pan: "Maybe the locals at the trading post will know more." 15[22:56] Salim: "You have my word that I will bring no harm to anyone on this ship." [22:56] "One must hope," 07she replies. [22:56] 14Coldly: "Just so long as you know nothing about this job is clean. Being here is violence. Justify it to yourself as you wish. Your paymasters thought pretending you were a trained killer was the more sympathetic angle than whatever it is you're truly here to do." [22:57] 14As she walks to the door: "I will guarantee you your deck time." [22:57] 6And, for that matter, he isn't usually wrong. Not about fights. If there's one thing he considers himself an expert on, it's that. [22:59] 10Daizo: "I mean, we won, but if people like that can show up ion our first night at port town underground match?" [22:59] "Just what else is out here?" 15[22:59] "I hope your paymasters afford you the license that mine do," Salim says to her back as she walks out. [23:00] 14She whispers something as she slips out the door. Can he hear it? 15[23:00] Probably. 15[23:00] What does she say? [23:00] 14'License is just another word for some else is to blame' 15[23:00] He snorts softly as the door shuts. [23:01] 6Zhangyu: "I look forward to seeing it. Now that we know to expect them." [23:01] 14Is Caedus outside? 15[23:01] He is. 15[23:02] Ito Pan: "So what's your biggest kill?" [23:02] 4Piu: "Good news!" 14Into his ear: "Permanent observation. I'm going to ask the captain to give him deck rights. Either you or I need to be there to observe what he does with signal access. Meet me later." 15[23:03] Caedus nods. [23:03] 4Piu runs her nose down his neck, then skips off to find Ratel. [23:04] 10Daizo nods solemnly. "Yeah. This might just be what I need to get over my plateau." 15[23:05] Ratel is doing paperwork in her office. Writing letters, it looks like. 15[23:05] She waves Piu in without looking up. [23:06] 6Zhangyu: "And you still took on an unknown opponent without too much difficulty. You're doing well." [23:06] 4She'll make the expected salute, and wait. 15[23:07] Ratel finishes whatever sentence she was writing and sets down her brush. "Sit, please. What do you need?" [23:08] 4She bops into a seat. "I dunno if the timeline lines up for that Salim guy. He told me he didn't kill that Dusk lady!" [23:08] 07Dryas: "Hell boar, in the dry scrub three week's ride from Chiaroscuro. 20 hands tall, at the shoulder. He was magnificent." 15[23:08] Ito Jun whistles. "How's the eating on those?" [23:08] 4Piu: "It was a secret, though." 15[23:10] Ratel: "What?" 15[23:10] "But she did die." [23:10] 4Piu: "Oh yeah!" [23:11] "But I think he was covering for someone else!" 15[23:11] "Then who?" [23:13] "I dunno yet...but I want to give him an hour a day on deck. And we watch him. Samperson and his guys. And we see what he does." 4She smiles proudly. "He thinks I'm dumb, but he agreed to the main aft deck, where we can observe him from multiple positions without him seeing us!" [23:14] 07Dryas: "I couldn't bring that much with me into the bush - just a few porters, really - so there wasn't much. Just a few amphorae of wine - and local wine at that, some spicy-sweet stuff brought up from Djaff in the deep South. Seasoned it, roasted it on a spit we cut from a tree-" 15[23:16] Ratel: "I see." She rolls up a letter and seals it with hot blue wax. "Good initiative. But next time you want to negotiate with him, brief me first, not just afterward." [23:17] 4She stands. "Yes ma'am!" [23:17] 4She sways a bit more heading for the door. 15[23:17] Ratel watches her go... and then returns to her work. [23:19] 14When the door is closed, her walk gets normal again, and she finds Caedus. [23:19] 10Daizo looks abashed. "Thanks, Cousin. That means a lot, especially coming from someone who trained under Grandmaster Mushi. Master Stormwind—the Thunder Ogre—always spoke highly of him." [23:20] "We made do with some sort of yellowish Delzahn sauces, local herbs, that sort of thing. It's not really about the eating, of course," 07she continues. 15[23:22] Ito Jun: "Having to send trophies back that you won't see until you get home... that'd be a bummer." 15[23:22] Piu finds Caedus in the hold, helping move supplies to accomodate the ongoing rearrangement required by the new prisoner. [23:24] 14To Caedus, at a whisper: "Ratel allowed one hour on deck a day. One of your or me needs to be watching him the whole time." [23:24] 6Zhangyu nods. "As did Grandmaster Mushi. In his own way." 6He didn't really speak highly of anyone, but he also didn't openly insult Stormwind, which is high praise in his books. You learn to read the signs after a few years. "The next time we have a free hour - once I'm out of bed - spar?" [23:24] 14After a very slight pause: "The last bit isn't Ratel." 