You reach out to the Heart Container, no hesitation in your mind.
Assimilating the relic to reinforce your vitality would be very nice, both for the direct effect of making you harder to put down, and because of how it would augment your ki and so many of the abilities based on its manipulation.
An increased affinity for the Element of Shadow would also be pretty sweet. Shadow is FULL of tricks, some of them potentially quite nasty, and being that extra little bit resistant to them could be the difference between life and death. Not to mention how being able to better-utilize such powers yourself could shorten and simplify a lot of battles.
But in this instance, there's only one acceptable use for this blessing. Even though you seriously, SERIOUSLY doubt that you'll be granted the power to summon Dark Link for this, the possibility of being able to summon something with even a FRACTION of the shadow's sheer ability is too good to pass up.
Gained Heart of Courage
Of course, you don't use the item just yet.
No. You're going to go home, and you're going to MAGICAL SCIENCE! the HECK out of this thing first. It's only the fourth Heart Container you've ever laid eyes on in person, and it's the first one that you've chosen to apply in this particular way.
You NEED to study it.
Those decisions made, you pocket the glowing Heart, then turn and fetch the Mirror - careful not to look directly into the glass as you do so, nor to "poke" at the magic that infuses the item.
Magic mirrors come in many forms, but the one thing that almost all of them have in common is that looking directly into them is part of activating them. In turn, magical items aligned with Shadow usually have a long and storied history of "whoops" moments, Shadow's natural inclination for trickery coming through.
You've already done the dance of the mirror-born clones once - and due to Navi's actions, no less.
Once was enough.
With the object of your search secured, you turn to your companions.
"So, has anybody seen my hand?"
There is a collective choking sound.
Then your Spectral Hand floats into view, shaking in mid-air in a way that makes you think of laughter.
Seeing it, Briar giggles - maybe a little hysterically, but you'll take it.
Gained Comedy E (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Pranking F (Plus)
"Oh," Ichirou manages to say, as he spots the intangible limb. "Oh, gods... THAT hand." He glares at you, or tries to, as he says, "That was evil. You know that, right?"
"Maybe a little evil," you admit. "But it was a serious question, too. This handy little fellow" - you indicate your creation with a thumb - "absorbed a chunk of my life-force when I created it. I'd kind of like it back."
In response to that, the Spectral Hand holds itself out, as if offering to shake.
You eye the disembodied hand suspiciously for a moment, but as the ugly hue of decay imbued into its phantom flesh when you cast the Spell of Ghoul Touch has reverted to the original spectral pallor, you reach out and take it.
The Hand immediately begins to break up, and as it does so, you sigh in relief, the energy you sacrificed to create the Spectral Hand rushing back into your system and easing the ache that you'd been feeling ever since completing that spell.
"All is well, then?" Ginta asks.
"For the moment, at least," you reply, before turning to Briar. "I think we both REALLY need to talk with your mother about how THAT thing ended up down here."
"You'll hear no argument from me, there," Briar agrees with a shudder. "If I find out she KNEW it was here..."
"On that subject," Ginta interrupts. "What exactly WAS that... being?"
You and Briar trade glances.
"...if you don't mind, I'd like to hear Navi's take on that before I say anything," you tell the priest.
Ginta blinks. "Oh?"
"Yeah. I've got a few questions of my own about that whole fight."
Like how the heck Dark Link was even here to begin with, let alone why or how it had been... corrupted? Possessed, maybe? By whatever the HELL the owner of that FACE in the Darkness was.
Ganondorf's faded presence is still murmuring in the back of your mind over the whole incident, making you leery of poking too deeply into those regions of inherited memory you'd otherwise consider safe to access. Digging around for Dark Link's history and origins would not be a good idea just now - but that said, you can make a couple of educated guesses.
The Triforce symbols on Dark Link's gear, and especially the way they lit up when exposed to your Power and purged of that Darkness, suggest that the shadow's origins may not have been as dire as you expected. The drastic post-exorcism shift in its personality - as much of one as it had, anyway - hints at the same.
"Very well," the senior priest agrees with a nod. "In that case, shall we return to the surface?"
"We should check in with the Captain first," you remind him.
"Of course."
You take a second to go over your defenses. The various magical enhancements you had up before calling on your Maximum Power are still going, though they burned through a chunk of their duration because of their interaction with your raging aura. They should be more than enough to get you back to the central complex, barring any more battles to the death against legendary warriors. Your Ki Enhancement, on the other hand, is basically gone, and you don't hesitate to spend the energy necessary to renew it. You still have ki to burn, and that particular technique accounts for a significant portion of your combat potential, especially now that your mana reserves are so low.
That done, you begin making your way back through the mine.
Since you know the way this time around, you make somewhat better progress than you did on your way down. A lack of any encounters with roaming monsters also speeds your way - at a guess, they were either drawn out by the noise of the battle between the Memorian ghosts and the main body of monsters, or have gone to ground as a result of the same.
Speaking of which, as you get closer to the entrance to the mines, you start hearing the noise of that fight again.
"Should we assist them?" Ichirou asks, looking in the direction of the loudest battle-cries and clash of arms.
You think on it. Your previous argument about keeping a group of effective civilians from getting in the way of the professional soldiery still applies, you've got very little left in the way of magical firepower, and you only have thirty minutes or so before you need to leave. Also, by the sound of things and the auras you can sense, the Legion has matters well in hand - you feel far more ghostly presences in the chambers up ahead than you do demonic or tainted ones.
All good reasons to just slip around the bulk of the fighting, find Captain Marcus, and make your report before departing for the day.
That said, there IS something to be said for letting yourself be SEEN fighting in support of the Legion. If you hit the remaining monsters from behind with Ki Blasts and Ichirou's archery, you could contribute to the clean-up with minimal risk of friendly fire incidents. Not to mention that your OTHER previous argument, about being one of the most powerful forces on the side of the good guys, still applies as well.
You consider your remaining reserves, as well as the time constraints you're under, and decide that you can afford a little more delay.
Turning to your companions, you ask, "How do you gentlemen feel about lending the ghosts a hand?"
"Hit the monsters from behind, you mean?" Ichirou responds.
You nod.
"I have no problem with that idea. Father?"
"Just be careful not to shoot any of the ancient not-quite-Romans by accident," the senior priest advises, as you advance toward the sounds of battle.
You emerge at the back of a chamber... actually, it's not a single chamber, it's more like a honeycomb of smaller caves that all happen to be open to two or three of their immediate neighbors. With the various rock formations in the way, you can't get clear line of sight in all directions, but at a guess, you'd say the entire place was perhaps eighty feet across and a hundred deep, with ceilings ranging from ten to twenty feet high.
This wouldn't have been a good place for the Legion to meet the kind of swarms you saw earlier. The larger golems and Gohma-spawn would have had plenty of room to maneuver, while their smaller counterparts could have maneuvered to surround the Legion on all sides - and then dropped little Gohma on them from above. The kind of numbers the Memorians were up against would have crushed a living century, magic-users or no, and you're not entirely sure the Legion's ghostly nature would have been enough to turn the tide if they'd been so engulfed.
Just as well, then, that the legionaires don't appear to have met the monsters in battle here. There simply isn't enough residual demonic energy in the air for a large number of Gohma to have met their end in these rooms, nor are there enough disabled golems. Instead, it appears your undead allies have pushed the remaining monsters back over the course of the battle, which by now has been going on for over half an hour.
The only monsters you can see now are two of the large golems - one heavily scorched and missing an arm, the other undamaged as far as you can tell - six or seven of the larger Gohma in various states of health, and perhaps a score of the more typically-sized arachnids. They're in a spread-out mass that seems to fill the center-most chambers, backs and thoraxes turned to you as they attempt to push forwards.
Arrayed against them are maybe twenty Memorian ghosts, formed up in ranks five across and four deep. Like something out of a historical re-enactment, the spirits on the outer edge of the formation have formed a shield-wall, one whose spectral appearance belies its durability. Even as you watch, one of the large Gohma attempts to batter its way through the blockade, only for its chitinous limbs to slam against the phantasmal shields. The demonic spider hisses in frustrated fury as it falls back, pressed by the ethereal spears of the second and third ranks, and low-level spellfire from at least two casters - but as the monster retreats, two of its kin advance, while the two golems come up on the Memorian's flanks, stone spears raised.
Between the enchantments that give them motion and the shadow-essence that still infects them, the golems contain enough magical power that their blows will likely count even against the normally-intangible ghosts. And given their sheer size and power, one good swing of those oversized stone spears could flatten the entire lines facing them.
Out of the corner of your eye, you can see Ichirou taking aim at the golem on your left - the more intact of the pair, and the one most likely to hit the ghosts hardest. You have enough time to get off an attack of your own, but what kind? The golems are hard targets if ever there were any, and while your Ki Blast probably has enough punch to damage them - especially if you Overcharge it - you're not sure if you can do ENOUGH damage to forestall the impending attacks. Body Flickering into melee range would work better for that, but then you'd be in melee range with ANOTHER excessively-powerful opponent - you've kind of had your fill of that for one day.
And then, of course, there's the magical option. You DO still have enough gas in the tank to get off a few spells, if you really felt the need.
Even with the stone formations and monsters taking up space, there's a lot more room in this part of the mine than there was where you fought Dark Link. Enough so that, if you're careful, and don't push yourself to go as fast as you possibly CAN, you should be able to call upon Maximum Power without risking a case of road rash or imitating a bug on a windshield.
Besides, the boost to your physical power would do a lot to overcome the sheer physical resilience of those golems.
With that decided, you take hold of your mana and your ki.
And golden radiance bursts into being once more.
As you charge forwards, making for the right side of the Gohma swarm, you notice that many of the giant spiders have suddenly tensed up. Ever so slowly - at least from your perspective - they are turning towards the back of the disjointed cavern, and with every passing instant, more and more of the swarm exhibit similar reactions.
It's a clear response to your use of Power, and the unexpected threat it represents, but you can't shake the impression that there's something more to the spiders' behavior than just a natural response to clear and present danger.
Putting that nagging feeling out of your mind for the moment, you round the Gohma's position and shoot up their flank, aiming for the more damaged of the two golems - which you note is reacting to your "super mode" in the same manner as the Gohma. You picked this construct as your first target for several reasons. One, Ichirou isn't about to shoot at it. Two, it's already damaged, so you'll be able to eliminate it faster and with less effort than you'd need to deal with its partner - and that in turn will result in less damage being done to your spectral allies, and leave more time for you to work on the second golem. Third, this will be the first of these extra-large golems that you've actually fought; better to start with one that's already taken a beating, so you'll be better-prepared for what the fully-functional version can do BEFORE you close with it.
Blessed Blade wreathed in your burning aura, you leap and attack.
Somehow - more by chance than choice, you firmly believe - the golem manages to get its spear in the path of your attack.
It subsequently LOSES the upper third of its weapon, your sword having sheared through much like a hot knife through butter. Seriously, the severed ends of the broken shaft are GLOWING RED from the friction of the strike. You even managed to leave a gash along the golem's arm, though it's not as deep as you might have hoped - too much force spent on its weapon.
That's fine, though, you think, as your feet hit the stone floor.
Finding your balance, you strike anew.
And this time, the golem is left short most of an arm below the elbow.
Seeing as how that was the ONLY arm it had left, its threat level has just taken a nosedive.
Despite the fact that it's supposed to be nothing more than a magical robot, and its lack of any facial features with which to express emotion, the golem's shock as it looks down at its dismembered limb is readily-apparent.
Taking a cue from your first engagement with its lesser kin, your next attack is aimed at taking one of the automaton's legs out from under it. Not only will that cripple its mobility, it'll also stop the big bruiser from simply stomping and kicking its way into the Memorian line - its boots are huge, solid stone, enchanted in the bargain, and tainted by Shadow besides. They WOULD do some damage to the ghost, if not so much as a purpose-built weapon.
You don't quite succeed in taking the golem's right leg off at the knee, but it's pretty close - and when the construct shift its posture in helpless reaction to your bewilderingly swift assault, there is a loud *CRACK* as its tremendous weight comes down on the damaged joint, finishing the job you began.
As the disabled golem begins its long, slow fall to the floor, you whirl about to face its counterpart. The undamaged golem has halted its advance on the Memorian line, and has just finished bringing its helm-shaped head around to face you.
It's also beginning to glow - a bloody aura that fair weeps from the crimson lines that run like veins through the darkness afflicting it, radiating Elemental Shadow, demonic corruption, and the first flickers of Augmentation magic.
Either the Memorians were holding some tactical information back, or that supernatural infection has given the golems some unexpected benefits.
Regardless, you don't want to give the construct a chance to finish whatever spell it's working, just on general principle. That leaves the question of how to get to it.
Going back the way you came might work, but it's by far the longest route available to you; the golem might actually be able to finish whatever magic it's invoking by the time you reached it that way. It would be much quicker for you to go around the Memorian formation - the distance is probably less than a third of what you'd need to cover to get around the Gohma.
There's also a third option. You can't leap over the legionaires - even if you could get enough lift to clear them, the ceiling is far too low to allow it - but you could try using your Spell of Flight. The only catch there is that you will be moving MUCH faster than you've ever attempted while airborne, and the spell itself is on the verge of collapsing under the intense energies of your Maximum Power.
Technically, there's one other route. The Memorians are ghosts, after all. In theory, you COULD just run straight through their lines. True, touching ghosts is not usually a good idea, and you've already seen that those shields are - or CAN be - more solid than their appearance suggests... but it's arguably the most direct approach.
Stone dust scrapes under your shoes as you back up a step, calculating distance, angles, and force.
Then you rush forward, throwing yourself into the air and giving your Spell of Flight a mental tug-
!
-which results in you SHOOTING over the heads of the Memorians' front ranks, a trail of golden energy blazing in your wake like you were some kind of low-flying comet. Or possibly a nuclear-powered frog.
The flight is on the far end of "controlled," for your Spell of Flight simply isn't DESIGNED to compensate for the kind of velocity you've obtained. The lift provided by the magic is more than up to the task of keeping you airborne, thanks to the added thrust of your Maximum Powered running launch, but that same force is simply impossible for the common aerial magic to overpower. You can't properly steer like this - at best, you could nudge yourself in any direction that doesn't conflict with the massive force pushing you forward, but your momentum is such that you'd almost certainly crash into the first obstacle that crossed your flight-path.
It's a good thing, then, that you were just trying for a simple up-and-over.
Even so, you still overshoot your mark, zipping past the glowing golem and coming down in a skid that carries you across several feet of uneven stone floor, with dust, loose pebbles, and one unlucky Gohma blown away by your rough landing.
Then you find your footing, and shoot back the way you came with an explosion of displaced air.
*SHING*
This time, you take the golem's left leg first, if only because it's the closest of all the construct's limbs.
Gained Mighty Blow E (Plus)
As the stone warrior begins to tumble downwards, its demonic aura falters and falls apart, reverting to the "passive" level of corruption you sensed before the giant got all glowy.
Your feet scrape against the floor for purchase again, and you end up using one of the large Gohma as a springboard of sorts, propelling yourself back at the golem once again - and in the process, transfering so much force to your "launch pad" that you're pretty sure it SHATTERS.
Ew.
And awesome, but mostly ew.
*SHING*
Off-balance, confused, and so cripplingly SLOW, the golem loses its weapon-bearing arm.
For a third time, you slide across the cavern floor, debris flying every which way as you fight to control your speed - and then you kick off AGAIN.
*SHING*
Parting the golem's other arm from its body, you go barreling into the ranks of the Gohma.
This time, you don't try to stop or slow down.
The results of that are... crunchy.
And gooey.
A large Gohma's leg is severed here, another's exoskeleton is smashed inward there, and a number of the smaller spiders are either sent flying, hacked in twain, or simply run down.
Gained Cleave E (Plus)
Gained Crowd Control D
In short order, you've cut - and stabbed and stomped and bodychecked - a path right through the swarm.
Spinning about - and punching a nearby small Gohma hard enough to knock it up, over, and back, even as its "face" kind of... implodes, and EWWW - you take in the situation.
Both of the golems are down, disabled if not destroyed - and that's becoming something of a habit with you - the spiders are visibly struggling to understand what the HECK just happened, Ichirou has gotten a couple of arrows off - although his increasingly wide-eyed, slack-jawed expression suggests he's slipping back into "are you a god?" mode - and Ginta is doing something involving prayer strips and a fair amount of spiritual energy. As for the Memorians, their helms and translucent features make it hard to tell for certain, especially with all the Gohma in the way, but you get the impression that they're just as surprised by the last few seconds of combat as their enemies.
You briefly consider leaving Maximum Power up and just ploughing through the ranks of the Gohma, but in the end, you let the technique lapse.
As it fades, you realize that was probably a good call. Your magical enhancements have taken another hit to their duration, and most of them are now no more than a minute from collapse, while your Ki Enhancement is on the verge of collapse, AGAIN. Had you stayed in Maximum Power much longer, all those enhancements would have burned out, and while the hit to your performance wouldn't have crippled you by any means, it would have left you rather less overwhelmingly powerful.
No matter. You've still got ki to burn, and you do so, siphoning a bit of your reserves into your faltering physical enhancement-
Gained Ki Concealment C (Plus) (Plus) (C (Plus) without Heart Container)
-whereas your spell-based boosts will survive long enough to finish this fight.
Gohma aren't that tough, after all, and you've got lots of backup.
Speaking of whom, you should probably fall back a bit, to make sure the still fairly-numerous Gohma can't simply go around you to get at the priests.
A small Gohma falls to your blade, and one of the larger ones picks up a new set of scars on its armored forelegs as you disengage. The rest are too far away, have their claws busy dealing with the Memorians, or are still in shock from your entrance.
You let off a volley of Ki Shots against the swarm-
Gained Ki Shot E (Plus) (Plus) (E (Plus) without Heart Container)
-and when most of the half-dozen projectiles spatter ineffectually across the armor that larger Gohma, you refocus your power into a more concentrated form. The ensuing Ki Blast is intercepted by one of the monster's legs, which obligingly shatters under the impact.
You're about to see what effect a Sword Beam would have when you sense Ginta's spiritual energy reaching a peak. Wanting to see what he's up to, you forego further ki effects - for the moment - and try to pay as much attention as possible with your non-visual senses.
It'd be more effective if you could use your eyes, but unfortunately, those are kind of busy keeping track of all the Gohma, which are finally starting to get over their shock and attempting to rally.
Hopefully, the added mental energy you've got cycling through your system will help make up the difference. You tried to focus some additional ki in there as well-
Gained Brain Enhancement F (Plus) (F without Heart Container)
-but you're really not sure if that's going to do anything useful.
Your Ki Sense doesn't tell you anything useful about what Ginta is doing, but your Spiritual Sense?
Gained Concentration A
Gained Knowledge (Shinto) E (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Spiritual Sense B
Oh, yeah. THAT tells you a lot.
Prayer. Invocation. Casting out/cleansing of the Wicked. Casting out/cleansing of the Demonic.
...mercy and justice to the Misfortunate?
Huh. You might be wrong, but it sounds like Ginta is LITERALLY praying for the Memorians.
If so, that's very thoughtful of him.
Even as you register and recognize the elements at work in Ginta's call to his kami, the kami answers.
In a VERY familiar form, at that.
Divine power FLARES into being amidst the Gohma swarm, expanding outwards like a newborn star. You blink against the brilliant white light as it engulfs an area a good forty feet across, sweeping over, around, and THROUGH the demonic spiders en masse, while also swirling past the stone formations.
Ginta's aim - or that of his patron - is good. The blast doesn't touch the Memorians. Instead, the Holy Smite wipes out a good half of the surviving Gohma in one shot.
You have conflicted feelings about this, which you manage to avoid expressing as you shoot a quick glance over your shoulder at the priests.
On the one hand, great, Ginta actually DOES have some serious firepower up his sleeves.
On the other hand, why the HECK didn't he use it BEFORE?!
And while you're at it, why is Ginta breathing hard and staring at the point of detonation with the kind of expression Ichirou was giving YOU? Why is ICHIROU staring at his father that way?
Putting that aside, the fight is pretty much over at this point. With the golems down and half of their kind blown or burnt away, the Gohma no longer have the sheer numbers necessary to overwhelm the Memorians. The four overgrown Gohma-spawn that survive are still something of a threat, but none of them are in the best condition: there's the one whose leg you more or less severed below the second joint; another got caught in Ginta's spell, and is heavily charred, to the point where you wouldn't be surprised to see it simply drop dead; and the other two have taken hits of their own from the legionaries.
With a roar, the Memorians press the attack.
Shrugging, you do likewise.
It takes a few minutes to put down the bigger Gohma and clean up the stragglers, but in the end, this part of the Battle of the Mines belongs to the good guys.
As the fighting dies down, you look to the Memorians, searching their ranks for familiar presences. You spot a somewhat-familiar ghost who was present during Captain Marcus's little war-council - Marius, wasn't it? - and ask him for a situation report.
The Lieutenant's news is mixed. You're relived to learn that the reason there's only twenty soldiers here is not because the Legion suffered massive casualties, but simply because they had to split their forces into three groups: one to hold the entrance to the mines; one to locate and secure that breach into the aquifer where the base's security was originally breached, long ago; and this group, detached to perform a search-and-destroy mission.
That said, they HAVE taken casualties.
Some were due to the Twilight-tainted golems, which displayed unexpected magical abilities in the form of self-targeting Augmentation spells, making them faster and harder-hitting than they should have been. Even the standard, human-sized golems got a lot more dangerous once they were running around under the effects of what sounds like a personal Spell of Haste. The BIG golems would have been so much worse, if Magus Hermanus hadn't realized the danger and quickly countered their attempts to enhance themselves.
The Memorians also took some losses when they encountered the reanimated remains of their treacherous former allies. Lieutenant Marius describes a clash with walking bones, clad in shadowy substance that mimicked the forms of living men - rather like how phantom flesh and ethereal armor surround the skeletons of those Memorians who still possess physical forms after all these years. Perhaps it was a sympathetic reaction to meeting their old foes again, battling beyond the grave just as they had in life, or maybe it was the demonically-corrupted Twilight-essence - either way, the shadow-spirits fought with a measure of the skill, tactics, and magical power they'd had in life, making them rather more serious a threat to the Legion than the swarming monsters.
Speaking of which, the Hyrulean beasts scored a few "kills" themselves, though from what Marius says, that was mostly due to their sheer numbers, and the usual chaos of combat.
In all, Marius estimates that a quarter of his brothers-in-arms sustained enough damage for their forms to be dispersed. One of those was Magus Hermanus, whose magical power made him a prime target for the programming of the golems, the lingering awareness of the shadow-swathed enemy undead, and even the more cunning monsters. He inflicted quite a lot of damage on the invaders - the charred state of the first golem you disabled was the Magus's work, and apparently there are a couple of chambers higher up in the mines that were essentially destroyed by the magic he was throwing around - but in the end, one of the large Gohma managed to get above and behind him, and then just dropped on him.
The monster died taking the warmage out, but it took him out all the same.
The good news is that Captain Marcus is still in command.
Seeing as how the main body of the enemy force has been destroyed, and that you carry a report the Captain should hear, Lieutenant Marius agrees to provide you with an escort to his commander's location, near the entrance.
