15[20:21] Danaa'd's Defiance leaves burning Brightwork in the dead of night, two passengers heavier but borne irresistibly onward by the freshest lead they've yet had. But the Gyre, even at full sail with fair winds, is almost a week away across the ocean. But if Deled is to be believed, then her crippled fleet is at little risk of evading them once they get the trail. [20:21] 14Heavy if. And not because the man's a liar. [20:22] 14A crippled feet asea for over a fortnight, untouched by pirates? We'll see. [20:22] *14fleet 15[20:23] This leaves the Four Fangs in a somewhat awkward position, with the most real urgency attached to their mission since they received it, but nothing to do for now but hope that sea and the Maidens favor them. [20:23] 10Depends on if the pirates are desperate enough to sail into the Gyre themselves. Most of them are probably smarter than that. Smarter than us. 15[20:23] How does that settle on them? What occupies their thoughts and their time? [20:23] 14The most pressing business to Piu's mind as they hurry up and wait involves the twins. They need to be brought in fully. [20:24] 14Were either hurt in the violent end to business in Brightwork? 15[20:25] No, they both seem to be in perfect health. The worst injury sustained by anyone of the Blood that night seems to be Deled exuberantly climbing into that suit of ancient armor. 15[20:25] Unless you count what happened to Northern Cross. [20:26] 14Piu doesn't. When Deled is finally offloaded and on his way, Piu will consult Ratel. It's time for a meeting of the senior staff...and Garnet. [20:29] 14Piu envisons this working basically as follows: an acknowledgment of their service; an acknowledgment that they were kept in the dark -- as were many, but they last; an acknowledgment that this was originally for their safety but a red line has been crossed, politically, and since they are all-in, they deserve the brief that comes with that; an apology for it taking so long -- Piu [20:29] 14will deliver this; it shouldn't come from the commanding officer as a matter of decorum and it was mostly her call -- and then the unveiling. [20:30] 14Of course, the only two members of the senior staff left to be brought in are Cathak Ito Pan and Cathak Ito Jun. [20:31] 10Daizo has questions—lots of questions—for Caxi, but the biggest one remains unspoken—the time isn't quite right yet. Instead, he's interested in expanding his repertoire of spells. And there's the matter of how Seiri's recovering from her injury. [20:33] 14She'll obviously check in with Garnet before pulling the trigger on this, too. Just in case anything's changed. [20:33] 14...And make it clear this isn't directly how she intends to hook them up. 15[20:33] The sense is awkward but very brief, because of course Ito Jun has a contribution once Garnet lifts her veil. "Damn," he says, thoughtfully. Then after another pause, Ito Pan looking on suspiciously behind him, adds: "I don't get it." 15[20:33] *The silence [20:35] 10Daizo: "What don't you get?" 15[20:36] Caxi will seem a bit relieved at Daizo's straightforward request, and Seiri seems to be healing well enough, but not quite well enough to move from the cot in the hold-turned-infirmary back up to the cabin. 15[20:36] Ito Jun: "Am I supposed to recognize her?" [20:36] 14Piu throws her hands up. "Heaven forfend." 15[20:36] "That's not Mnemon, is it?" [20:37] 10Daizo: "Close." 15[20:37] Ito Pan: "No, Mnemon's more... distinguished." 15[20:37] Ito Jun nods in agreement. [20:37] 14Piu almost asks Garnet if she'd like Piu to assign this as homework, but no, this is about respecting the Cathak boys. [20:38] 6They get precisely as much respect as they are due. [20:38] 10Hmm. Are the twins too young to have solid memories of the Empress' appearances in the sky over the Blessed Isle? 15[20:39] They would've been like, 12 or 13? The last time? They're a touch younger than the Fangs, but they're not *that* young, surely. [20:39] 10Huh. [20:40] 14Instead, to Garnet: "Up to you if you want to proceed at your own pace here." 15[20:41] Ito Pan: "Obviously this is big, or we wouldn't have this whole production..." 15[20:42] Garnet looks back at the Commodore, who looks furiously embarrassed, and then takes a step to the side. Now her head is no longer blocking the portrait of the Empress that Ratel's got hanging in the office. 15[20:42] Another moment passes in silence. 15[20:42] Then Ito Pan says: "Holy shit." [20:43] 10Daizo: "Mmhmm." 15[20:43] Ito Jun: "What—" 15[20:43] Ito Pan: "Dude!" 15[20:43] He gestures at the portrait. 