(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 5)

[DracoOmega]

>"I found more than just giant spiders down there. There was a youkai down there, too. A spider youkai. It was actually her that did the most damage to me. Of course, I did almost as much damage to her, but I've no idea how fast she heals. She hated me so much, I'm almost surprised she didn't chase me out of that god-forsaken hole."

>Ichirin's frown deepens. "What happened between you?"

[Oldmansour]

>"When I found the spider hole, I got attacked. I mean, obviously, it was a spider's nest, spiders came at me. And I defended myself. I didn't really WANT to kill them, but they left me no choice. I did what I had to do to survive."
>"The youkai didn't see it that way. She accused me of invading her friends' and her home, and murdering her friends, because they were feeding themselves. 'Hunters hunt' she said. I tried to reason her, tell my side. She didn't want to hear it."
>Pause for a moment, remembering her face. Not an easy thing to remember.
>"I've never seen so much hatred in someone's eyes before. She would have torn my heart out..."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I might have not minded tearing her's out, either. She also said things about being driven off, and how it'd never happen again. And she knows that we're not going to to tolerate her behavior for long, I'm half convinced she's going to do something stupid, like try to attack the village first to prove herself 'dominance'. You're sure there's been nothing the past couple days?"
>Back in our day, were there any hunters of note in the village? In particular, anyone skilled at archery?

[DracoOmega]

>"When I found the spider hole, I got attacked. I mean, obviously, it was a spider's nest, spiders came at me. And I defended myself. I didn't really WANT to kill them, but they left me no choice. I did what I had to do to survive."
>"The youkai didn't see it that way. She accused me of invading her friends' and her home, and murdering her friends, because they were feeding themselves. 'Hunters hunt' she said. I tried to reason her, tell my side. She didn't want to hear it."
>Pause for a moment, remembering her face. Not an easy thing to remember.
>"I've never seen so much hatred in someone's eyes before. She would have torn my heart out..."

>Ichirin nods, her expression creased with attentive concern.
>She lets out a deep breath. "Is that what it was, then?" she asks, seemingly more to the air than to you. A gentle sadness settles onto her face.
>You stop for a moment, thinking back on the youkai's face. You've seen people angry at you before, even vicious; criminals rarely part with their hauls willingly. Marisa may have received the brunt of it before, but you tried your best to be more than JUST a bystander. There was something deeper here, though. The depths of pain and bitter hatred in those eyes...
>"Oh Nazrin..." Ichirin breathes, slowly shaking her head. "This was too much. This was far too much for a few dead cows..."

>"I might have not minded tearing her's out, either. She also said things about being driven off, and how it'd never happen again. And she knows that we're not going to to tolerate her behavior for long, I'm half convinced she's going to do something stupid, like try to attack the village first to prove herself 'dominance'. You're sure there's been nothing the past couple days?"
>Back in our day, were there any hunters of note in the village? In particular, anyone skilled at archery?

>She shakes her head. "I've heard nothing, and I doubt such a thing could stay quiet for long."
>Easthaven has never had a strong hunting tradition; the relative paucity of game animals in the region is thoroughly overshadowed by the tremendous bounty of its agriculture. You know some people did engage in it, but at the moment no names stand out in your mind as especially notable.

[Hello Purvis]

>"She seems to blame us in general for it, and the closest I could guess she meant by that was people who don't live underground; because we've sure not been around long enough for there to be any kind of spider purge. Anyways, the spiders themselves are by and large not that dangerous, at least not to someone who sees them coming and can use a bow or something. But she is. She's horribly dangerous if you're unprepared. If it comes to a fight, I'd consider asking Unzan to handle her. I don't think her webs or her strength mean much to him, would it?"

[Hanzo K.]

