Tsuiraku-town

As we play, occasionally we'll close a thread and open a new one to keep the size of threads (and relative complexity) down to a dull roar. Here's where we store the closed posts from the history of Errant Road.
Locked
User avatar
Graybeard
The Heretical Admin
Posts: 7180
Joined: August 20th, 2007, 8:26 am
Location: Nuevo Mexico y Colorado, Estados Unidos

Tsuiraku-town

Post by Graybeard »

[OOC: OK, new topic, following directly after "Rinkaiel, part 2" -- a bit of context setting, but same cast, continuity, etc., with maybe a newcomer or two coming shortly...]

So what's so hard about this? Layla wondered as Kinabalu made vaguely mystical noises. He was urging her into some kind of meditative state so that she could learn to use magic safely, and he was probably right that it was a state that most people didn't achieve without some effort. Thing was, though, that that state was exactly the same as any top assassin strives for while on a hit -- the process of becoming one with the weapon, clearing the mind of all the extraneous crap and focusing down on what is important (the mark, the hazards, the escape route, and so on). Layla had been a top Gewehr Wraith for long enough that she'd become quite good at entering that meditative state, and it had saved her life more than once.

Of course, she wasn't going to tell him that.

The mood was broken by a loud knocking on a door somewhere back in the back of the building -- at least it sounded loud to her, her senses being heightened by the exercise, no doubt about it. Well, apparently it really was loud, because Kinabalu swore in Tsuirakuan, curtly said "Please continue your meditations, Ms. Sorensen," and headed back toward the sound.

Good, Layla thought; what I really want to meditate on is some of the gadgetry I see sitting around here...

---------

Joe drove the hack around Tsuiraku-town, rather aimlessly. Part of it was that he didn't know exactly where to find the kind of shop that Maya seemed to need, but mainly, he was killing time until Jamie came out of whatever weird state the "Entheo-gin" had put her in. Their orders being what they were, he didn't relish Layla seeing Jamie in that state ... and, of course, blaming him for it.

The Tsuirakuans did things their own, weird way, he noted. The architecture here was very different from what he was used to. The numerous small shops all occupied the first floor of buildings that stood as many as four or five floors high, the upper levels apparently filled with apartments. The buildings huddled together as though for protection; not a blade of grass, let alone a lawn, was to be seen among them.

Now why would they do that? he wondered. There's plenty of room here to build real houses, with lawns and open space and all that. But then he figured it out: this was the way they built things in Tsuirakushiti. By all reports, the island-city in the sky just didn't have the room for luxuries like open space. Of course, the Tsuirakuans would do things here the way they were used to them at home.

Thus occupied with his musings on foreign cultures, Joe didn't see two men dressed in black, with some manner of ski-mask-like gear pulled over their faces, skulking toward Kinabalu's magic laboratory.
Image

Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
Kincaide
Errant Scholar
Posts: 101
Joined: March 11th, 2010, 8:11 pm
Location: Half dead on a beach somewhere

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Kincaide »

Rhett yawned and rubbed an eye, he had spent the night on a thin cot in the cargo hold of an airship. Not the best location to relax and get a full and refreshing night's sleep. All to bring some valuable ingredients into town without the troublesome taxes attached to them. He had looked up the taxes placed on the import of these particular plants and minerals, they were far higher than his actual commission for the task. Officially 'smuggler' was not on the door to his office but it was relatively easy work if you had as many friends in the airship business as he did.

Rhett had finally found the address he was looking for, the alleys of this town were like a maze he still had yet to fully puzzle out. It had been requested that he take the route to the back door so that he would not draw the attention of overly curious eyes. He raised a gloved hand and knocked on the back door of Kinabalu's laboratory before stepping back to adjust the strap of the heavy duffel bag he had carried from the other end of town.