15[20:43] Ito Jun: "Holy shit!" 15[20:43] Ito Pan: "So is that it? Can we go home?" [20:44] 6... [20:44] 10Daizo: "Unfortunately, no. Lady Garnet is not the Empress as we remember her." [20:44] 14Piu: "And recovering the Scarlet Empress is not actually our mission." [20:45] "Think of her more as a twin, a sister. One who has been asleep for a very long time and only recently awoken." 15[20:46] Ito Pan: "Okay. So then, this fucks us, right? Having someone who could pass for the Empress but is not the Empress is the worst possible situation to be in, in the world." [20:46] 14Piu: "She may yet be the Empress." [20:46] "She may always have been." [20:47] "I suspect that is up to her Imperial Majesty." [20:47] "But you're not wrong about the political dangers. Thus the production." 15[20:47] Ito Jun: "What was she doing in the Maw?" [20:48] 10Daizo: "We don't know." [20:48] "We think Furia might." [20:49] 6Zhangyu: "It's a better lead than anything else we have." 15[20:49] Ratel: "And we've got Furia's last known whereabouts from a reliable source. We're on a direct heading." 15[20:50] Ito Pan looks at Garnet: "What do you remember? How long were you asleep? The whole five years?" [20:50] 14Piu: "If you have further questions for Garnet, they can be addressed to her at her leisure. We're obviously not addressing her as her Imperial Highness for reasons of circumspection but she's owed the respect shown to any lady." [20:52] 4By the dragons these boys are stupid. [20:52] 4She knew she liked them! 15[20:55] Garnet affixes her veil once more. "Yes, well, I think we're all briefed. I've been through all this many times, so if you have more to say there should be no need to burden the room with it." [20:56] 10Daizo: "Oh, there is one complicating factor the two of you should be aware of." 15[20:56] Ito Jun: "Yeah?" [20:56] 14Piu probably put the jar on Ratel's captain's desk, if that's where this is going. [20:57] 10Daizo indicates the jade vessel. "For the moment, Lady Garnet can only exist within about a radius of thirty yalms or so from that jar." 15[20:58] Ito Pan: "Does she sleep in it? Like a Southern djinn?" [20:58] 14Piu: "Protect it with your lives if necessary. Or at the very least, don't ask awkward questions when Seiri or one of us is carrying it about in public." 15[20:58] Garnet, flatly: "No." [20:58] "Such as that." [20:58] "That is a good example of a question not to ask in public, about the jar." [20:59] 10Daizo: "Within that space she's as real as you or I." [21:00] 14Piu: "She's just as real outside of it, too. There are just some...issues with Creation knowing that." [21:00] "Outside of it? Well, it's an interesting philosophical question." 15[21:00] Ito Jun: "Okay. Be nice, ask questions, act normal about the jar. Anything else?" 15[21:00] Ito Pan: "Why don't I take this back to your cabin for you, ma'am." [21:00] 4Finally! [21:01] 14Piu moves aside, glancing at Garnet. [21:01] 10Nice. [21:01] 14To Jun: "I think that about covers it." 15[21:02] Garnet: "Thank you. It's difficult for me to carry. But you seem healthy enough." 15[21:02] Ito Jun: "Yeah, you should see the rock." [21:02] 4Oh, she will. 15[21:02] Ratel, quickly: "Thank you, dismissed." [21:03] 14To Garnet, without a trace of suggestion: "Let me know if you need an extra hand." [21:03] 10Gods around.  15[21:04] "I'll keep you apprised. Tapadh leat." 15[21:05] Once they're gone, the Commodore says: "At least we only had to do that once." [21:05] 14Gun duilgheadas. [21:05] 14Piu: "Nothing from the neck up. Nothing!" [21:05] 4A pause. "We'll see about the rest of them." 15[21:06] Now what? [21:08] 4V'neef Piu has her exercises to do, but after the stretching she'll probably do cardio by helping out the sailors on the rigging. They always get a thrill out of that. 15[21:09] Just good honest sailors happy to see someone highborn put in the work, ma'am. [21:10] 4Then after a quick dip in the ocean (tied off on a line of course; she runs back up the side of the ship) and a quick rinse to get the salt off, it's time to find the Chief Petty Officer. [21:12] 10Daizo's heading down to the hold—there's still a few patients left to be seen to, and splitting the labor with Caxi's worked out well so far.  15[21:13] Chief Samperson is just coming out of the hold as Daizo and Zhangyu descend. Seiri's on her cot, and only a trace of blood is seeping through the bandage on her side. Sadako is there beside her, and her presence is as good as a curtain for giving them privacy, as none of the other recuperating crew seem to want to look in her direction. [21:16] 10Daizo nods approvingly. Everything seems to be coming along well. "How's the pain today?" [21:17] 14This is a conversation they can have around Sadako, if Sadako's providing cover for them instead of Daizo. 15[21:18] Seiri smiles. "Oh, there's hardly any. I should be good as new soon. How are you, Master Daizo?" 