>"Well, either that, or there might've been folks living here before this place was ever built, and left long before we got here."
>"Place with good agricultural ability like this wouldn't have gone untouched for long."
>Think for a moment. "..Come to think of it, there was an old Torii near where I found her, so there's probably traces of that possible village there. I did get a reading from there when I dowsed."
>Sigh a little.
>"Now that I'm looking back on all this without all the energy from fighting muddling me up, I'd say that probably only Marisa or Unzan would be able to beat her in an out-and-out fight. All I had going for me was the sword and my wits, and you saw how that worked out."

[DracoOmega]

>"She seems to blame us in general for it, and the closest I could guess she meant by that was people who don't live underground; because we've sure not been around long enough for there to be any kind of spider purge. Anyways, the spiders themselves are by and large not that dangerous, at least not to someone who sees them coming and can use a bow or something. But she is. She's horribly dangerous if you're unprepared. If it comes to a fight, I'd consider asking Unzan to handle her. I don't think her webs or her strength mean much to him, would it?"

>"Unless there's something magical or spiritual about her webbing. No mundane bindings can hold him. Rest assured that if she tries to harm anyone else in this village, we will be there," she says firmly.

>"Well, either that, or there might've been folks living here before this place was ever built, and left long before we got here."
>"Place with good agricultural ability like this wouldn't have gone untouched for long."
>Think for a moment. "..Come to think of it, there was an old Torii near where I found her, so there's probably traces of that possible village there. I did get a reading from there when I dowsed."
>Sigh a little.
>"Now that I'm looking back on all this without all the energy from fighting muddling me up, I'd say that probably only Marisa or Unzan would be able to beat her in an out-and-out fight. All I had going for me was the sword and my wits, and you saw how that worked out."

>"I've never heard anything about this, if that's true," she says. "No one's found sign of it."
>"Well, Estval hadn't even been discovered until a few centuries ago," she says. "I'm not sure that older airships could even make it across the Great Expanse..."
>"A torii?" Ichirin asks, looking taken back. "Where was this?"
>You sigh.
>Ichirin smiles gently at you, though are those... tears in the corner of her eyes? "I'm sure you did more than anyone could have asked of you, Nazrin. Don't let it weigh upon you."

[Hanzo K.]

>"Well, the place I found her was near the other end of the cave where all the spiders were living, as I mentioned a moment ago. I found her at a bridge across an underground river, and saw it on the other side of the bridge."
>"I'm thinking that if there was a village around here, that cave's the key to getting to it. But we'd have to find some way to deal with ol' eightlegs. I figure there might still be a chance to bring her around like you did with me."
>Smile somewhat. "Afterall, you taught me that."


EDIT: Fix'd.

[DracoOmega]

I feel like I should point out an apparent misconception here: there was no cavern exit seen on the opposite side of the river. The torii was on a plateau in that direction, on the opposite side of the natural rock bridge, but quite totally underground (by this point you had descended a considerable distance). Nazrin saw no evidence that this area was physically connected to the surface in any way.

[Oldmansour]

>"It was underground, on the other side of a chasm, with an underground river running through it. I didn't have a chance to get a really good look at it, though, before the youkai attacked me."
>Think back, try to recall all the things she said. all the things she said, running through my head...
>"She mentioning something about a war. And that she wasn't the only one of her kind... Or, rather, that she wasn't always the only one. And that torii could have been down there for ages."
>Gesture to the sword.
>"And then there's this thing. It seems tailor-made to fight spiders. Or, maybe just spider youkai..."
>"Thinking on it, there was something else. She hated me, that's for sure. But I'd be willing to say that she hated this sword even more. And she was afraid of it, too, maybe even more afraid of it that she hated me. Something happened to her, Ichirin. Something bad, something bad to her and her kind. And this sword has something to do with it, I'm sure."
>"But... Maybe... there's still some hope for her." Pause, then swallow, sighing softly. "But I don't want to ask you to do that. She may be too dangeous."