As you make your way up through the tunnels, you turn to Ginta, who appears to have recovered from whatever shock he was experiencing before.
When you query him on that subject, the elder Hakuba admits to having been, ah, "inspired," after seeing you cast the Spell of Holy Smite yesterday, and wanting to see if he could replicate it in some form. He succeeded, obviously, but to a degree he honestly hadn't expected.
"It was too easy," Ginta tells you. "I've never channeled that much holy power in a single spell before - kami, I don't think I've channel that much holy power in my entire LIFE. Calling up even a fraction of the energy I just did SHOULD have exhausted me, and been FAR less..." He hesitates, seemingly unable to find a word, and then skips ahead. "But I was only WINDED, and the results were..." And again, Ginta trails off.
"Spectacular?" you offer.
"...that works," the priest admits. "More than that, though... I could hear our patron when he answered my prayer. His voice was so clear, his presence so bright... I could SEE him, in my mind's eye. That kind of response... I've NEVER felt that beyond the bounds of the shrine."
Never? Really?
These days, you hear the Goddesses almost every time you get seriously spiritual. Granted, that probably has a lot to do with your close connections to them via Ganondorf and the Triforce, as well as your tendency to go all-in with your power when you really want or need their attention - but Ginta's a professional priest, from a family of such. He's most likely BEEN a practicing authority within his faith for a couple of decades by now, if Ichirou is any indication. Being able to commune with his divine patron should be... not casual, certainly, but a lot more familiar than Ginta's words make it sound.
And yes, a god's presence SHOULD be strongest in a proper place of worship - or, in the case of a kami, within that part of the shrine where he or she properly resides. But a faithful follower should still be able to have a meaningful communion beyond those grounds, especially if he holds enough favor to call on his patron's power as you've seen Ginta do...
...unless something was interfering with the connection between man and god.
You think back to your communion with the Golden Goddesses outside the boundaries of the Shuzen Estate, and how it was interrupted by demonic forces - something that your knowledge of theology, incomplete as it is, tells you should not have been possible. At least, not in Hyrule.
Nor here in Faerie, to judge by Ginta's performance.
And yet, on Earth, it happened.
You don't like the implications.
"What did he say?" you ask. "If you don't mind me asking about it, that is."
The priest doesn't respond right away.
"I asked for his blessing," he says slowly. "For the strength to cleanse corruption. To serve justice. To destroy evil. And he agreed. He APPROVED. But it wasn't WHAT he said, so much as HOW he said it."
"Oh?"
"He was eager to help. Not HAPPY, exactly - he's not a warrior by nature, he doesn't take joy in battle - but..." Ginta visibly struggles to find the words. "It was like seeing a man who'd lost something, so long ago that he'd accepted he would never get it back, only for it to be there... but it's not that he LOST it, exactly. It was more like... more like..."
You wait, listening patiently.
"It was like a man who'd always had the ABILITY to do something, and something he very much WANTED to do, but had never been ALLOWED to," Ginta finally says.
"Like Uncle Jou and his music?" Ichirou puts in quietly.
You glance at the younger priest, and then back at Ginta.
The elder Hakuba is unable to meet his son's gaze, as he admits, "Like that, yes."
Rather than poke your nose into what appears to be a sensitive family matter, you offer your speculation that contact with divine forces on Earth is being actively limited by less-than-friendly forces. The Hakubas both give you startled looks at that, and are in the middle of protesting that such a thing would be impossible when you recount what happened when you tried to commune with your own Goddesses at the Shuzen estate.
"I've never heard of something like THAT happening," Ichirou admits, looking alarmed.
"Nor I," Ginta agrees. "Alexander, we REALLY must talk about your patrons. Sooner, rather than later."
You have no objection to that, but it's going to have to wait for another day.
While you've been speaking with the holy men, your Memorian escorts have led you back to the entrance to the mines, where you find another score of ghostly legionaries standing guard. The chamber around them REEKS of recently-discorporated demonic entities, and is marked by blast craters of varying size and hue, a few piles of rubble, and several ancient skeletons smashed almost to powder - mute testament to the battle that was waged up here while you were venturing into the deeper reaches.
"Welcome back, Lieutenant," Captain Marcus's familiar sepulchral voice hails from amidst the ranks. "What news from below?"
"The guardian golems and a large number of spiders have been destroyed, sir," Marius replies.
The other group of soldiers call out their approval of this, some raising their spears in salute to their counterparts.
"My unit can't take full credit for the victory," Marius goes on, raising his voice over the din. "The young sorcerer and the priests came to our aid in a difficult moment that could easily have resulted in a rout. They would speak with you now, sir."
"Send them forward at once," Marcus answers. "And then, if your command are still fit for patrol..."
"Where do you need us, sir?" the Lieutenant replies without a moment's hesitation.
As Captain Marcus sorts out his troops, you and the Hakubas move up through the ranks, ghostly soldiers making way ahead of you and closing ranks behind with quick, soundless precision. Eerie, and yet awesome.
When you reach the captain's position, you note that the Prying Eye you left with him to record the battle is still hovering where you assigned it to, about two feet above, behind, and to the right of the ghost's pauldron-clad right shoulder.
With his men re-organized, Marcus turns to you. This close, you're able to see that the Memorian commander didn't emerge from the recent battle completely unscathed: there's a broad scratch across his breastplate that you're sure was not there the last time you saw him; and his cloak and surcoat look a little singed around the edges.
As you're taking in the Captain's battle-damaged state, he's looking you over much the same way.
"Mission accomplished, then?"
"Yes, sir."
"How did it go?"
You keep your summary of events succinct: you encountered the enemy commander - or at least their champion - near the very bottom of the mine; you fought a brief, extremely hectic battle, during which you confirmed that your opponent did, in fact, carry a (disturbingly large) supply of powerful explosives and a sword capable of slashing through solid rock, as well as a few other unpleasant surprises; and after defeating the enemy and making SURE it didn't escape, you secured the item you'd originally come looking for.
Marcus takes it all in with a frown. "Did you recognize the interloper at all?"
"I did," you admit. "At least by reputation."
"And...?"
"It's a pretty scary reputation, sir." You shake your head. "Honestly, that fight's left me with a lot of questions of my own, and I'd like to try and get those answered before I start offering my opinion on what happened down there."
"He mentioned talking to the Great Fairy about it, Captain," Ginta notes.
Marcus blinks in surprise. "She knows what this entity is? Or was?"
"Oh, yeah," Briar says.
"...I am sorely tempted to go with you and hear the fairy's account for myself," the ghost admits. "Portals and their wards be damned."
You suggest shutting the dispelling ward off, but Marcus shakes his head.
"I need to remain here and oversee the clean-up. Even if I weren't, Hermanus was taken out by the monsters. Well, it was really more of a mutual kill... and of course, he's not PERMANENTLY dead..." The Captain pauses, and shakes his head. "Being undead is confusing. Advantageous, in some ways, but... in any case, he's my top magical expert. I'm wary of making any more adjustments to the wards until he's... 'recovered.'"
You can relate to the ancient officer's current state of mind.
Ganondorf had some experience with being a disembodied spirit himself. It was never fun.
Your summary of the second battle that you took part in is a bit more detailed. Really, it could hardly be LESS so, except perhaps if you paraphased Caesar - "We came, we saw, we blew them up," does have a certain ring to it - and Captain Marcus has a few... questions... that make the clarification necessary.
"You hacked their LIMBS off?"
"You were moving HOW fast?"
"...are you sure you're not a demigod or something, boy?"
You find it a little unfair when, after repeatedly boggling at and demanding more details on some of the things you did, Marcus hears how Ginta set off a Holy Smite without truly meaning to, and simply nods, saying, "I like your god's style, priest."
All in all, Marcus appears satisfied - if startled - by your report.
With Dark Link taken care of and the main body of the monstrous army crushed, the situation in the Memorian outpost appears to be under control. That said, there are a couple of things you decide that you'd better clear with Captain Marcus before you go.
The first of these is determining whether or not there's a way to reach the base from Earth - one that doesn't require you to keep hitching rides with Navi, that is. You saw a teleportation circle in the stable area, but you didn't get a chance to examine it, and you're aware that there's an important difference between teleporting and plane shifting.
As it happens, the circle you saw is NOT capable of interplanar translocations. It was part of a small teleportation network, which connected a handful of "safe" locations scattered around the territory in Faerie that the Memorians once stood watch over - a means for them to quickly deploy and recover troops, in response to changing conditions in the field.
There WERE two planar portals in the facility, but one of them was down for maintenance at the time of the invasion. As for the other...
"It was in the dome-shaped chamber where you said you fought the giant spider," Marcus says wryly. "Right in the middle of the room, so we'd have clear line of sight and multiple lanes of fire on anyone that tried getting in that way without authorization."
You think of the great hole in the floor in that room, and picture a stone archway falling into it, to shatter into pieces at the bottom of a deep, dark pit.
Stupid Gohma. It couldn't have dug a smaller hole? Or come in through the wall, like in the other circular room in the opposite wing of the base?
"I don't suppose there's a chance of getting the second portal back up and running?" you venture.
"I wouldn't want to put money on it," Marcus admits. "The portals were connected to a fortified outpost in Memorian territory, well away from anywhere strategically important - a precaution, in case we lost control of this side. I have no idea what nation claims that territory now, let alone how well the portal there survived the centuries. IF that portal is still intact, IF the magic that links the two gates still holds, and IF we can get OUR gate back up and running, then maybe, MAYBE, we could use it safely."
That's a lot of "ifs" and "maybes."
Even so, Marcus does show you a map of the Memorian territory where the other side of the gate was located - or rather, he calls on his magic to project an illusion of such a map from his own memories. Despite the Captain's having been undead for a thousand years, the resulting image is quite intelligible.
It's also entirely unfamiliar to you, and not just in terms of geography. The way the chart itself was drawn looks... odd. You're not entirely sure how, though.
Still, it's SOMETHING.
You commit the image to memory.
Gained Memorian Map
Speaking of images and memories, you recall the Prying Eye that's been following Marcus all this time, and assimilate the information it carries.
This mystical probe contained about forty minutes' worth of recorded information - and WHAT information.
Seeing a small army of ghosts on the march is more impressive than you might have thought. For all that their spectral appearance looks like CGI ripped from the latest big-budget fantasy flick, there's a sense of authenticity to the spirits' maneuvers that beggars any Hollywood re-creation of ancient military tactics you've ever seen.
And that's BEFORE the actual fighting starts. Once the swarm of monsters starts pouring out of the mines for them, the Memorians' front ranks lock their shields and lower their spears, forming a larger version of the shield-wall formation you saw before, while their comrades in the middle and rear ranks start opening up with ethereal javelins and probing bursts of magic. The projectile attacks look like pinpricks against the advancing horde, at best incapable of meaningfully slowing the oncoming tide, at worst, wasting time and effort better spent on more productive tasks.
The monsters appear to realize it, and surge forward, Keese and lesser Gohma joined by some of the larger spiders.
And then Hermanus sets off an explosion of raw force that blows a hole forty feet across right in the middle of the swarm. Three of the big Gohma and dozens of their younger kin simply cease to exist in the face of that blast - not a Fireball, but definitely a variant on it - which also sends a spray of shrapnel flying in all directions, scything down scores of the Hyrulean monsters.
Some of those flying bits of stone hit the Memorians' shields, and bounce off, while others pass straight through the wall and the soldiers behind, to no apparent effect - but it's probably no more than a dozen such impacts.
Given the size of the explosion, the confined space it went off in, and the physics that ensued, that lack of friendly fire shows some seriously impressive aim and tactical thinking on the warmage's part.
More monsters flood in, and the last soldiers of the Fifth Legion march to meet them.
The tide of arachnid limbs hits the wall, and BREAKS on it. Many of the smaller spider-spawn are crushed against the spectral shields by the weight of their own allies, while others momentarily glimpse gaps in the line, before a thrust of a short sword takes them right through the eye. More manage to scurry underfoot, where they are simply pulped by the ghost's curiously substantial boots.
The normal-sized Gohma fare better, but only in the sense that they aren't accidentally flattened by their own kind. Even when a dozen or more of them monsters throw themselves at the line in unison, they simply don't have the strength or mass necessary to knock one of the ancient undead soldiers down - not with their training buffered by the Mass Spell of Bull's Strength that you can see swirling about them. Hermanus must have cast it before the battle.
Even the largest Gohma have little luck breaking the line. Whenever one appears, it draws fire of all sorts - and if it survives to reach the line, Hermanus or Captain Marcus take a hand in making sure it goes no farther.
Keese that attempt to overfly the battle-line are shot from the air, by bolt or by spell. At least one is stabbed by a well-timed thrust of a spear.
Then the golems appear, marked by Shadow, twisted by corruption, and glowing with the same dull red aura you witnessed before.
When the magically-augmented stone soldiers hit the line, gaps form. They're quickly closed, but the opening allows a number of Gohma and several golems to get inside the formation. While the spiders die quickly, the treacherous automatons are more difficult for the ghosts to put down. Phantom swords glow with basic enhancements, but do little more than strike sparks. Spells are cast, to better effect, but before the Legion's small batch of battle-mages can eliminate the embedded enemy, another band of undead warriors appears from within the mine.
Wrapped in shadow and glowing with the same bloody aura as the golems, the skeletal remains of the Memorians' treacherous former allies have arranged themselves in a triangular formation that hits the shield-wall head-on, right behind the golems, and starts forcing its way into the ranks.
The Legion's spellfire slackens, and the Gohma start creeping up the cave walls, to throw themselves on the soldiers. This doesn't appear to kill any of the ghosts, so to speak, but it does distract more than one - something the shadowed skeletons do not hesitate to exploit.
Even then, the Legion looks like they're winning the fight.
That's when the two big golems show up, emerging from the swarm of Gohma while your eyes - and quite likely those of your allies - are distracted by the close-in fighting going on. The massive constructs hit the line with the force of wrecking balls, sending phantoms flying in all directions.
Mortal men would die from such punishment - if not from the blows themselves, then from the subsequent impacts with the walls and floor.
The undead slam into and THROUGH the stone surfaces, only to emerge moments later, roaring in anger as they charge back into the fray.
From there, it's chaos. The Legion's formation never truly breaks, but it's completely engulfed by and entangled with the enemy. Ghosts stab, stomp, and spear spiders with phantom weapons that leave wounds like a deadly frost, and those same blades shriek and clang as they're intercepted by the arms of the traitor-shades, or tear chips off the all-too-slowly degrading golems. Gohma are crawling everywhere, spells fly in multiple directions, and golems of both sizes strike again and again and again with mindless, mechanical repetition.
There's another forceful explosion, much smaller and more contained than the first, which appears to be centered on one of the larger golems, but you don't have the best angle on it - your point of view is following Marcus, who's crossed blades with what appears to be his opposite number among the enemy undead, a skeleton whose eyes burn not with the unfocused malice of its minions, but a THINKING hatred.
It reminds you of a Stalfos, if not so large as some.
The battle that ensues is in no way a duel. Both sides repeatedly attempt to interfere, and ghosts and skeletons alike are driven back, bearing glowing wounds from the weapons of the two battle-leaders. You see one Memorian soldier struck through the heart by the black skeleton warrior, his ghostly form going rigid and then evaporating into so much loose ectoplasm. Marcus answers this with a powerful two-handed blow that smashes the skull of one minor skeleton to so much powder, sending its remaining bones to the floor in a lifeless heap.
From somewhere "off-screen," as it were, there comes a sudden, brilliant flash.
Blade locked against his opponent's, Marcus spares an instant to stare in the direction of the explosion.
You think that was Hermanus.
The Captain's following HOWL OF UTTER FURY would seem to confirm it.
The enemy "commander" doesn't survive the next ten seconds, and when it falls, much of the cohesion goes out of the mixed monstrous force. The lesser Gohma are still swarming everywhere, but their big brothers and the golems show an unexpected sense of self-preservation and fall back to the deeper mines - or at least, they try to. Some of them don't get very far.
Despite his rage, Marcus keeps his men from pursuing immediately, ordering them to re-form their lines and put down those enemies that aren't trying to run. Once all the monsters are dead or fled, and Marcus has re-organized his men, he dispatches two units of troops: the larger band under Lieutenant Marius, which you encountered; and the smaller group, under a different junior officer whose name you don't recall. Those Memorians who don't go with either group take up guard positions just inside the entrance to the mines, and they're still in those positions when Marius's unit returns with your little party, some fifteen minutes later.
The vision fades, and your awareness of your surroundings returns.
Gained Archery E
Gained Knowledge (Swords) F (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Shield Training F
Gained Spear Training F
Gained Spell Combat F (Plus) (Plus)
"One more thing before I go, then," you say then, proud of your ability to keep a level voice. "I do want to talk about this in more detail, when we both have the time, but... the demons that turned your allies against you. Did they have any names I should be aware of?"
"I never heard any personal names attributed to the power behind the cult," Marcus tells you, his calm here a stunning contrast to the battle-fury you just saw unleashed. "Several titles, but most of those were the usual demonic threats and boasting - 'The Destroyer,' 'the Invincible,' 'Skull-Taker,' 'Blood-Drinker,' 'Soul-Killer,' and so on." He shrugs. "Nothing that our scholars of demonology could reliably attribute to a single individual."
Well, that's disappointing.
You thank the Captain, and then request permission to depart for the day. He grants it, and you, Briar, and the Hakubas make your way back to the entrance portals - making a quick stop at the barracks to fetch the Faerie gold, which you're careful not to handle with your bare hands.
As you emerge from the portal, Briar lets out a sigh of relief.
"Finally out from under those damn wards," the fairy groans. "I swear, it was like being wrapped up in iron wire..."
"That's a better metaphor than you might think, dear," Navi says from nearby. "From what I've been able to tell about the place, the wards probably WERE laid down using cold iron... but that's neither here nor there. I see you found the Mirror."
"Yeah, Mom," Briar replies dryly. "We did. And that's not ALL we found in there."
Navi regards her daughter, then you, and then the priests. Her expression dims. "I'm not going to like this, am I?"
Your fairy companion turns to you. "Do you want to break the news to her, Alex? Or do you want me to do it?"
She doesn't really seem to have a preference.
You bow to Briar and gesture for her to go ahead.
She drops a mid-air curtsey, and then turns to face her mother.
"So, Mom. It was like this..."
...
"YOU FOUGHT *WHAT?!*"
Navi's horrified reaction makes it pretty clear that, even though she sent you in after the Mirror of Shadow, and despite the run-in with all those Gohma, she didn't know or even suspect that you'd have to face something as dangerous as Dark Link in the course of your little fetch-quest.
This also leads to her frantically looking all four of you over for injuries, down to and including scrapes, bruises, and even the lingering ache of exertion, which you ARE feeling something of, now that all your enhancement magic has worn off. While Navi fusses and works simple, powerful, and entirely unnecessary healing spells over you, Ginta inquires again just what it was that you ran into down in the mines.
Learning that you were up against the literal dark side of a legendary hero from another world prompts a frown from the priest, but no more of a reaction than that - at least until you, Navi, and Briar start providing anecdotes of some of Link's adventures down through the ages.
Actually, just finding out that the Hero is a serial reincarnater visibly startles Ginta and Ichirou. Most people don't come back that often, let alone in such similar forms.
Hearing that EVERY LIFE Link has lived has required him to overcome an evil on the scale of a Great Demon King - if not more than one - shocks them.
Finding out that, in one of those lifetimes, Link was Navi's partner? That leaves the priests speechless, even AFTER she admits that she wasn't much older than Briar at the time.
And being told that Link is the one and only wielder of his world's equivalent to Excalibur, and that Dark Link was wielding a shadowy TWIN to that same weapon? THAT alarms them.
It also leads to a very serious question, which Ginta addresses to you: "Do not take this the wrong way, Alexander, but... how were you able to fight such an opponent and NOT die?"
How did you survive?
"Basically?" you say, with a cheeky grin. "Cheating."
The priests blink.
It's true, though. Magic lets you bend or break the laws of the universe at a moment's notice. Most people would call that cheating, and even in the fraternity of magic-users, most people would STILL call the ridiculous ease with which YOU can warp reality cheating. If not worse things.
"But it certainly helped that he wasn't taking the fight as seriously as he could have," you add in a more sober tone. "At least not right at first. I don't know if that's because he was overconfident or hyper-aggressive, or because of... other factors-"
The image of that not-Ganondorf face in the dark cloud flashes past your mind's eye.
"-but the point is, Dark Link didn't do as much damage early on as he was capable of. Slicing Ichirou's arrows out of the air, instead of using his shield? Sending me flying down a tunnel, instead of into the nearest wall so that he could finish me while I was stunned?" To say nothing of that nasty GRIN he shot at you, when you were crossing blades, and he realized that you'd recognized the Gauntlets he was wearing. "He was showing off - trying to scare us."
"If not for that fear-suppressing spell of yours, it would have worked," Ichirou points out. "I think it nearly did even WITH the spell."
"Yeah. But that's kind of the point. For all Link's power, he's never been all that great with magic. Magic ITEMS are more his style, and after I got a closer look at Dark Link, I could tell that - Dark Master Sword aside - he wasn't carrying any of the more powerful items associated with the actual Link. If he'd had the Mirror Shield, for instance, we would have been screwed, because that one? Reflects MAGIC."
The priests go pale at that.
"Yeah. Some of his other equipment's just as scary in its own way, if not WORSE. And THEN there's the divine blessings Link normally has. I don't even want to THINK about what evil versions of divine favor might have been like." You shake your head. The shadowy copy of Nayru's Love was bad enough. If Dark Link had access to Farore's Wind, instead of having to try teleporting away with the Ocarina, it would have pulled him out of the pit before you even finished casting that dimensional ward - possibly out of the base altogether.
And wouldn't THAT have been a fun little surprise for Navi?
"But once I knew that Dark Link didn't have equivalents to Link's better gear," you go on, "I knew he was vulnerable to magic. So I USED magic. And yet, despite that- you remember how I spent the majority of that fight just trying to contain him?" At the Hakubas' brief nods, you explain, "Doing that took around HALF of the amount of mana I can carry at full charge, which was MOST of what I had left BEFORE the fight started. And THAT was just enough to hold him for... what was it, a minute? It could've easily gone the other way if we weren't lucky, which is why I suggested that you guys run just before the end."
Ginta considers all of this. "So in summary, you survived - and us with you - because our opponent had an Achilles' heel you were able to exploit."
"Basically." You pause. "Well, that, and I'm not sure Dark Link himself actually WANTED to fight us."
"Say that again?" Briar asks.
"Remember how he collapsed into a cloud of darkness and tried to flee down the tunnel?"
"Yeah..."
You recount your pursuit of Dark Link's spectral form, your discovery that it was sensitive and vulnerable to direct exposure to your combined ki and magic, and how, when you used that weakness to end the fight, you ended up seeing... something else.
"A face that looked like Ganondorf," Navi says. "But WASN'T Ganondorf?"
"Its skin was like grey ash, where it wasn't blacker than coal or covered with metallic scales," you say. "Hair that was LITERALLY like fire, sweeping up and back and just BLAZING, above dark red eyes, and a white scar in the shape of an 'X,' right here." You point at your forehead. "Does that ring any bells with you?"