15[21:18] Caedus is fine with that if Piu is. [21:20] 14Piu: "I've put in my time swooping among the sailors. How are you?" [21:22] 10Daizo smiles. "Glad to finally be underway again. Has anyone told you about where we're headed next?" 15[21:26] Caedus: "Pretty good. Looks like all our serious injuries are handled. For now." 15[21:26] Seiri: "No, I haven't heard much down here but hurt sailors and angry cats. What's our heading?" [21:27] 14Piu nods. "Good. Good. Anything about the possible stowaways?" 14She glances over at Sadako. "You might want in on this, babe." [21:30] 07Dryas makes her way abovedeck with a stack of crumpled parchments. Standing atop the quarterdeck at the aft of the ship, she heaves the crumpled bundle overboard. It's the first she's been out of her quarters today. 15[21:30] Caedus: "Nothing provable, but Fafhrd's been freaking out since overnight." [21:31] 10Daizo: "Well, I won't sugar-coat it, it's probably more dangerous than Mionzi was. We met an eyewitness who told us where we could find Furia—she's lashed her ships together and she's drifting around the Gyre." [21:32] 14Piu: "Who's...? [21:32] " [21:33] 10Daizo: "I know what they've written down in the books about that part of the sea, but are there any stories passed down about what we might find there? You don't have to rack your brains about it right now… but anything could help." 15[21:33] The crew of the Defiance give Dryas a wide berth, and then a wider one as another member of the senior staff approaches her. Caxi leans against the taffrail. "Working on poetry?" 15[21:35] Caedus: "Our mouser. Good worker for such an old cat." [21:35] 14Piu: "He'll get hurt if he finds this mouse." [21:36] "Has he been like this before?" 15[21:38] Seiri: "What everybody knows about the Gyre. Ships come out, but people don't. Sailors tell stories of treasure hunters who go in looking for unpicked holds, abandoned valuables, even whole unclaimed vessels. But they're never first-person stories. They have a lot of theories about what gets you. Long-fingered demons that pick the ribs from your chest like shells from your pocket. 15[21:38] Demons that sing so sweetly you don't care that you're drowning. All sorts of stories." [21:38] 07Dryas, annoyed: "Only partially." 07She hurls balls of parchment, one after the other, into the ship's wake. 15[21:38] "Sailors aren't shikari, of course, so to them everything unsavory is a demon." 15[21:39] Caedus: "Not that I've seen. If you're right, though, this is a very new circumstance for him. What could the mouse's angle be, if it is the mouse?" [21:40] 07Dryas: "First drafts of our... advertisements? Memoirs? Propaganda? Mythology?" 15[21:40] Caxi: "A tall order. But not something you can trust a spirit-scribe with, not at this stage." [21:41] 10Daizo: "Our eyewitness was. A shikari, I mean. He managed to make it back. That's who I kept running in and out of the temple for that day." 15[21:42] Seiri's eyes widen. "Gosh. Is he okay? Did we leave him behind?" [21:42] 14Piu: "Well...either he's catching a ride to greener lands, in which case he'll soon learn our heading and be sorely disappointed, or he finds us interesting enough to see what happens. He and the bird are both Silver Anathema. Sometimes they just do things." [21:42] 07Dryas: "No. And no matter what we find in the Gyre, we are going to need to start covering our ass back home." [21:43] 14To Sadako: "We're looking for a very special mouse that might be on board, but we don't want a fight if he is." [21:43] "There might be a beautiful songbird with him, but...she'd probably find a different form." 15[21:43] Sadako: "Is he a smart mouse or just an asshole?" 15[21:44] Caedus looks to Piu. [21:45] 10Daizo: "Furia hurt him real bad, but he survived. I think that man could crawl out of the Underworld if he found himself there. Dryas got him passage to the Blessed Isle to make a report." [21:46] 10Daizo sighs. "Not all shikari are admirable, though. This one especially. I think I said to you before that all of we Blooded are killers, but… there was nothing left in his heart but killing." 15[21:46] Caxi: "You trust your people, right? Your kinship? A united front limits our exposure." 