(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 11)

[DracoOmega]

>About how long do we think it will take for the bittercress flower to bloom, considering its rate of growth? Assuming it DOES flower.

>You have no idea the growth cycle of this plant, even under ordinary conditions, and have never seen any plant at all grow as quickly as this one; you couldn't even hazard a guess.

[Oldmansour]

>"Exactly what does that entail? If I may ask."

[DracoOmega]

>"Exactly what does that entail? If I may ask."

>"I would take the blade with me into the inner sanctuary and attempt to invoke the source of this weapon's spiritual force. You could perhaps think of it as 'speaking' with this spirituality, but I am afraid the details of the rites are shared only within the line who caretake the sacred spring."
>"I don't know any of that stuff, either," Kyouko offers helpfully.
>"I promise you no harm will come to your property should I succeed or fail," Sumiko continues.

[Oldmansour]

>"I can accept that. But I do need to know how long it will take, if you can tell me. I have to see an alchemist in a couple hours time, for a job."

[DracoOmega]

>"I can accept that. But I do need to know how long it will take, if you can tell me. I have to see an alchemist in a couple hours time, for a job."

>"I cannot give you a precise answer," she says, "but it should be safely less than that."

[Oldmansour]

>We still feel no adverse effects from it being- Oh wait, we were further away when that pirate had it, we wouldn't feel anything bad now anyway. And if we do start to feel bad as she gets furthur away from us, we can either catch her or send Kyouko.
>"Excellent."

[DracoOmega]

>We still feel no adverse effects from it being- Oh wait, we were further away when that pirate had it, we wouldn't feel anything bad now anyway. And if we do start to feel bad as she gets furthur away from us, we can either catch her or send Kyouko.
>"Excellent."

>Sumiko nods. "Is there anything else you know of this sword or its history at all? The more closely I can understand it, the more likely I will be to coax a response from it."

[Hanzo K.]

>"Well, I did figure out that it's name is Kumokirimaru. Real mouthful of a name if you ask me."

[Oldmansour]

>"I've been trying to learn more about that sword since I found it. Haven't had a lot of luck, I'm sorry to say." Point to the writing. "I know that the language that inscription is written in is Freelands Archaic, but I haven't found anyone who could translate it yet."
>Did we learn when that language was in use? If so, inform her of that, too.

[DracoOmega]

>"Well, I did figure out that it's name is Kumokirimaru. Real mouthful of a name if you ask me."

>"Kumokirimaru!" Kyouko calls brightly, smiling again. "I think I like it."
>Sumiko nods. "A name can hold great power when communing with the divine."
>"Kumokirimaru!"

>"I've been trying to learn more about that sword since I found it. Haven't had a lot of luck, I'm sorry to say." Point to the writing. "I know that the language that inscription is written in is Freelands Archaic, but I haven't found anyone who could translate it yet."
>Did we learn when that language was in use? If so, inform her of that, too.

>"I am unfamiliar with that tongue as well," she says, regarding the inscription with a focused gaze. "But the words themselves are not always vital if there is will and intent."
>You did not discover a specific date that the language was in use and suspect from your conversations that the historians themselves do not have one to give. At the very least, it predates settlement in the Outer Freelands and you inform her of this much. She accepts the information with another silent nod.

[Oldmansour]

>What else might be considered pertinant information? Aside from the blight aspect, we'd rather not announce that if we can help it.
>... Oh, bollux, she might learn that anyway? Oh, well, no way to know now.

[DracoOmega]

>What else might be considered pertinant information? Aside from the blight aspect, we'd rather not announce that if we can help it.
>... Oh, bollux, she might learn that anyway? Oh, well, no way to know now.

>You consider what other pieces of information might be helpful in Sumiko's task, but find yourself distracted at the thought that she may somehow learn of your illness in the process. But the truth of the matter is that you really don't know what is relevant here and what isn't. Does the type of steel used make a difference? Does the fact that you found in a river? The fact that the original sheath is missing? It's hard to say....