15[23:26] Caedus nods. "Did you get a better read on him?" [23:26] 07Dryas: "And several of them ended up 'lost' after the Thri-Khan threw his temper tantrum and started beheading Guildsmen. No thank you, I'll bring people to the Threshold and get them fixed without having to worry it. But it's not really the trophies either, nice as they can be..." [23:27] 10Daizo: "You bet. You know, I had a thought. I promised Seiri I would show her the basic forms and strikes of the Earth Dragon Style, the ones regular mortals can master safely. But I was thinking… maybe we should train Sadako as well." [23:27] 14Piu: "He's a liar who isn't here to do anything as simple as kill. He's waiting for something. Worst thing we could do to him is throw him from the ship. Not kill him -- throw him from the ship." [23:28] 14Casually: "Which we can do, if we need to, during the hour a day he's on deck." 15[23:28] Caedus: "You think he's biding his time until we find Furia?" [23:29] 14Piu: "I can't speak to his agenda. I'm not sure he even can." [23:29] "And if he gets what he wants...who knows if that'll be what he needs." [23:29] 6Zhangyu: "I offered as well. She'll have good tutors no matter what style she chooses." 6And she will choose one. [23:30] 14Piu: "Point is, we're at sea. We can kill him if we want to. We have numbers." [23:30] "He knows this." [23:30] 6Zhangyu: "I'm not sure about Piu, Dryas, or Caxi, but it shouldn't be hard to convince them to participate." 6The Cathaks go unmentioned. 15[23:31] Caedus: "So we can expect him to behave until circumstances change." [23:31] 14She grins. "Yep. And we're at sea, so..." [23:33] 10Daizo: "Nice. You're one step ahead of me. We could organize our own little shipboard dojo." 10Daizo'll heave himself up off the floor and head for the door. "I should leave you to rest up. By the way, if you speak to Caxi again, please apologize to her for me. I think she might have thought I was impugning her taste." [23:34] 6Solemnly: "It will be done." 6Then he grins. "Thank you, Cousin. I was worried this day would be boring." [23:35] 10Daizo offers a genuine salute and backs out the door. "Try the Epic of Zelgadis first, it's a good one." [23:35] 6He scowls, but it's his 'don't call me out like this' scowl. He's offered enough that Daizo can probably tell the difference. [23:36] 6When Tepet Daizo leaves, Zhangyu will pick up the Epic of Zelgadis. [23:36] 10Just needs a "yare yare" to make it complete. [23:36] 14Piu: "...if they change that way, we just fucking kill him. And dump him overboard." 15[23:41] The voyage continues uneventfully for several days. Zhangyu is in fine form as early as the following morning, thanks to Caxi's skilled attention. The crew is uneasy at the sight of the killer Salim in open air, but the presence of V'Neef Piu and Officer Samperson keeps them at ease. The Defiance pulls toward the Guild-run trading post in the Siaka's Teeth, a spray of islands forming 15[23:41] a natural bay that juts well into the sea. 15[23:49] The bay has plenty of ships at anchor, their sails flapping lazily in the breeze. There's no sign of anyone working aboard any of the ships they pass as they draw closer to the docks. 15[23:49] ...no sign of anyone on the docks, either. 15[23:50] Only Daizo and Dryas can catch the barest hint of human habitation - a lilting, wordless song on the wind, small and far. [23:51] 14Piu, to Daizo: "...What's up?" [23:52] 10Daizo cocks his head and listens. "I hear a song. Something's not right here." [23:53] "No words, just a tune…" [23:53] 6Zhangyu, who hasn't heard anything: "Where from? Can you tell?" [23:54] 10Daizo's going to fish around in his sleeve for his hand mirror. "Just a precaution…" [23:55] 14Ah, shit. 15[23:56] The song is coming from deeper on the island. Beyond the trading post, most of it is given way to jungle. [23:57] 07Dryas finds the tune and matches it, humming along to it as she shoulders a quiver and retrieves her bow. Here we go. [23:57] 10None of the tales of mysterious songs at sea are good. He breathes on the mirror, then wipes it clean… 15[23:57] Daizo peers in the mirror and sees a sky stained red. Veins of Essence branch and pulse through the sky like the cracked yolk of a young unhatched chicken. There's a slow, steady pulse that he can feel as much as hear. [23:59] 10Daizo blanches. "This island is tainted. Cursed." [00:00] 6Zhangyu: "Cursed how." 6He is trying and failing to conceal his anger at still not quite hearing this - there's these notes, but... [00:02] 10Since no one else can see what he sees, except perhaps Caxi with her own mirror, he'll describe it as best he can. "The sky is bleeding." [00:02] 14Piu: "So we can let loose?" 