Shinobi 19 - The eagle's flight

Admiral Duck Sauce 2011-12-29 02:52:03
Toshiba shrugs when Adler proves recalcitrant. "I am not curious enough to put your freedom on the bargaining table, Adler. I realize now you still have enough control of your faculties to lie to me about it anyway."

Classic "barking up the wrong tree" cop. Toshiba's not here to barter with Adler; it was just an attempt at an easy gimme to a potentially complex problem. He asks Aiko, "What do you think? Add another few lumps to the thief's skull, drag him down the tunnel, and see what the Count's estate is up to? Kill Adler so he doesn't give us away and do similarly? Or should we continue here waiting?"

"And no, your vote does not count," Toshiba adds for Adler's benefit.
Mister Andersen 2011-12-30 03:48:56
Aiko places a contemplative finger to her lips. "The gaijin have had the spectacle of his ignominious defeat as compensation for the death of their nobleman, and will soon be entertained by the equally ignoble fall of Herr van Synt in a manner doubtlessly to be connected to that."

She gestures towards the world outside the cave. "Considering our business is concluded here and we shall be dealing once more with Imperial authorities, perhaps our task would be eased if we handed Herr Adler over to the Blue Oni."
Gatac 2011-12-31 12:15:26
"I understand," the Count tells Takao. "Might I persuade you to let me retain your services? You seem a better choice than yet another group of sellsword brigands who brag about their being 'ninja' - to be quite honest, I'm no longer convinced that it means much of anything."

---

"Heh," Kagemaru responds with a slightly bigger smile, "No one ever put it quite like that. But yes, my parents died before I knew them. That however does not mean that I don't have stronger bonds to some people than others."
"Such as?" Nagani asks.
"I wouldn't say it's very hard to figure out." Kage returns as he looks at Nagani.
"Yes, I know about Kiara," Nagani says. "Why her, though?"
"Why not? We have been inseperable for as long as I can think. We helped each other with our trainings and exams," Kagemaru explains. "As you can imagine, her sneaking results were lacking. But with a few hints of mine she was able to pass. In turn she helped me with my fighting grades. She helped me find a weapon that corresponds to my fighting style."
"I see," Nagani says, then sighs. "You, too, will have to explain yourselves to Master Sinan. Though your choice to spare the samurai proved correct, your lack of obedience caused him great consternation. You are acting far beyond the constraints of your mission - and your capabilities. I mean no insult, brother, but what you are doing here is the domain of the wise masters of the clan, and I fear for you should your inexperience taint the results."
"Do not forget that I contacted Master Sinan with good reasons to doubt our contract. He taught me how to think and make intelligent decissions in complicated situations," Kagemaru says, while looking at Nagani. "That said, I am fully aware that this is not how an initiation mission is supposed to go. But I'm determined to bring it to an end that will please Master Sinan."
"I do not doubt your intentions," Nagani says, smiling weakly. "But know that if you find yourself in trouble you cannot resolve on your own - sometimes it is best to ask for help."
Kagemaru nods to Nagani's recommendation, "If I need more help than my new companions can provide, I will not hesitate to ask for it."
"Good," Nagani nods. "I will leave you to your thoughts, then. I must attend to my brother."
"Alright," Kage responds, and then goes on to look for the rest of the group.

---

"I'm starting to doubt he would do worse to me than you two," Adler replies. "Do whatever you want. I'm done helping you."
MikeS 2012-01-01 22:01:32
Takao shakes his head. "I cannot offer you my services as a retainer, for reasons that are my own. You have been very generous towards this party, though, and if there is a service I may perform in return, I will do so."
Admiral Duck Sauce 2012-01-03 18:43:00
Quote:

"I'm starting to doubt he would do worse to me than you two," Adler replies. "Do whatever you want. I'm done helping you."


Toshiba can't help but smirk. "Well, I'm willing to bet the Oni would certainly find a way to make this next bit more theatrical."

K.O.!!!

"We take the tunnel and turn Adler over to... " Toshiba sighs, not entirely convinced it wouldn't be better just to kill the thief. "To the authorities. Tingarson was the Count's friend, and we have those papers we found here detailing Adler's bribes to Van Synt. The Count should know someone trustworthy we can dump this on, and then it's a hairy foreign devil problem at long last."