15[21:47] "Which sounds rather oxymoronic." [21:47] 14Piu: "He's both." 15[21:48] Seiri: "But he still serves the Hierarchy, doesn't he?" [21:48] "But tearing the ship apart does him no good. So it's a game of manners, unless we push it too far." 15[21:48] Sadako: "He's gotta eat, right?" [21:49] 07Dryas: "I know what to expect from them now. The men are men. Piu... I think I know what to expect from her, now. That doesn't mean it's always what I wished it was." 15[21:51] "She's very loyal. Easily three or four times as loyal as a normal woman," Caxi says. [21:53] 07Dryas: "She may be the most devoted and loyal woman I have ever met. But everyone has their limits. I think she may have showed hers not long ago." 15[21:53] "You're thinking about Lena." [21:56] 14Piu: "That he does." [21:57] 07Dryas: "Yes. Lena got under her skin in a way I haven't seen before." [21:57] 10Daizo's quiet for a while, thinking. "He serves the Order, certainly. And the Order exists to help all of mankind along their path to perfection…"10 A pause. "I fear he may have takena misstep on his path, and wound up on another one promising 'perfection' of an entirely different kind." [21:58] "Even at the final threshold, it's possible to make a wrong choice." [22:00] "I only hope someone can help him realize it. It was beyond me." 15[22:00] Sadako: "I can hide by the food crates and see if a mouse comes out." [22:00] 10Come on. You didn't even try. 15[22:01] Seiri: "Wow... if the weight's too heavy for your back, what hope do the rest of us have?" 15[22:01] She shakes her head. "I'm sorry. That was a sour thought. Unbecoming." [22:01] 14Piu: "I suspect you're excellent at hiding. ...Okay, give it a go. But if he reveals himself, I don't want a fight. Either stay hidden or come find me or the Chief Petty Officer." 15[22:02] Caxi: "Lena's conduct certainly merited rebuke. I don't know if I'd have gone that far." She sighs. "But I'd have considered it. At length." [22:02] "And if he finds you, give it a chance to play out with words. We don't need holes in the hull." 15[22:03] Sadako: "Yeah. I mean. It's not like he ate the cat." [22:03] 14Piu doesn't do Sadako the discourtesy of worrying if she can hold her own. [22:04] 14Piu narrows her eyes at that. [22:04] "I certainly hope not." 15[22:04] Sadako: "Gross." [22:07] 10Daizo: "It's fine. All sweet thoughts and your teeth start to fall out of your head. I suppose I came to ask a different heavy question, though—when you're all healed up, do you intend to resume your blade training with Lady Garnet?" [22:08] 14To Caedus: "Where's the mouser now?" [22:09] 07Dryas: "Make no mistake, the last tongue that called me a bitch is sitting in a jar full of salt right now while I figure out what to do with it. It's either nail it to the yardarm or send it back to Onyx with a copy of this manuscript. But as far as Piu is concerned - it makes me wonder if there is something else she'd rather be than simply loyal." 15[22:10] Seiri opens her mouth and then closes it. She bunches up her blanket in her hands a bit. Then: "I don't know." 15[22:11] As if on cue, the plaintive yowl from Fafhrd, the gray mouser who looks like a poorly-kept, shaggy green-eyed wig, cuts through the muttering in the hold. 15[22:11] Caxi: "Such as?" [22:12] 4Piu will saunter over, meeting the rather-ridiculous cat's gaze. [22:12] 4Does Fafhrd stay or lead her away? [22:13] 10Is someone strangling that cat? Yeesh. 15[22:13] Seiri looks pained at the sound of the cat. [22:13] 10Daizo: "Has it been doing that the entire time you've been down here?" 15[22:13] Fafhrd runs towards Piu, between her legs and then back toward the far end of the hold. 15[22:14] Sadako groans. "All night." [22:14] 4She'll follow. [22:15] 10Daizo: "Looks like it's pissed off Piu. We're going to have to find another cat." 15[22:15] Seiri winces. Sadako snickers. [22:16] 10Daizo adopts a falsetto. "Finally, a worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary!" [22:17] "…Sorry. That was corny as hell." [22:18] 07Dryas: "She resents servitude. Someone like Deled or Salim relish being part of a hierarchy. They are proud to be slaves of something greater than themselves. They cherish such an insult, it validates their own perspective and doubts. But Piu, for all her loyalty and devotion, killed Lena for suggesting the same." 15[22:18] The cat saunters ahead just a bit and then suddenly darts forward like a little meteor, if a meteor could look like it smelled horrible. Just ahead, past the boundary between the cots and the crates, Piu sees Fafhrd leap and pounce... on nothing, as a tiny black shape blurs almost faster than she can follow back between the crates. Fafhrd skids across the floor, and is brought to a 15[22:18] stop by the contact of his face against the nearest water barrel. [22:18] 4Poor guy. 15[22:18] He hits it with enough force that a slosh of grog lands right on his head, making it shaggier and darker. 15[22:18] Another yowl. [22:19] 4Piu goes over to him -- if there's not a towl nearby, she can light up her anima to dry him off. 15[22:20] Caxi: "Sounds like an uncomfortable trait for someone who serves so many masters." [22:21] 4Out loud: "He's a good mouser. He'll get over the humiliation. And the bumps to the head." [22:21] "Thank you for only making it that." [22:22] 4If she's wrong, she's just talking to herself. 