The Great Fairy shakes her head, speechless.
"Anyway, after I punched whatever-it-was out of Dark Link, he seemed to get a whole lot friendlier. Gave me a traditional Hylian Knight's salute and everything. Even smiled, before he vanished. That left me wondering if he wasn't FORCED to fight us, and maybe spending energy or focus trying to throw off the compulsion."
You glance at Navi, silently questioning.
"It's possible," she admits. "Dark Link isn't like the monsters of Hyrule. It's not a manifestation of evil power, seeking to spread death, destruction, and despair wherever it can - it's the end result of a ritual that was either created or adopted by the Sages, long before my time. One of the tests of worthiness they're supposed to administer to potential heirs to the throne, aspiring Sages, would-be high priests, or other individuals who seek some position of power within the realm. The idea was to embody all of an individual's darker aspects, all the little elements of character that they suppress, rationalize away as good or at least useful traits, or simply haven't discovered about themselves, and force the person to acknowledge and then deal with those parts of themselves."
"And then, through the application of great violence upon these undesired portions of their own being, they would be cleansed of all evil impulses and become icons of goodness and light?" Ginta asks skeptically. "Even with magic, human minds don't work that way."
"Neither do Hylian minds. And the Sages knew that. The test was SUPPOSED to be mental and emotional in nature. 'Can you accept that you are not a perfect being? Are you willing to face your flaws and fears, and overcome them? Can you handle knowing that there is Darkness in you, and you NEED it as much as you do the Light?'" Navi sighs. "Unfortunately, when most people have the embodiment of their darker selves thrown in their face, showing them not only parts of themselves they don't like, but some they never even REALIZED existed... they tend to take it badly."
"How badly?" Ginta asks.
"Homicidally so," Navi admits. "The same applied to their 'Dark Selves.' As you might expect, the trial fell out of favor pretty quickly after that, but the Sages never entirely abandoned it - partly because they don't throw away ANY knowledge if they can avoid it, and partly because there WERE still a few valid uses for their spell." She holds up one finger. "First, they could create a Dark Self of an enemy of the realm, and let the two of them fight it out. If the Dark Self won, so did Hyrule, and if it lost, the enemy would at least be weakened - again, a win for Hyrule." Up comes another finger. "Second, they could use Dark Selves as guardians for forbidden areas. They'd be able to adapt to almost any intruder." Another finger. "Third, people with an affinity for Shadow or Darkness tend to be more in-tune with their less-than-friendly instincts, or more accepting of the idea that they COULD be mean and nasty if they needed to be. They could face the trial as it was intended. They didn't always PASS, mind you, but they didn't flip out and try to kill their other selves, either." Navi pauses. "Well, usually."
You decide not to say anything.
Then Ichirou half-raises one hand.
"Forgive my interruption, ma'am," the younger priest says, "but this ritual you're describing... I can't help but think that it sounds a great deal like what we were planning to achieve by using the Mirror on the nine-tails."
"It should," Navi replies. "The spell to create a Dark Self was either derived from a study of the Mirror of Shadows, or created by the same people who made the Mirror."
"But, if that's the case-" Ichirou pauses, putting his thoughts in order. "If what you and my father say is true, and defeating a Dark Self can't and won't remove undesirable traits from a person... how does having the Mirror help our cause?"
"It helps because madness isn't a natural trait of a healthy mind," Navi says. "It's a disease. And like any other affliction, it can be cured. That's the FOURTH reason why the Sages kept the spell to create a Dark Self. Forcing a madman's insanity into a separate corporeal form and then kicking its ass actually DOES work as a method of treatment." She frowns. "You'll have to be careful, though. Odds are that the nine-tails is going to be VERY confused immediately after the Mirror is used on her, and won't be in a state to fight the madness or even defend herself against it. And if you DO destroy the avatar of her insanity, or even just hold it off long enough for her to get her head on straight and destroy it herself, she's going to be... fragile, in the aftermath."
"That's not a term I've ever heard associated with a nine-tailed fox before," Ginta notes.
"It still applies. Driving out the madness won't erase her memory of the things she did WHILE she was insane, or of what drove her to that state in the first place."
You can't suppress a wince at that. Neither can the priests.
"She won't relapse," Navi assures you. "It's one of the consequences of rooting out the insanity this way - it removes the affliction ENTIRELY, possible future incidences as well as the present form. But if nobody helps the fox work through the trauma that drove her crazy in the first place, she could succumb to a completely different form of madness, or be driven to take... drastic measures."
The Great Fairy pauses for a moment, before shaking her head.
"Anyhow, I've gotten sidetracked. Alex, you asked if it was possible that Dark Link was resisting a compulsion to attack you? The answer is yes, it IS possible. Dark Selves aren't automatically hostile towards people who aren't their 'original.' For that matter, they aren't automatically hostile at all - some people just don't have that kind of aggression."
"Link did, though," you point.
Navi shrugs. "Can't be a warrior if you don't have the will to fight."
True enough.
Well, that answers... some of your questions, anyway.
You're tempted to cast a more powerful form of the Spell to Know the Enemy to see what information the Golden Goddesses are willing to part with regarding the not-Ganondorf entity that was mixed up with Dark Link, but in light of the disturbingly keen sense of familiarity your Inner Dark Lord expressed on seeing the thing, as well as all the effort you've put into NOT deliberately delving into the your inherited memories, you find yourself reluctant to go through with the idea.
Perhaps you should just ask Navi to look into it? In a way that hopefully won't draw questions from the Hakubas about why YOU aren't doing it.
You hand over the bag of faerie gold that you retrieved from the barracks, and Navi makes it disappear into her own version of a dimensional pocket, promising to keep you up to date on her progress in returning it to its rightful owner(s). When you broach the subject of coming back to the Memorian outpost, she agrees to bring you back tomorrow, so that you can attend to your remaining business with the ghosts.
Aside from that, is there anything else you want to ask Navi?
"One final thing before we go, then, ma'am," you tell Navi.
"And that would be...?"
"Could I trouble you to speak with the Goddesses about the entity I drove out of Dark Link?"
The Great Fairy frowns. "You're perfectly capable of doing that yourself."
You grimace. "Actually, I'm not so sure about that."
You explain the unexpectedly - but not unwelcomely - powerful result of Ginta's latest prayer to his kami, as well as the secondary manifestations that he experienced. Navi turns to the priest and questions him intently for a minute, and her expression grows darker with each answer she receives.
Then she says something in the faerie language that makes you blink, mainly because you didn't understand a syllable of it.
Looks like your Spell of Tongues has lapsed.
"MOM!" Briar exclaims, in a tone of scandalized delight. "Language!"
"Hush, child," Navi says absently. "Alex? Forget what I said. I'll take your message to the Goddesses - because this matter of LOCAL deities being shut out of regular contact with their followers is something they're REALLY going to want to hear about."
"Thank you, ma'am," you say, bowing.
You decide to leave off mentioning WHY you're so keen on getting your question to the Goddesses, at least until you see Navi tomorrow. The priests haven't expressed a particular interest in coming back here with you, and if they aren't present, you'll be able to talk freely with the Great Fairy about Ganondorf and all things relating to him. And if the Hakubas DO tag along... well, you can deal with it then.
Navi returns your group to the top of the steps outside the gate to the Hakuba Shrine, and then disappears.
"Well," Ginta says, as he absently checks the position of the sun in the sky. "This has been an... interesting day."
"'Interesting' is not the word I would have chosen, Father," Ichirou observes.
"Noted." The older priest turns to you. "I understand you need to leave, Alexander, so I'll just ask two things. First, will you be keeping the Mirror yourself, or leaving it here for safe-keeping?"
"And secondly... this is an entirely personal request, but, would you object to my joining you in Faerie tomorrow? Possibly with my father and a few other, ah, 'guests' tagging along?" His face is composed, but you detect a certain hopefulness in Ginta's attitude.
"You WANT to go back?" Ichirou exclaims. "After the giant demon doom-spiders, the GHOST ARMY, the shadow of DEATH- and you want to take GRANDFATHER there?!"
"I suspect that doing so would be... very enlightening," Ginta says calmly.
You can't help but think of a certain Stick.
The Hakubas have an entire, well-warded shed full of spiritually-potent, enchanted, possessed, and/or cursed items in their keeping, and have been managing said storehouse of strangeness for quite some time, if what you saw when you divined the ugly history of that one not-quite-magical, not-quite-cursed sword is any indication. Leaving the Mirror of Shadows with them IS an option, and one that's not without its appeal.
In the end, though, you shake your head.
"I'll keep it with me, sir," you tell Ginta. "At least for now. It's from Hyrule, and I know more about Hyrule and things coming from it than anyone on Earth except Briar - and we're always together anyways."
The priest nods. "That does make sense."
"I don't mind if you want to join the trip to Faerie tomorrow, Mr. Hakuba," you tell Ginta. "Or if you bring company. But I can't speak for Navi."
Ginta blinks, and then looks like he wants to facepalm.
"I really should have thought to ask her BEFORE we left, shouldn't I?" he muses aloud.
"Talk to your kami," Briar advises. "Limitations or no, interference or no, THIS" - she gestures at the shrine - "is still HIS place, and his power will be strongest here. If he can grant you the power to smite a swarm of Gohma, he can Send a message to my mom. At least, he can now that you've actually MET her, and have reason to make contact."
Ginta brightens at this suggestion, and bows to the tiny fairy. "I'll be sure to take your advice, Miss Briar."
With no further questions or matters to take care of - at least today - and time ticking steadily away, you say your farewells to the two priests, who wish you a safe trip home before heading inside.
Your return to Sunnydale is uneventful. As you make your way through the evening streets, watching as the sun sinks low in the sky, it occurs to you that tomorrow will be the first of August. You have just ten days left until the eclipse, and there's still a fair bit of prep-work that needs doing before you can perform the Familiar Binding Ritual you've been planning for so long.
Might be a good idea to buckle down on that.
With that in mind, you go to bed early that night, casting the Spell of Nap Stacking. A quick mental estimate suggests that a normal night's sleep, however restful, would only let you recover to about one-sixth of your maximum mana capacity by morning. And that's nowhere near enough.
Gained Mana Recovery E (Plus)
When you awaken the next day, the very first thing you do is take stock of your internal reserves. Physically, you're in perfect shape, Navi's not-truly-necessary healing having cleared up even the lingering aches and fatigue you'd been feeling after going toe-to-toe with Dark Link. The same can be said of your reserves of mental energy, spiritual energy, and even ki - a good night's sleep would have returned them all to their optimum levels regardless.
Magically?
Well, being at TWO-sixths of your maximum mana capacity is TECHNICALLY better than being at ONE-sixth. It's still far from ideal, of course, but if you compare the amount of energy you have against what you THOUGHT you'd have... you're looking at a minor surplus. Fractions of a percentage, but enough to be noticeable following a fifteen-hour nap and a relaxing, non-magical evening at home.
In any event, it is now Sunday, the 1st of August, 1999. You're scheduled to meet Navi, Ginta, and possibly a few other people at the Hakuba Shrine this afternoon. You've got a Heart Container, a powerful magic mirror, and an ancient map that may or may not lead to the Earth side of a planar gate to Faerie burning proverbial holes in your dimensional pocket. You've also got an assortment of other tasks that need doing, and a less-than-completely ideal amount of mana to handle it all.
What do you want to do this morning?
You decide to study the map that Captain Marcus gave you. Today is probably the last time you're going to be able to visit the Memorian outpost with Navi's assistance, to say nothing of the fact that, with the monstrous invaders destroyed, the ghosts of the Legion are very likely to want to move on to their long-delayed afterlife.
You had a lot of ideas for future uses of the ancient outpost, and if you ever want to put them into effect, you need to be able to get back there. Finding the Earth-side entrance to their gate is the only means you currently have access to that MIGHT work, short of striking another bargain with Navi.
And really, why make a deal with a Great Fairy if you don't HAVE to?
Besides, even if it turns out that the portal no longer works, as long as it EXISTS in some form, there are things you could learn from studying it. How the Memorians made magical items, for one, and potentially, how to cast the Spell of Plane Shifting. The only way you'd fail to gain ANYTHING out of a search for the portal is if it was completely destroyed - and even then, you'd at least have the reassurance that nobody would be able to use it as a backdoor entrance to the Memorian base.
As such, you get out a piece of paper and magically-inscribe a hard-copy of the map onto it. After breakfast, you check the family library - which is really just a single bookshelf containing a mix of paperbacks, both fiction and non, as well as a two-volume hardcover encyclopedia which is about ten years out of date. Searching the "Atlas" section of the latter turns up a few maps of Europe, but when you compare them to your copy of Marcus's map, you immediately see a number of problems.
For one, the Memorian Map is in Latin. A simple Ritual to Comprehend Languages takes care of that easily enough, but even then, the names and descriptions jotted down on the chart are entirely unhelpful. Odds are most of the man-made sites the Map references don't exist anymore, and even the landscape has likely changed more than a little over the last ten centuries.
Secondly, while the Map includes latitude and longitude, it uses a complete differently coordinate system than the maps in your atlas - which makes sense, once you do some additional reading. One of the things modern maps have in common is the assumption that the Prime Meridian, zero degrees longitude, runs through Greenwich, England, the site of the Royal Observatory. Said establishment wasn't even BUILT until a good seven centuries after Memoria's fall!
Another minor issue is the compass rose. It has twelve points, rather than the four or eight you're used to seeing, and only the topmost point is labeled - "Septentrio," which your translation spell interprets as "seven oxen." Looking that up, you confirm that it's a reference to the seven stars of the Big Dipper, which is in turn part of Ursa Major. Given the location of that constellation, Septentrio is most likely the cardinal north, but not the magnetic north. Maybe. The Memorians DID have magic, and finding the north pole with magic is pretty easy.
Annoyingly, that appears to be the limit of what the books you have at home can tell you. The good news is that it didn't take very long for you to run through - it's barely eight o'clock.
Gained Cartography F
You can think of a few options at this point. One would be to cast the Spell of Page-Bound Epiphany, and see what - if anything - the mundane libraries of the world have to say about Memoria. If you knew WHERE the Roman-offshoot nation existed, it would help you narrow your search. Given how strongly magic and the supernatural were tied into Memoria's origins and existence, though, you must concede the strong possibility that any references to the place won't be found in non-magical circulation.
Another possibility would be to visit the town library, and see if their collection of world atlases can be of use to you. Your Mana Concealment is good enough by now to let you cast low-level spells in public without being noticed - unless of course someone or something is directly monitoring you.
You could also skip any further research, and try to teleport directly to the location of the gate. The Greater Spell of Teleportation is very convenient in that it doesn't require you to have a clear image of your destination, just a good description of it. The Map might be enough to qualify as the latter - and then again, it might not. It's not like you'd be in danger of teleporting into a rock or something if the magic failed - you just wouldn't go anywhere. But you WOULD lose quite a bit of time, what with having to go past the city limits to avoid notice when teleporting and all.
Getting out the blank book that you've used before, you gather up a small amount of your mana and cast the Spell of Page-Bound Epiphany. For your first attempt, you designate the Memorian Map as your subject, keeping your eyes and your mind fixed on the hard-copy you have before you.
Subtle fingers of magic reach out from beneath your habitual concealment of your power, past the wards placed by Ambrose, and into the world beyond.
Your efforts are rewarded with an odd hodge-podge of results. The first page of your book fills with what's clearly a copy of YOUR copy of Marcus's map, scaled down to fit the pages of the book. The next dozen pages are covered with similarly down-sized copies of other maps in a similar style - that looks promising at first, until you realize that each of the maps depicts an entirely separate area, with no clear geographical connections between any two. After that comes an assortment of Latin words and phrases, and their meanings in English, and last is a bunch of notes on cartography.
Gained Cartography F (Plus)
Gained Latin F
You have to conclude that Captain Marcus's map either has no surviving Earthly counterparts, or else those charts are kept under magical wards. Regardless, there's nothing out there your spell can get a lock on - hence the confused response, and the lack of in-depth information that previous uses of this magic have given you.
It's disappointing, but not unexpected. A thousand years is a long time for any man-made object to survive, let alone mundane works set down on paper and parchment. Magical equivalents fare better against the elements and the passage of time, but the very fact that they ARE magical draws attention, which often leads to the writings in question being destroyed, whether by accident or deliberate choice.
Still, that was merely your first try. No reason to give up JUST yet.
You re-cast the spell, this time focusing on the name "Memoria."
Again, the magic reaches out, and again, you receive a mix of results. Right at the top are the Latin word and its meanings in English - aside from memory, it can also mean the act of remembering, history, mindfulness, gratitude, and a few other things. There's a large section refering to rhetoric and oratory, of which a concept called "memoria" was a significant portion.
There's no mention at all of a PLACE by that name.
Once more, you're disappointed, but not surprised.
You cast the Spell of Page-Bound Epiphany a third time, focusing on "Roman maps," in the hope that you might turn up something that would help you more accurately place Marcus's chart.
The next thing you know, most of your Conjured Book has been FILLED with maps. You flip through the pages intently, but by the time the magic has faded, you've found nothing particularly helpful.
The Romans made a LOT of maps.
In any case, you suspect you'll need a way to narrow your search before the Spell of Page-Bound Epiphany will be really helpful in this matter.
Putting away your book and the copy of the Memorian Map for the time being, you head down to the basement, enter your Mirror Hideaway, and attempt to use what little information you have about the Earth-side portal to perform a Ritual of Scrying and find its location.
The ritual fails.
You stand there for a moment, blinking in surprise at the complete and utter lack of results. You honestly can't recall the last time that happened. Having a spell miss its target, or return unexpected and even less-than-useful results, sure - that just happened upstairs. But nothing at all? This may honestly be the first time your magic has failed you completely.
It's an unsettling experience.
Stymied, you decide that visiting the library is your best bet, but as you slip out of your Mirror Hideaway, a thought occurs.
Why limit yourself to Sunnydale's library?
After all, you can teleport. There's a whole WORLD of libraries out there, many of which put small-town public libraries to shame for the breadth and depth of materials they hold. Not to mention that you're probably a LOT less likely to run into a demon or a phantom librarian haunting the stacks than you would be here, on the Hellmouth.
It's currently quarter after eight.
On second thought, properly researching the Memorian Map will likely take more time than you have left before you go back to Faerie. You can come back to it after you've spoken to the ghosts - and if it turns out that you need more information from them following their final passage into the afterlife?
That's what Necromancy is for.
Literally, even.
You figure that, as long as you clear the idea of seeking consultations from beyond the pale with Marcus BEFORE he and his move on, and keep any subsequent spectral summonings brief and reasonable, it shouldn't be an issue.
Instead of fussing about the map, you turn your attention to your other concerns - namely, the scrolls and potion you've been meaning to make. After some consideration, you decide to leave the potion for later. While you do need it for the Familiar Ritual, it's a purely personal concern. The scrolls are an obligation to another person, and you really should get them taken care of first.
It's almost three hours until lunch. That isn't enough time for you to scribe copies of all three spells you owe Akkiko, but it's plenty for you to finish transcribing one of the second-level spells that you promised to trade for a copy of one of her family scrolls.
...
Actually, thinking on it, you could finish the first spell, have an early lunch, and then pop over to Karakura to drop off your work, just to show Akkiko that you haven't forgotten your deal and are, in fact, working on getting it done. And maybe to make sure SHE hasn't forgotten her end of the bargain...?
Not that you think she WOULD, of course.
Never.
And if said trip let you sneak in a visit to Tatsuki and maybe Ichigo, before you headed off to the Hakuba Shrine again, that would be gravy.
Yeah. That sounds like an idea.
You check with your mother to see if she has any objection to you taking off before noon. She doesn't - you ordered take-out pizza for dinner last night, and she was planning to just re-heat some of the leftovers and call it lunch. You can use the microwave perfectly well.
With that handled, you retreat to your room, clear a space on your desk, and get out some of the materials you acquired at Gen's.
As you pull up your chair and prepare to get to work - and fight off a brief, nagging wariness of how much this feels like doing HOMEWORK - you briefly consider WHAT spell you should transcribe. You promised Akkiko one second-tier spell of Abjuration, one second-tier spell of Elementalism, and one second-tier spell of Necromancy, but you know well that not all spells are created equal - not even spells that are classified as part of the same level. You can't imagine that Akkiko would be ignorant of that fact.
As it happens, you DO have a spell in mind for the first part of this informational exchange - one that you've used recently, and to excellent effect.
"I know that smile," Briar observes with a sigh. "What are you planning, Alex?"
"Oh, nothing, nothing."
Her look of disbelief is audible.
"I was just considering giving Akkiko a hand."
"Really, now?" Briar drawls. "Are you sure you want to hand out such a useful piece of magic?"
You raise an eyebrow. Did she just-?
Aloud, you say, "I figured that providing Akkiko such a handy spell would show that I was taking our deal seriously."
"Maybe, but I'm not sure if Akkiko would grasp the full potential of this particular piece of magic."
Oh, so it's going to be like THAT, then? Alright, Briar.
Challenge accepted.
"The level of magic we saw her using makes me think that she can handle it, Briar."
"And the level of DRINKING we saw her doing makes ME think that, sooner or later, she'd try to hand off that clay jar of hers to the spell. And that wouldn't end well."
Given that the Spectral Hand is incorporeal? No, it wouldn't.
You mock-frown. "Isn't that exactly the kind of prank a fairy would enjoy having a hand in?"
"Pranks aren't as funny if you don't get to see them go off," Briar responds. "But that would require being within arm's reach of Akkiko - or at least her magic - which makes the whole idea seem a lot LESS funny to me."
When she puts it THAT way, you have to admit that you wouldn't want to be within spell-slinging range of a part-oni woman who'd just lost a bottle of booze because a spell you gave her didn't work the way she expected it to.
"So I include a warning clause in the scroll before I hand it over," you say practically. "And then point to it a lot if it turns out she ignored it."
"As long as you don't laugh while pointing one finger at her."
"Yeah, that WOULD be taking my life into my own hands, wouldn't it?"
"Handily."
...
You and Briar trade glances.
"I'm not about to knuckle under to you," Briar says.
"You get a thumbs up for effort."
...
Eventually, the two of you run out of hand-related quotes and puns. Agreeing not to move on to other body parts, lest you be here all morning, Briar flies off to distract Zelda for a while, while you buckle down and start scribing.
The process is not so simple as merely putting ink to paper. For one, the "ink" is a blend of magically-reactive substances, while the paper is of a particular, non-industrial method of manufacture, that makes it receptive to magical energy that is imbued into it. Your pen, meanwhile, is a highly conductive magical "blank" - or as close to it as can be managed - so that it will add no energy of its own to the process of inscription. Then there's the constant, low-level stream of mana transferring from you to the paper, through the medium of ink and pen.
You have most of four hours to work with. In theory, you need only two hours, but since this is your first-ever attempt to transcribe one of your spells, you take your time, wishing to avoid mistakes brought on by haste and inexperience.
Even with that, you're done before the third hour is up. You give the completed scroll a once-over, checking for errors, but it's more for the sake of thoroughness than necessity.
The work is good. You can feel the magic bound within it.
After waiting a few minutes for the ink to finish drying, you carefully roll up the sheet of paper, and bind it with a plain red ribbon.
It's traditional.