[DracoOmega]

>"It was underground, on the other side of a chasm, with an underground river running through it. I didn't have a chance to get a really good look at it, though, before the youkai attacked me."
>Think back, try to recall all the things she said. all the things she said, running through my head...
>"She mentioning something about a war. And that she wasn't the only one of her kind... Or, rather, that she wasn't always the only one. And that torii could have been down there for ages."
>Gesture to the sword.
>"And then there's this thing. It seems tailor-made to fight spiders. Or, maybe just spider youkai..."
>"Thinking on it, there was something else. She hated me, that's for sure. But I'd be willing to say that she hated this sword even more. And she was afraid of it, too, maybe even more afraid of it that she hated me. Something happened to her, Ichirin. Something bad, something bad to her and her kind. And this sword has something to do with it, I'm sure."
>"But... Maybe... there's still some hope for her." Pause, then swallow, sighing softly. "But I don't want to ask you to do that. She may be too dangeous."

>Ichirin listens attentively as you explain about the torri and the youkai and what may have happened to her in the distant past.
>"Even after all this, you still want to help her?" she asks.

[Oldmansour]

>Ah, dammit, sounds sappy when you put it that way.
>"I don't... Yeah. Okay, yeah, I do. Something about the pain her eyes, the fear... The spiders may be animals, but she isn't. She's been... I dunno, 'damaged', I guess."
>"Being here... helped make me what I am, gave me the right start. I don't... think she ever had that. Something hurt her, made her that way. And I thought..."
>May as well say it, Naz.
>"I thought you might be able to help her. Like you helped me. And everyone like me that came across your door."
>Add quickly: "But as I've said, she's dangerous. Maybe more dangerous than any youkai you've ever taken in. She'd be a risk not only to you, but to everyone else here."

[Hanzo K.]

>"Heck, you helped me out. So it's the least I can do for her, it seems like she'd been through a lot long before I showed up."
>"Come to think of it, doesn't it usually take a long time for a normal animal to become a Youkai? For all we know, she might've been a spider from the time they were sealed up down there to begin with.."

[DracoOmega]

>Ah, dammit, sounds sappy when you put it that way.
>"I don't... Yeah. Okay, yeah, I do. Something about the pain her eyes, the fear... The spiders may be animals, but she isn't. She's been... I dunno, 'damaged', I guess."
>"Being here... helped make me what I am, gave me the right start. I don't... think she ever had that. Something hurt her, made her that way. And I thought..."
>May as well say it, Naz.
>"I thought you might be able to help her. Like you helped me. And everyone like me that came across your door."
>Add quickly: "But as I've said, she's dangerous. Maybe more dangerous than any youkai you've ever taken in. She'd be a risk not only to you, but to everyone else here."

>Dammit, it does, too! She tried to kill you, damn near succeeded more than once, and was an insufferable bonehead the rest of the time. Why do you still care...
>"Oh, Nazrin..." she says after you're done explaining. "You're a truly remarkable person to still be able to mean that. It... warms my heart."
>Ichirin swallows audibly as another tear streams down her cheek. "She... She had something to do with your illness, didn't she?"

>"Heck, you helped me out. So it's the least I can do for her, it seems like she'd been through a lot long before I showed up."
>"Come to think of it, doesn't it usually take a long time for a normal animal to become a Youkai? For all we know, she might've been a spider from the time they were sealed up down there to begin with.."

>"Sealed?" she asks.

[Hanzo K.]

>"From how she was talking, it's like some folks stuck them all down there and sealed a good lot of 'em in. I'm thinking that maybe her and the spiders might not be the only things down there."
>Shrug.
>"But they're probably deeper in, she seemed fairly intent on me not crossing that bridge. She actually managed to knock me off, but she ended up falling too I think. Probably because of the webs she shot."
>Think for a moment. "Come to think of it, if we ever did manage to get some sense into her, she'd probably be able to make a real mint selling the webs for all sorts of things. She even had webs that could cut, like cheese wire, or piano wire."
>Mmm....try not to get distracted by thinking about cheese.
>"Oh yeah, that was around when i found the sword. It was stuck in the riverbed. From how she was talking, I'm thinking she might've tossed it down there herself. Since she said something like..."
>Do our best impression of her. "Like...uh...ah, I remember some of what she said now. 'This time I'll make sure nobody can find it again.' Seems kind of strange huh?"

