[Day 3, Late Afternoon] A Staring Contest With a Rock

[Jiyo Sora]

Following his conversation at the Kami's tent, Sora made his way to the clearing to have a look at the stone that had told Jin its story.

Might not lead anywhere at all... if this thing is a piece of someone else's past, then no amount of cyclical turning would necessarily show up here as far as the future is concerned.

Still, he approached the marker and trained his oracular eye on it.

Let's see what we can see.

[Shoji Haka]

Seated in front of the marker and leaning against it was a white-haired woman who was quietly nibbling at a bit of cooked meat. A wooden cup was resting in the grass next to her, making for a somewhat placid scene.

[Jiyo Sora]

Having come here to have a look at the marker, he continued to do so.

In his experience, oddballs sitting alone in clearings weren't too fussed about the modern courtesies anyhow, so it wasn't as if he was going to have one of Doji's bunch tutting at him.

[Shoji Haka]

Noticing someone coming closer, she turns her head and stares in his general direction with clouded eyes. "This one hopes that she is not about to be stolen away by bandits or giant rat monsters," she says, her tone curious.

[Canary]

Following his conversation at the Kami's tent, Sora made his way to the clearing to have a look at the stone that had told Jin its story.

Might not lead anywhere at all... if this thing is a piece of someone else's past, then no amount of cyclical turning would necessarily show up here as far as the future is concerned.

Still, he approached the marker and trained his oracular eye on it.

Let's see what we can see.

He stared... And stared... And stared. Something felt odd. Was some of the few from the grass soaking into his pants? He looked down to check, to find a creeping black sludge crawling up his legs and arms, under his skin, deeper. He felt himself rise as if it was puppeteering him, feeling rage and bloodlust filling him without his input as though it was pumping it into his veins.

As if from the outside, he watched himself turn and cut down the newcomer to the clearing. Suddenly, the clearing itself was full of bodies, soaked in blood, and he felt a dark will whispering in his ear, but he couldn't identify the voice. Did it feel familiar or not? It was impossible to tell. It just pushed him onward.

He found himself suddenly facing a young woman, it looked like an older version of the girl that followed around the tall former Noriaki, Yamadono. The was no pity in her eyes as she swung a curved sword at him...

And suddenly he was thrown out of the vision, left know lying on the ground. The new arrival seemed none the worse for wear.

[Jiyo Sora]

He sat, processing the nightmarish vision, cold sweat running down his back.

"This place leads to bad ends."

[Shoji Haka]

Haka is silent for a moment. "It is not an uncomfortable place to sit, at least?"

[Jiyo Ayumu]

"Hello sempai. Is that the weird stone you're investigating?"

Witnessing the other figure:

"Hello milady. I'm Ayumu. I hope we're not bothering you?"

[Jiyo Sora]

"Hello, Ayumu. Hello, strange lady whose name I don't know."

He felt his goosebumps subsiding.

"It is indeed the stone I am investigating. And based on the vision I just had, it's not a thing to be treated lightly. It's probably physically harmless for the time being, but... I need to discuss this with someone.... better at this spiritual crap than I am."

[Shoji Haka]

"The woman is Shoji Haka," she says, taking a bit of her chicken afterwards. "This one is a shaman, if that is of help to those before her?:

[Jiyo Sora]

"I'm not sure. I... see things. The future, sometimes. Usually just a possible future, something to be warned of."

He shivered involuntarily.

"The vision I just had... is a future I would cheerfully die to avoid."

[Jiyo Ayumu]

"I won't be able to help if this is a purely spiritual matter sempai. But maybe you can Haka? As for me, best I can offer is to clean up the stone for you."

[Jiyo Sora]

"Best you leave it as-is, Ayumu. I have the distinct impression that it's not going anywhere,"

[Jiyo Ayumu]

"I don't know about that. To my eyes, this rock doesn't appear to have any kind of defense against the flourishing nature around it. If let without care, it will eventually be overrun by vegetation, until nothing remains of it but a strangely shaped bush in a remote forest."

[Shoji Haka]

Haka flinches and waves her arms. "Do not speak names directly to people! This should not be hard to grasp!"

She waits, as if listening for something, then sighs and climbs to her feet. "This one could speak with the stone? Or the dirt, or the great nothing. Perhaps they would know more?"

[Jiyo Ayumu]

"As you see fit. You're the specialist here. I bow to your expertise."

[Shoji Haka]

Haka withdraws a small knife from a pouch on her skirt, draws it across the back of her arm, and let's the blood flow down her hand and drip from her fingers onto the rock.

"Spirit of the rock marker," she calls out. "This one would speak with you."


She glances back at the other two. "Tell this one what you would ask of the rock."




(Commune w/ Earth, 2 raises clarity, 2 raises questions, success.)

[Canary]

It doesn't answer immediately, a low rumble filling the clearing as the spirit rouses itself and prepares to respond.

Several minutes later, "... STILL MORE BRIEF SPARKS CALL ME FORTH..."

[Jiyo Sora]

Well, this should be good. We have someone afraid of names, going with us to deal with a culture where Names are important things to take pride in.

Maybe we can keep her in a bag somewhere until we've cut a deal with the Nezumi...

[Jiyo Ayumu]

She glances back at the other two. "Tell this one what you would ask of the rock."

"If it was a human, I would start with a nice question like: What can we do you to help you?"