(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 9)

[Oldmansour]

>"What, breaking onto someone else's ship and stealing whatever you want doesn't make your victim suffer?"
>"Want to avoid making people suffer? Here's a tip: Take up knitting."

[DracoOmega]

>"What, breaking onto someone else's ship and stealing whatever you want doesn't make your victim suffer?"
>"Want to avoid making people suffer? Here's a tip: Take up knitting."

>The bird snickers, and so does the shorter tengu. "You try knitting and tell me it isn't suffering," the former quips.
>"The relic is no more Murasa's property than it is your own," Ren says. "And when we take it regardless, what will any of your struggles have done but brought you injury?"
>"What the hell are you even talking about?" Chisato says. "What 'relic'?"
>Ren turns and regards her a moment. Chisato bristles under her gaze, and for a moment you honestly wonder if she's considering emulating Ishi.
>"If you aren't aware of it," Ren continues wearily, "I suppose it's immaterial. It is here, and we will be leaving with it."
>"Let's get them moved and get on with this," the bird says, taking hold of Miyuki. The taller tengu takes Chisto, and they head off across the deck.
>"I'd like to see your face after the captain beats it bloody," the redhead spits. "Haven't got her yet, have you, you fuckin' crows." Her transport is surprisingly stoic in the face of her captive's tongue.
>Ren moves to follow them, still holding Ishi at arm's length. You feel the other tengu grab you bodily and haul you after them.

[Oldmansour]

>"What kind of relic is worth all this? Worth the kind of damage that was apparantly done to your boat?"
>"ANd for that matter, how do you know it's here when the crew, or the treasure hunter, don't?"

[DracoOmega]

>"What kind of relic is worth all this? Worth the kind of damage that was apparantly done to your boat?"

>"Aya says that it's worth it," the bird youkai says. "So it is."
>"Something beyond price," Ren adds.

>"ANd for that matter, how do you know it's here when the crew, or the treasure hunter, don't?"

>"We have our sources," Ren says.

>The group of you are carried over to the other end of the deck and dumped by the struts, some of you more gently than others - you are not one of the fortunate ones in that regard. Ren does eventually tie Ishi's arms to the strut itself when she simply will not stop trashing.

[Oldmansour]

>"Since when does a thief care about something 'beyond price'? What, you need a cure for one of YOUR people, too?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Since when does a thief care about something 'beyond price'? What, you need a cure for one of YOUR people, too?"

>"Not exactly," Ren says. "It's a long-lost key to a very old puzzle."
>"What sort of puzzle?" Miyuki asks.
>"A load of horseshit, if you ask me," Chisato says.
>Ren shakes her head. "I'm afraid that's also a long story, and I can't spend any more time up here."
>She gestures to the other two tengu. "Watch them. The redhead's a magician, so don't assume she's harmless just because she's tied up. If they try anything, subdue them, but don't hurt them unless they leave you no choice." She rounds on the shorter tengu. "You in particular. Don't think I won't notice."
>She turns around and starts to walk off, the brightly-plumed bird following after her. "We'll be back shortly."

[Oldmansour]

>"We'll be waiting with bated breath."

[DracoOmega]

>"We'll be waiting with bated breath."

>"Try not to miss us too much," the bird says in your own voice.
>The two of them quickly make their way to the other end of the deck and descend below.
>The taller tengu assumes a position opposite your group, holding her spear upright and regarding you stoically. Her companion elects to lean against the strut instead and throws an unpleasant leer in your direction.

[Oldmansour]

>Take stock of the situation. Ignoring the two birds for a moment, have our bindings left us any wiggle room?
>Does it seem our friends have any slack in their bindings, any openings to exploit?
>Do we still have our kunai?

[DracoOmega]

>Take stock of the situation. Ignoring the two birds for a moment, have our bindings left us any wiggle room?
>Does it seem our friends have any slack in their bindings, any openings to exploit?
>Do we still have our kunai?

>The bindings on you are so comprehensive and secured that you have very little wiggle room indeed. Your hands are locked palms against each other and you can't force them open more than a couple millimeters. Your arms themselves are held behind your back and found up to your elbows; you can rotate them using your torso, but can't really bend them. You can wiggle several parts of your tail a little, but there's only about a half-inch of the tip free, and the bindings are far too tight to slip it loose; you might well scrape your skin off if you really tried. And then there's your ankles. You can turn your feet a couple degrees in either direction, but can't move them apart much at all. You could possibly theoretically hop around, but your balance would be seriously impeded in this get-up and it would probably be tricky to rise again, should you fall.
>For the most part, theirs seem less secure than yours, though still quite sufficient to the task. Chisato is already struggling visible against hers, though without appearing to accomplish anything. And, of course, Ishi has yet to stop.
>They were taken from you, along with all the rest of your gear save Kumokirimaru itself.

[Oldmansour]

>Little point telling them to save their strength. Especially Ishi, by the looks of her, she won't run out of that resources until the next major holiday.
>Guess there's nothing for it but to conserve our OWN strength, what little of it's left. And hope that Murasa or Neu, or someone else, can bust us out.

[Kilgamayan]

> When will we next need to take our medicine?

So I'm thinking I/we/whoever should admit the contagion thing was a bluff once we're in Aya's presence (though I'd keep an eye on Fuuka regardless). The Blue Maiden crew deserves the peace of mind and it looks like there are better angles to getting out of this than keeping the pirates hostage to the blight.

I wonder why the parrot woman never did Neu's voice, though.