>"As for the illness, she might. Though there was this weird fog I encountered that might be the cause too. But for all I know, she might've created it somehow. Maybe it's like my ability to sense treasure and other things of value?"
>Think for a moment more. "If that's the case, then maybe she can control illnesses. She'd be a good doctor if that's true."

[DracoOmega]

>"From how she was talking, it's like some folks stuck them all down there and sealed a good lot of 'em in. I'm thinking that maybe her and the spiders might not be the only things down there."
>Shrug.
>"But they're probably deeper in, she seemed fairly intent on me not crossing that bridge. She actually managed to knock me off, but she ended up falling too I think. Probably because of the webs she shot."

>Ichirin nods. "I wonder how long ago this must have been if no one here knew of it?"

>Think for a moment. "Come to think of it, if we ever did manage to get some sense into her, she'd probably be able to make a real mint selling the webs for all sorts of things. She even had webs that could cut, like cheese wire, or piano wire."
>Mmm....try not to get distracted by thinking about cheese.

>You manage to illicit a small chuckle from Ichirin, though there seems to be a strange note of sadness about it, still. "Already thinking of commercializing her? I suppose I should expect nothing less."
>Even with as little appetite as you have, perhaps a little something to munch on wouldn't go astray...

>"Oh yeah, that was around when i found the sword. It was stuck in the riverbed. From how she was talking, I'm thinking she might've tossed it down there herself. Since she said something like..."
>Do our best impression of her. "Like...uh...ah, I remember some of what she said now. 'This time I'll make sure nobody can find it again.' Seems kind of strange huh?"

>"If she was as afraid of it as you say..." Ichirin says. "The aura about it is very powerful; Minoriko said she could feel the faith of many people resting within it, prayers made long ago but still resonating. None of us could read the writing on it, though. Could you?"

>"As for the illness, she might. Though there was this weird fog I encountered that might be the cause too. But for all I know, she might've created it somehow. Maybe it's like my ability to sense treasure and other things of value?"
>Think for a moment more. "If that's the case, then maybe she can control illnesses. She'd be a good doctor if that's true."

>Ichirin takes a deep breath, her expression drawn oddly tight. "How are you feeling now?"

[Hanzo K.]

>"Hey, it's better than her attacking folks like us for their food. She'd make a lot of guilders, and with those, be able to get the food she wants peacefully."
>Could we read it?
>How do we feel? Good enough to walk?
>"Could probably use a snack, so I guess that means I'm better than I was a while back."

[DracoOmega]

>"Hey, it's better than her attacking folks like us for their food. She'd make a lot of guilders, and with those, be able to get the food she wants peacefully."
>Could we read it?
>How do we feel? Good enough to walk?
>"Could probably use a snack, so I guess that means I'm better than I was a while back."

>"Perhaps," she says. "But what of the other spiders?"
>You never took the time to even notice that there was any writing on the sword. You'd been completely in the dark when you first discovered it, and once you had light again, were too occupied with the spider youkai to examine it closely.
>You feel very weary, but otherwise mostly okay. You could probably walk, but you wouldn't want to have to go too far or too fast.
>Ichirin looks at you almost vacantly, as though her eyes were locked on something distant. You can see tears welling up in them again. Then she takes a deep breath and looks up at the ceiling. "Oh Nazrin... Nazin, I'm so sorry."

[Hanzo K.]