15[22:22] There are worse fates. 15[22:23] While people are distracted, Seiri leans towards Daizo a bit. "I wouldn't want to make any further impositions on your time, Master Daizo... but do you think it would still be possible for you to train me?" 15[22:24] Caedus: "Well... we know we've got a mouse, at least." [22:24] 4How alone are they? Can she head deeper into the hold? 15[22:24] She can. [22:24] 07Dryas nods. "A pea under a mattress." 15[22:25] Sadako: "Aren't mice supposed to jump off of ships?" [22:25] 4She'll pass the mouser over to Caedus. To Sadako: "Follow, but not too closely. Just seal off this part of the hold, really. If I'm wrong, I'm just wasting my mess hall time." [22:25] "But that was a damn fast mouse." 15[22:25] Sadako nods and creeps away. 15[22:28] Caxi: "You could be a source of great comfort and support in that... or you could drive her mad." 15[22:28] "What are you thinking?" [22:29] 4Piu heads deeper. Once she's unlikely to be clearly heard by anyone without heightened senses or magic: "I've got good news and I've got bad news. The bad news is that we're not heading for land you can disembark on. We're chasing a fleet. Maybe you figured that out by now. And that our heading is for the Gyre." 15[22:30] Sadako hangs behind, silent, covering the exit. [22:30] "The good news is that...as far as people like us go, we're very flexible." [22:30] 07Dryas: "After letting a wolf into your confidence, it would usually be unwise to antagonize it." [22:30] 4She's beginning to feel a slight bit silly. 15[22:31] There's a gentle scratching between barrels of disinfected water. Piu doesn't *see* the movement, but she can hear it. [22:31] 4She stiffens a bit, but fights -- successfully -- the urge to spin or turn or enter a stance. [22:32] "I'm not going to pretend you can just step out from behind a barrel and join the crew...but...it wouldn't be too much harder than that." [22:32] "Until we got to port." 15[22:33] Caxi: "Unless you're feeling particularly decisive, yes. In that case you should look past her to her masters. Your concern for your hearth-sister is met by concern in kind. So find your own pressure point. V'neef is sending these assassins abroad, and you are loyal to the assassin but not to her. There's leverage in that." 15[22:34] "She can't move against you because she'd be feeding her second-best assets into her best. But you have so many ways to threaten her." [22:36] 4Piu: "Then you go where you wish." [22:40] 07Dryas is on the same page as her cousin- "Leverage on even the junior of the two most likely candidates vying for succession is certainly valuable. Coin of the House." [22:41] 4The water's dried off her now. She feels all the rhythms and whispers of the hold through the floor and the walls, from her feet to her fingertips... [22:42] 10Daizo considers Seiri's question briefly. "Certainly. Although you may find Earth Dragon Style difficult—but there is no shortage of determination in you." 15[22:42] Caxi: "That's right. A little matriarch, playing with her little house... far more palatable a regnant than Mnemon, wouldn't you say? If she was taking the right advice." 15[22:42] "And what a peace offering it could be if Falen comes demanding satisfaction." 15[22:45] Piu feels the feather-light weight of tiny eyes on her. She turns and finds the creature sitting back on its haunches between two of the grog barrels. The mouse is almost entirely black from nose to tail, save for the white patch covering most of its face. She recognizes it. It seems to recognize her. [22:46] 10Daizo: "I cannot, of course, promise you the dramatic resilience a Blooded practitioner can cultivate. But perhaps a defensive style will resonate with you on a deeper level than bladework or the killing intent of Mantis." [22:47] 4Somewhat awkwardly, as this is her first time talking to an animal actually thinking it can understand her and respond: "...Hi." 15[22:47] Seiri: "Master Zhangyu is very skilled, and a great sifu... but I couldn't find the spiritual in his practice. It just felt like fighting. Lady Garnet, very skilled, a very good teacher... but she's of a very different temperament." [22:51] 10Daizo: "Very well! From this day on you may consider yourself my first student. It will be a learning experience for both of us, and I'll do my best to meet your expectations of me." [22:53] "Three, four more days and you should be up and about again, but I'll check with Caxi. I'll work out our first steps in that time." 15[22:53] Seiri looks very relieved. "Oh, thank you, Master Daizo. I'll do my best to be worthy." 