"Unless the Count really is in on it, in which case we just up and slay everyone we see in there. Let's go."
Gatac 2012-01-03 20:39:55
Toshiba furthers his campaign to saddle Adler with permanent brain damage, knocking him out again. Then begins the arduous task of getting him through the tunnel. It isn't fun, I'll tell you that for free - ever carried a whole dead pig by its feet? Yeah, like that, through a dark, narrow tunnel. By the time you reach the actual vault wall, your backs are stiffer than wood and refuse to move even the slightest bit without immediate shouts of searing pain. Honestly, the only thing that kept you going in the home stretch was that it would have been even more laborious to lug the bastard back into the cave, drag him to the cliffs and toss him into the sea.

How much fun is it fitting his limp body through the narrow chute that actually leads into the vault? Let me tell you: it is hi-fucking-larious. When it's finally done, it feels like you both collectively passed a kidney stone. Hell of a bonding experience there.

With no apparent way to open the vault from inside, you simply do what can be done to get someone's attention - you start banging on the walls.

---

In the main hall, the Count's discussion with Takao nears its end.

"My wish is this, Mr. Samurai," the Count say. "I need to know who ordered my friend Tingarson killed. The Ayami ninja didn't know - I believed her when she said this, as I am quite sure that if she knew, she would have rather given him up than agree to my conditions. But I have reason to believe that it was the pirate Olafsen, who I understand your friends are searching for. If you could confirm that it was on his orders that my friend died, I would be much obliged."

With a grim smile, he adds "And if on hearing that from his own lips you feel the sudden urge to run him through, and act on said urge, I would gladly gift you a chest heavy with silver."

Before Takao has much of a chance to respond to being nigh-openly solicited for murder, a servant rushes - he doesn't run, but walks very quickly indeed - to the Count's side. Takao can hear him whisper:

"Mon Seigneur, il ya des intrus dans la voûte. Ils veulent vous parler."
"Est-ce vrai?" the Count replies. "Apportez-les à la fois. Dépêchez-vous!"

He claps his hands loudly.

"Baudouin!" he calls. "Fetch my guests and assemble them here!"
punkey 2012-01-03 21:45:24
With her more physical needs - and Yukio's - well-sated, Kasumi returns to her room in the Count's...manor? Palace? Fortress? She shakes her head as she clears an area in the middle of the room wide enough for her and her sword. Foreigners and their love of stone and thick walls. No wonder they're all so pale.

The Crane's Dance secured at its rightful place on her side, Kasumi closes her eyes and thinks of her katas. Rises to meet the morning, Morning falls to left, Halt the eastern attack, Cleave the stubborn trunk. Her course set, the Crane's Dance leaves her scabbard in a flash, and Kasumi sprints through the pre-selected course, the sharp, abrupt movements so common to other styles replaced with a flowing grace, each kata blending into the next.
Good, Kasumi thinks. Another.
Kasumi repeats the sequence, trying to force herself to go faster; at the end, instead of resheathing the blade, she twirls it to sit beside the sheath so she can go straight into another repetition, and another, trying to go beyond a sequence of four katas to arrive at one kata. Again and again and again, her body goes through the motions as her mind slowly clears. Again, and the blade slices through the air quick enough that a blue sheen builds on its edge. Again, and Kasumi's conscious mind begins to utterly fade away, like the waves on the ocean disappearing. Again, and...

There's a knock on the door. Kasumi, carried by the moment, whirls and raises her guard in the direction of the sound. "What, you stupid shithead?" she snarls, her eyes only opening with those words.
The Count's manservant Baudouin stands before her in the open door, eyes fixed straight forward past her. He seems nonplussed at Kasumi's language, threatening display of weaponry and state of dress. "Begging your pardon, Mademoiselle. The Comte wishes to see you in the main hall. He impressed upon me that time is of the essence." He steals one - just one - brief glance at her. "Will Mademoiselle require a fresh gown?"
Kasumi quickly snaps the non-existant blood off of her blade and returns the Crane's Dance to its home. She only now feels how soaked in sweat she is. "No, I have my own change of clothes. Tell the Count I will be there in minutes."
"Very well, Mademoiselle."

Baudouin - or the Baudouin, Kasumi can't tell - closes the door behind him while Kasumi begins to undress and wets a provided cloth to wipe herself down with. She had never felt like that practicing her katas before, to be expected when she was forced to use stolen swords and thick branches cut from trees, but even the few times previously she took her daily exercises with Crane's Dance, she never felt this...energy, this force, suppressing her conscious mind and bringing her closer to...something. She can't tell what was going on, but it felt warm, comforting, safe. Maybe next time, then.
Gatac 2012-01-07 19:40:01
There's a palpable sense of relief (mostly from the game master) as you all reunite after the evening's misadventures in the theater's main hall. Everybody's in one piece, Adler looks substantially worse for the wear, and for the first time this evening, the Count is actually wearing a deep, genuine smile.