[DracoOmega]

>Little point telling them to save their strength. Especially Ishi, by the looks of her, she won't run out of that resources until the next major holiday.
>Guess there's nothing for it but to conserve our OWN strength, what little of it's left. And hope that Murasa or Neu, or someone else, can bust us out.

>You decide to conserve what strength remains in you and not try to struggle against your ropes; you don't rate your chances of wiggling out of them very highly, anyway. Chisato wrestles with hers for a little while longer, but eventually gives up as well, though the defiance in her face has not waned one inch. Miyuki's expression is more downcast and she looks weary and weak, but at least she's off her ankle. And Ishi, well... she has to stop eventually, right?

>The shorter tengu takes to flipping her sword around in her hands again and sometimes tossing it idly into the air before catching it. The blade generally seems to spend most of its flight time somewhere above your own head or body, and you soon grow quite certain this is deliberate. She throws you an unpleasant grin when you glance in her direction. At least she seems to have good reflexes....

>"You haven't won yet, y'know," Chisato says after a while. "So don't get too cozy. There ain't a pirate on the skies that can take the cap'n."
>The shorter tengu scoffs. "Big words for a girl too tied up to move. C'mon, throw a fireball at me or something," she says, flipping her blade around again. "Give me an excuse to use this."
>Chisato just glares daggers at her.

> When will we next need to take our medicine?

>Sometime this evening, before going to sleep.

[Kilgamayan]

> "So what are we waiting for, anyway?"

[DracoOmega]

> "So what are we waiting for, anyway?"

>"Until the rest of you are tied up, and we can do what we came here to do," she says.
>"Won't take long, now that Aya's here," the taller tengu adds.

>At this point, you hear movement up the now-open cargo hatch in the middle of the deck.

[Kilgamayan]

> Take a look over at it, if we can.

[DracoOmega]

> Take a look over at it, if we can.

>You take a look over in the direction of the sound, and soon see a familiar pair of large white wings crest the edge of the shaft. For a moment, you feel a glimmer of hope, but this is dashed just as quickly when you realize that they aren't moving. A moment later, the body of the moth youkai comes into view, with a pair of arms held beneath hers as another tengu carries her up onto the deck.
>"Neu!" Miyuki cries.
>The moth looks up at her weakly as she is flown towards the lot of you. Her face is bloodied and swollen around one eye, and there is a hole the size of your head in her left wing.

[Kilgamayan]

> Frown.
> What does the area around the hole look like? Ripped up, singed, whatever else?
> How does the tengu carrying her look?

[DracoOmega]

> Frown.
> What does the area around the hole look like? Ripped up, singed, whatever else?
> How does the tengu carrying her look?

>You frown.
>It does look more like it was ripped than anything else, though the damage seems to be relatively clean.
>She's mostly obscured by Neu herself, though what you can see of her doesn't look obviously injured.

[Kilgamayan]

> Look over to the stoic guard.
> "The hell made that hole?"

[DracoOmega]

> Look over to the stoic guard.
> "The hell made that hole?"

>"How should I know?" the tengu replies. "Can't see through the floor."

>The new pirate carries Neu over towards the group of you and dumps her on the ground near you. The moth groans, then struggles to sit up, breathing wearily.
>"Aya says to tie her up here," the pirate says. "Karu missed, and the ghost's gone... somewhere."
>"Are you okay?" Miyuki asks in a tone of deep concern. Neu nods faintly. Chisato tries to bore a hole through the new tengu with her eyes.

[Kilgamayan]

> Keep looking at the guard.
> "C'mon, don't give me that. That's not just any old injury. That looks like a precision strike."

[DracoOmega]

> Keep looking at the guard.
> "C'mon, don't give me that. That's not just any old injury. That looks like a precision strike."

>The spear-wielding tengu looks at you dully for a moment, then shrugs. "If I had to guess, I'd say Aya."
>The shorter tengu pauses her unnecessarily perilous sword-juggling and takes rope in hand to tie up the injured moth.

[Kilgamayan]

> Look over at the shorter tengu with the frown continuing.
> "Is that really necessary?"

[DracoOmega]

> Look over at the shorter tengu with the frown continuing.
> "Is that really necessary?"

>"Orders are orders," she says, though the lopsided grin on her face suggests she wouldn't mind doing this even if they weren't.
>Neu makes no effort to resist as the tengu ties her hands and ankles together, and then starts on her wings. Chisato is looking at her oddly and the tengu beside her oddly, almost like she's anticipating something.

[Kilgamayan]

> Look over at Chisato with an eyebrow raised.

[DracoOmega]

> Look over at Chisato with an eyebrow raised.

>You look over at the redhead and raise an eyebrow. She glances aside to see that the other tengu aren't looking too closely at her, then does a quiet pantomime of nodding off to sleep.

[Oldmansour]

Moth might be playing possum here.

>Does it seem like Neu's slackness and unresponsiveness are feigned or genuine, as near as we can determine.

*checks above line* Moth playing possum. Only in touhou.

[DracoOmega]

>Does it seem like Neu's slackness and unresponsiveness are feigned or genuine, as near as we can determine.

>She's not completely unresponsive, and she's certainly battered-looking; it's possible she's not as exhausted as she looks, but you think at least some of that would have to be genuine. And you honestly aren't certain what having a hole that big in your wing would do to someone, aside from probably keeping them grounded.

[Oldmansour]

>Given that there's not a lot we can do ourselves at the moment, let's wait and see what, if anything, Neu has in store.
>Well, they didn't gag us, so, maybe we can help her illusion, maybe distract the guards a bit, give her an opening.
>"Yeah, nothing like manhandling a helpless youkai after a hard day's work, is there."