That done, you stow the "scroll" in your dimensional pocket, clean up and put away the reagents, and then head downstairs for a quick early lunch.
It's half-past eleven when you and Briar leave the house, en route to Karakura, Japan. You make your way out of town, going north this time, and eventually reach a spot among the trees that feels safe-ish from potential discovery.
You've never been to the Arisawa home before. You do have the address, which is technically enough of an idea of its location for you to use the Greater Spell of Teleportation to travel there, but it might not be a bad idea to use the Greater Spell of Scrying to find Akkiko, so you have a better idea of where, exactly, you want to go.
It occurs to you that simply dropping in unannounced would be a little rude. Likewise for scrying. Calling ahead and making sure that the Arisawas are okay with you showing up would be the polite thing to do - and all things considered, the Spell of Sending is probably the best method available to you for doing that.
You do have Tatsuki's home phone number, but a) you're not at home, and so can't use the phone there; b) you're not entirely sure if your cellphone will work when you're out in the woods like this; and c) even if both of the other methods of calling were available and guaranteed to work, the Spell of Sending doesn't carry long-distance charges.
Ten minutes of focused effort and a small expenditure of your mana later, you complete the magic.
"Miss Akkiko," you say, "this is Alex Harris. I have the first scroll I promised you. Would you mind if I stopped by to drop it off?"
You wait a few seconds, giving the spell what little time it needs to reach its destination, and Akkiko the equally-insignificant time required to voice a response.
And said response arrives:
"GAAAH! Who the HELL- Harris? Is that you? Buddha on a bicycle, boyo, what's with the 'mysterious voice from nowhere' routine at... FIVE IN THE-!?"
The spell cuts off there.
...
Since there's nobody around to see it except Briar, you give into the temptation to facepalm.
"One of these days, Briar," you mutter, "I am GOING to remember that blasted time difference."
"Look on the bright side," the fairy replies cheerfully. "At least you didn't cast a Spell of Scrying on her while she was asleep."
...
...yeah, that COULD have ended with all kinds of horrible embarrassment, couldn't it?
Before you can decide what to do in response to Akkiko's rather bewildered "reply" to your magical missive, an aura suddenly appears on your sorcerous radar. It's a weave of Summoning magic that bears Akkiko's unique signature, wrapped around a cohesive core of Elemental Wind, and so rather than suppress your own aura and dive for the nearest physical cover, raise your defenses, and/or go on the attack, you simply turn about to face the unusual incoming teleport.
Dust and leaves are blown about as a little glowing orb of whitish energy manifests a couple of feet off the ground. You recognize it immediately, as one of the little elemental familiars Akkiko displayed back at the Shuzen's.
Its body shifts around as if looking for something, and then stops, giving off the impression that it is "looking" right at you - this despite its complete lack of a face.
"Can we help you?" Briar asks.
The Wind spirit seems to tremble in place, producing a susurrus akin to leaves in the breeze, and then you hear Akkiko's voice: "If you're coming, come. But try not to wake up the whole neighborhood, hmmm? Gods, what time is it over- wait, are you still recording-?"
Um.
Well, at least you've secured an invitation. That's... good, right?
What now?
Incidentally, while the method of delivery is different than your version - not to mention a heck of a lot FASTER - the presence of the Wind-spirit seems to be part of a Spell of Sending. If it's anything at all like your own, you could send Akkiko a short return message.
"As I was just saying to Briar, ma'am," you sigh, "one of these days, I WILL remember the time difference. Really."
You fall silent.
The Wind-spirit waits for a moment, tilting towards you in a manner that you can only describe as "hopeful."
Wordlessly, you point your index and middle fingers at your eyes, and then point straight at the glowing ball.
...
How is it that something without a face can POUT?
With a breezy sigh, the spirit's form disperses into a million motes of energy that fly every which way, diminishing in size and intensity as they go, until they've become completely indistinguishable from the mundane air that surrounds you.
Message sent, you commence your next ritual.
Seven minutes later-
-flying/falling/sinking through a strange space/medium/awareness filled with familiar shapes/alien geometries and faint/loud chorus/discordance and a near/distant green energy/presence-
-you find yourself standing on a sidewalk, at night, just outside the stone-walled grounds of another traditional Shinto shrine. Unlike those by the Hakuba and Higurashi families, this place doesn't have a Stairway of Doom out front; it's just twenty steps or so from the sidewalk up to the shrine proper, with a landing thrown in halfway for good measure. For whatever reason, there are no streetlights in front of the entrance - they're off towards the edges of the property - and while the moon is out, it's in its waning gibbous phase. As a result, there isn't a lot of light where you're standing.
And you find that lack of illumination... concerning.
"Whoa," Briar huffs. "Do you feel that?"
"That spiritual energy hanging over everything like a thick blanket, making it hard to get a clear sense of anything more than fifty feet away?"
"Yeah, that."
"Hard to miss."
You have to take a moment to focus on your breathing. Physically, the air in Karakura is a bit cooler and more humid than what you're used to in Sunnydale, but that's no great hardship. No, the difficulty lies entirely on the mystical side of things, with that spectral power that feels like it has not only covered, but been absorbed by even the most mundane objects. It's almost like the corruption on the Hellmouth, except that the energy you're sensing is devoid of the malice and malignancy you've long since had to accept as normal for your hometown.
While that absence is certainly good news, the bad news is that the spiritual force of Karakura also lacks the purity and lightness you've detected at the Hakuba and Higurashi Shrines. This power that fills the air, and must make the entire TOWN almost as "solid" on the Ethereal Side as it is here in reality, is neither good nor evil. It's just... there.
Neutral.
Despite that lack of any evil intent in the energies of Karakura, you have to shudder.
You would genuinely hate to encounter an angry ghost in a place like this.
Forcing yourself to ignore the sensation of spiritually-thick air moving through your throat and lungs, you step across the shrine's boundary.
The "heaviness" of the atmosphere outside begins to fall off almost immediately, and declines further with each step you take deeper into the Arisawas' property.
You'd ask how anybody - let alone a couple families you KNOW to include spiritual sensitives - could live in a place like this, but given that you make your home on the Hellmouth, you know better than to be the first to cast THAT particular stone.
Passing under the gate, you find a shadowed courtyard, a couple of lightless outbuildings - and a house with a suprising number of lights on, given the hour.
Wondering if you indirectly woke up the entire family, you make for the front door, and knock.
"I got it!" a familiar, slightly-unexpected, and rather grumpy-sounding voice calls from indoors.
Several seconds and a light thumping of footsteps on wooden floor later, the door opens to reveal Tatsuki, wearing a dark blue robe that could be sleepwear, or might just be the traditional Japanese equivalent of "stay-at-home casual."
From the bleariness of the eyes that stare at you, and the even wilder than usual nature of Tatsuki's hair, you're betting on pajama.s
"Alex? Briar?" Tatsuki asks slowly. "What are you guys doing here?"
"Hey, Tatsuki," you reply. "Sorry to disturb you, I'm just dropping off something that I promised your mother back at Kahlua's party."
"...at four-thirty in the morning?" Tatsuki asks blankly.
"Yeeeeaaaah," you drawl, "about that... oh, hi, Miss Akkiko."
"Hi, yourself, boyo," the lady of the house mumbles as she comes down the hallway. She's dressed in a similar manner as her daughter, and appears about as wakeful, even with a mug of probably-coffee steaming in one hand. "Well, Tatsuki? Are you going to let your friend in, or not?"
Tatsuki glances over her shoulder at her mother, then back at you.
"At four-thirty in the morning?" she repeats.
Akkiko sighs, scoots her girl out of the way, and invites you in. You step inside-
!
-and then pause, ears prickling.
Just now, somewhere off in the distance...
Was that a howl?
The door closes, cutting off the sound.
"Did anyone else hear that?" you ask, looking around at the three females in the foyer with you. "Please tell me I wasn't the only one to hear that."
Akkiko opens her mouth to speak-
"That deep, freaky howl?" Tatsuki asks, looking more than a little spooked.
-flinches-
"That sound like the wail of a damned soul and a predator declaring its territory, all at once?" Briar says.
-and hangs her head.
Girl and fairy blink and trade glances.
"...yeah, that," you reply.
As one, all small people in the room turn to Akkiko, faces expectant and worried.
She sighs. "Come on to the kitchen. I'll... make some cocoa, or something..."
Wordlessly, you bow, then kick off your shoes and follow Tatsuki down the hall.
Behind you, Akkiko mutters, "Goddamn Hollows..."
The Arisawa kitchen is one of those arrangements where the dining area is directly accessible from the cooking area, with only a relatively thin row of counter-topped cabinets and hanging cupboards to separate the table and chairs from the heavy appliances. While you and Tatsuki occupy a couple of the chairs - and Briar flits down to the tabletop - Akkiko busies herself with filling an electric kettle from the tap.
"Okay," she says, over the sound of running water. "To understand what that noise was, you have to know some things about ghosts."
"That was a GHOST?" Tatsuki exclaims.
"The first thing you have to know," Akkiko continues, ignoring her daughter's outburst, "is that there are a lot of different things that can happen to a soul after death. Most people just move on, like they're supposed to. Some move on to an afterlife, others reincarnate, and every once in a while somebody achieves enlightenment. Less often, but still fairly common, you'll find a person who either didn't believe in souls and afterlives, or just hasn't realized that they ARE dead. Whether because they didn't think there was anywhere for them to go, or because they won't accept that they NEED to go on, they become lingering spirits." She smirks. "Certain individuals who would have you believe they're experts and authorities on the subject call that kind of soul a 'Plus.' Personally, I'd just as soon call them shiryo, or maybe yuurei - but then, I'm a traditional kind of girl."
You join Tatsuki in giving her mother a disbelieving look.
"Oh, for..." Akkiko's response is cut off as the kettle begins to steam.
Shortly thereafter, Akkiko joins you at the table, having placed two mugs of hot, brown, chocolate-smelling liquid down for you and Tatsuki - with an apology to Briar for not having any cups small enough.
"Pluses are mostly harmless, as far as spirits go," Akkiko continues, sipping at her coffee, which she refilled before sitting down. "The overwhelming majority of people can't perceive them at all, and as a rule, they're just as unaware of us. Even spiritually-aware humans tend to sense them as a shimmer in the air, a sudden chill, or an indistinct whisper - the usual kind of thing that says, 'hey, this place is weird, maybe we'd better not upset the spirits,' rather than as spirits in their own right."
"Only 'mostly' harmless?" you note.
"Hmmm." The priestess nods over her cup. "Every so often, you find a lingering spirit with a fixation. Something really important that they did, or more often DIDN'T do, before they died. A person they weren't ready to leave behind. Possessions they aren't willing to give up. Justice, or vengeance, that hasn't been delivered." She scowls. "That happens a lot when you're dealing with deaths due to human neglect or carelessness, let alone active malice, and the resulting grudge gives the ghost enough power and focus to affect physical reality - and the will to start using it. The worse the offense and the longer it's gone unresolved, the stronger the grudge, and the stronger and more dangerous the ghost."
See, now, THIS is starting to sound a lot more like what you think of when the word "ghost" comes to mind, whether you're dealing with the Hyrulean or American concept of the term.
"You can still deal with a spirit like that," Akkiko continues, "IF you know why it's angry, IF you manage to fix the problem, and IF you can convince it to let go of its obsession and move on. Or, failing any of those, if you can find a priest strong enough to kick its butt into the next world and keep it from re-forming."
"And if you don't or can't do any of those?" you ask, while thinking of the thousand year-old spirit of an imprisoned Fae.
Akkiko scowls into her coffee. "Then, it gets ugly."
You lift your mug and take a moment to savor the sweet-smelling steam rising from the rich brown liquid within.
Gained Scenting D
For something that Akkiko whipped up in less than three minutes, using an instant-mix pack doubtlessly picked up from a corner store? This smells REALLY good.
Before you can take a drink, however, a thought occurs that leads you to set the mug back down.
Focusing your magic, you mutter a brief incantation, and then point one finger at your untouched drink, while aiming another at the tabletop next to it.
An empty fairy-sized mug blinks into being.
From there, it takes only a simple cantrip to levitate some of the hot chocoloate from your mug into the new one.
Briar takes one look, and pumps a fist into the air. "Score!"
"Awww." The smile Tatsuki directs at you is, for once, less than half-smirk. "You big softie."
"All part of being a good partner," you say.
"What, bribing her with sugar?"
"And strawberries," Briar adds, without a hint of shame.
"And milk," you contribute.
Akkiko snickers at that. "At least you two are on the same wavelength. That's good in any partnership."
You think of her badgering little glowing orbs into her handbag, and decide to forego commentary on the subject, instead taking that drink.
The cocoa, incidentally, tastes as delicious as it smells.
"You were saying something about ghosts gone bad?" you inquire, as you set your mug back down.
"...yeah." She pauses for a moment. "Every soul has a different amount of spiritual strength, which means they have different levels of tolerance for the malice that comes with their particular grudge - and every grudge generates malice at a different rate. A strong soul with a weak grudge can carry on almost unchanged for years, even decades - longer, if living people take care to remember and honor it in their prayers. Souls with less power, stronger obsessions, or that go unacknowledged become corrupt and impure, twisting into the forms that turn up in all the old ghost stories - frightening, even monstrous, but still recognizeable for who they used to be. But in the end, no matter how strong the soul or the grudge, no matter how many other people there are lending their support... everybody's got their breaking point."
And then, Akkiko tells you about Hollows. Fixated ghosts, overcome by rage, loss, or any of a hundred other feelings that weigh heavy on the heart - so heavily, in fact, that the higher consciousness of the soul retreats into itself, rather than face its pain for one minute more. All that's left is the most fundamental sense of identity - that "I am I," and that everything else is "not I" - the anguish, and the desire to be safe. To be stronger, tougher, faster, better-armed against the dangers "not I" poses to "I."
Consequently, most Hollows don't look remotely human, trading in the familiar features of soft, weak primates for armored skin, slashing claws, and any number of other bestial implements and abilities.
But though they may arm and armor and mask themselves against the world - and Akkiko notes that, along with a gaping, unnatural hole that represents their loss of "heart," a bone-white mask that embodies and protects the suppressed "self" is one of the only features that ALL Hollows share - these twisted souls can never escape their pain. They might forget the SOURCE, but even the most mindless Hollow KNOWS that it was hurt, that something vital was taken from it, and what remains is somehow lacking. Broken. Alone.
And so the Hollows try to take back what was taken from them. Because if "I" does not have it, "not I" MUST. And if "not I" does NOT have what the Hollow needs, then at least it is DIFFERENT. Not-suffering. Not-broken. Not-alone.
Why should one soul be allowed to be whole and happy, when another is condemned to suffer endlessly?
Why should some souls be able to go to a Heaven, when others must linger for ages?
Why should the living be any different than the dead?
You can't avoid recalling the skeletons from the Memorian Outpost, and the impressions you took from your attempt to discern if they still possessed self-awareness after so many years - that horrible, bitter jealousy of all that lived.
Not. Fair.
"And these things... are out there?" Tatsuki asks.
By her tone, if she were a cat, her hair would be sticking up even more than usual right about now.
"Not as many as you might think," Akkiko replies. "A typical human soul only has so much power, and most of them can't hope to project a form like a Hollow for any real length of time. Not on their own. Which is another reason why they attack other souls - they need the extra fuel."
Tatsuki turns green. "They EAT people?!"
"Sometimes. Other times, they just chew 'em up and spit 'em back out, and let the trauma warp the victim into a new Hollow."
Oh, THAT sounds familiar.
"So, they're the spiritual equivalent of corpse-demon vampires, then?" you ask.
Akkiko blinks at that, and then nods slowly. "Yeah, kind of. Only no demonic essence or magic involved. And no youki, either. For better or worse, Hollows are one hundred percent human. It's just that they represent parts of humanity that most people don't like to think about, let alone show off in public."
"Hang on," Briar interjects. "If Hollows can reproduce that fast... how are they not EVERYWHERE?"
"Like I said, they need fuel - and feeding on souls isn't free. Even a dead person will at least TRY to run when a major predator comes after them, which expends energy and leaves less for the Hollow if and when it finally catches them. And unlike corpse-vampires, just because a Hollow's eaten somebody, it doesn't mean that they've stopped fighting back." Akkiko idly swirls her coffee. "What I was told is, a Hollow has to subdue a soul, wipe out its sense of self or at least convince it that it can't win in a fight, before it can start drawing power from the other poor bastard. That takes even MORE effort, not to mention time, which means the Hollow loses out on even more of the other soul's energy. And since no two souls are exactly alike, their energies aren't fully compatible, so there's still MORE power lost. And when all is said and done? You now have TWO souls that are working overtime, and need extra energy to make up the shortfall."
"That sounds completely unsustainable," Briar says.
"Eh, it's not QUITE as bad as I made it sound," Akkiko admits with a shrug. "A Hollow gets SOME extra power from eating a soul, it's just that one plus one works out to be more like one-point-one than two. Incremental, not additive. But yeah, in the long-term, eating souls only goes so far as a survival strategy. Which is why most Hollows don't stick around on Earth. They head deeper into the Spirit Realms, where everything is MADE out of the same stuff as souls, right down to the earth, the water, and the air. In places like that, a Hollow can survive just fine."
"But they still eat souls," the fairy says.
"Yeah, they're bastards that way. Which is why the local afterlives tend to maintain standing armies."
And then Akkiko tells you about the little death gods, the Shinigami. They're something of an equal-and-opposite to Hollows, being, at their core, human souls possessed of significant levels of spiritual power. That said, they have something ELSE, too, a trait that's been added to the intact soul in such a way as to increase, channel, and magnify their existing power.
Said something is a zanpakuto, or "soul-cutter."
Basically, a magic sword for ghosts.
They also have magic. And martial arts. AND something that's equivalent to ki, except purely spiritual in nature. But those are all APPLICATIONS of power. The sword itself is... more.
You are, understandably, VERY curious about these spirits, but Akkiko confesses to not knowing a lot of the details. Not even most of them, come to that. And she's kind of obligated to keep her mouth shut about the particulars.
What she CAN tell you is that the Shinigami act as a combination of police force, standing army, secret agents, and organized monster exterminators - specifically for fighting Hollows, although they have "branched out" a few times - on behalf of a post-mortem realm they call the Soul Society.
Akkiko is quick to explain that it's NOT Heaven. Or even A heaven. For the most part, it's a place where those lingering souls that didn't have anywhere else to go CAN go, leaving behind the mortal world for one where they at least won't be doomed to turn into soul-eating monsters after a few decades. She also suspects that something in the make-up of the place "encourages" souls to eventually reincarnate, where they normally wouldn't, but that's based on secondhand information and guesswork.
That's about the limit of Akkiko's information on this subject, and she STRONGLY advises you NOT to go digging for answers.
"Standard procedure for a Shinigami is to over-write the memories of living humans who witness a Hollow attack," Akkiko warns you. "But that only works on regular people, who don't have any real spiritual power of their own. For those of us with more under the hood? Things can get... difficult."
"How difficult?" you ask.
"Depends on what you know, what they THINK you know, and which Shinigami you're dealing with. Don't get me wrong," Akkiko says, "it's not like the entire organization is made up of a bunch of paranoid control freaks with sticks up their asses. A Shinigami is as human as the next soul - but like every human, they have secrets that they want KEPT secret. On top of that, they ARE trained warriors, and they DO answer to a military and governmental command structure - both of which have secrets of their own. You go blundering into something like THAT without so much as an invitation, you're going to get into serious trouble. That's just common sense."
She leaves off at that.
Gained Spiritual Knowledge C
You consider everything that Akkiko's said so far.
For a long minute, the only sounds that disturb the quiet of the Arisawa dining room are those of people drinking hot beverages.
Then you sigh, and set your half-empty mug down.
"So what should we do if a Hollow shows up wanting to eat us? Because knowing my luck," you add, before any of the ladies can say anything, "it's going to happen sooner or later."
"If you know of an inhabited shrine within sprinting distance, run for it," Akkiko replies bluntly. "Any Hollow with half a brain avoids picking a fight with the kami, and the dumb ones either get themselves purified or run off for trying it. Holy ground in general makes Hollows nervous, but they're not stopped by thresholds like corpse-vampires are; unless there's a guardian spirit, a trained exorcist, or some kind of holy warrior in residence, a temple or church by itself won't usually be enough to scare them away. You might manage to wait a Hollow out until it gets hungry enough to go looking for an easier meal, but then again, you might just provoke it into taking its chances. You can try to use local youkai and demons against Hollows as well, but then it's more a case of leading one predator into the territory of another, so that you can try to slip away while they're snapping, snarling, and posturing at each other. I don't recommend it."
You nod. "And if running to holy ground isn't an option?"
Akkiko exhales sharply. "For starters, DON'T try fighting Hollows with ki. Use it to run, to dodge, to keep up your stamina, but NOT on direct attack or defense - human life-force just doesn't have enough of the right kind of bite to hurt a Hollow, or to blunt their attacks. Not unless you're throwing heaps of the stuff at them, in which case you're probably just pissing them off, exhausting your energy at a crazy rate, AND making yourself look like an even tastier morsel, all at once."
"Not a good combination," Briar observes.
"Not even," Akkiko agrees. "On the magic side of things, boyo, don't waste time or energy with the physical elements. You want Necromancy, and lots of it. Anything that'll ward off, impair, banish, or just plain HURT evil, spirits, evil spirits, or spiritual evil in general WILL work on a Hollow, because ultimately, all they are is a really nasty kind of ghost. It just won't work AS well as something custom-built for the job." She pauses. "I'd still feel better if you teleported as far away as you could, but if for some reason you HAVE to stay and fight a Hollow, aim for the mask, hit is as hard as you can, and don't let up until all that's left of the toothy bastard is a scorch mark on the ground."
Tatsuki gulps. "And what should I do, if a Hollow comes after me?"
"You," Akkiko says, turning to her daughter with an expression and tone that say, 'you will NOT fuck with me on this,' "will be starting a crash-course in the traditional Arisawa methods of breaking spiritual skulls and kicking unholy teeth in once the sun's up and we're both a little more awake. Until I say otherwise, though, if you see a Hollow sniffing around, you WILL come find me, one of your aunts or uncles, or your grandma as fast as you damn well can, and let US deal with the problem." She pauses, and then snorts. "Or, if you're with Berry-Boy or the twins, just leave things to Masaki. Seriously, I fucking PITY the Hollow that crosses that woman, especially where her brats are concerned."
Akkiko's fierce, toothy grin does not exactly convey a sense of "pity" to your mind. More like bloodthirsty anticipation.
You make a few mental notes, just in case you're in town when a Hollow turns up.
Gained Local Knowledge (Karakura) F
Getting a sense that you've learned most of what you're going to on the topic of hungry ghosts, at least for now, you decide to get on with the original purpose of your visit. Setting your cocoa down, you stand up, reach into your pocket, and pull out your simple Scroll of the Spell of the Spectral Hand.
"Here you go, ma'am. As promised."
Akkiko meets your gaze for a second, then puts her coffee mug down on the table, stands up, and accepts the scroll with something approaching formality.
"What's that?" Tatsuki asks, looking at the rolled-up, string-bound sheet of paper.