Now that he was back in town he had left his rifle and sword back at his apartment. In 'civilized' towns it was often frowned upon for unwashed barbarians such as himself to openly carry weapons. So Rhett had settled for a pair of daggers in the back of his belt, hidden under his customary overcoat. He was not the best at dagger fighting and really only used to using them in tandem with his sword but he figured the sight of a six foot and five inch northerner coming at you with a pointy object would cause most to turn tail and run.
User avatar
Sareth
RPG All-Star
Posts: 2604
Joined: August 23rd, 2007, 8:54 pm

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Sareth »

"And then they made me their king." I nodded as I finished the story I was telling to the purple skinned imp sitting in the cart next to the blind girl. The imp, clearly impressed, proceeded to turn inside out before popping in a spray of colors. "Wow. That's a neat trick. Can I try that?" I asked. I then attempted to do so, but discovered that I was unable to even begin to, no matter how much I sucked on my lips. Giving that up as a lost cause, I turned to the blind girl. "You have the prettiest eyes, you know. Such a lovely shade of violet speckled with gold flakes. But how did you ever manage to get four of them?" I shrugged. "Never mind that. I'm more interested in the mushroom growing out of your chest. Can I take a taste?"
Image
Image
User avatar
Graybeard
The Heretical Admin
Posts: 7180
Joined: August 20th, 2007, 8:26 am
Location: Nuevo Mexico y Colorado, Estados Unidos

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Graybeard »

What's taking him so long? Layla wondered as, unbeknownst to her, Kinabalu and Rhett engaged in a certain, not entirely licit transaction at the back door to the building. Well, she really didn't mind. She was pretty sure she'd achieved the degree of focus that the Tsuirakuan had expected of her, and so she let her gaze wander around the laboratory. There were the teaching tools she'd seen on her previous visit, and the incomprehensible testing devices that had led Kinabalu to the conclusion that she had potential at proprioceptive magic and mind magic. There were also a few odds and ends that she hadn't noticed before. What might be the jawbone of an Anuban swamp beast sat on a shelf. (What use would the Tsuirakuans have for something like that? She couldn't wait to find out, honestly.) Beside it were two or three smaller skulls of animals that she didn't recognize. There was a scale model of a common commercial airship, and Layla noted with interest that it wasn't on the shelf, but rather, hovering a few inches above it, rising and falling an inch or so in a repetitive, rhythmic manner that was almost hypnotic ...

"BINDING!!"

It wasn't the scream of the spellcasting, in a voice she hadn't heard before, that brought her out of her reveries, as much as a disturbance in the magic in the room that she could sense but not see. Something had happened at the back door, and she had a sense that it wasn't good. Slipping her concealed pistol into her hand, she rose and started sidling to the door of the room, her senses now on high alert.

----------

"Watch where you're going, assholes!" Joe shouted, as the two men in black, carrying a duffel bag slung between them, sprinted in front of the hack, forcing him to make a sudden stop. They didn't hang around to answer, though, as they dashed into an alleyway and disappeared ...

... Leaving a very angry Tsuirakuan and a courier from the Far North tightly secured in magical binding cords at the back of Kinabalu's laboratory.
Image

Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
4uk4ata
Errant Scholar
Posts: 153
Joined: August 2nd, 2009, 4:25 am

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by 4uk4ata »

While a good amount of farmwork was often a sufficient discraction, it hadn't done much for Kalin's moodiness. Yes, Luminosita damn it, magic was more or less widespread, but as far as he was concerned, it was either a divine gift taught and developed by the miracle workers of the faith, or it was witchery. True, some - like the Tsuirakushti - put fancy words around it, but in the end it changed little. "High mage of the most exalted sixth tower of the order of the invisible feather of crimson-legged murky eyed cockatrice, magister of all that is unknown, unnatural and unintelligible, keeper of the thirty-nine seals of most awesome thaumaturgical smitingness" sounded impressive enough if you didn't doze off from it, but in the end it meant that you were a witch who is just more full of hot air than normal.

