Author Topic: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)  (Read 42790 times)

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #30 on: January 03, 2012, 03:33:25 AM »
>Decent to see her irritated, too.
>"Well, I can scan again from up on deck. After that... Maybe, I'd need a minute to think."
>If she permits, head up on deck and douse again.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #31 on: January 03, 2012, 04:29:12 AM »
>Decent to see her irritated, too.
>"Well, I can scan again from up on deck. After that... Maybe, I'd need a minute to think."
>If she permits, head up on deck and douse again.

>You're glad to see you're not the only one...
>"Well, probably can't hurt, I suppose," she says without much enthusiasm, then turns and walks back up the stairs to the main deck.
>You follow after her and cross much of the length of the deck to give you a better vantage on the other side of the ship. You note the redhead has gone back to lounging by the main gangway again; she follows you with a sidelong glance as you pass by her.
>Once you've reached what you figure is a good enough spot, you stop and go through the whole process again. You are somewhat quicker this time, if only because very little has changed from the last time you searched; some resonances are slightly stronger, and others slightly weaker, but you do not pick up anything in particular that you hadn't from outside Murasa's cabin. With a sigh, you put the rods down again.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #32 on: January 03, 2012, 04:36:34 AM »
>"Well... That didn't work."
>Find a place to sit down. With our luck, whatever that was will probably jump out of an alley and shank us an hour from now.

Hello Purvis

  • *
  • Hello Jerry
Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #33 on: January 03, 2012, 04:37:29 AM »
Should we try the cabin again? Maybe whatever it was came back in our absence?

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #34 on: January 03, 2012, 04:48:04 AM »
Couldn't hurt to try.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #35 on: January 03, 2012, 05:09:53 AM »
>"Well... That didn't work."
>Find a place to sit down. With our luck, whatever that was will probably jump out of an alley and shank us an hour from now.

>You report your lack of success, then go and plunk yourself down on a small wooden box, grumbling inwardly. Murasa just nods; her expression is dull, but unsurprised.

Hello Purvis

  • *
  • Hello Jerry
Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #36 on: January 03, 2012, 05:16:40 AM »
>"I wanna try your cabin one more time. Just on the off chance."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #37 on: January 03, 2012, 05:27:07 AM »
>"I wanna try your cabin one more time. Just on the off chance."

>She lets out a deep sigh, more tired than actually annoyed. "Sure, why not."
>She walks lazily back towards the other end of the deck.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #38 on: January 03, 2012, 05:54:36 AM »
>Back to the cabin for another sweep.
>Stifle a grim chuckle. She thinks she's tired. Try having the couple days we've had.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #39 on: January 03, 2012, 06:26:22 AM »
>Back to the cabin for another sweep.
>Stifle a grim chuckle. She thinks she's tired. Try having the couple days we've had.

>You follow Murasa back to her cabin, stifling a dark chuckle as you do. If she knew the half of what you've been through lately...
>"Don't worry," she says as the two of you step into the room. "I'll keep my mouth shut this time."
>As you start to dowse yet again, you see Murasa grab a flask of something out of the liquor cabinet and take a swig. Then you lose your focus on the sights of the room as you slip deeper into the magical resonances you can sense through your dowsing rods; you've pushed your concentration on this front so frequently this afternoon that your mind is actually feeling more than a little burnt out on it. Still, you give it another earnest try, for all the good it does. The results are the same as before; whatever that sensation was, if it was even anything at all, seems well and truly gone.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #40 on: January 03, 2012, 06:35:00 AM »
>Put away dousing rods, then pass a hand over our eyes.
>"Nothing. Nothing except a headache."
>Are we the type to take a swig of whiskey to cure a headache?
>Have we ever encountered the consequences of extended and/or intense dousing? IE, can we actually damage ourselves if we try too hard or too long?

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #41 on: January 03, 2012, 06:50:43 AM »
>Put away dousing rods, then pass a hand over our eyes.
>"Nothing. Nothing except a headache."
>Are we the type to take a swig of whiskey to cure a headache?
>Have we ever encountered the consequences of extended and/or intense dousing? IE, can we actually damage ourselves if we try too hard or too long?

>You stow your dowsing rods again and rub your forehead.
>Murasa lets out an irritated grunt. She seems to have moved over to one of the benches while you were otherwise engaged and is reclining against it, flask still in hand. She raises it in the air towards you. "Want a drink?"
>You don't drink much at all, but your experience suggests its much more likely to cause one than cure one.
>The actual act of dowsing is roughly akin to concentrating your smell or hearing on a bundle of stimuli and trying to carefully tease apart one sensation from another, then resolve them into something you recognize. While it can be tiring to perform if you're looking for something hard to detect, you would be no more at risk of damaging yourself from it than you would be from spending an extended period trying to eavesdrop on a very quiet and distant conversation.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #42 on: January 03, 2012, 07:15:28 AM »
>Well, chaulk it up as a peace offering. Might help calm our nerves, if nothing else.
>"Maybe a small one, thanks."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #43 on: January 03, 2012, 07:35:25 AM »
>Well, chaulk it up as a peace offering. Might help calm our nerves, if nothing else.
>"Maybe a small one, thanks."

>She screws the cap back on the flask with a quick flick of her hand, then tosses it towards you. "Help yourself."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #44 on: January 03, 2012, 07:48:14 AM »
>Snatch it out of midair, place hand on cover, then pause.
>Somewhat lightly, "This isn't some crazyass sailor homebrew, is it?"