"Something you had better not EVER try to read by yourself," Akkiko replies firmly. "Or you'll be grounded for a year, AND I will take the cost of repairing whatever damage it causes out of your allowance."
The younger Arisawa blinks in surprise at the sharply-delivered answer. "It's just a piece of paper..."
"It's really not," her mother says, as she unfurls the scroll.
You, Tatsuki, and Briar remain silent, sipping at your hot chocolate - and in Tatsuki's case, shooting questioning looks all over the place - while Akkiko reads. You note that she's being careful not to touch the writing, nor are her lips moving. In addition, and somewhat to your surprise, Akkiko seems to have foregone the use of magic in deciphering the scroll, and is instead trying to read it the hard way.
You have to wonder WHY, but hold your curiosity in check for the moment - and shoot Tatsuki a wordless look, tapping your forefinger against your lips in a gesture for silence.
Finally, after about two minutes, Akkiko makes a single exclamation:
"Huh."
"Are you done, Mom?" Tatsuki asks.
"Yeah, I think so."
"Great. So what the heck is it?"
Akkiko regards her daughter frankly, and in a completely serious tone of voice, replies, "It's magic."
There is a moment of stunned silence - less of the 'shock and awe' variety, and more of the 'I can't believe she actually said it' sort.
Then Briar starts snickering.
Tatsuki, meanwhile, is pinching the bridge of her nose, as if she suddenly has a headache.
"I kind of figured that much already, Mom," the girl sighs. "But what KIND of magic, and why is Alex giving it to you?"
"Well, as to the 'why' of it..."
Akkiko quickly recounts the deal the two of you struck to trade examples of your respective magical styles.
"As for the 'what,'" Akkiko goes on, looking the scroll over a second time, "it appears to be a spell to conjure severed body parts."
Tatsuki boggles at her casual admission, and then turns to gape at you.
Briar falls over on the table, laughing out loud.
"That is NOT what it does," you say flatly.
"It says right here," Akkiko argues, pointing at the sheet, "'conjure a disembodied hand'-"
"A magical CONSTRUCT in the SHAPE of a hand," you interject. "It was never alive or part of a living thing - or even a DEAD one."
"'-fueled by the sacrificed energy of a living being-'"
"The caster gives up some of their OWN energy to animate and control the hand," you grate out.
"'-a conduit for dark power!'"
"You can channel certain spells into the Hand, so that they'll be cast upon whatever it touches."
You KNOW what you wrote on that scroll, and you're quite certain that it DOESN'T sound like that. Is Akkiko just messing with you, or is her grasp of written English really that bad?
...
Actually, you need to rephrase that, because it's pretty much a given that Akkiko is messing with you. It's just a matter of whether she's deliberately misinterpreting your words for 'humorous' effect, or whether she misunderstood them to start with.
Regardless of Akkiko's motivations, you eventually manage to convince Tatsuki that you are not, in fact, trading horrible, creepy, potentially evil magic spells with her mother. Just creepy ones. Which, given that it's a Spell of Necromancy, is about as good an outcome as you could have hoped for.
On a related note, Akkiko advises you to be careful about using that particular spell around Hollows, because they'd be guaranteed to try eating the ghostly hand - and they might well be able to, in which case, they'd be eating the portion of your life-force inside it as well. And she honestly has no idea what that would DO, not to you, and not to the Hollow.
Hollows normally either kill a person in the process of tearing their soul out, or else tear their soul out and leave the body lying mostly-dead on the ground - until the owner's spiritual avatar and seat of identity has been devoured, at which point the body dies for real. Whether you're referring to ki or just to the physical energy of the body, life-force isn't part of a Hollow's diet, but with the way your Spectral Hand spell converts some of it into animating energy for the ghost-like construct, that might not matter.
Best to avoid the problem entirely.
That warning issued, Akkiko thanks you for the first part of your trade, even if it WAS at a ridiculously early hour. She also advises you to hang around until sunrise, just to make sure the Hollow you heard earlier has moved on.
"The nocturnal ones tend to creep back into their holes once it gets light out," she explains. "And the ones that prefer to hunt by day aren't any more eager to get started in the morning than most living humans. That usually leaves a window around dawn and dusk where Hollow activity is at a low."
After dealing with Akkiko's "mistranslation" of the scroll, you're tempted to try firing a few hand puns at her to see what she makes of them. The timing doesn't quite feel right, however, and instead, you turn to Tatsuki.
"So, what do you do around here at five in the morning? Besides sleep," you add quickly, when it looks like she's about to say something.
Tatsuki shuts her mouth and gives you a sulky look. You're pretty sure she was about to make that joke.
"Whatever you do, keep it to a low roar," Akkiko advises. "You know how the rest of the family get when they haven't had enough sleep."
"Hey, I'm not the one who almost woke Dad up," Tatsuki protests.
"...yeah." And for some reason, Akkiko looks faintly depressed by that. "You know, there was a time when that never would have happened? I used to be able to get out of an occupied bed without a murmur of complaint-"
"Oh my god, Mom," Tatsuki groans. "Stop talking about your creepy adult stuff, RIGHT NOW." Without waiting for a response, she grabs your arm and starts dragging you away from the table. "Come on, Alex. We can play on the Nintendo for a while, as long as we keep the volume turned down."
You decide not to resist.
The next hour passes in a blur of high-speed go-kart races, flying turtle shells, and very, very quiet digital victory cries, as Tatsuki kicks your ass at Mario Kart 64. Despite the extended losing streak, you find yourself being dragged back for more every time, and towards the end of the hour, you actually manage a win or two.
Gained Dexterity E
Gained Knowledge (Video Games) F (Plus)
The next thing you know, the sun is up, and the sounds of unsteady early-morning movement are coming from the second floor.
"I should probably be on my way," you note, at a particularly loud thump, which is followed by muffled groaning and cursing.
"Yeah, probably," Tatsuki agrees. "It'd be kind of hard to explain how and why you're here this early without talking about the spooky stuff, and, well..."
"They don't know?"
"Oh, they know," Tatsuki replies. "But my big brother... kind of doesn't WANT to know, you know?"
You frown, but nod.
"And my big sister would be insufferable if she found out a BOY was visiting," Tatsuki goes on, rolling her eyes. "Dad would be, too, just in a completely different way."
...yeah, you should definitely go.
"Hey, kiddos," Akkiko says as she sweeps into the living room. At some point since you last saw her, she's gotten dressed - if you can count sweatpants and a matching shirt 'dressed.' "I'm going to start breakfast. Are you staying, Alex?"
"I was just about to leave, actually," you admit. "The sun is up, and I have places to be... although on that note, may I borrow your phone?" You nod towards the couch-side table, where a somewhat complicated-looking example of the device in question sits.
"That depends on who you're planning to call," Akkiko replies.
"I figured that since I was in town, I might stop by the Kurosaki household - if that's okay with them."
Akkiko blinks, and then grins. "Masaki's number is the first on the list."
It takes you a minute and some advice from Tatsuki to navigate the menu, but in short order, you have a call going through.
On the third ring, it's picked up.
"Kurooooh," Isshin's voice begins, before trailing off into a yawn. "Excuse me. Kurosaki Residence, Isshin speaking."
"Good morning, Mister Kurosaki," you say. "This is Alex Harris."
"...Alex Harris," the man repeats slowly. "As in, Alex Harris from the World Martial Arts Tournament?"
"Do you know anyone else by that name?" you ask, honestly curious.
"No," comes the admission. "But I'm kind of surprised to be getting a phonecall from you at six in the morning. Well, unless it's the time difference. It'd be, what, noon, where you are?"
You glance at the clock built into the Arisawa phone. "Actually, it's one after six."
Isshin is quiet for a moment, before he says, "You're in Japan."
"Yes, sir."
"Please tell me you're not in Karakura."
"Weeeellllllll..."
"Oh, kami..."
"Who is it, Isshin?" you faintly hear Masaki ask.
"The end of the world, if Kisuke finds out he's in town," Isshin groans.
Huh?
"Where are you, anyway, kid?"
"I'm at the Arisawa house."
There is another silence.
"I... I see. I'm just... going to pass you over to Masaki, now."
"Isshin, what on Earth... hello?"
"Um, hi, Miss Masaki," you greet her. "This is Alex Harris."
"Oh! Hello, Alex. How nice to- ISSHIN! Put that sake back!"
Okay...
"Excuse me a moment, Alex," Masaki says quickly.
"Take your time, ma'am."
She sets the phone down.
"Now, honey-"
"-entirely too early-"
"-think I deserve-"
"-a boy our son's age-"
"-him and Kisuke AND Akkiko-"
"-be so dramatic-"
"-end of the world!"
Telephone receivers aren't really set up to properly catch sound at a distance, and from the sound of things, Masaki put the handset receiver-down on a table or counter or something. The muffling on top of the usual distortion makes it a bit tricky to make out the precise words, but you get the gist of the argument.
To sum up, Isshin is REALLY not keen on the possibility of you meeting this 'Kisuke' person - who is, at a guess, probably the same individual by that name he and his wife spoke to over the phone back at the World Tournament - but what really drove him in search of alcohol was the fact that you're over at the Arisawa house right now.
You do recall Isshin mentioning, in that over-the-top manner you're starting to assume is his default setting, that Akkiko made him uneasy. And that was when he was only ANTICIPATING a heated argument between her and his wife, over the issue of the Arisawa's non-human heritage, and various actions taken as a consequence of it.
And that was a couple of months ago.
Granted, the two families appear to still be on good terms - if there'd been a falling-out, you're pretty sure Ichigo or Tatsuki would have said SOMETHING about it in their letters, and Akkiko probably wouldn't still have Masaki's number at the very top of her call menu - but you don't know the course of events that led to the current state of affairs. Who can say what Isshin's seen since the Tournament, or how it's affected his opinion of Tatsuki's mother and other relatives?
Your speculations are put on hold as Masaki picks up the phone again. "Thank you for waiting, Alex," she says.
"Not a problem, ma'am."
"Now," Masaki continues, "may I ask why you're calling at six in the morning?"
"I was in the neighborhood on business, and I thought about visiting Ichigo. Of course," manners compel you to add, "it's way too early for me to come over right now-"
Tatsuki gives you a Look.
"-but I figured it might be okay if I called ahead to arrange a visit some other time. You know, without waiting a few weeks for the mail, or paying for an international call."
"That might be possible," Masaki replies thoughtfully. "When will you be in town next?"
"Some time later this month," you reply, after a moment's thought. "My schedule's pretty busy for the next week or so-"
You've got a Memorian Map to try and make sense of, and a hopefully-abandoned, hopefully not-too-ruined secret-ish base to find and secure.
Then you have a couple more scrolls to scribe.
And a potion to brew.
And a chunk of glacial ice to run down.
You should probably swing by Gen's at some point, too. Not so much to find new reagents, just to keep up your end of the partnership.
And you might possibly be called on to deal with a crazy fox.
"-and I have a major appointment to keep next Wednesday," you continue, without missing a beat. "I'll probably want to take the next few days after that to just relax and unwind."
Not to mention, to get used to what a NORMAL familiar bond feels like, you don't say aloud, while glancing at Briar.
"My calendar's clear after that, though," you add.
"That works out well, then," Masaki says after a moment's thought. "We were planning a family vacation next week, leading up to the Obon Festival... ah, do you know what that is?"
You honestly don't, and when you admit your ignorance, Masaki explains that it's an annual festival in honor of the dead. It's actually celebrated on three different occasions, depending on where in Japan you happen to live - Karakura is one of the places that marks the fifteenth of August as Obon.
Gained Knowledge (Buddhism) F (Plus)
Gained Local Knowledge (Karakura) F (Plus)
"I'm tempted to invite you to join us for the Festival," Masaki admits, "but the better part of it happens at night, so unless you were planning to stay in town overnight...?"
"I appreciate the offer, Miss Masaki," you say, "but I'm going to have to turn it down. The travel time... wouldn't work out."
It REALLY wouldn't. You're not sure what time the sun goes down in Karakura, this time of year, but sunset in Sunnydale last night was about eight o'clock. And eight o'clock in the evening in Karakura would be around five in the morning in Sunnydale, which is, like, a full HOUR before sunrise.
Your parents would NEVER go for letting you run around THAT early.
"I understand," Masaki says, without a hint of surprise or disappointment. "Maybe next year, then."
Some discussion of dates ensues, and you end up agreeing on Wednesday, August 18th.
Masaki is audibly surprised when you ask if it's okay for you to show up around seven in the morning, local time.
"So early?" she murmurs.
Not so early from your perspective. That'll be three in the afternoon, Sunnydale time, and you'll only be able to visit Karakura for a couple of hours - unless of course you get permission from your parents to miss dinner and stay out "late." They might be willing to allow that, as long as you promised to be home before it got dark. Enough time to have lunch with Ichigo and Tatsuki, maybe?
You'll have to check with the folks and see.
Leaving that aside, you wonder if you should explain the time constraint you're operating under to Miss Masaki. She knows you have supernatural abilities, but when you think back to the World Tournament, you're pretty sure that your intercontinental teleportation range never came up in conversation with the Kurosakis. Mentioning it now would clarify a few things for her.
On the other hand, you've already driven Isshin to attempt to drink, just by telling him you were in Karakura. Is there really a need to risk pushing the lady of the Kurosaki house past her comfort zone for mystical weirdness, too?
"It's a drawback to being able to teleport," you say.
"...teleport?" Masaki repeats after a moment.
"Yeah, being able to travel halfway around the world SOUNDS like a great thing - and it IS, don't get me wrong - but if you don't take the time zones into account, it can be... a problem. As I have been learning today," you add.
"Time zones," Masaki once again echoes you.
"Uh-huh. I'm from California, if you'll recall, and there's a difference of about sixteen hours between there and Japan, so..."
"How early DID you get here this morning, Alex?" Masaki asks with a hint of suspicion.
"Over an hour ago," you admit.
"...I see. Well, please don't do that again. It's..." She hesitates. "Magic and martial arts or no, someone your age really shouldn't be out on the streets at five in the morning."
It sounds like she wants to say more on the subject, but isn't entirely sure if she should.
Considering that Akkiko told Tatsuki she could leave the matter of handling Hollows to Masaki if the other woman was around, you suspect that you know what the source of the Kurosaki matriarch's uncertainty is. You could assure her that you've been warned against soul-eating spirit-monsters - heck, you could even mention that Sunnydale has problems with another brand of unholy, after-dark, paranormal people-eaters, and that you have prior experience at not drawing attention to yourself from such quarters.
Or you could just do the over-the-telephone equivalent of shutting up and nodding.
Having made your request, you exchange a few pleasantries with Masaki, say good-bye, and finally hang up the Arisawa phone.
"Two weeks from Wednesday, huh?" Tatsuki notes.
"It's rude to listen in on other people's phonecalls, you know."
"This from the guy who calls at four-thirty-ish in the morning," Tatsuki scoffs.
...yeah, you are kind of badly-placed to call someone else out on manners right now.
And from the increase in noise upstairs, you don't really have the time for an extended debate on the subject, anyway.
"So, yeah," you say, heading for the front door. "Two weeks from this Wednesday, around seven in the morning. You going to be there?"
Tatsuki considers it, and shrugs. "Yeah, probably. Not a heck of a lot else to do around town this time of year."
"Alright. I'll probably be back once or twice before that, dropping off the rest of the scrolls I promised your mother and picking up the one she agreed to trade me for them-"
"Hopefully at a more reasonable hour?" Akkiko notes, coming out from the kitchen.
"-yes, I will keep that in mind," you tell her, as you pull your shoes on.
"Good to hear. In the meantime, thank you for sharing your knowledge." And she bows again. "I will return the favor."
You quickly bow in kind, taken aback by the sudden display of formal manners from this irreverent woman-
"Akkiko!" a man calls from upstairs. "Is there someone here?"
"Just the mailman, hon!" she shouts back.
"Okay, then." There's a pause, and then, faintly, you hear, "Wait, we don't get-"
Gained Listening C (Plus) (Plus)
Akkiko and Tatsuki don't throw you out, but there is a certain hurried insistence in their manner as they see you on your way.
Seeing as how you don't really want to have to face down the rest of their family, you don't fight them.
The Arisawa Shrine looks quite a bit different by daylight, you note, as you make your way across the paved yard. The memorial monument you dimly recall Ichigo mentioning is placed right about where the Sacred Tree at the Higurashi Shrine would be - not much more than a freestanding stone tablet, really. That very lack of adornment, though, makes it seem important.
Regardless, the memorial is only about four feet tall, a foot across, and a few inches thick. Plus, with the way the surrounding buildings are placed and where the moon was, the small monument would have been cast into deep shadow when you arrived. Not much wonder that you didn't notice it on your way in.
"I'll be more careful in the future, ma'am," you assure Masaki.
For a moment, you consider mentioning Sunnydale's problem with its own brand of man-eating undead, but in the end, you leave that topic unbroached. For one thing, there are some rather significant differences between corpse-vampires and Hollows. For another, Masaki sounds like she's in Mom Mode, which means she's not going to be interested in or easily convinced by any arguments or excuses you might bring to bear.
Really, arguing with someone in Mom Mode just makes it worse - at least when you're a kid.
One more reason to want to grow up.
"I'm glad to hear that," Maskai says.
You pause in front of the memorial, and squint at the weathered characters carved into the surface. It's not a grave marker, so there are no names. It's not the sort of memorial you might find in the Western world, either, with a bronze plaque describing the events that took place here. Instead, it appears to be a prayer... at least, at first.
The inscription starts out by asking that mercy be shown to the innocent victims of the fire, which isn't surprising, but it follows that up with a similar entreaty that the wicked face justice for their crimes. The way that part is worded, it COULD be referring to the oni that started the fire, but it could ALSO be referring to some of those who perished.
That's... very unusual.
After that, the inscription starts taking on the overtones of an oath, a promise that the inheritors of the shrine would uphold their duties, so that a similar disaster would not occur... actually, make that, would not NEED to occur.
...
You're beginning to wonder if "memorial" is the correct term for this little monument. You can see how a casual reading of the words would suggest as much, but when you compare the writing on the marker to bits and pieces of religious scripture and statuary you remember Ganondorf seeing, there's a distinct tone of condemnation, directed at the monks who were the original caretakers.
It's as if whoever wrote that "prayer" believed that the fire was divine retribution - that the monks, in essence, brought it on themselves.
That DOES sort of line up with the story Ichigo told you, and how the monks neglected the development of their own abilities in favor of exploiting the power of their oni slave. Still, to SEE an acknowledgement of such misdeeds, set in stone to last down through the centuries, right out in the open where ANYBODY can see it... does Shinto practice this sort of post-mortem punishment? Does Buddhism? Or is it one of those things that isn't official doctrine, but was instead absorbed from local beliefs and customs?
You don't know.
Gained Japanese C
Though puzzled by what you've learned, you nonetheless fold your hands together and bow your head in a moment of respect for the dead.
Gained Filial Piety D (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
Gained Spirit Affinity F (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
Your prayer is uninterrupted, and a couple of minutes later, you are headed back down the stairs of the Arisawa Shrine. The street out front isn't any busier now than it was in the hour before dawn, but even so, you take the time to ritually-cast a Spell of Invisibility, before proceeding to the Greater Ritual of Teleportation.
Ten minutes after leaving Tatsuki's place, you're once again standing out in front of the Hakuba Shrine, looking up their far more intimidating front stair while the morning traffic bustles along behind you.
You ascend the stairs without incident, and as you near the top, you catch sight of Miss Suzuka exiting the main shrine building. There's a certain element of nervous haste in her movements, but it's not born out of fear - at least, not the kind of fear that comes from having monsters on your tail.
You will your magic away, and fade back into the visible spectrum.
"Miss Suzuka?"
"Who-!?" She looks your way with a start. "Oh, it's just you- I mean, good morning, Alex."
Her polite nod of greeting is a little frazzled.
"Good morning to you as well," you reply, with a respectful half-bow of your own. "Um... is everything alright?"
"Why wouldn't it be?" she inquires, with a bright smile.
"Because - and I apologize for saying this, but... you look a little... jumpy."
Suzuka pauses, and then sighs.
"I suppose I am, at that, but considering that Master Ginta has the leaders of a dozen local shrines and temples in there, all of them arguing with each other AND our kami AND THEIR kami... I think I'm entitled to be nervous!" Her words come faster and in a higher pitch as that sentence goes on, until she punctuates it with a sound that is just shy of a distressed shriek. The miko immediately winces at her own tone, takes a deep breath, and adds, "I'm so terribly sorry about that, Alex. I really didn't mean to scream at you, it's just..."
She gestures helplessly in the direction of the main shrine.
You turn and look closely at the building, letting your senses out. Although the heavier wood and stone portions of the structure are thick enough to at least interfere with your probes, the thin paper of the sliding door presents no real obstacle - and now that you're looking, and LOOKING, you can sense almost twice as many spiritual presence as Miss Suzuka mentioned, all but one of them inside the same room where you underwent a ritual purification not too long ago.
Three of those auras belong to the Hakuba priests, and you're able to match the fourth to Abbot Jason. The aura closest to the senior monk's is not immediately familiar, but it bears the similarities that arise from shared teachings, and after a moment's thought, you vaguely recognize it as belonging to one of the younger monks from the temple - not Tetsuo, who showed you around the place, but one of his peers.
The sixth aura bears traces of youki, in a pattern that doesn't ring any bells with you, and another presence - located clear across the room from the previous one, you note - feels like pure youki, albeit with a layer of spiritual training wrapped around the fierce life-force of a monster, not so much taming the wildness as cushioning it against exposure to the surrounding elements.
You've run into enough kitsune by now to know what one feels like, even if you honestly never expected to meet one that felt like a priest.
Fourteen of the remaining auras fail to stir even that much recognition in you. They're human, but they're also no one you've ever met, not even in passing.
As for the last aura, deeper in the shrine...
...that quiet, focused, incredibly pure aura cannot and does not belong to anything human. And it's DEFINITELY not a youkai.
And if you focus carefully, and compare that Presence to its mortal representatives, in addition to their guests...
Well, suffice it to say that Miss Suzuka wasn't kidding. With the exception of Abbot Jason, his escort, and three of the unfamiliar souls, every visiting group or independent priest in that room is accompanied by something or someone that carries a hint of divinity, and if they are too faint to be Presences in their own right, they're also entirely devoid of any hints of mortality.
They're not here in the proverbial flesh, like the being for whom the shrine is a proper home, but unless your senses deceive you, eight of the little gods have turned up via projection, in order to listen and weigh in on the very quiet argument currently taking place.
That's an awful lot of holiness to cram into one room.
"How long have they been here?" you wonder aloud.
"Abbot Jason and the other Buddhists arrived about twenty minutes ago," Miss Suzuka sighs. "The others started turning up yesterday afternoon. Not one of them has left since."
"...have they been arguing the whole time?" you ask morbidly.
"They take a break every hour or so, but aside from that? Yes." The priestess shakes her head. "Auntie is NOT happy with any of them right now."
...
Well. You have a room full of priests, monks, and kami, most of whom have apparently decided that sleep is for lesser men - either that, or the small gods are taking the load off for their followers - and spent the ENTIRE NIGHT engaged in a spirited discourse. Miss Suzuka hasn't said what the topic of discussion is, but given yesterday's events, you can guess.