15[22:55] Sadako catches Piu's attention in the corner of her eye. Should she go..? [22:55] 4At this point she's waiting either for the mouse to turn into a man or...start talking? Like a man? Out of his mouse mouth???? [22:55] 4Yeah, she'll wave Sadako off. 15[22:57] Sadako recedes from view. The mouse starts talking like a man out of his mouse mouth. "How far from port?" 15[22:57] He sounds... not old but older. Mid 30s maybe? Kinda rough. [22:57] 10Daizo flexes his wings; they were starting to get a bit stiff. "I have a few more patients to see to, and then I'll be meeting with Caxi before she makes her rounds. Is there anything else you need before I go?" [22:58] 07Dryas: "We'll keep it in the back pocket then. And how are you?" [23:01] 4Piu: "Two days to Shrine City, three to Coruscate, five to Danguro and eight to Abalone. Roughly speaking. Not counting whatever happens when we find what we're looking for at the Gyre." 15[23:02] Caxi: "I feel wonderful. The Commodore's stopped sulking whenever I cross her path. Morale seems high across the board, apart from poor Sadako." [23:02] 4A voice this hot should not be allowed to come from a rodent. 15[23:02] The mouse: "No monks?" 15[23:03] Seiri shakes her head. "Nothing that can't wait." [23:03] 4Piu: "My hearth-brother might've counted. But he's a sorcerer with wings and a girlfriend who summons demons." [23:03] "Last monk we met before that we beat the shit out of in the brig and handed over as an assassin." [23:03] "Since he was." [23:04] 07Dryas: "Sadako? Is she still not getting time with Seiri?" 15[23:05] The mouse: "What'll it take to earn a ride as far as Abalone?" 15[23:05] Caxi: "No, quite the contrary. She is inseparable from that dismal lamprey of a peasant girl and the light bleeds from her eyes more and more every day as a result." [23:06] 4Piu: "Not eating anybody and showing up to fight if the ship looks like it's going to sink." [23:07] "Might have to tolerate my company. Maybe questions from one or two more. Nothing intrusive." 15[23:07] The mouse: "You got odds on that happening? The ship sinking." [23:08] 07Dryas: "You think the relationship is holding her back?" [23:09] 10Daizo gets about the remainder of his work in the makeshift infirmary. At least the cat's quit yowling. Have to ask Piu about that later.  15[23:09] Caxi: "What first love doesn't? Still, it's no use interfering. She needs to outgrow the girl on her own terms, or else she'll nurse that grudge forever." [23:12] 4Piu: "Over the last season we've helped kill a god, braved a secret prison and brought back a horrible secret, commandeered a weapon from the First Age and made it our home port, became a crime family, became a real family, then landed in Brightwork, took its commerce, freed two Chosen of the Moon, went to a wedding, killed the groom, fucked the bride, made friends with the guy [23:12] hired for the music. So I'd say odds are against the ship, but I think she'll be fine." 15[23:15] The mouse: "That sounds fun. You're a class act for letting me out and not making any demands, but I regret not taking the time to kill anybody. Sounds like I might get lucky yet." 15[23:16] "Yeah, I'm in. Rinca." [23:16] 10After a bit, Daizo emerges abovedecks—Caxi and Dryas are apparently deep in conversation over something or other.  [23:16] 4Piu: "V'neef Piu." [23:17] "Just Piu's fine." [23:17] 07Dryas: "She's turning out well nonetheless. I noticed she was one of the few, ah, civilians not injured in the battle." 15[23:17] Rinca: "Rinca Bleeding-Brow if anybody asks. But they won't." 15[23:19] Caxi's lips start to curl into a sneer but her expression lifts immediately as Daizo climbs into view. "Oh yes. Young Seiri is very capable." [23:19] 4Piu: "Once we've got the wounded out of the hold, I'll bring down some bedding. I think there's a door back there with a lock to the saltroom; you can bed down there as long as when the cook's mate comes down to get bacon he just hears weird sounds at most. Don't eat the bacon. We'll figure out something for food." 15[23:20] Not actually what Dryas was talking about, but Caxi seems to have moved on to waving Daizo over. "How is she doing?" [23:20] "Did the bird go her own way? Not prying, just want to know if it's one or two." 15[23:21] Rinca: "Yeah. She had somewhere to be." [23:22] 4Piu nods. "Okay. Okay! Welcome aboard, Rinca. The senior staff will know what they need to know. You've probably sized up the crewmen by now. Some are hardcases." [23:23] 10Daizo: "Not interrupting anything serious, am I? Oh, Seiri? She's ready to get back on her feet. She's even asked me to instruct her in Earth Dragon." 