"So you actually do have Adler in your custody," he says, off-handedly welcoming Toshiba and Aiko to the midnight banquet. "I shan't ask how a tunnel came to lead into my treasure vault, as I am quite sure I will recover every piece of silver this piece of filth tried to abscond with." He kicks the nigh-senseless Adler in the ribs for emphasis.

"You are all welcome to stay the night, of course, but if you do not object, I would like to accompany you when you turn the thief in to the authorities. I wish to make certain that justice will be done."
punkey 2012-01-07 20:53:40
Kasumi nods. "I don't think that would be a problem." She looks at Aiko and Toshiba. "Was there anything else interesting or useful in Adler's hiding hole?"
Mister Andersen 2012-01-08 16:01:24
When the group is first reunited, Aiko is exceptionally pleased when she discovers the ninja have recovered not only her blade Kamikaze, but also the assiduously assembled record of her investigation into her lord's murder.

When the question is asked about useful discoveries, Aiko shakes her head in answer to the question. Even though she is sure she's never coming back here, revealing the existance of the redoubt and its connection to the Count's vault feels like a wasted opportunity to gain one up on these gaijin, even if she is in part descended from them.

Perhaps then that's why she waits a couple of beats, to let the others feel that vague sense of disappointment, before pulling the ledger out from her tunic.

"Unless you mean this record of Herr Adler's payments to Herr van Synt, of course," she remarks casually.
Gatac 2012-01-08 20:01:06
Kasumi snaps up the ledger and looks it over. Her smile grows as she reads further and further. "Good. Good. This should be enough for Holger to lock Van Synt and Adler up in adjacent cells."
"May I see it?" the Count asks. "I do not seek to besmirch anyone's reputation, but if this piece of paper is your only proof so far, then it would be of advantage if an upstanding citizen can vouch for it. We should seek to retain a scribe for copies, as well."

Kasumi holds it up so the Count can see it, but does not hand it over.

The Count reads the paper with great interest. "Hmpf," he says, straightening himself. "To think that the law can be bought so cheaply. In any event, I can now bear witness to this document's existence."
"And after we have one of your men run off a quick copy, we can take this to Holger?" Kasumi asks.
"I don't see why not," the Count says. "I will help you procure copies of this on the condition that I am allowed to retain a copy of this document myself."

Kasumi nods, and waits for the Count to pull the requisite strings for the copy to be made. When the scribe arrives, she stays with the ledger at all times, never letting it out of her sight - and has Yukio's imposing presence along as backup.

The Count's scribes - plural, because of course the Count retains more than one personal scribe for his correspondence - arrive bleary-eyed and in dire need of a good waking up, which the Count's manservant provides with the crystal-clear noise of silver pieces filling purses. Soon, the three of them are at work, one dictating while the other two scratch off copy after copy. The Count's philosophy seems to be that if he can have 2 copies of evidence, he can have 12 just as easily, so one is laid aside - no doubt for further copying later - while you are handed the original and the small stack of other copies, more than enough to maneuver whatever bureaucratic holes might be encountered and still have enough to go around for the whole team.

"Let us depart, then," the Count suggests. "I will not tolerate this criminal buffoon drooling on my marble floors for much longer."
Kasumi looks at Adler and grins. "What do you think, Yukio? Does one of us carry Adler -" she turns to Yukio, "- or does he go on the cart?"
"I would gladly drag him behind a horse," Yukio says, "but it seems he is well acquainted with such punishment already. We should put him on the cart, lest his injuries get to him before the city guard does."
Admiral Duck Sauce 2012-01-09 03:04:08
Toshiba spends the bulk of the proceedings just glad Adler is out of his hands. Killing him seemed more and more reasonable as time passed. When Aiko doesn't slip much more about Adler's hideout, Toshiba gives her a subtle but approving nod a few moments later.

With Adler and Van Synt and the Blue Oni out of the picture, it seemed to Toshiba that the path to Olafsen was now a straighter one than ever. They would no longer have to play constable in a foreign city, and for that Toshiba was eternally grateful.