"Right," you say. "Well, then. I suppose I should go announce myself."
"Are you sure you want to do that?" Miss Suzuka asks.
"Fairly sure," you reply. "If nothing else, the kami have probably noticed my presence by now and gotten curious. It'd be rude to keep them waiting, right?"
The miko's expression asks how you can possibly be so calm while talking about facing nine kami, their assorted representatives, THEIR attendants, and a handful of other holy men besides, all at once.
That said, she doesn't attempt to stop you.
Thanking Miss Suzuka for her time, you turn and march towards the main shrine. As you approach, you begin to hear the murmur of voices engaged in a heated debate - not shouting, not even raised, but thick with tension and purpose all the same. It sounds like at least three different conversations are going on at once, and those doing the talking aren't hesitant about interrupting each other.
Having no wish to be accused of eavesdropping, you do your best not to hear what's being said inside the shrine. Even so, you can't help but catch a few things:
"-lost for a reason-"
"-deny that, but-"
"-why are you-"
"-how many spiders-"
"-more concerned about the SIZE-"
"-me by my size-"
"Stop quoting Yoda, you old fart."
Of COURSE that would come through clearly.
Trying not to snicker, you remove your shoes before stepping onto the veranda - or maybe you should call it the engawa? - then walk over to the wooden frame of the main door, and knock politely against the beam to announce your presence.
The voices inside die down.
"Yes?" the voice of the eldest of the Hakuba priests calls.
"It's Alex Harris, sir. May I come in?"
"Of course, lad," the old man replies. "Just... ah... watch your step."
Frowning slightly, you slide the door open.
You blink once, in surprise. You were expecting it to be crowded, but this is... a bit much.
"As you can see," Hakuba Senior continues with a wry grin, "space is at something of a premium at the moment."
He's not kidding. The three resident shrinekeepers are sitting at the far end of the room, with Abbot Jason and his single escort seated to their immediate right, and three other men in the robes and shaved heads of practicing Buddhists just beyond. Everyone else in the room is dressed in the formal robes of the Shinto priesthood, and one of them is, as you noticed, a kitsune. Only one of his tails is on display, but judging by the strength of his youki, he has a few more in reserve. The other youki aura belongs to a man who could be human, if not for the greenish cast to his skin. The various kami you sensed are present in the form of self-contained auras, each of which hovers above and to one side of their highest-ranking priest - save for the Hakuba Shrine's resident kami, who's sitting in the next room, behind the thin, closed doors.
You wonder, in passing, why you never sensed the god on your previous visits. Was he asleep? Actively hiding his aura, maybe? Or could he simply have been out at the time, attending to some divine responsibility or even just taking a walk around the neighborhood?
On a related tangent, it's fortunate that the visiting kami are all doing variations on the hovering body of light trick, because aside from a narrow "corridor" right down the middle of the room, it's unlikely that there's even a full foot of unoccupied space between any two of the assembled clergymen.
Speaking of whom, unless you're imagining things, every priest save the kitsune and the possible-hanyou - the Buddhists don't count, as they're monks - has bags under his eyes. Considering that the senior priests all appear to be somewhere between Ginta and his father in terms of age, and that most of their escorts are middle-aged themselves, this doesn't paint the most welcoming picture.
You enter the room, wait a second for Briar to join you, and then slide the door shut. Then, moving carefully and nodding respectfully to the leading members of the assemblage - and the hovering presences of their patrons - you make your way down the narrow "corridor" to join the Hakubas. It takes a little repositioning by Ichirou and one of the less-aged priests, but a spot on the floor is cleared for you.
"Good morning, Mister Harris," Abbot Jason greets you, from across the room.
"Hey, Abbot."
For some reason, that simple greeting makes him laugh.
Hakuba Senior snickers, while Ginta sighs and mutters something under his breath.
It sounds like, "Who's on first?"
You glance at Ichirou, but he's clearly just as confused as you are.
Sometimes, old people are weird.
Speaking of which...
"Would anyone object if I were to cast a Spell of Restoration to wake everybody up?"
Your offer is greeted by... a distinct lack of surprised looks. Several of the holy men look around, taking in the appearance of their peers - you notice a few winces in the process - while others regard you neutrally, curiously, and/or suspiciously.
One man snorts. "We have no need of your foreign sorcery, boy."
"Manners, Taro," the eldest Hakuba chides him.
Taro glares at the old man. "This... person... suggests profaning a house of the kami, and you speak to ME of manners, Kojiro?"
"I do," Hakuba Senior answers firmly. "As for profaning the shrine, the young man has previously worked his magic in this very room, with my consent. Nothing in his power or the manner he wielded it was offensive."
"He does nice restoration work, too," Abbot Jason puts in.
"Some of us prefer to attend to such duties ourselves," another priest cuts in snidely.
There are some sharp looks at that. Even some of the hovering halos seem to... flicker... in disapproval.
"A commendable stance," Abbot Jason replies, completely unruffled. "Not always practical, or possible, but commendable all the same."
"Are you blaming the demons, then?" the priest retorts. "Demons that no one except this boy has noticed?"
You think of the fortune-teller who alerted you to the problem in the first place.
"I blame a lack of compassion," the old monk says, still calm. "And incidentally, young Alexander was not the first to warn my brethren that our efforts to restore our temple faced supernatural opposition. Not by some years, in fact."
The argumentative priest's expression says he respectfully doubts that statement.
You decide that the words of the two priests count as objection enough to your offer, the more so since, while they were the only ones rude enough to make implications and outright statements about you, some of the others seemed to have their own, unspoken reservations about having a spell cast on them by someone they'd never met before.
Given that, you decide to skip offering to cast another spell on them.
Before anyone can say anything, the kitsune priest raps his knuckles lightly against the floor.
"Gentlemen," he says lightly, "I believe we are getting off-topic. Again. And in light of the recent arrivals, we should probably start wrapping this meeting up, so that those of us who wish to speak with the Great Fairy when she arrives can do so, and those who wish to seek their beds may do THAT."
A murmur of agreement, and some chuckling, passes around the room.
"I still cannot believe we're seriously talking about fairies," a third priest says.
On your shoulder, Briar goes still.
Uh-oh.
One priest outright called your magic - and by extension, your person - profane. You might have been willing to let that go if he'd worded it differently or been less hostile about it, because you DO have a Demon King in your soul, you DO live on a Hellmouth, and you ARE a practicing sorcerer. The first two are good, rational, acceptable reasons for a person to have doubts about you, and the last is excusable for someone who knows that you wield sorcery, but isn't aware of the important distinction between the Hyrulean method and the local styles.
That said, this Taro person seemed to be going out of his way to be insulting, and the subtle stress he put on the word "foreign" suggests to you that a part of his problem with you is the fact you're not Japanese. Which is, quite frankly, no excuse at all. Plus, in his eagerness to cast aspersions at you, he also insulted the Hakubas, who've not only done you some solid favors, but have gone out of their way to be helpful to you, to the point where Ginta and Ichirou were risking their own lives.
Right on the heels of that open unfriendliness, you have the second priest and his snide insinuations about your trustworthiness. The fact that he was aiming his remarks at Abbot Jason suggest that it's the old monk's proper place to reply, but the Abbot is demonstrating a remarkable level of calm detatchment about the whole affair.
Then again, he is a Buddhist. Calm detatchment is sort of in the job description. And he might be taking the opportunity to try and teach the priest a lesson by example. That, or he's just making it clear WHICH of them is being openly disrespectful.
The third guy has basically admitted that he doesn't believe in fairies - or at the very least, that he doesn't believe they can amount to much. Normally, you'd leave well enough alone, sit back, and enjoy watching Briar's reaction to such a statement, but when it's taken in company with what the other two priests had to say, you're sort of obliged to speak up - on your friend's behalf, on her mother's behalf, and not least of all, on your own account.
Taking your cue from the kitsune, you rap your knuckles on the wooden floor. "Sorry to interrupt again, but may I say something?"
"Please," Hakuba Kojiro says.
You nod, and turn to face the room at large. "There appear to have been a few... misunderstandings... regarding myself and my associates, that should probably be cleared up."
The third priest winces. "This is about what I said about the fairies, isn't it?"
"In part," you admit. "If you'd like to explain what you meant...?"
"I would." He rubs his eyes. "I am... very much NOT used to thinking of fairies as beings of any real significance. Honestly, the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the term is, well... Tinkerbell."
There are some quiet chuckles at this.
"That's honestly not a bad example," you admit, "but the thing to keep in mind is that fairies like that are children. And I don't mean, 'they act like children,' I mean, 'they really ARE children.' It may take them a hundred years to get started on growing up, and a thousand to actually finish it, but they do grow up eventually. And an ADULT fairy is MUCH more impressive."
"Ginta did mention meeting a 'Great Fairy,'" the priest admits. "She sounds... very impressive indeed."
"Did he also mention that one of her daughters is my teacher in magic?" you ask in an idle tone.
The room gets VERY quiet at that. At least until the kitsune, the green-skinned man, and the oldest-looking of the human priests all start chuckling.
You're paying attention to the priest Taro, and you're not ashamed to admit that it is VERY gratifying, seeing the color drain from his face as he absorbs the implications.
"Ah..." The priest you've been addressing starts to glance towards Taro, before catching himself. "Actually, no. That part never came up."
"It may have slipped my mind," Ginta replies, a certain satisfaction evident in his tone as he does NOT look Taro's way.
"The last few days WERE very busy," you say in support of your ally.
"They were at that."
"On that note," the kitsune interjects, aiming a downright vicious smile across the room at Taro, "which of us will at least be staying to meet the Great Fairy?"
Glances are exchanged, words voiced.
Taro silently gets to his feet, performs a jerky bow towards the room in general, another to the Hakubas - and, you suspect, to the kami beyond them - and then makes for the door.
The divine presence that had been hovering at his shoulder - and which has moved back to hang near a startled-looking acolyte - seems to turn from side to side, like an unseen head was shaking in disappointment.
Not quite the apology you were looking for, but you'll take it, with relish.
Before the meeting can proceed any further, you sense Navi's aura appear outside the shrine gate - and an instant later, there is a high-pitched scream of terror.
Briar and the two youkai start laughing.
"Sounds like your mother's here, Briar," you note, as you get to your feet.
"Yeah," the fairy snickers. "Let's go see what she did to the jerk."
Several of the younger priests had been trading glances, as if trying to decide who would get up to investigate what you all just heard. Most of them appear relieved when you - and Ichirou alongside you - stand up and make your way to the shrine door. You let Ichirou slide the door open, and step out onto the engawa.
As your senses informed you, Navi has foregone her previous method of plucking you and the two Hakubas from the top of the shrine, and appeared in person. In addition, while she's not being especially overt in her appearance, she's also letting it be clear at a glance that she is NOT human - her hair has been arranged so that it doesn't hide her ears, her wings are extended and fluttering slightly, and of course, she's glowing, although the nimbus of light is fading even as you watch.
At the moment, the Great Fairy is looking down at Taro, who has collapsed in what appears to be a dead faint, just inside the arch of the torii.
You can't be sure at this distance and angle, but you think you see a smirk on Navi's face.
"Hi, Mom!" Briar calls out, flying on ahead as you slide your shoes back on. "Having fun?"
Navi looks up. "Just a little, dear," she replies, holding her right hand up with thumb and forefinger an inch apart. And yes, she is DEFINITELY smirking. "I honestly can't remember the last time someone fainted just at the sight of me."
"And it couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy," Briar snickers.
"True." The Great Fairy turns to you and Ichirou as you approach, and the amusement fades from her expression. "Young master Hakuba," she says formally. "Do I have your kami's permission to enter his domain?"
"You do, Lady Navi," Ichirou answers with a bow. "And please, be welcome."
She returns the gesture, folds her wings, and - stepping lightly around Taro - crosses the threshold.
You glance at the unconscious priest. Funny or not, should you really be leaving him there?
You're tempted to just leave Taro where he is, but the fact that he was a rude jerk doesn't mean you have to act in a similar manner.
Indeed, some people would say that being polite, considerate, and helpful to the man would be the best way to encourage him to improve his behavior.
Then again, some people will say anything.
Still...
You glance at Ichirou. "Is there somewhere we could put this guy until he recovers?"
"Laying him out on the engawa should be fine," the young priest replies. He crouches and slides his hands under the older man's arms.
"Hang on," you tell him, before he stands up. "I could just levitate him over there for you."
"You could, but he's here by my family's invitation, so that makes it my responsibility. Besides," Ichirou adds, grimacing, "I don't think this one incident will be enough to shock Master Taro into abandoning his prejudices, in which case he would NOT be happy to find that you used magic on him without his consent."
There isn't much you can say to that.
"...let me get his legs, at least," you sigh.
"Thank you. On three?"
You're strong enough to make a significant contribution to the effort, but in the end, most of the work of carrying Taro's weight falls on Ichirou. Fortunately, he's equal to the task, at least for the short distance involved.
"The man is... determined... to be a... hassle..." you mutter.
"From what Father tells me... it's a habit of his," Ichirou agrees.
Navi and Briar observe in silence as the two of you manhandle the unconscious priest like an oversized sack of potatoes. Once you have maneuvered Taro onto the low porch, near the corner of the building, the Great Fairy clears her throat.
"Well, then. Shall we go in?"
"It's crowded in there, Mom," Briar notes.
"I'm aware, Briar."
"I'm just saying."
When you and Ichirou remove your shoes, Navi takes note, and lifts her bare right foot to cast a minor spell of cleansing on it, before stepping onto the engawa. She repeats the process with her left foot, and by then Ichirou is in place to open the door.
Navi takes in the room full of priests, monks, and kami, and bows her head. "Gentlemen, ladies."
...and some of the kami are apparently girls. You honestly hadn't noticed.
Some shuffling is required to make room for Navi, but no one says a word of objection as she takes a spot on the floor between you and the Hakubas.
As the Great Fairy is settling in, you take a moment to think.
Is there anything you'd like to ask Navi, or the assembled eminences?
Navi's arrival appears to have galvanized the gathered holy men, because when the question is put forward of which of them would like to join the planned "expedition" to Faerie, not one soul chooses to remain behind.
This doesn't prevent a few of the more mystically-adept from inquiring what will be involved in making the trip, or a general round of questions about where they're going and what they should or should NOT do once they get there, but Navi fields those inquiries easily enough.
Fifteen minutes later, your greatly-expanded party begins filing out of the shrine and retrieving their shoes. A few members pull out cellphones - something that makes you blink - while the remainder hurry over to the house to borrow the land-line. From what you can hear, it's a round of last minute check-ins, confirmation to shrines, subordinates, family, and friends that yes, they really are going to go through with this.
While the holy men tie up loose ends, you ask Navi if she'd object to you observing the spell she's going to cast to transport all these passengers.
She has no objection to you using your conventional senses, but warns against use of your Power-based sensory skills. They're too active, and likely to interfere with the formation of the portal.
Fair enough.
You cast a Spell of Augmentation, honing your mental faculties in general and your recall in particular, so that what you observe in the next few minutes will retain full clarity and detail.
Gained Augmentation B
You may not understand Summoning Magic QUITE well enough to pull off plane-shifting on your own yet, but a "recording" of a live demonstration of how it's done, complete with magical sensory input, will do wonders for your efforts to develop that capability in the not-too-distant future.
Navi is just about to begin casting the spell when she pauses and glances down the step.
"A late arrival?" she wonders aloud.
The priests look surprised, until a man with Western features clears the top step. He's around Ichirou's age, and unlike everyone else here except for you and the fairies, he's not wearing the traditional garments of the Shinto priesthood or Buddhist monks. Instead, he's clad in a simple black jacket, shirt, and pants, with a white collar and a small, plain cross.
"James!" Ichirou calls out. "You're late!"
"I am, and I am... terribly sorry about that," the... priest... replies, as he pauses on the top stair. Although he seems to be in good shape, he currently looks and sounds quite out of breath. "I only received permission... from the nuncio about an hour ago, and then... there was..."
He trails off as he stares at the crowd, paying particular attention to Navi, the halos representing the kami... and you.
Um.
"Introductions will have to wait, Deacon," Ginta interjects. "We were just about to leave."
"Leave? Oh, yes... um. By all means." James enters the gate, coming to stand next to Ichirou, and then quietly asks, "Are you sure we're not going to Hell?"
"I know the Church has bad history with the Fae, James," Ichirou begins.
"I just want to be sure this isn't some new way of paying the Teind that the Courts have come up with," the deacon replies.
You stop paying attention to the two young men as Navi steps outside the shrine proper, magic gathering about her. She raises one hand, mana surges, and the air above the topmost level of the shrine stair shimmers, warps, and tears open, forming a semi-circular HOLE a good twenty feet across, and ten feet tall at its highest point.
On the other side of the hole, you can clearly see the standing stones that mark the entrance to the Memorian Outpost, surrounded by the lush greenery and distinctive magic-charged atmosphere of Faerie.
James says something in a language you don't recognize, but which sounds a little Latin.
There are similar exclamations from the rest of the assembly.
"That earlier offer of a restoration spell is still open," you say. As the priests and monks turn to you, you add, "I mean, it's not every day you get to visit another plane of existence, and then come BACK. It just seems to me like the kind of thing you'd want to be wide awake for."
"I think you can safely assume we are ALL wide awake now, Alex," Ginta notes, glancing at the space-in-space.
There is a round of nods and chuckles at that.
"If that's settled, then," Navi cuts in, "can we get a move on? I can only keep this open for so long."
You step forward at once, followed by Ichirou, Ginta, and Kojiro. Deacon James hesitates for a moment before following, and the old priest who cackled at Taro's misfortune earlier does so again, uttering, "Banzai!" as he joins you, the aura of his kami floating along in his wake.
There is some understandable hesitation when the priests and monks reach the threshold of the Gate, and have to deal with the visual spectacle of one reality overlapping with another, the implications of the sheer power and skill on display, and the shock of transitioning from Earth to the Realm of the Fae - or rather, the complete LACK of shock. Those emotions don't fade in the least once they're on the other side, and you have to politely remind more than one holy man to stand clear of the passage between worlds, and please not POKE the portal.
Despite all this, the crossing is made without incident. Navi is the last one through, sealing the breach with the same casual effort that she opened it.
For a moment, all is quiet.
Then someone laughs. It's a woman's voice, but it's not Navi.
The next thing you know, nine people in positively archaic Japanese robes have appeared amidst the glowing haloes. Three of them are indeed female, and one of these appears to be a very young woman - if she were human, you'd put her in her late teens, at best - who is both laughing and crying as she hugs the oldest priest to within an inch of his life.
The old man doesn't seem to mind. He just pats the kami - well, megami, you guess - on the back and murmurs gentle reassurances to her.
The other divinities are not so physically demonstrative, but there is a general air of relief and delight in their manner as they greet their priests face-to-face. And among the priests, there isn't a one who doesn't look amazed and wondering - not even the Hakubas.
You can't help but scowl at the implications. Have the rules governing mortal and divine interactions on Earth prevented these kami from even showing their FACES to their followers? Even on the grounds of their own SHRINES?
What. The. Hell?
Shaking off your building anger, you look around. The Buddhists and Deacon James are, like you, watching the goings-on of their associates. Navi spares a moment to the do the same, but most of her attention is directed away from the ground - and from the ruins AND the area where the Gate stood, for that matter.
This is the third time in as many days that Navi has transported a group of mortals from Earth to Faerie. This particular group was by far the largest that she's moved, it includes a number of kami besides, AND she used a significantly more powerful spell to enable this particular crossing.
Navi's very good at controlling the emanations of her magic, but creating a Gate is a ninth-tier magic no matter which way you come at it. You have first-hand evidence that it's every bit as spectacular a display to behold in the magical spectrum as it is to see with the Mark One Eyeball - and quite a bit more so, besides.
In short, it's exactly the kind of spell you'd be reluctant to use, for fear of attracting attention. Especially from the sort of higher, lower, and other Powers that interfered with your communion with the Golden Goddesses, back at the Shuzens'.
And the way Navi is looking off to the... south, you think... as if there were something hidden behind the line of trees that was so much more interesting than an exuberant crowd of mortals and divinities, greeting one another like long-lost relatives...
Carefully not looking towards the forest yourself, you quietly say, "What has your attention, ma'am?"
"We have an unexpected and uninvited observer," she replies calmly.
"Demonic?" you ask.
"Fae," she answers.
...huh.
Well, at the very least, it's not AS bad as you were thinking. Could still be pretty bad, though.
"Nothing, for the moment," Navi replies. "I can't make out who or what it is from this distance, not with how fast it dove for cover when it realized I was looking in its direction, but judging by the strength of its aura, I'm fairly certain it's one of the lesser Fae."
Curious, you try to reach out towards the treeline with your non-visual senses, trying to filter out the rich ambient energy of the Faerie Realm and home in on the more concentrated essence of an independent life-form. Eliminating the sense of air and soil from consideration is easy, and grass requires only a slight effort.
"By itself, it's no danger," Navi goes on. "No lesser Fae with half a brain would make trouble in the presence of this many gods, even if they are far from home, and even the ones dumb or bloodthirsty enough to take a risk like that aren't going to risk crossing ME."
Flowers and underbrush take some actual work to sort out, and the trees are a particular problem. Normally, even the largest and liveliest plants don't pose such an obstacle to aura scans, but Faerie is all but overflowing with the raw, vital energy of the natural world, completely untainted by mundane pollution or mystical corruption. The trees that grow on this plane are ALIVE in ways few trees in the Mortal Plane ever manage to become, at least not without intelligent intervention of a spiritual or magical nature - the Sacred Tree of the Higurashi Shrine is the only one that really comes to mind, at least in this lifetime.
"The problem is what happens when we leave," Navi continues. "As soon as I take my attention off of our friend out there, it's going to bolt, and if it gets away... well, if it's just an animal or similarly simple-minded denizen of the forest, there's a good chance that nothing will come of this."
Still, while you're quite certain that there are at least some plant-like entities roaming the deeper parts of this enchanted forest, the trees here don't feel quite that mystically potent. In the end, they're still just plants.
Whatever's hiding amongst them, is distinctly not. You can sense a predatory spirit, and a magical signature similar to the one you picked up from the Faerie gold - not the aura of the metal or the spells that were sleeping within it, but that other magic, the one that didn't feel like it was meant to do anything except exist.
Thinking back on that energy, and comparing it to this aura, as well as the auras of the world around you... there is a resemblance. It's not a perfect match, by any means, but the energy that was in those curse-bearing coins is very much like that in the air above you, the earth beneath you, and the forest before you.
"If it's intelligent, on the other hand," Navi says seriously, "I think you'd have to assume that it will talk to SOMEONE about seeing us here. Maybe just kin and neighbors in the woods. Or maybe to a leader amongst the local Fae. I doubt it answers to a Lord - we'd have been shot at or something long before now if this area were formally claimed by Summer or Winter - but that doesn't mean that something powerful doesn't consider this its domain."
For that matter, the energy feels a bit like Briar and Navi, too.
A generic "Faerie essence," then? Perhaps their equivalent of ki or youki?