15[00:02] Ratel: "What takes the people but not the ships?" 15[00:02] Caxi: "Nothing good." [00:03] 10Daizo: "Something that wants to feed…" [00:03] 14To Daizo: "We should send the Defiance back. And burn the ships." 15[00:03] Caxi nods. [00:03] 07Ratel might grumble and the ratings might already have decided who gets to eat it if the ship finds itself becalmed, but Dryas has brought her horse on board just in case of such an outcome. The willful creature - reddish with a white diamond across the forehead and a carefully combed mane - is doubltess pleased at the prospect of moving about, but perhaps not for long. [00:05] 4Piu: "Ahhhhhh!!" [00:05] 4Piu: "Horsey!" [00:05] 10Daizo: "I'd love nothing more than to burn the whole harbor and sail on. But …" [00:06] 10Horsey. 15[00:06] Caxi ignores the horse. "Oh, we can't move on. But we should make sure no one else can leave." [00:06] 10Daizo: "Weigh anchor here, and if anything tries to leave the island but us, blast it to flinders." [00:07] "Your thoughts, Commodore?" 15[00:07] Ratel nods. "Make it so." [00:07] 4Piu's busy hugging the horse. [00:08] 07Dryas leaps aboard Diamond Weapon's back. "Who's coming with us?" 07Are they putting in to the dock and laying down the gangplank or...? [00:09] 4Piu leaps up behind her on Diamond Weapon. "Let's go!!" 15[00:09] "Take Piu, Zhangyu, Daizo, and Salim." [00:09] 6Zhangyu was already moving into position. 15[00:09] Ratel motions the assassin forward. [00:09] 14She leans back to meet eyes with Salim...and smile. [00:10] "Hee hee." [00:10] 10Daizo nods. "Understood. I'll go below and get my gear on." [00:10] 4Then she hugs onto Dryas again. Diamond Weapon's a big animal! [00:12] 10Daizo takes a look back before he goes belowdecks again. Perhaps now, the problem of Salim will just… solve itself. He feels a pang for even thinking so coldly. [00:13] 07Dryas offers a lazy salute to Ratel, turns back to face Piu and winks, before taking to the shore! 15[00:13] When everyone's ready, the gangplank is lowered and Dryas leads her away team into the little town. [00:13] 4Let's 14do this. 15[00:14] It's completely vacant. There's no sense of urgency - no cookfires abandoned, no animals left feral, nothing to suggest fleeing or slaughter. But there's also no sense of transition - so many goods and sundries have been left behind, it's as if they were forgotten about or deliberately abandoned. 15[00:15] The singing grows louder and clearer as they advance. The dirt roads of the trading post yield swiftly to jungle paths. It takes Piu a moment to realize no insects have alighted on her skin. [00:15] 14Well, shit. [00:15] 6What the fuck. "What in the hells." [00:16] 14Piu: "Prepare for something bad--" [00:16] 6Always am, he doesn't say. [00:17] 10Does the plant life appear to have been affected, or is it just the things that fly and creep and crawl?  15[00:18] Everything that grows from the ground seems alive, and there are still birds in the trees and the rustle of mammals in the undergrowth. [00:18] "The bugs--" 15[00:21] As they advance deeper, the sound stills and stops. There's the sound of movement, of low voices. Many of them - dozens, at least. 15[00:21] Do they intend to march right up? [00:22] 14Piu: "I could go in first. But I'm guessing we find a hive." [00:23] 14Piu: "Of what...now that's interesting." [00:23] 10Daizo, softly: "Take a closer look anyway. Get a count if you can." [00:23] "Yes sir. [00:23] " [00:24] 6Zhangyu: "Stay close if you can." 6He would love to offer assistance here, but he is remarkably terrible at stealth assignments. [00:24] 10Who's got eyes on Salim? Sending him with Piu alone would be too dangerous. [00:25] 6Zhangyu will, if he isn't tagging along. [00:28] 14She drops away, dives, a shadow's behind her, then she's gone. [00:28] 14There's a thoroughness to Piu's work. 15[00:29] Piu, ahead, finds a rough-cut clearing in the jungle, full to blinding with vibrant wildflowers in every color, against which the white-robed people kneeling, resting, eating, and loving in the clearing are difficult to count or identify. [00:29] 14Damn it. 15[00:30] Everyone seems oblivious to her presence. Even the one standing figure, whose back is to her, head all but obscured by a vast and dazzling wreath of flowers. [00:30] 14She'll withdraw. [00:30] 6Zhangyu loses track of Piu almost immediately. Obviously she can't stay close - what was he even asking. She'll call out if she needs help. [00:30] 14They can't run in here without gratuity. That's not the mission. 