Sword Quest IX - A Z-Machine Adventure

[Kilgamayan]

> Shake head.
> "It is a bit of a convoluted story, but this is the result of a duel between the two of us. She is currently in possession of the life force Seiga stole from my home, and she refused to return it when asked."

[Hello Purvis]

> Shake head.
> "It is a bit of a convoluted story, but this is the result of a duel between the two of us. She is currently in possession of the life force Seiga stole from my home, and she refused to return it when asked."

>"Are you saying she's possessed?" says the ship ghost, as she starts to float off of the roof and approach you.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "She seemed to be of sound mind when we spoke before our duel, though perhaps an argument could be made about her condition as the battle wore on. Rather, it seems Seiga instilled her with this life force for the purposes of boosting her power."

[Hello Purvis]

> "She seemed to be of sound mind when we spoke before our duel, though perhaps an argument could be made about her condition as the battle wore on. Rather, it seems Seiga instilled her with this life force for the purposes of boosting her power."

>The ship ghost finishes closing in, and tries to get a closer look at Meira. The horse, however, wants little to do with this and backs away from her, making an unpleasant whinny.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Move over to pet the horse gently to calm it down.
> Take on a quieter, more pleasant tone.
> "Shh, shh, it's okay."

[Hello Purvis]

> Move over to pet the horse gently to calm it down.
> Take on a quieter, more pleasant tone.
> "Shh, shh, it's okay."

>You move over to the horse and pet it. It backs away from the ship ghost, and remains visibly tense as you touch it.
>"Geez, sorry," says the ship ghost, as she backs away as well. "Sometimes I forget, you know..."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Resume the casual conversation tone, but keep our voice at the same volume.
> "No worries, it's not your fault."
> Continue petting the horse.

[Hello Purvis]

> Resume the casual conversation tone, but keep our voice at the same volume.
> "No worries, it's not your fault."
> Continue petting the horse.

>You continue to pet the animal. It does not really calm down, but it stops backing away.
>"What did you mean by 'instilled with a life force,' anyways?" she asks, trying to get a look at Meira from this distance.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Seiga originally stole the life force energy of the Saigyou Ayakashi, a grand youkai cherry blossom tree, through some Taoist technique I could sense but not identify. I am guessing she bestowed that energy upon this woman using a similar ritual. It now strengthens her greatly, and the sense of death and smell of cherry blossoms gradually grew over the course of the battle. It was good I landed the finishing blow when I did, as the cherry blossoms smell was so great at that point that I was nearly choking on it."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Seiga originally stole the life force energy of the Saigyou Ayakashi, a grand youkai cherry blossom tree, through some Taoist technique I could sense but not identify. I am guessing she bestowed that energy upon this woman using a similar ritual. It now strengthens her greatly, and the sense of death and smell of cherry blossoms gradually grew over the course of the battle. It was good I landed the finishing blow when I did, as the cherry blossoms smell was so great at that point that I was nearly choking on it."

>"Is there anything to be done?" says the ship ghost. "Could it be exorcised?"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Nod.
> "It can, and will. That is actually the reason she is coming to town; she has agreed to help return the life force energy to its proper place."

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod.
> "It can, and will. That is actually the reason she is coming to town; she has agreed to help return the life force energy to its proper place."

>"I see," she says after a moment's pause. "If it's an exorcism, I'd go with someone with a good record, like Reimu."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "I will take whatever I can get to restore the Saigyou Ayakashi's life force to its proper place."
> Glance down at Miko's sword in our hand.
> "I do rather expect she will not double-cross me, however, if only because I imagine she wants her sword back."

[Hello Purvis]

> "I will take whatever I can get to restore the Saigyou Ayakashi's life force to its proper place."
> Glance down at Miko's sword in our hand.
> "I do rather expect she will not double-cross me, however, if only because I imagine she wants her sword back."

>"Oh, I didn't mean she'd double cross you. What I meant was Reimu's proven to be pretty good at it. Though...I dunno if any kind of exorcism is going to put anything back in it's "proper" place rather than just getting rid of it."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Frown.
> "I would rather the Saigyou Ayakashi itself not be subject to that."

[Hello Purvis]

> Frown.
> "I would rather the Saigyou Ayakashi itself not be subject to that."

>She nods. "Then you probably want something that isn't an exorcism."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Oh, my apologies. I figured you were using the term just for removing the Saigyou Ayakashi's life force from this woman. It is my understanding that it can be placed in something or someone else, at which point it can be returned to where it belongs."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Oh, my apologies. I figured you were using the term just for removing the Saigyou Ayakashi's life force from this woman. It is my understanding that it can be placed in something or someone else, at which point it can be returned to where it belongs."

>"Huh," she says. "Yeah, that might be a bit much for Reimu."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "I admit I cannot say, since I don't really know much about this. But to me, it stands to reason that if Taoism can make this mess, then Taoism can clean it up."

[Hello Purvis]

> "I admit I cannot say, since I don't really know much about this. But to me, it stands to reason that if Taoism can make this mess, then Taoism can clean it up."

>"That makes sense," says the ship ghost. "What'd you need again?"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Do you mean for the process in particular, or just in general?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "Do you mean for the process in particular, or just in general?"

>"In general," she says. "You were asking about some thing,but I kind forgot them."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Ah, yes. I would like a safe place for the horse and rider, such that the horse can rest while I wait for whoever is coming to assist me. I will take no offense if such a place is not near here."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Ah, yes. I would like a safe place for the horse and rider, such that the horse can rest while I wait for whoever is coming to assist me. I will take no offense if such a place is not near here."

>"Not really much call for that kind of thing around here," she says. "Most people just recuperate at home. Um, well, I guess you could lay her out at a booth in the tavern, with all the ruckus, it'll be nice and quiet there. Or maybe use a friend's house. I...guess she could stay here, but we don't really have a lot of extra room, either."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Shake head.
> "I would not force upon you the presence of those that I am expecting. I may look into the feasibility of the tavern."

[Hello Purvis]

> Shake head.
> "I would not force upon you the presence of those that I am expecting. I may look into the feasibility of the tavern."

>"Right," she says.  She fidgits a little. "I mean, if you want, we're not going to run you off. But I'm not going to lie, we'd rather you host them somewhere else. But that doesn't mean we won't if you have to."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "No, I completely understand."
> Give a bit of a uncertain look.
> "If...I may say so, I believe both, ah, 'factions' are better people than each gives the other credit for. But that is merely my opinion and experience with all of you, and I understand that your opinion and experiences differ substantially. I have planned from the beginning to avoid forcing their presence upon you. Theatrical performance aside, but that's a bit different."

[Hello Purvis]

> "No, I completely understand."
> Give a bit of a uncertain look.
> "If...I may say so, I believe both, ah, 'factions' are better people than each gives the other credit for. But that is merely my opinion and experience with all of you, and I understand that your opinion and experiences differ substantially. I have planned from the beginning to avoid forcing their presence upon you. Theatrical performance aside, but that's a bit different."

>"Yeah, don't worry about it," she says.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Nod.
>"Thank you for your understanding. Actually, come to think of it, is your matriarch presently preoccupied?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod.
>"Thank you for your understanding. Actually, come to think of it, is your matriarch presently preoccupied?"

>"Not especially," says the ship ghost. "Why?"

>_