>"That's the whole point. She'd be able to get food for all of them. And all they'd have to do is wait, or make webs to have sold themselves."
>"Hang on, there was writing on that thing? I never noticed that. Maybe Marisa could riddle it out? She always was good at that sort of thing....well, that and accidental job solving via explosions."
>Chuckle a bit, Marisa's always good for a laugh isn't she? "Maybe we oughta send her a letter calling her to give that sword a look. Might give us some clues on this whole thing."
>"Well, you know the old saying, 'Anything you can walk away from.'. And I managed to walk away from all that...even though I ended up dropping a while later. But hey, enough crying over rotten cheese, tears never did suit you that well. Heck, they don't suit anyone very well. Unless they're tears of joy."
>"Besides, I'm feeling better than I was back then at least, so it's a start. Probably couldn't do much right now though, but at least I'm healing, so that's a good thing."
>How long would it take us to fully recover from this?

[DracoOmega]

>"That's the whole point. She'd be able to get food for all of them. And all they'd have to do is wait, or make webs to have sold themselves."
>"Hang on, there was writing on that thing? I never noticed that. Maybe Marisa could riddle it out? She always was good at that sort of thing....well, that and accidental job solving via explosions."
>Chuckle a bit, Marisa's always good for a laugh isn't she? "Maybe we oughta send her a letter calling her to give that sword a look. Might give us some clues on this whole thing."
>"Well, you know the old saying, 'Anything you can walk away from.'. And I managed to walk away from all that...even though I ended up dropping a while later. But hey, enough crying over rotten cheese, tears never did suit you that well. Heck, they don't suit anyone very well. Unless they're tears of joy."

>You continue to talk of possibilities for the spider's future, muse about the writing on the sword and have a little chuckle at Marisa. Then you try to brush off your ordeal and get Ichirin to brighten up; you're feeling quite self-conscious over her reaction by now. Yet though it all, she remains focused pointedly on the ceiling, never responding or meeting your gaze. It's... a little unsettling.

>"Besides, I'm feeling better than I was back then at least, so it's a start. Probably couldn't do much right now though, but at least I'm healing, so that's a good thing."

>Ichirin draws in an unsteady breath and slowly looks down again, her eyes holding yours tight. Her cheeks are moist and her lips move as though she were struggling to speak.
>"Nazrin..." she breathes, her voice quaking just a little. "Minoriko says you're dying."

>How long would it take us to fully recover from this?

>That's a... suddenly alarming question. Did... did... you hear that right?

[Hello Purvis]

>"What?"

[DracoOmega]

>"What?"

>"Minoriko says you're dying," she repeats, clearly struggling to keep her composure. Her words come out sounding alien, as if this were still some part of that fevered dream. "You've been blighted."

[Oldmansour]

>"But... But I feel better now than I did before."

[DracoOmega]

>"But... But I feel better now than I did before."

>Ichrin nods. "And for that I'm truly grateful. We almost lost you already. Minoriko's worked very, very hard to keep you with us, but she said..." She pauses and takes a few more measured breaths. "She said that none of what she'd been able to do was slowing the underlying problem. And that even if you regained consciousness, it... it wouldn't matter; that it was only a matter of time."

[Oldmansour]

>"How much time?"

[DracoOmega]

>"How much time?"

>"She... wasn't sure," she says. "Maybe a week? Maybe two or three. We fetched a doctor from Braston to look at you, too, but she'd never seen anything like this before in her life. Minoriko recognized it. She's existed a very long time; she said it brought back an old memory..."

[Oldmansour]

>"Is that all she said, or did she get into specifics?"

[DracoOmega]

>"Is that all she said, or did she get into specifics?"

>Ichirin shakes her head. "Not many. But she said that a long time ago, a great many people died from this. She hadn't been there herself, but she'd seen it in people's prayers. Of course, even in the old days, people didn't pray to her for their own health; their crops were blighted, too. She answered their prayers as best she could, but was powerless to save her worshipers themselves. She wouldn't say much more; prayer is a sacred privacy, and I think she felt she'd already said more than she was comfortable about."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I'll be fine. I'm a mouse: we don't die from plagues, we spread them."
>Frown.
>"Am I contagious?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Fine. I don't need prayers anyway. I need something more useful. Other than crying to gods, did she mention any way to fight this?"