15[23:23] Rinca: "See you around, Piu." [23:23] 07Dryas: "She has that much free time?" 15[23:23] He scampers back among the barrels. [23:23] "The hardcases are from my outfit. They're pros. If one comes running and yelling calling you by name to get on deck, it's because we're sinking and we need all hands." [23:24] 4Piu: "See you around." [23:24] 4Maybe not as a mouse next time... [23:24] 10Daizo: "Well, she'll be ending her fencing lessons with Garnet. Should make Sadako a little happier, if anything's capable of doing so." [23:24] 4She'll head back out to where Caedus and Sadako are. 15[23:24] Caedus: "Any luck?" [23:25] 4Piu: "Whew. It's him alright. We've reached a deal." 15[23:25] Caedus exhales. "Good. Nice. Terms?" [23:26] "We feed him, he stays quiet, he pulls his weight if it looks like we're in real big trouble. He gets off next time we're in Abalone. I've stuck him in the saltroom; shouldn't need to restrict it, he's agreed to be quiet as, well, you know, when we need to get back there." 15[23:26] Caxi: "As long as you have that much free time." [23:27] "Name's Rinca Bleeding-Brow. If we need him, send one of your-our- men down with that name. Don't give it to normal crew." [23:27] 4She sighs. "And that is the deal that I made, with the Silver Anathema in the hold." 15[23:28] Caedus: "Skillfully done. What's your read on him?" [23:29] 10Daizo: "And aren't you always the one who tells me how I'm exceeding your expectations, dear? I need to keep my body in good condition as well as my mind—and we're not likely to be able to get further than introductory katas before we hit the Gyre anyway." [23:29] 4Piu: "Seems about as flexible as we are. Only wanted to know if there were monks aboard. Didn't ask any military questions." [23:29] 4Slightly wistfully: "Hot voice. Very weird coming out of a mouse." 15[23:30] Caedus smiles and shakes his head. [23:31] 10Daizo's being a little cheeky and he knows it, but coming up from that dank hold was like opening a window to let a breeze blow through. [23:31] 4Piu: "Ratel needs to know, and then so does the rest of the hearth. But I think we're set with him. Well done, Sadako. You're very imposing." 15[23:32] Caxi: "That's true, we can't count on knocking over a satrapy every time we need exercise." 15[23:32] "There are only so many." [23:32] 07Dryas: "It will be a jade mine next time anyway." [23:33] 10Daizo: "Have to go out and conquer more. The old-fashioned way." 15[23:33] Sadako: "Do you think he needs a mouse amount of food or a human amount of food?" 15[23:33] Caxi: "A jade mine?" [23:34] 4Piu: "Probably depends on what size he is most the time. We'll err on the side of a human amount and see how it goes." [23:35] 07Dryas: "Yeah. Putu On Neck? Way behind in shipments. No matter what we find in the Gyre, we're going to need jade afterwards." 15[23:37] Caxi: "Oh yes. The Commodore's grandfather is the governor, isn't he?" [23:38] 07Dryas: "Name of Budokan?" [23:40] 10Daizo: "All in all, I'd rather sail into a maelstrom than try and skim off of jade shipments that should be going to the Imperial Treasury. That's the kind of thing that used to get your House the Iselsi treatment." [23:40] "But if there's anyone that could pull it off…" 15[23:40] Caxi: "That's right. The way she likes to put it is, 'he's had every job the Empress offers that lets you hurt people'." 15[23:40] "He might even be old enough to have been around for that." [23:41] 07Dryas, slightly offended: "What skim? The jade isn't making it to the Treasury at all!" 15[23:42] If Piu wants to make time with the Commodore, she's frowning at maps of the open ocean around the Gyre in her office. [23:42] 4Piu opens the door, knocks on the door, closes it behind her. 15[23:42] Ratel: "Those fucking morons." [23:43] 4Piu: "I certainly hope they are." [23:43] "I'll go check later." 15[23:43] That gets a laugh from Ratel. "What's on your mind?" [23:43] 10Daizo: "Well… yes… but… that doesn't mean you can stop it from being hoarded by someone else and start hoarding it yourself." [23:44] 4She coughs delicately. "Trying to figure out the best way to break some news without you storming out of this cabin with your firewand. Which, hearing this news without context, you'd be justified doing." [23:44] "I mean, we're trying to restore the Realm here, not defraud it… hrm…" [23:45] "Guess I'll start with: Everything's fine! There's no emergency." 15[23:46] Caxi: "I think you're both right. Having commodities on hand, even if we're handing them directly back to the Realm, is a real asset to our names. But we need a plan for what to do with it all besides just sit on it." 15[23:47] Ratel: "Well now you have to tell me." [23:47] 4She leans against the desk. Leans forward a bit; Ratel likes that. "Soooooo. You remember the two Silver Anathema I freed." 