He did notice, as he was sitting in a meditative position in a more secluded place some time off the vineyard, that this belief put him in a somewhat awkward position. Not that he had any ideas about running around with a pitchfork or torch and setting people on fire (which wasn't supposed to work on witches anyway) - he wasn't quite that stupid. By and large, he didn't care for witches; he was starting to catch on to the fact (after a few discussions in the local tavern recently) that as far as most farrelites were concerned, they were just they considered mages, church or no church. Nor did he care about doing anything to one if he, she or it had the decency to keep out of his way - a convenience that Luminosita had not afforded much of recently. What did bother him at times was his realization that his own abilities and training - whether called magic or anything else - they weren't were not exactly done as per the official dogma. Well, as far as he could tell - he was never very good on the academic topics.

Eventually, he managed to relax and calm his mind enough to start feeling the kind of ... state (he couldn't describe it otherwise) which he sought. It couldn't be quite be called enlightenment, because it didn't have anything - no thought or particular sensation, just the awareness of being there, both being perfectly in tune with one's own body and how it interacted with everything else. If a trained mage had tried to analyze it, he would have dismissed it as instinctual awareness of the thaumaturgic forces and layliness, or a similarly dismissive phrase that would certainly fail to convey the effects such "awareness" could have on the common movements of the body.

It was late afternoon that he came back to the vineyard. Sharo had been meandering around, and trotted cheerfully towards him. "Hello, buddy. Who is in the house?" Kalin asked him. Sharo grimaced in what would probably be his yawn. The old one that had given biscuits, and the other old one. Oh, and the brats. "What do you think of them all, eh? "Kalin said, shrugging. Shifty, not reliable, weird, the dog said. The one who doesn't see has something on her skin, she's been smelling funny since we found her.

"Yes," Kalin noted. "Perfume of some sort. Very nice, fits her. Quite charming."

Sharo nearly fell over. Don't tell me you are in heat, you silly longlegs, he asked. Better hope she doesn't bite. Having stones thrown your way is bad enough.

Kalin didn't answer. He remembered something that he felt during the meditation, as his arms remembered the binding he had struggled with. It reminded him of something, somehow - or, to be more exact, someone.
Image
Kincaide
Errant Scholar
Posts: 101
Joined: March 11th, 2010, 8:11 pm
Location: Half dead on a beach somewhere

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Kincaide »

"Son of a..." Rhett said, his face pressed into the dirt, unable to stand because of the bindings holding his arms and legs immobile. He rolled over onto his side to get a good look at his employer, "That was sloppy of me," then he pushed himself to a wall and used it to roll into a sitting position. He had failed at the job because he had not kept an eye behind.

Not getting enough sleep was not and excuse to let the package get stolen from right under his employer's nose. Now he had let his employer down and had to follow through on the insurance policy of the contract he had signed. The Couriers took much pride in their work.

He contented himself with struggling at the bindings, trying to find a weak point, "You wouldn't happen to know a dispel for this would you?" he asked.The bindings were chafing against his skin in certain places.
User avatar
Graybeard
The Heretical Admin
Posts: 7180
Joined: August 20th, 2007, 8:26 am
Location: Nuevo Mexico y Colorado, Estados Unidos

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Graybeard »

"You wouldn't happen to know a dispel for this would you?"

"I can't cast it!" Kinabalu snarled. "The misbegotten spawn of an Anuban swamp beast built a counter into whatever he threw at me. I'm -- Miss Sorensen, come here, please."

Layla stepped through the rear door and saw the two men on the ground. It didn't take her long to realize the gun wasn't going to be needed here; a dagger would be more to the point instead. She put the one away and got the other out, only to get another snarl from her teacher. "You dunce, a dagger will be useless against these bonds. Anyone with a hint of magical aptitude should see that. I am terribly disappointed in you. Now go fetch my apprentice, 451 Kiyoka Street, Apartment C, that is the third street over. He should be able to -- what are you doing?"