15[00:31] Salim is close to Daizo, silent and scowling. [00:32] 14When she returns to Daizo: "Cult shit ahead. White robes and a leader in a wreath." [00:34] 10Daizo: "So, some kind of bug-god cult?" [00:34] 6Zhangyu draws his thumb across his throat, then shrugs at Piu. He, uh, didn't learn the proper signals for stealth missions, focusing more on battlefields and duels against commanders. [00:34] 07Dryas: "Are they armed?" [00:34] 6He is, however, aware of the repeated remark on his schooling: too loud. [00:35] "Flowers, white robes. I'm no expert but if I wanted a bug cult, flowers would be involved." [00:35] 14To Dryas: "They're hedonists." [00:35] "So maybe. But probably they're just fucking." [00:36] 07Dryas: "A sudden strike, catch the leaders, find out what happened to the rest of the island? Or a friendly approach?" [00:37] 6Zhangyu draws his thumb across his throat again, but grinning this time. [00:37] 14Piu: "Neither's going to work on a cult." [00:37] 14Did she see any way around while she was in there? That leader was facing something, since they were facing away. [00:37] 10Daizo, still as quietly as possible: "This is practically by the book, then. If they're not aggressive, we announce ourselves and ask to speak to the local god." [00:38] "If they prove amenable to reason, we can work from there. If not… then the god will be made to bend the knee to the Princes of the Earth." [00:39] "Who wants to speak for us?" [00:39] 14Piu: "...If that's your order." [00:39] "Not me." [00:40] 6Zhangyu shakes his head. [00:40] "Dryas is the commander here." [00:40] 10Dragons help us. [00:41] 6They are helping us. I'm not sure what the problem is. [00:41] 07Dryas: "Daizo, you're the expert. Are you up to it?" [00:42] 14Piu: "I'll be up and to the left." [00:42] 14She slips away again. [00:42] 14As she does, she's making eye contact with Salim. 15[00:43] Salim looks back, but makes no other reply. [00:43] 10Daizo: "Only one way to find out. Let's go." [00:43] 07Dryas: "I'll take point, the rest of you form up alongside me. We'll approach them openly, I'll start but let Daizo do the talking." [00:44] 07Dryas, on horseback, enters the glade, flanked by the rest of the Princes of Earth on foot. She raises an empty hand in greeting as she does so. 15[00:44] The four visible members of the team enter the clearing. Dozens of heads rise to meet them. People advance, cautiously, reaching out to touch and run their hands over the strange, strong invaders. [00:45] 14Meanwhile, she moves on the girders between dirt and sky. 15[00:45] The wreathed figure turns from their altar, revealing themselves a young woman with long sandy hair and a beatific smile. [00:45] 10Ugh. Dissipated freaks. 15[00:45] She spreads her hands wide. "Welcome home, beloveds." [00:45] 07Dryas reaches another hand to her amulet, focusing her attentions on this newcomer. [00:46] 6Zhangyu glares at anyone attempting to touch him, but doesn't physically stop them. Perhaps a few are dissuaded, but... [00:46] 6Also, wait, what. [00:46] 4Piu rests with her elbows on her knees and waits. And grimaces. [00:46] 14Piu rests with her elbows on her knees and waits. And grimaces. 15[00:48] The apparent leader steps forward, balancing delicately on the flowers without so much as bending their stems to the earth. "I am so happy you've come." 15[00:48] Carmine Road: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWxiH_8kHnk - Cut open my sternum and pull my little ribs around you, the lungs of me be crowns over you. 15[00:48] NEXT TIME: Love like cancer [00:50] 10Daizo advances to Dryas' side, and casually raps the ground with his tetsubo. Then, he raises his voice. "In the name of the Scarlet Empress and the Immaculate Order, I call upon you now to cease any improper conduct with spirits and return to prescribed methods of worship! Bring out your god, so we may converse!"