[Oldmansour]

>"I'm afraid that's about the long and short of what I know, apart from the fact that it apparently held up amazingly well for something as old as it has to be to have that writing on it. Though that might be due to the power in it, I don't know."

[DracoOmega]

>"I'm afraid that's about the long and short of what I know, apart from the fact that it apparently held up amazingly well for something as old as it has to be to have that writing on it. Though that might be due to the power in it, I don't know."

>Sumiko nods. "Indeed it may. Well, I shall endevour to do what I can. Please make yourself comfortable in the meantime, though if you wish to attend to business elsewhere, I promise you safe keeping of the relic until your return."
>Keeping your sword aloft in a gentle grip, Sumiko moves gently towards the large door at the back of the room.

[Oldmansour]

>Like fun we're leaving that sword behind. Even if we COULD, we wouldn't. Not to mention that we don't know for sure if we can or not yet.
>Let's just wait until she's out of view, and see what, if anything, happens to us.
>And while we're at it, is it time for our medicine yet?

[DracoOmega]

>Like fun we're leaving that sword behind. Even if we COULD, we wouldn't. Not to mention that we don't know for sure if we can or not yet.
>Let's just wait until she's out of view, and see what, if anything, happens to us.
>And while we're at it, is it time for our medicine yet?

>Not at all in the mood to leave the shrine while your sword is still here, you tensely watch the elder miko depart toward the shrine's inner sanctuary without further comment. Even as the door closes behind her and the sound of her footsteps grows fainter, you sense nothing unusual stir within you.
>"That was a pretty incredible story!" Kyouko interjects loudly. "A lost relic of a lost language in a lost temple underground.... Do Seekers always get to have those kinds of adventures?" There is a sort of dreamy look in her eyes.
>Minoriko instructed you to take the medicine twice a day: in the morning when you wake and in the evening before you sleep. So unless you're planning to stay the night here on the shrine floor, it probably isn't time for your second dose yet.

[Oldmansour]

>Wince. Perky, but loud, this one.
>Cute, though.
>And since we have some time to kill, there's worse company to have until our sword comes back.
>"In my experience, Kyouko, nothing's ever boring when you wear this badge." Indicate badge. "Mind you, they don't always involve half-crazed feral youkai, but every job I've had so far hasn't gone as I'd expected."

[DracoOmega]

>Wince. Perky, but loud, this one.
>Cute, though.
>And since we have some time to kill, there's worse company to have until our sword comes back.
>"In my experience, Kyouko, nothing's ever boring when you wear this badge." Indicate badge. "Mind you, they don't always involve half-crazed feral youkai, but every job I've had so far hasn't gone as I'd expected."

>You wince a little once again; the girl's volume really does take some adjusting to, though you find something oddly endearing to her enthusiasm nonetheless. You figure that chatting with her for a bit will at least pass the time until Kumokirimaru is comfortably back in your own hands again.
>"Is that a good thing?" she asks, an uncertain frown tugging at her expressive face. "Or a bad one?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Well, a little predictability might be all right, after the past week I've had. On the other hand, if things had been predictable, I'd never have found this sword, never have met Honey, never...."
>Glance around for a place to sit, and invite Kyouko to join us.
>If none present themselves, "Mind if we sit down? I've been on my feet a while."

[DracoOmega]

>"Well, a little predictability might be all right, after the past week I've had. On the other hand, if things had been predictable, I'd never have found this sword, never have met Honey, never...."
>Glance around for a place to sit, and invite Kyouko to join us.
>If none present themselves, "Mind if we sit down? I've been on my feet a while."

>"Honey?" she asks.
>You glance around for a place to sit. There is a wide expanse of bare floor, but nothing specifically conducive to comfortable seating. You inquire with your guide.
>"Sure!" Kyouko replies, then with surprising deftness descends cross-legged onto the floor. She beams guilelessly at you.

[Oldmansour]

>Blink, then shrug and follow suit.
>"You've done that a time or two before, haven't you."

[DracoOmega]

>Blink, then shrug and follow suit.
>"You've done that a time or two before, haven't you."