Layla ignored the invective -- he's just pissed at the world, and frankly, has a right to be -- and bent to look at the magical Binding holding the two men. She had that same feeling as when the man with the staff had enslimed her back at the vineyard ... and had the same idea of what to do about it. Well, this worked once before. She sensed the magic in the Binding, looked for a weak spot ... ah, there it was, around Kinabalu's shoulders. Holding the dagger close by, she started to unravel the magical cord -- but with her mind, not her hand.

It worked. Three minutes later, the uppermost bond was wrapped not around Kinabalu's torso, but around her dagger.

"How did you do that?" the Tsuirakuan sputtered as he started to wriggle free, but Layla just smiled enigmatically. "Beginner's luck, but I will accept your apology..."

----------

"Oh, oh," Faye said. "Here comes Kalin, and he looks pissed." Now why was Jasmine looking at him that way?
Image

Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
Kincaide
Errant Scholar
Posts: 101
Joined: March 11th, 2010, 8:11 pm
Location: Half dead on a beach somewhere

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Kincaide »

Rhett watched the pair bicker and rolled his shoulders as best he could in the magical trap. His soreness from the bad night's rest was only made worse by the constriction. He was a patient man and could wait for the apprentice to free Kinabalu but his arms were starting to fall asleep. He could not tell what exactly the apprentice was doing but it did not match any magical disciplines he knew of. Rhett could fight a mage but he knew about as much about the actual mechanics as an ant knows the glory of the Patriarch.

"Sorry mate. I failed to fulfill your contract. By that contract I either have to return your goods or provide a service of equal value," It was not a clause he enjoyed fulfilling but it was a family tradition and was part of the reason the service of the Couriers was so valued back up North. They either finished the contract or repaid the employer
Last edited by Kincaide on April 6th, 2010, 8:17 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
Sareth
RPG All-Star
Posts: 2604
Joined: August 23rd, 2007, 8:54 pm

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Sareth »

Jasmine bounced Nera a few times, eliciting a few giggles from the child. "So, that young man of yours... He wouldn't be single, would he?"
Image
Image
User avatar
Graybeard
The Heretical Admin
Posts: 7180
Joined: August 20th, 2007, 8:26 am
Location: Nuevo Mexico y Colorado, Estados Unidos

Re: Tsuiraku-town

Post by Graybeard »

A momentary look of horror flashed across Faye's face as she figured out what Jasmine meant. Thinking fast, she framed an answer that might do. "I, uh, think he's married to Luminosita ... if you know what I mean."

------------
"Sorry mate. I failed to fulfill your contract. By that contract I either have to return your goods or provide a service of equal value."

The Tsuirakuan succeeded in extricating himself from the rest of the magical bands, and started to do the same for Rhett, but stopped short at the man's words; first things first. "There was no contract," he hissed, "and there are no goods and no service. There has been an internal matter for us Tsuirakuans to settle. A foreigner would not understand." He didn't say "barbarian," but it was surely implied.

Whimsically, Layla wished she had a bag of popcorn so that she could sit back and watch the show; this was going to be good. Actually, her sympathies were with the unfamiliar tall man. Upper-class Tsuirakuans, as Kinabalu appeared to be, were incredibly obsessed, she knew, with saving face. if she read the situation correctly, these two had somehow blundered into a magical mugging. For a high-powered mage to do such a thing would amount to a truly immense loss of face ... particularly under the watching eyes of two foreigners. By contrast, this other man was just trying to do his business in a thorough and professional way. I'd do the same if the Gewehr had taken a job to deliver something, she thought. Wonder what outfit this guy is from? He doesn't look like he's from any of the ones I know about.

"Uh, so what happened here?" she asked; the entertainment value promised to be all the higher if she could play innocent...
Image

Because old is wise, does good, and above all, kicks ass.
Locked