15[23:47] Ratel: "Where are they." [23:48] "Well I don't know where the bird is. But the incredibly hot mouse is in the hold, and has agreed to stay there, as a mouse, not fucking with our crew or otherwise causing problems, in exchange for rations and eventual passage to Abalone." [23:49] "And he'll help defend the ship if everything goes super-sideways." 15[23:49] Ratel: "...how hot?" [23:50] 07Dryas: "Between Onyx and the pirates, the economy of the West is probably going to be experiencing what we call a liquidity problem. The only reason the jade mines haven't made it worse is that it's all supposed to go straight to the Realm." [23:50] "Well I haven't seen him yet, but he sounds incredibly hot. And he got into a barfight disguised as one of the Leaf's sailors to get onboard. Who he didn't kill. That's incredibly hot behavior." [23:50] "I mean the mouse form isn't hot." [23:50] "It's a mouse." 15[23:51] Ratel: "So, nonthreatening in a plausibly-hot way." [23:52] 4Piu: "I would be willing to wager that he is threateningly hot. When he's not a mouse. Or a sailor who lost a bar fight." [23:52] "But yes." 15[23:52] "Do you trust him with your life? Because that's what you're asking everyone else to do." [23:52] "Overall, nonthreatening, plausibly-hot." [23:52] "I've done it twice now." [23:52] 10Daizo: "All right. I think I'm following you here… So you want to open a branch of the Garden that's a bank?" [23:53] "When I set him free on that beach it was just me and him. I wasn't gonna win that fight." [23:53] 4Piu: "I think he liked what he saw, but more importantly, he understood the gesture." [23:55] 4She coughs again. "Anyway, I'll take some bedding down there for him once the hold clears out. You know. Sign of goodwill. A bare necessity." 15[23:55] Ratel: "Well... he landed on the best possible ship in the Realm to land on. Stay on top of it, and make sure he understands it might be a while before we get back to Abalone." [23:55] 4Piu: "On top of it!" [23:56] 4She'll stop by Garnet's room -- her old stateroom -- next. [23:57] 4And pause on the threshold before knocking in case there's anything to overhear and circumspectly back away from. [23:57] 10Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, combinatorics, geomantic topology, Daizo's just fine with all of these. But he has absolutely no head for finance.  15[23:59] Sounds like they're talking. She opens the door to find the two Cathaks sitting side by side on Garnet's bed while Garnet finishes a story. "...Pravad wanted to retreat as badly as Maheka did, but Maheka got his mantle and Pravad got the wheel." 15[00:00] Ito Jun: "Right, but one-on-one, who wins— hey Piu." [00:00] 4This is decidedly less sexy than she'd hoped...but they're on the bed. [00:00] 4She closes the door and smiles. "Hi. Don't stop on my account." [00:04] 4She'll slink over to the bed, and join them on it. 15[00:06] Caxi: "Oh absolutely. It's just a question of how to use it." 15[00:09] Garnet starts explaining which of the centuries-dead patriarchs could've taken the other, and the boys listen intently. Piu gets the impression that she's hoping for; Garnet's smoothing over the awkwardness that their ignorance had already minimized, and the Cathaks seem genuinely relaxed, which she realizes she hasn't seen them be before. 15[00:10] Kinda feels like she's waiting for them to make a move, but it also feels like she's only going to wait so long before she takes matters into her own hands. [00:10] 4...Which one does she want. [00:10] 4Oh uh also did Piu coming in freak her out. Because it's probably obvious what Piu's here to help with. 15[00:12] Not at all; she seems to have more of an affinity for Ito Pan, who is, if not 'the smart one' at least 'the less visibly incurious one'. 15[00:12] Ito Jun being the chattier, 'funner' one. [00:13] 4Ooooh. Excellent. Because Ito Jun's her favorite. [00:22] 4As the next story continues, first she's next to Ito Jun. Then she's behind him. Then she's in his lap, burning, and he probably can't focus on what Garnet is say or doing with his brother as flames from her lips lick around him, his fingers, his shoulders, his biceps, then his lips as her hand moves into his robes and down, giggling into his mouth at what she finds. [00:23] 4And as Ito Pan slips out of his robes with her Imperial Highness on the bed, the hottest woman Ito Jun has ever laid eyes on whispers in his ear, Take me on the fucking floor, and make the fire rise. 15[00:23] Meanwhile, Garnet pulls Ito Pan towards her delicately, and while the content of the story is lost to the other couple, the tone of her voice makes it sound very intense. 15[00:23] NEXT TIME: Tea and Saucers