Gained Fairy Sense E
Gained Fairy Sight E
Although you're able to determine that it's there, you can't get a very good reading on the Faerie creature hiding behind the trees. The distance is too great, the cover too thick, and the local interference far too strong. Honestly, if not for the malformed familiar bond and your other senses, you wouldn't be able to detect Briar through your sense of fairy energy - and she's right next to you!
You're also annoyed to note that you can't tell whether or not the being you're trying to suss out is intelligent.
"Personally, I'd be just as happy to let our audience of one take off," Navi says. "But then, I don't have any plans of coming back here after today. Somehow, I get the impression that's not the case for you."
She's not wrong.
Well, then. Navi's admitted a lack of interest in dealing with the matter. Looks like you'll have to take action.
You already tried scanning for psychic activity amongst the trees, and got nothing, not even a sense of being watched by something of animal-level intelligence. Either your audience of one is shielded against telepathic sweeps of your admittedly modest level of ability, or it's deep enough under cover that it's effectively out of your scanning area.
While you could resort to magic in this situation, your reserves are low enough that you'd rather not, as long as doing so could be reasonably avoided.
Instead, you turn to face the same wooded area Navi is watching, and take a few steps forward, keeping your pace and posture relaxed and non-threatening. You don't want to spook whatever it is that you're dealing with.
"We know you're there," you call out.
Behind you, the murmur of conversation between priests and kami comes to a halt.
"We have no hostility towards you, and won't attack unless we're attacked first. Will you come out and speak with us, please?"
...
It's eerie. One second, there's nothing obvious, and the next, there's a Fae creature standing on the edge of the woods, squinting warily at you.
You're too far away to have heard the undergrowth rustle, but you have a feeling that even if you were a lot closer, you wouldn't have heard a sound. Certainly, you didn't SEE any hint of disturbance among the plants. Not so much as a leaf was displaced when the creature before you made its appearance.
On that subject, what you're looking at is easily the least human-like Faerie creature you've seen so far. Rather than an extraordinarily good-looking person in a suit or dress or a woman with pointy ears and shimmering insect wings, the creature looks like someone took a small tree and bound its roots and branches together into rough approximations of humanoid legs, arms, and a head. Instead of skin, it has bark, a light coating of moss in a few places, and some clinging vines. Instead of fingers and toes, it has gnarled, root-like protrusions - the ones on the ends of its arms, at least, are flexing nervously. Instead of hair, there's a nest of leaf-bearing twigs. And the eyes looking back at you are not fleshy orbs, but rather resemble amber, only softer and glistening.
The whole creature is barely two feet tall.
Below the jewel-like eyes, a crease in the bark widens into a mouth, from which echoes a faint, creaking voice. The words it speaks aren't in any Earthly language, but you recognize them from your lessons with Briar; the creature is speaking the common language of the lesser Fae and mystical woodland creatures, known to most as Sylvan.
Your understanding of the language isn't the best, but it's enough to get the gist of what's being said, which boils down to: "Who are you, what do you want, and please don't set me on fire."
Gained Sylvan E
"What IS it, Briar?" you ask, while Navi starts reassuring the little... tree-person... that you don't mean it any harm, and are certainly not going to set it on fire.
"Treekin, I think," she replies. "Think Deku Scrubs, only without the sense of humor - and they don't shoot exploding nuts at you."
"Oh, that's good."
"Yeah, if they get angry, they just throw rocks. Or animate the trees around them and have them trample you."
...damn it, Briar.
"How likely is it that this treekin is on its own?" you venture.
"Pretty UN-likely," Briar admits. "Despite what it looks like, they're not just trees come to life; they're their own species. So there's probably a couple of adults wandering around not too far away."
"Are they friendly?"
"To plants, sure. With everyone who's made of meat, they're pretty much live and let live, until someone starts a fire or cuts down a tree. Then it's all GRRRRAAAARRRRGH and marching forests tearing up everything that doesn't run fast enough."
You ask Navi to let the treekin know that you're going to cast a spell, on yourself, in order to help you communicate with it.
She does so, and the little creature shifts in what you take to be a nervous manner, before saying, "Go on, then."
You quickly cast the Spell of Tongues, and then ask, "Can you understand me?"
"I can," the treekin replies. Then it asks, "What are you?"
"To answer all of your questions, in order," you say, before pausing to take a deep breath. "My name is Alex; I am personally here to talk to some friends in the area; most of the rest of the group with me is here so that they can speak to their gods; I have no intention of setting anyone or anything on fire at the moment-"
The treekin makes another of those fidgeting motions at the mention of fire, and this one is DEFINITELY nervous.
"-and I'm human."
"YOU'RE WHAT?!"
Now it's your turn to blink. You weren't expecting a reaction like THAT.
"You brought a HUMAN here?!" the little plant-like fey demands of Navi. "You brought-" It stops in mid-sentence and turns sharply towards the rest of your party - it doesn't have much in the way of a neck - and stares at the thirty-odd figures gathered behind you. Then it swings back to face Navi. "You brought ALL these humans?!"
"I did," the Great Fairy replies, sounding almost as startled by the sudden vehemence as you feel.
"No, no, no! Bad! Very bad! Humans are no good! They're trouble! The last time this many humans came around, they brought strange magic and tore up the earth, they killed one of the Lords of the Big Folk and got the other Big Folk all upset, they hunted us, they brought IRON and FIRE, and THEY CUT DOWN TREES!"
It seems pretty clear to you which of those offenses the treekin considers to be the most grievous. Not a great deal of loyalty between the Fae Lords and their minor cousins, apparently.
"And now you bring MORE humans?" it goes on, glaring at Navi. "What kind of fairy are you?"
The Great Fairy blinks, and then starts to frown suspiciously at the tiny Fae.
"Hey!" Briar shouts. "Don't talk to my Mom that way!"
"Don't tell me what to do, bug!"
"WHAT did you call me?!"
"You heard me! Bug! Big-mouthed firefly!"
"Why, you... you... splinter-faced little brat!"
"Dust shedder!"
"Termite bait!"
"I think we're going to stop right there," Navi says firmly, right before she releases a faint pulse of Enchantment magic. What you sense of the spell looks and feels a lot like the Spell to Hold a Person, but there's an added undercurrent of Fae energy.
Briar and the treekin let out simultaneous "Urks" of surprise, before going still. Briar begins to drift slowly sideways, caught in a faint breeze.
With a casual motion that implies long, LONG practice, Navi plucks her daughter out of the air and sets Briar down on your shoulder. Then she marches over to the frozen treekin, leans down, and studies it closely.
"I thought so," she says, before she grabs the hapless critter by the scruff of what passes for its neck, drags it back the way she came - her expression now visibly annoyed - and almost literally plants her captive in front of you.
Up close, that earlier impression you got of the creature's limbs being branches and roots bound together in the shape of humanoid limbs is only strengthened. The vines - which you can now see bristle with small thorns - are quite literally TIED around the little Fae's body, holding patches of bark in place like a strange parody of clothing. Some care was taken to make the different sections overlap in a way that wouldn't hinder motion, and patches of moss appear to have been cultivated to hide or at least soften the seams, but at this range, you can see what lies beneath. Instead of a solid body, it's more like a bunch of bundled-up twigs, held together by bramble and more vines. And there's something off about the eyes, which aren't tracking you or Navi, and instead just stare unblinkingly ahead.
Frowning, you look up at Navi. "Did the treekin do something wrong, ma'am?"
Even under a spell of paralysis, the tiny Fae twitches.
"This isn't a treekin," the Great Fairy tells you firmly. "Although it's gone to some lengths to try to disguise itself as one, and done a fair job of it, it seems to have forgotten that treekin are not NEARLY that quick to make accusations - or to act in GENERAL. No, THIS hot-tempered little sneak is a twigjack." When she names the creature, Navi's voice is entirely disapproving.
"Bad news?" you venture.
"Bad enough that we kick them out of the Lost Woods if they ever try to move in," is the response. "These little pests harass mortals who wander into forests, or live nearby - and I don't mean like Skull Kids. Twigjacks will sneak into homes and break tools, rile up local animals until someone gets hurt, or just spray splinters in people's faces. Preferably AFTER surprising the heck out of them, so that their eyes are as wide as possible."
...ugh, that's nasty.
Gained Faerie Lore E
Gained Sylvan E (Plus)
You find yourself seriously reconsidering making friendly overtures to such a creature. You DO still want that information about the region and who - and what - lives here, but if the twigjack is as unfriendly towards humans as Navi makes it sound, being nice may not convince it to part with what it knows. Perhaps you should exploit your not-inconsiderable advantage of size, and intimidate it into talking instead?
You're tempted.
Din help you, you are SORELY tempted to take Navi's obvious dislike of the twigjack as your cue, make yourself out to be the reasonable, friendly, helpful "good cop" to her I-know-what-you-are-and-I-kick-your-kind-out-of-my-forest "bad cop," and start wringing every last bit of information that you can out of the little bundle of brambles.
However, you have an audience. One made up of priests, monks, and small gods, most of whom are still forming their impressions of you. And you don't feel that watching you take part in an interrogation of a much smaller and weaker creature, even if you ARE playing the nice guy, is going to help your image with them.
Abbot Jason's already suggested that you might be a hengeyoukai, even if only to Hakuba Koujiro. You doubt that watching you exploit another creature's fears for your own benefit would do anything to dissuade him of that notion, or make it sound any less likely to those he might share the idea with later on.
Instead, you decide to ask Navi what her recommendation is. In a voice just loud enough to carry to the crowd, you admit that she has way more experience in dealing with the Fae than you do, on account of actually BEING Fae herself, and knowing their rules in a way you never will.
"If we were in the Lost Woods, I'd get rid of it," she replies firmly. "But I don't know whose domain we're in - if there even IS one - or what their policy is towards pest control."
She snaps her fingers, dispelling her spell of paralysis.
The twigjack immediately flinches away from her. "Please don't hurt me! No fire!"
"Stop snivelling, listen carefully, and answer truthfully," Navi tells it.
It shuts up at once.
"Who leads the Fae of this forest?"
"N-no one! We have no Lords or Ladies, no Big Folk! Just us Little Folk."
"And when was the last time that there were any Big Folk in the forest?"
"Not since the humans drove them off."
"Have the Little Folk enjoyed the absence of the Big Folk?" Navi presses.
"...yes," the twigjack admits.
"They would prefer there not be NEW Big Folk in the forest?"
"Yes."
"Then go and tell them that a Great Fairy is passing through with some companions. I already claim a forest far from here as my home; I don't need another one. As long as the Little Folk of the forest leave me and my companions alone, I'll leave them alone."
The twigjack's mouth creaks into a frown, as it turns slightly towards the group. "And the humans?"
"Are not going to be staying long," Navi says. "They will have returned home within three hours."
The plant-like entity turns its frown on Navi, and asks, "Will they come back?"
Gained Sylvan E (Plus) (Plus)
Navi glances at you, an unspoken question in her eyes.
"Personally," you say, "I plan on coming back here. Not tomorrow, and maybe not soon, but one day."
Alien features or no, you have no difficulty whatsoever seeing the twigjack's scowl for what it is.
"I don't have any reason to go into the forest right now," you continue. "My interest is in the ruins. That said, I can't guarantee that I won't end up in the forest at some point, whether it's due to an accident on my part or someone else's deliberate action. All I can promise you is that I don't intend any harm to the trees or those who live under them, and that if I do find myself where I'm not wanted, I'll do my best to leave at once - most likely by teleporting straight here." You don a stern, cautionary expression. "But I can also promise you that if something or someone in there tries to threaten me, I WILL defend myself. The same goes for anyone that's with me."
The scowl deepens. "Human promises," the twigjack jeers, making it sound like a curse. "What are those worth? Nothing, that's what!"
"Not even when the promise is made in the presence of a Great Fairy?" Navi muses lightly.
"I didn't say that," the tiny Fae adds hastily.
"So you agree that a promise made by a human while in the presence of a Great Fairy IS worth something?" you ask.
That gets you a dirty look. "It's LESS worthless, anyway," the twigjack mutters.
"Then you can tell the other Little Folk what the boy has promised, and that his word is vouched for by Navi of the Lost Woods of Hyrule," said Great Fairy proclaims.
Gained Less-Worthless Promise
"Navi. Lost Woods. Hyrule," the twigjack mumbles to itself. It repeats the names twice, and then nods. "Got it."
"Good. Now go."
The little Fae doesn't need to be told twice. Whirling about where it stands, it makes a break for the trees, showing a remarkable turn of speed as it crosses the distance in about the same amount of time that you'd require to run it - minus any and all of your enhancements, anyway. For a creature not much taller than one of your legs is long, that's pretty impressive.
When the twigjack reaches the treeline, it vanishes into the green shadows without so much as a whisper of displaced leaves.
"Yeah, you'd better run," Briar mutters in a sulky tone.
"Nice to hear from you again, partner," you say.
"Well, excuse me for being enspelled!"
"You're excused," you say, before doing a double-take at Navi, who said and did exactly the same thing.
Little spooky, there.
Clearing your throat, you go on. "So, speaking partner to partner, Briar, tell me: can I trust that little creep?"
"To be intimidated by Mom enough to tell the other Little Folk of the wood EXACTLY what she told it to, no creative embellishments or 'accidental' edits? Yes. To hold you to the letter of your promise, come Hell or high water? Also yes. To NOT do everything in its power to provoke you into breaking your given-and-attested word, without actually LOOKING like it was doing so? Not a Zora's chance in Death Mountain."
"Yes," Navi cuts in. "You'll definitely want to be on the lookout for that, Alex. I'd hate to have to discipline you for dragging MY name through the dirt along with yours."
The cheerful tone and bright smile with which that warning is delivered leaves you with a certain doubt about the truth of her words.
"But, since there are no greater Fae in the woods, you don't have to worry about the Little Folk betraying your presence. In their minds, they stand to lose far more than you do, if the Courts were to turn their eyes this way. A thousand years of freedom from the Fae Lords and their games?" Navi shakes her head. "The Little Ones aren't going to risk giving that up for anything less than the threat of annihilation."
You nod. That's about what you expected, honestly, and it's all you really wanted to be sure of.
At least for the time being.
Gained Fairy Lore E (Plus)
Gained King of Fairies E (Plus)
Gained Sylvan E (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
The matter of the Faeries tabled for now, you turn back to the crowd of priests, monks, and kami. "My apologies for the delay, everyone."
"No apology necessary, Alexander," Kojiro replies. "Although... what WAS that little creature, and what did it do to upset Lady Navi?"
After you get through explaining things to your traveling companions, what do you wish to do next?
It only takes a couple of minutes for you to catch the holy people up on what transpired between you and the three Fae, and to impress on everyone the importance of not wandering near the trees, just in case any of the twigjack's neighbors show up. They appear to take your warnings to heart, especially after the kitsune and the green-skinned priest agree with your statement that there are distinct similarities between the Fae and youkai.
They'd know better than most.
With Navi on-hand to act as a representative for the Golden Goddesses, as well as a deterrent to any mischief from the locals, you feel comfortable with leaving the priests, monks, and kami to their holy deliberations, while you go check on the ghosts.
You're a bit surprised when Ginta and Ichirou offer to accompany you back into the base.
"You don't have to come with me this time, you know," you tell them.
"We probably didn't have to come with you the last two times, either," Ichirou replies wryly.
His father shoots him a look, and then turns to you. "We were with you when you started this little adventure," Ginta says. "It only seems fitting that we should see it through to the end."
You don't really have any objection to some company other than Briar, and Ginta's right; there IS a certain sense of symmetry to having him and Ichirou along for this. But...
"Are you sure Mister Kojiro won't need either of you?"
The eldest of the Hakuba priests waves off your concern. "I'm not so old that I can't handle a debate with a bunch of other old men." He grins briefly, and then sobers. "Besides, I'm far from alone."
Your gaze drifts slightly towards the quietly radiant presence of the Hakuba Shrine's kami, and then back to Kojiro, as you nod.
The man's god is literally with him. There's really nothing more that needs to be said.
When you cross through the portal this time, you find a four-man squad of ghosts standing the watch inside. One of them says something to you-
Gained Latin E
-and you're surprised to discover that, even though the magic-dispelling ward on the portal has stripped away your Spell of Tongues, you can still understand the greeting.
For all that you had a translation spell running constantly since you met Captain Marcus yesterday, you didn't really spend all that much time actually talking to any of the Memorian ghosts. Looks like you absorbed more than you were expecting.
"Welcome back, Sorcerer," the lead spectral soldier says. A moment later, he nods to the Hakubas as they finish phasing through the portal. "Priests. The Captain left orders for us to escort you to the command room as soon as you arrived."
"I understood that," Ichirou murmurs in amazement.
"As did I," Ginta admits.
"Gnrk," Briar groans from your shoulder.
"If you'll come with us," the ghost says, half-turning to gesture towards the long hall beyond the portal chamber.
It's a fair distance from the portal to the command room, giving you plenty of time to ask your escort a few questions about any new developments over the last twenty-four hours. On the other hand, these are low-ranking soldiers. Odds are Marcus could answer all the questions they could, and more besides.
"A moment, please," you ask the soldier.
He pauses, and you look down at your shoulder. "Briar? You going to be alright?"
"Hrrrg," the little fairy replies. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Eventually. Really, though, this is no worse than yesterday."
"As long as you're sure," you tell her.
"I might be able to help with that," Ginta offers. There is an unusual tentativeness in his voice.
You glance at him, and sense Briar shifting on your arm to do the same.
"While I'm hardly experienced at treating a fairy suffering from... whatever effect it is that the protections of this place have," the priest says, "I know a number of prayers for health and wellness. While their effectiveness was limited on Earth..." He trails off meaningfully.
What do you think of the unspoken offer?
With Briar attended to, you fall in behind the speaking soldier, with Ginta and Ichirou behind you, and a second ghost bringing up the rear. As you proceed into the base, you calmly re-cast the Spell of Tongues, paying a small amount of extra mana so that you can extend the effect to your two priestly companions.
You're not THAT good at speaking or understanding Latin yet. Best to have the clarity of magically-enhanced comprehension before you get into a detailed discussion of anything, with any of the spirits.
There's a certain temptation to keep quiet as you walk and save your questions for Marcus. As the base commander, he's not only likely - and even REQUIRED - to know more about what's going on than any of his men, he's also got enough responsibilities in the here-and-now to keep from slipping back into the state of time-lost absent-mindedness that afflicted him on your first meeting.
But the walk to the command room is not a short one, nor is it particularly interesting, now that all the monsters have been driven out. Not to mention that there are some topics on your mind that, in all frankness, aren't really worthy of the good captain's time.
Besides. Magical fluency or not, you could use some additional practice in conversing in Latin before you talk to Marcus again. And when are you ever going to get another opportunity to chat with actual native speakers? It's a dead language, after all.
"Has Magus Hermanus recovered from yesterday's... discorporation?" you ask.
"Not yet, sir," the lead ghost answers, as you cross the chamber where you fought the mother Gohma. "We have reason to believe he'll return in a few more days, though. The Captain and the more magically-adept officers have confirmed that his presence in the command room is still strong."
"That's good to hear," you note. "What of the other soldiers that fell in the battle? Have any chosen to move on?"
"None that we're aware of, as yet." And unless your ears deceive you, there is pride in that answer. "Of course, none have re-appeared yet, either, but..."
"Cato always was lazy," the ghost at the back notes.
"And Paulus wasn't much better," the spirit ahead of you agrees.
The chat is interupted as you come to the breach in the floor. Even if the ghosts had the means to repair the damage, there hasn't been nearly enough time for it, and they've made no attempt to mitigate the presence of the gaping hole by sliding wooden planks across it, stringing up a rope bridge, or something else of that nature. Then again, most of the materials they could have used for such would have rotted past the point of usefulness centuries ago. And it's not as if the GHOSTS need it.
Although that said, neither of your escorts appear entirely comfortable with their newfound ability to traverse empty air. Indeed, they're both quite content to stand there by the edge, giving you all the time you need to ritually-cast the same modified Spell of Levitation you used to allow your party to navigate the chasm yesterday. Only when you and the Hakubas begin to float across the gap do the ghosts make the short journey themselves - one running and refusing to look down, the other seemingly unable to do anything BUT stare into the darkness beneath his insubstantial feet.
Once across, your trek resumes, your lead escort picking up the pace a bit as if to make up for lost time - or perhaps just to put some distance between himself and the great gaping hole that was forcing him to acknowledge his current state of existence. He seems quite eager to continue your conversation, as well.
Gained Latin E (Plus)
At least until you mention that there are nine gods, twice as many priests, AND a Great Fairy parked in the base's front yard.
The soldier actually stops, turns, and stares at you. "You didn't think to mention that SOONER?"
You blink, unsure of how to respond.
Ginta's offer has you glancing at the unwell fairy on your shoulder, and then back to the priest.
"I think that sounds like a good idea," you admit. "Unless you've got an objection to being prayed for, Briar?"
"Murgle."
You'll take that as a, "No objections, now shut up and make with the divine mercy, already."
Ginta seems to have acquired some fluency in Briarspeak, as he nods his head in affirmation, clasps his hands together, and begins praying.
You watch intently, magical and spiritual eyes peeled, so to speak, as power builds about the priest. It doesn't take more than a few seconds for you to recognize the Spell of Restoration - the lesser version, mind you, which doesn't require the expenditure of diamond dust.
As the divine power reaches a peak - and the Memorian ghosts fall back a step - Ginta very carefully reaches out towards Briar.
After a second, the fairy reaches back, clasping the end of the priest's index finger with her right hand.
The spell discharges.
"Whooo," Briar sighs. "That does feel better. Thanks, Ginta."
The elder Hakuba nods, smiling. "You are most welcome."
"It's the kind of thing that's hard to drop into the start of a conversation," you tell the ghost frankly.
In the shadows under his helmet, you see two faded out, slightly luminous eyes blink.
Then he snorts. "It is at that."
"And it's really the Captain I need to talk to about it," you add.
"Also true," the soldier agrees without hesitation. "And on that note... let's get you to him."
The rest of the trip to the command room is made in silence. You pass a few ghosts along the way, but only eight in total: one four-man squad is coming from the control room and heading towards the mines; and another such team stands guard in the great hall, flanking the entrance to the tunnel where the large security golems were stationed.
"Allies to speak with the Captain," your lead escort reports.
"They're expected," one of the guards answers.
And just like that, you're ushered into the corridor and down into the command room.
When you enter, you find that Captain Marcus is once again looking over the map-table, in the company of two of his senior officers. There are four more guards inside the room, two at each door, and one other spirit-
!
-wearing robes of a distinctly different nature than the one Hermanus was wearing. Like the warmage's garments, these are obviously meant for practical use, being at once loose enough not to hinder the wearer's movements, yet not so long as to provide easy handholds for any foe that got into grabbing range. Yet you can see that this new spirit is wearing several layers of phantasmal cloth, the outermost of which is pulled up to partly cover his head, and every inch of which appears to be adorned with important-looking symbols. Much of it is clear military iconography - spears, helmets, and shields, among other things - but there are lines of Latin characters as well, too small and faded due to the ghost's translucent appearance for you to interpret, and some other designs you don't recognize at all.
You can glimpse metallic armor underneath the outermost layer of the spirit's vestments, a helmet hangs at his right hip, and a short sword is sheathed at his left. He appears to be middle-aged, and sports a full beard - somewhat unkempt - beneath stern, noble features and slightly wild eyes.