>You find yourself slightly nonplussed by Kyouko's answer, but then shrug and seat yourself on the floor as well. It... isn't really that comfortable, to be honest, but at least it's putting pressure on slightly different joints and muscles than the past number of hours have done; you'll take it.
>"A time or two!" she says. "There aren't many chairs around here. It's very old-timey."

[Oldmansour]

>"So I gather."
>Adjust buttocks to allow as much comfort as a mouse can manage.
>"Now... Where was I?"

[DracoOmega]

>"So I gather."
>Adjust buttocks to allow as much comfort as a mouse can manage.
>"Now... Where was I?"

>You try to adjust your rear into a position of maximal comfort upon the indifferent flooring. This meets with... mixed success.
>"Who's Honey?" Kyouko asks, leaning her head in towards you as she does. Her ears perk up slightly.

[Oldmansour]

>"Ah yes. Little Honey. Honeysuckle, actually."
>We have some time. Let us relate to her the tale of the job that led to our meeting with Honey and Cirno.
>And try not to show that we miss Honey.

[DracoOmega]

>"Ah yes. Little Honey. Honeysuckle, actually."
>We have some time. Let us relate to her the tale of the job that led to our meeting with Honey and Cirno.
>And try not to show that we miss Honey.

>You decide to take a few minutes and regale the eager part-timer with a tale of your exploits. You speak of the missing fruit cart, Isato's tale of terror on the road, your discovery of the fairy village and subsequent duel with its self-styled defender. While you don't think you're a particularly adept storyteller, Kyouko's interest and attentiveness seem undeterred by your humdrum delivery. She blanches at your description of the feral youkai and practically cheers you on during the battle with Cirno, though her subsequent calls for more and more details lead to you revealing more about your brief stint as a mousecicle than you'd hoped to get away with. Kyouko seems genuinely touched at Honey's enthusiasm to support her hero and your subsequent offer to teach her after the ice fairy's rebuff; being told what a nice person you are by the brightly beaming girl isn't making it any easier to mask whatever emotional connection you feel with the tiny fairy. But you have a very good poker face and you apply it diligently. It also helps that Kyouko seems a rather gullible sort; you suspect you could convince her of a great many things that aren't true, if you ever cared to do so.
>You wrap up your tale with the trip back to Braston and Cirno's one-sided duel with Marisa. Kyouko breaks into giggles at the ice fairy's attempt to bat Marisa's magic away with her sword, then lapses into doey-eyed sympathy at Honey's exhaustion after racing the meteoric magician.

>"Wow, that sounds like it was a lot of fun!" she says as you conclude your tale. What might have been a brief story turned out quite a bit longer as Kyouko's insistent eyes ferreted out addendum after addendum, perhaps without even trying that hard. But you've got time to pass and this is probably a better way to spend it than sitting alone on a hard floor, watching a plant grow. Though perhaps that might not be so bad if it showed decisive sign of growing any further.

[Oldmansour]

>So less than two hours, but longer than a relatively good length tale of a job with a twist or two. Must be some chat Sumiko's having with the sword. Assuming she's getting anywhere.
>Out of curiousity, can we sense Kumokirimaru's presence from here?

[DracoOmega]

>So less than two hours, but longer than a relatively good length tale of a job with a twist or two. Must be some chat Sumiko's having with the sword. Assuming she's getting anywhere.
>Out of curiousity, can we sense Kumokirimaru's presence from here?

>Yes, it's hard to tell if what she's doing is productive or not, but you haven't heard or otherwise sensed anything unusual since she started.
>You can, at least as much as you normally could, which is fairly fuzzy and nonspecific; your passive treasure sense is rarely good for targeted detection.

[Hanzo K.]

>"Oh yeah, this sort of thing usually take this long? I would've figured she'd gotten somewhere and told us by now."

[DracoOmega]

>"Oh yeah, this sort of thing usually take this long? I would've figured she'd gotten somewhere and told us by now."

>"I don't know!" Kyouko replies. "I've never seen her do this before! But some of the rituals here can take a really long time... But if she said she'd be done before you have to leave, I'm sure she will be!"