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #45 on: January 03, 2012, 07:57:13 AM »
>Snatch it out of midair, place hand on cover, then pause.
>Somewhat lightly, "This isn't some crazyass sailor homebrew, is it?"

>You deftly catch the flask and move to open it, then pause.
>Murasa snickers. "Nah, it's just cheap stuff, really, but I like it."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #46 on: January 03, 2012, 08:07:11 AM »
>Have a sniff. Then have a glutch.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #47 on: January 03, 2012, 08:25:45 AM »
>Have a sniff. Then have a glutch.

>You unscrew the cap and take an experimental sniff. The scent is quite sharp and just a little bitter, with a dark nutty aroma to it and a subtle hint of spice. You take a small swig and immediately attempt not to visibly wince. Crazyass or no, it still tastes plenty strong to you. You swear you can already feel your sinuses opening as it burns its way down your throat. The flavor isn't terrible, though.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #48 on: January 03, 2012, 08:48:51 AM »
>"I can see why." Cough. "That'll clear the haze."
>Toss the flask back. Take a moment to savor the sensation.
>"I'll try to pick up whatever that was when I see your harbormaster later. It's possible that whoever did this left a stronger trace there than here. Has she got a name, by the way? The customs agent, I mean."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #49 on: January 03, 2012, 09:09:07 AM »
>"I can see why." Cough. "That'll clear the haze."
>Toss the flask back. Take a moment to savor the sensation.
>"I'll try to pick up whatever that was when I see your harbormaster later. It's possible that whoever did this left a stronger trace there than here. Has she got a name, by the way? The customs agent, I mean."

>Murasa chuckles, you think at least partially at your expense.
>You toss the flask back to her and take a moment to savor the sensation. An incidental deep breath sets off a renewed wave of tingling down your throat and even a little in your nose; you almost cough.
>The smile mostly falls from Murasa's face as you ask this, replaced with an irritated frown. "Louise."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #50 on: January 03, 2012, 09:39:26 AM »
>Does that name mean anything to us?
>Nod, then have a seat. "Captain, I know I'm not an expert, but, is there a local market for your goods? I mean, I'm sure it wouldn't be as profitable, but, it would seem to solve your immediate problem."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #51 on: January 03, 2012, 09:53:45 AM »
>Does that name mean anything to us?
>Nod, then have a seat. "Captain, I know I'm not an expert, but, is there a local market for your goods? I mean, I'm sure it wouldn't be as profitable, but, it would seem to solve your immediate problem."

>It does not, but you're not particular acquainted with the people staffing the harbor authority.
>You nod and take a seat opposite Murasa, then suggest she consider selling her goods locally.
>"Nah, not really," she says with a sigh. "Could probably find a way to offload some of it, but a lot of it came from here in the first place. Braston's practically rolling in fruit and metalwork; this stuff was made for the export market and if anyone here wanted it, they'd have already gotten it from someone else. Probably have to practically give it away."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #52 on: January 03, 2012, 09:57:55 AM »
>"I suspected as much, from what I saw in that manifest of yours. I admit, though, there were some things there I couldn't put an origin to."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #53 on: January 03, 2012, 10:03:32 AM »
>"I suspected as much, from what I saw in that manifest of yours. I admit, though, there were some things there I couldn't put an origin to."

>"Eh, most of the rest's from other islands out this way," she says. "We were doin' a circuit around the place before heading back to the continent."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #54 on: January 03, 2012, 10:17:01 AM »
>Ponder.
>"Had you ever had trouble in the port before Braston here? It's possible you picked up a stowaway there, someone that wanted to ruin your run, for whatever reason."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #55 on: January 03, 2012, 08:59:14 PM »
>Ponder.
>"Had you ever had trouble in the port before Braston here? It's possible you picked up a stowaway there, someone that wanted to ruin your run, for whatever reason."

>"Think it'd be kinda hard for a stowaway to keep hidden around here," she says. "Though I s'pose whoever it was is pretty good at not bein' seen."
>She shrugs. "Either way, been a pretty normal run up to now. No problems, really. Unless you count Chisato losin' half her cash passed out in a drunken heap dockside. I kinda don't think that has anything to do with this, though."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #56 on: January 04, 2012, 04:59:32 AM »
>Smirk.
>"And nothing like this has ever happened to you before? The missing papers, not the drunken heap bit. Even I know that's a risk at every portside bar in existance."

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #57 on: January 04, 2012, 05:30:13 AM »
>Smirk.
>"And nothing like this has ever happened to you before? The missing papers, not the drunken heap bit. Even I know that's a risk at every portside bar in existance."

>"Seen a lotta stuff over the years," she says, "but this is a new one. Does kinda seem like someone's got it out for us, but damned if I know who they are. If I had a name or face to give ya, you'd have it."

Hello Purvis

  • *
  • Hello Jerry
Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #58 on: January 04, 2012, 05:40:46 AM »
>"No old spats with merchants around here, no rival shippers who want to take you down? I swear, if it's faeries again, I'm getting a hammer..."

You know what we never did? We never asked the mice in the hold.

Re: (Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 7)
« Reply #59 on: January 04, 2012, 05:47:36 AM »
>"No old spats with merchants around here, no rival shippers who want to take you down? I swear, if it's faeries again, I'm getting a hammer..."

>Murasa snickers. "Pretty sure it ain't a fairy, or she's a damn clever one. And sure, I've gotten into spat or two over the years, but nothin' lately, really. 'sides, don't think any of them could pull all this off, if they even still cared."