Said eyes turn to you, and you immediately sense a divine force behind them.
Then the undead priest glances at Briar.
His expression, previously neutral, darkens into a scowl.
"Welcome back, Sorcerer," Marcus's voice says, dragging your attention away from the ghost-mage. "Priests. We have a number of things to discuss, but before we begin - may I present Marcus Porcius Cato, priest of Mars."
"Charmed, I am sure," the priest says, cutting Marcus's introduction short. "Captain," he says then, his gaze still fixed on Briar, "why is one of the Fae in your command?"
Marcus's helmet makes it hard to tell, but you think you see him roll his eyes. There is a distinct note of patience being tested as he says, "As I said earlier, Cato, she is the young sorcerer's familiar spirit, teacher, and battle-ally."
"I still find that difficult to credit," the bearded ghost replies.
Gained Latin E (Plus) (Plus)
...you have to wonder, is there something about you that just attracts religious jerks? Because this is the third one you've met in the last half-hour.
Then you think about Ganondorf, and decide to ignore your own question.
Briar, meanwhile, has once again stopped moving in that way that presages trouble.
You find yourself vaguely regretting encouraging her to accept Ginta's aid.
You remind yourself that, given what you know of the origins and history of Memoria - not to mention those of this outpost - the phantom priest has good reasons not to trust the Fae, above and beyond the simple fact that they ARE Fae. Which is reason enough all on its own for one to be cautious.
You tell yourself that losing your cool and foregoing manners is not an appropriate response to someone expressing reasonable suspicions, even if he could have done so more politely. Certainly, going so far as to insult a de facto ally is the wrong approach.
All that aside, however, you're not just going to let what he said slide.
"Which part?" you inquire.
"Which part of what?" comes the response.
"Which part of the Captain's statement do you find hard to credit?" you clarify. "That Briar is my familiar, my teacher, or my partner in battle? Or is it all of the above?"
"More the latter two," admits Priest Ma- actually, you're going to take a note from the Captain, and call this guy Cato. Too many Marcuses around here, otherwise.
"I suspected that might be the case. Well, I can assure you that Briar has been an excellent teacher to me for years. Her knowledge of magical lore goes well beyond the limits of her personal power as a spellcaster, and she has a great deal of knowledge regarding the supernatural in general. The fact that my abilities have outstripped hers in a few schools of spellcasting makes her no less my teacher."
The priest concedes that with a nod.
"As for her being my 'battle ally'... well, it's certainly true that she's not going to be leaping into battle with a sword in one hand and a spell in the other any time soon. No offense, Briar," you add, glancing down.
"I'd only be offended if you thought I was that crazy," she answers.
"And if that's the sort of image you had in mind," you say, turning back to Cato, "then I can certainly understand where the confusion would come from. Briar isn't a warrior; that's my job. She has other roles to fill, one of them being the task of healing. She's VERY good at that, and can treat wounds that I either lack the skill to handle" - at least at the moment; you're still working on properly converting the effects of Briar's healing dust to a spell format - "or wouldn't be in a position to deal with, if I were the one who got hurt."
The undead cleric's features settle into a thoughtful expression, the intensity in his spectral eyes fading as his attention wanders... elsewhere. His left hand, which was hovering near his sheathed sword, pulls away from the weapon and instead drifts upwards to cover part of his side.
For a moment, you think you see a patch of the ghost's nebulous form shift from ethereal white to metallic grey.
"Either way, sir," you conclude, "there's no one I'd rather have at my side, in battle or otherwise."
"...I see," Cato murmurs. Then he shakes his head, which - like a kick to a low-burning fire - causes that almost manic gleam in his gaze to flare up once again, as he turns to Briar. "Reasonable explanations, all. I will ask this, then: are you, or are you not, affiliated with those Fae we know as the Court of Winter?"
"No, I am not," Briar says firmly. "My allegiances lie with my partner, with my family, and with the Goddesses Farore, Nayru, and Din."
Cato blinks. "I don't know these goddesses."
"I'd be amazed if you did," the fairy admits. "They're not from Earth or from Faerie. To the best of my knowledge, they've only started paying attention to Earth in the last few years."
The light in the priest's eyes shifts. What menace there was has been replaced by even more manic interest.
"Really, now?" Cato says. "I would be delighted to hear more."
"Cato," Captain Marcus interrupts, "is this really the time for theological instruction?"
"Of course it is!" comes the response. "There is ALWAYS time to learn about the ways of the gods - and if there isn't, you'd best make some!"
Huh. Well, at least he sounds like he's in a better mood.
It occurs to you that this would probably be a good time to mention the gods and holy men assembled on the proverbial front lawn.
You do so.
Captain Marcus does a double-take, but before he can say anything, Priest Cato has almost literally exploded into motion, swirling past you, Briar, and his peer as he heads for the door.
He leaves a trail of words in his wake, like some kind of verbal comet: "Excuse me, I really must go and introduce myself do I need to change into my ceremonial robe no time I don't want to be any later than I already am - and REMEMBER!"
And here, he stops at the door, having turned to face the control console, one finger extended in dramatic declamation.
"Regardless of what else occurs this day, the Winter Court must be destroyed!"
And then he's gone.
Gained Latin E (Plus) (Plus) (Plus)
The room is silent.
Into the silence, you say, "Captain Marcus?"
"Yes?"
"What the HECK just happened?"
The ghostly officer sighs. "Cato was always a bit... intense. Especially when it came to matters involving our enemies in Faerie. There's an unpleasant family history there, but I don't know the full details, and I don't care to speculate."
You nod, accepting that.
"Whatever his reasons, Cato was constantly pushing for more aggressive action against the Winter Court. Once he'd earned enough rank amongst the priesthood to be informed of the existence of this base and its mission, he immediately requested to be assigned here, and his superiors granted his wish." Marcus frowns, and in a lower note, adds, "I half expect that they pushed him on us just so THEY wouldn't have to listen to him anymore. Still, he knew he duties, and upheld them... and if he ended every prayer by preaching the downfall of Winter, it was a small price to pay to have a skilled war-priest on hand."
You can understand that reasoning. Thinking back, however, you have to frown. You don't recall seeing Cato among the Memorian troops. That aura of divinely-granted power is distinctive; you wouldn't have missed him during the muster, let alone if he'd been present for the battle, dispensing the blessings of Mars with one hand and the wrath of the war-god with the other.
You say as much to Marcus, who nods.
"As a priest, and especially as a priest of Mars, Cato wasn't under my command," he explains. "In practice, he followed my orders the same as every other man on the base, and shared any concerns or objections in private. But that was his choice; technically, I had no more authority over him than I would over one of the Fae. By the same token, Cato wasn't part of the Fifth Legion. Our duty was not his, and so our FAILURE was not his. He..." And here, the Captain pauses, steeling himself. "He appeared after the battle in the mines, and when I asked him where he'd been, he said that Father Mars had called him home when he fell."
You blink at that. The priest was actually dead and gone? Then why-
"And when I asked Cato why he'd returned," Marcus goes on, as if hearing your unspoken question, "he said that our victory over the invaders had earned Mars's attention."
Ah. Well, that answers that. Practicing piests of ancient Roman gods are pretty thin on the ground these days. It makes sense, then, that Mars would send the spirit of the priest who'd last been assigned to see to the spiritual well-being of these soldiers to take up his old duties.
"Also,"the Captain adds, "Cato said he wanted to take another shot at the Winter Court."
...naturally.
"While we're on the subject of souls and divinity, Sorcerer," Marcus says then, giving you a sharp look. "What's this about an assembly of gods outside my base?"
You proceed with an explanation about Ginta's discovery of how much easier it is for priests to communicate with their gods here in Faerie than it is on Earth, and how he called upon a number of priests and monks from nearby shrines and temples - and from three different faiths - to share what he'd found.
"Divine power being impeded on Earth?" Marcus says in frank disbelief. "I've never heard of any such thing."
"You're sure?" you press.
"Yes. I've seen Cato's prayers answered, here and in Memoria. There was no difference." He pauses, and turns to Ginta and Ichirou. "I mean no disrespect, priests, but is it possible that the source of the problem lies with your own god?"
"We did consider that," Ginta admits. "The patron of our shrine is a minor power - certainly not a peer to one of the fathers of a vast empire. Yet he swears that the same interference which hindered his ability to respond to our prayers afflicts ALL gods and their faithful, regardless of stature."
Marcus has nothing to say to that.
Gained Latin D
You decide to regale Marcus with the tale of your communion with the Golden Goddesses, and how it got hijacked by some sort of demonic force. It's a solid piece of evidence for your claim that something is interfering with people's attempts to contact their gods on Earth.
He is appropriately shocked-
"Are you SURE you're not a demigod, boy?"
-although perhaps not for quite the reasons you intended.
Marcus is an accomplished magic-user himself, so he has a fair idea of what level of ability is required to forge an active connection with a divine being - be it as a sorcerer or a favored priest. The claim that you can use BOTH methods, let alone at your age, is a bit ridiculous.
And it's all the more absurd because the good Captain has seen enough of your capabilities to take you at your word.
After he's once again been assured that you aren't the scion of a divine entity, Marcus asks instead if you're "merely" an ordained priest or acolyte of your Goddesses.
When you admit that you're not, and moreover, that you're still trying to lay hands on a copy of the holy books of your preferred faith, the Memorian ghost points out that this, right here, may have been the problem.
"By your own admission, you were using sorcery to try and cheat your way into a godly blessing," he says. "Since you weren't smote on the spot, I can conclude your deities don't mind that sort of thing, but that still leaves the fact that you didn't really know what you were doing. I don't have the ability to commune with a god like one of their favored priests, but I do know that the arcane methods of contacting beings of such power are a bit... open-ended."
If he's referring to the Spell to Contact Another Plane, he's not wrong. That magic doesn't direct your questions to a specific god or other Power, it sends out a general query to a GROUP of such entities... and while you didn't USE that particular spell, you DID follow a similar procedure. You didn't - and still don't - know the rituals the worshippers of the Golden Goddesses are supposed to use, so you HAD to keep your call for divine guidance fairly general in nature. That might well have been enough to leave you open to the kind of interference you experienced...
...except that you got hijacked by demons, not other gods. Your Spell of Communion wasn't aimed anywhere NEAR the demonic realms, so that really should not have happened.
Captain Marcus admits you have a point, but that just leaves him confounded.
"What in the Underworld is WRONG with the world today, that a man can't talk to his god in peace?"
You don't have answer to that. Hopefully, the gods and priests outside can come up with something by the time you have to leave.
You figure this would be a good point to change topics to something more productive. Such as the the subject of maps.
Marcus listens as you describe the advancements in cartography, and how they make it difficult - verging on impossible - to use modern maps to make sense of the Memorian Map that gives the location of the base where they kept the "other side" of their gate. Especially when, from what little you've read on the subject, there don't appear to be a lot of surviving maps from the Roman period to serve as reference material.
On a side note, the Captain appears disbelieving when you tell him you're from a continent on the other side of the Atlantic. At least until you add that there are few hundred million people living there now, and Briar and the Hakubas have backed your statement.
"There were a few sailors who claimed to have made that journey in my time," he explains. "We were never sure how much of their stories were true, how much were the usual boasting and exaggeration, or how much were outright lies."
That aside, it seems there isn't much Marcus can do to help you with your map problems.
"There are no maps of Earth in the magical archive," he tells you, "and we had standing orders not to bring physical maps of Memoria or the surrounding lands into Faerie at all. The Courts knew too much of our territory as it was; we didn't want them getting their hands on charts that showed locations WE thought were important."
That's frustrating. It makes SENSE, but it's still frustrating.
"That map I showed you was one the best one I could call up from my memory," the captain goes on. "And... well, after a thousand years, I'm finding that my memory isn't the best."
...understandable. But STILL frustrating.
Since asking after complete maps didn't work, you try asking Marcus for a more informal set of directions to supplement your attempts to decipher the Memorian Map. Descriptions of prominent geological landmarks, how far Memoria was from famous cities of the ancient world - especially ones such as Rome, which still exist in some form - and other such details.
You run into a few problems with this approach. For one, Marcus wasn't a major traveler in life. He spent his entire military career with the Fifth Legion, whose primary duty was to guard the realm against Fae incursions; consequently, they spent most of their time either within Memoria's borders, or here in Faerie. Another complication arises when Marcus starts listing the names of mountains, forests, rivers, and settlements, most of which mean absolutely nothing to you or the Hakubas.
Eventually, however, you do piece together a few details. Marcus had previously informed you that Memoria was located far to the north and somewhat west of Rome, in the "forests of Gaul," which Ichirou noted as being an old name for Western Europe - more specifically, the area which is now France, and some of the surrounding lands. Although the names the Captain uses for certain landmarks do you little good, once you've projected an illusion of a modern map of that part of the world and explained a bit about how to read it, he's able to point out the area where Memoria was located. More importantly, he also shows you the general area where the base you're hoping to find SHOULD be, if it still exists.
Gained Memorian Map update
With the matter of the maps addressed as well as it can be, you move on to the next item of interest, this being the discussion about Dark Link that you passed on having with Marcus yesterday. Now that you've spoken with Navi about the incident and have a better idea of how the heck the Hero's Dark Side ended up this far from Hyrule, you're willing to bring the Captain up to speed on just what kind of monster was lurking in his proverbial basement.
"A hero, you say? No offense, but against half a hundred Legion veterans, one man couldn't-"
One man very well COULD, as you proceed to explain.
"He killed WHAT?"
You feel that is a perfectly natural response to some of the bigger and scarier things Link has gone up against, and then gone through. Not to mention the sheer NUMBER of things he's killed, even if you're counting only ONE of his incarnations. And never mind how he's usually somewhere between seven and seventeen when he goes on these insane quests - not that YOU have any room to talk, when it comes to the subject of underage heroics.
"It had HOW many heads?"
Alas, poor Gleeok. And Manhandla. And Trinexx, Diababa... does Barinade count? Because those weren't exactly "heads," but they weren't just "limbs," either. And what about enemies like the Poe Sisters, who fought in groups? Technically, they had multiple heads as well...
"With a BUG-CATCHING NET?"
Yes, Link is all kinds of ridiculous. And this is just from the stuff you can remember casually, without having to dig into Ganondorf's experiences with the Hero. His many, frustrating, painful, LOSING experiences...
Leaving that highly counter-productive train of thought, you conclude by telling Marcus that, based on what you know of Link and what you saw Dark Link do, the Shadow could have taken out that entire monster army singlehandedly. And that's INCLUDING the swarm of Gohma and their king-sized parent that you wiped out and drove off.
Seriously. When you got here the other day, the Memorian outpost was an ancient, maze-like ruin, overrun by monsters, haunted by mindless undead, and patrolled by golems with orders to kill all humans, with a handful of treasures and bits of secret lore scattered about, waiting to be found.
Link eats set-ups like that for breakfast. And THAT's with Hylian puzzle-locks to needlessly complicate matters. You haven't seen anything of the sort from the Memorians.
Major point in their favor, really.
Although while you're on the subject of locks and doorways, Marcus said yesterday that there used to be two big-G Gates in the base. One of them was destroyed when the mother Gohma tore the floor out from under it, but the Captain told you the other one had been taken down for maintenance prior to the fall of the outpost. There's not much point in going looking for the Earth-side portal if its surviving partner isn't operational, so you might want to ask Marcus if you could see the gateway. Depending on how it was taken down, you might be able to reactivate it yourself - and failing that, you could still learn a few things about inter-planar travel by studying such a magical mechanism.
On a similar note, there's that chest in the armory to think about - the one that was warded and sealed off behind a Wall of Force, and which required a "key" of sorts to open. You're pretty sure that the badge Marcus used to manipulate the Walls of Force around the command chamber will let you get into that chest, but you definitely ought to ask if the Captain is willing to let you borrow his authority and whatever is in that box for your own purposes.
For that matter, there could be other potentially-useful items surviving in parts of the base. Again, you really should ask first.
There are a number of things you'd like to ask Marcus, regarding various objects of interest within the base.
What's in that warded chest in the armory? Is it just a decoy, to distract and frustrate the unauthorized, and lead them into making mistakes? Or was it secured because there really is something valuable inside - and if so, is it something the good captain could see his way to entrusting to an ally?
Would it be possible for you to see the deactivated gateway? Knowing what kind of design philosophy Memorians went in for with their permanent inter-planar portals would be very helpful, when you inevitably go looking for the one on Earth.
Are there any other items that have survived the centuries, which the ghosts might be willing to let you borrow? Specifically, are there any items that belonged to the MAGES, especially any of them that might have been assigned to maintain the wards?
You can't help but notice a recurring theme in all these questions, which can be summed up in one word:
LOOT.
And that strikes you as a bit disrespectful.
After all, this isn't JUST an ancient ruin. It's a battlefield, a tomb, AND a haunt. Dozens of men died trying to prevent the outpost and its secrets from falling into the hands of outsiders, and their angry souls spent the last thousand years wandering the halls in a fugue state, ready, willing, and able to lash out at any further intruders. Yes, you helped them wake up and kick the chitinous butts of a swarm of monstrous squatters off their property, and yes, there's been plenty of indications that the Memorians are grateful for your aid.
You don't want to squander that gratitude by coming off as a greedy opportunist.
Besides, you already told Marcus and Hermanus that you originally came to the base on a treasure hunt - a hunt for a SPECIFIC treasure, perhaps, but you did admit that you'd seen a few things since arriving that you wouldn't mind taking with you, or taking notes on, as long as the ghosts didn't object.
Most of your questions have, essentially, already been asked.
But there's one that hasn't, and the answer to it is extremely relevant to your interest in the outpost and any treasures it may yet hold.
So you ask.
"I apologize if this sounds intrusive, Captain, but, now that the base has been cleared... what are your plans? For yourself, and your men?"
Marcus regards you in silence for a moment.
"A good question," he sighs, leaning on - and slightly through - the table. "At first - at the very first - I was half-hoping that I would fall in battle with the invaders. Go out honorably, and leave the messy details to whoever survived."
One of the two officers snorts. "Respectfully, Captain, you don't get off that easily. Legion policy."
Marcus chuckles. "True enough. And besides, none of the wretches that I fought were that good."
A murmur of amused agreement runs through the half-dozen ghosts in the room.
"After the battle," the Captain continues, "I decided that, once our fallen brothers had returned, the Legion would assemble in the temple wing, properly dedicate our victory to the gods, and pray that we found favor enough with them to pass on. But that was BEFORE Cato came back," he adds. "It would seem that Mars, at least, does approve, but also that he has other plans for us."
"That's always been the way of things, though," the second officer, an older-looking man, asks gruffly. "The reward for a job done well is another, more difficult job."
This time, the sound of collective agreement is more in the way of a groan.
The long and short of it is that Marcus is currently holding back from making any more long-term plans, until Cato has conveyed the will of Mars to the Legion and he can properly take the god's wishes into account.
The priest, incidentally, has said that he will wait for the ghosts who fell in battle to finish reconstituting before he addresses the Legion. He wants to get it done all in one go.
By the Memorians' best estimates, it will be another week or so at most before Hermanus and the other dispersed ghosts reform themselves. Until then, Marcus is going to have his men focus on patrolling within the base, to make sure that any stragglers from the monstrous horde are hunted down. He also has some plans for long-overdue cleaning and maintenance, as soon as he works out WHICH parts of the base are most in need of it, while still being within the means of the spectral soldiers to deal with.
Gained Latin D (Plus)
You think of the neglect and damage you've seen in the base - the rotted-away furniture, the rusted-down armaments, the Gohma's tunnels - and honestly wish the Memorians luck in their restoration efforts.
They're going to need every bit of it.
Having heard Marcus's plans for the immediate future - such as they are - you have the impression that now might not be the best time to ask him for any "loans." At least not until he's heard what Mars wants the Legion to do, going forward.
There are two things you figure you can, and should, take care of. One of those is to see the Memorians' portal to Earth, for all the reasons you've already gone over in your own head, and which you recount for Captain Marcus's sake now.
As it happens, he has no issue with allowing you to see the gate. Quite the contrary, in fact.
"You're not the only one who wants to be reestablish the connection between here and Earth without having to rely on a third party, Sorcerer," he says. "I was only hoping to have a way for us to send the Legion honors and our remains back home to be buried, even if we ended up having to carry them there ourselves. Cato's been buzzing around in the workshop since he came back, though, so I'm pretty sure Father Mars wants the gate working, too."
Now THERE'S some good news. Cato's aura of divine favor was strong enough that the Spell of Plane Shift is likely within his power to cast. Being a priest - and a war-priest, at that - he might lack the technical understanding required to construct a stable, permanent portal between Earth and Faerie, but that's not really an issue. Mars would be the one doing the metaphorical heavy lifting regardless, so a lot of the fiddly little details which make such magic difficult for sorcerers like yourself to wield would be relatively easy to solve.
True, Mars isn't exactly renowned as a god of artificers or magic, but he IS a war god. You doubt VERY highly that he'd be ignorant of the military advantages of being able to deploy his forces between realms at a moment's notice.
Speaking of gods and priests, though...
"Before I go," you say, as Marcus is about to assign one of the guards to escort you to where the deactivated portal is being kept, "would you object to letting the small gods and their priests enter the base?"
Marcus pauses, and looks at the Hakubas. "That would depend on their opinion of... well." He stops and gestures at himself and his men. "Us."
"The kami do have... concerns... about souls that have not been able to move on after death," Ginta admits. "But they also understand duty. And seeing as how your own god has taken an active hand in determining the fate of you and your soldiers, Captain, I believe their fears will be greatly assuaged."
"Assuming that Cato got through the portals to talk to them," you add.
All the adults look at you. Then Marcus taps a button on the command console.
"Cornelius," he says without preamble.
"Sir!" a voice responds.
You can't help but notice that there's a complete lack of interference, as there might be with some electronic intercoms and radios.
"Did Priest Cato pass your way?" the Legion commander inquires.
"Yes, Captain."
"And was he able to make it through the portal?"
There's a pause.
"We saw him enter the portal, sir," the soldier on the other end says. "And he hasn't come back in yet."
"Understood. Contact me immediately if he does return."
"Yes sir!"
Marcus breaks the connection.
"So," you observe. "Either he made it out, and has joined in on the discussion, or his presence was disrupted by the wards."
"Or the gods outside banished him," the younger-looking of Marcus's junior officers says. There's no accusation or suspicion in his tone.
"Entirely possible," Ginta admits. "My son and I did try to impress upon our counterparts that you gentlemen were present and bore no ill will towards us, but..."
"There's always somebody who doesn't listen," the elder officer suggests dryly.
"Or one that acts without thinking," the senior priest agrees in precisely the same tone.
The two men, priest and soldier, living and undead, trade knowing looks.
"Could I impose upon you to investigate that matter?" Marcus asks, looking at your group as a whole.
You certainly don't object to doing the captain this small favor. He could try sending one of his men out to check on Cato, but if something DID happen to inconvenience the priest, odds are that another ghost wouldn't fare any better. That said, there are four of you, and this is hardly a task that requires your combined attention - especially when you've got other things to take care of, and only so much time to do them all in.
Gained Latin D (Plus) (Plus)