Heavenfall

Reo walks down to the river, curious about these disfigured fish. They would be interesting study material.

https://orokos.com/roll/812093

Nanzi was there looking at the poor state of the water and the fish and frowning as he looked around.


Jongwun said, "Please tell me we are not eating this?"

"No, Nanzi thinks this is foul beyond measure," he responded.

"I'm not planning on eating." Reo calls back. "I plan on studying."

Reo gestures to the water, looking over to the newcomers. "These things have been living with the effects of what we are walking into. According to the Nezumi, there is no cure once there are symptoms like this. I hope to find something, some way, to help anyone who suffers something similar."

"Perhaps the best thing is a swift death to preserve their Honor," Nanzi said rising and looking at Reo.

Reo blinks, as if he is realizing who he is talking to. A small smirk seems to come to the corner of his lips.

"Perhaps it is the way of the Crane to discard anything with a blemish. It would explain why this one would not feel suited to it." Reo begins gathering his things, giving up on the chance to catch anything useful, especially with people around to disturb the area.

"You misunderstand, it is not out of revulsion but out of respect. This evil grows inside a thing, in time they will not be who they were, better to die as the person you were than the monster you become," he said to the man.

"It is the way of the Crane to always better ourselves and think highly of others and their Honor, something that Reiko-san seems to agree with."

Reo pauses, eyes sliding to the side as he tries to process the idea.

"More understandable. But I disagree with the path it takes you. Your premise is that first, these changes grow unchecked. Second is that these changes change you to the extent that you are not who you were once. Finally, that death is preferable to the end stages of this transformation. I will quibble with you about the last of these."

Though I could, if I really wanted to.

"Who is to say that the course cannot be halted, or even reversed. That the Nezumi claim to have found no method does not guarantee that it does not exist. The only thing that can bear that out is study, and thus I study."

"The Nezumi seem immune to it as well, and it does seem to grow, it gets worse over time or the land and water would not be getting more fouled. If Nanzi turned out like the dog thing then Nanzi would rather die, and die a man than whatever it became. Perhaps you discover a remedy, but for now death seems the most prudent course of action for one too far gone with corruption," he responded.

"A fair enough statement. I do not think I would wish to have a tentacle either." Reo returned wryly.

"The Nezumi also mentioned that the subject's mind, goes but I don't know if that's always the case."

Keep your mortal weakness for now, then. You will become ours eventually... You could have kept your mind when we took you, but it's not a necessity...

Reo gives a shudder that he did not expect.

"There is much we don't know still. And if I can learn it from these fish." Reo motions back to the water. "Before we see them in our Clans, then all the better."

"The Nezumi have more experience on this matter, it seems prudent that what they state happens," he replied.

"They do, and they have knowledge to share. But we would take it completely at face value without testing it for ourselves?" Reo shakes his head. "They themselves are immune? How do we know how the course affects men?"

"They seem to have observed humans that have been affected as they were afraid of us being corrupted," he said in reply.

Reo lets out a sigh and shakes his head.

This kind of thinking is exactly why I didn't want to join Crane.

"You're not getting it. They have seen infected humans, but I doubt they have as much experience seeing it from the beginning stages onto full infection. And even if they had, we should observe for ourselves, especially if the symptoms are mental. Our kin would likely see this far before anyone else."

“You want to do the observations yourself to try and figure out what the extent of this Corruption will be,” he said dryly.

“Nanzi gets what you are you trying to do, he finds it unwise to do that as we get deeper into the lands of darkness when we have knowledge given to us by those who have been living with it. It merits study, but Nanzi does not deem it wise to do so right this very moment unless Reo-san is already poisoned by this evil realm.”

He shrugged and glanced to Jongwun before looking back to him, “Then do as you will, but what you are trying to do is fairly easy to see.”

"Um. Yes." Reo replies flatly, his brow wrinkling in confusion. "I thought that was self evident. And yes, there is risk, and if I fall there are what, fifty others to put me out of my misery before it becomes an issue. I was already a broken one, why not have an end that yields results in pursuit of a meaningful goal."

He finally lets out a sigh. This is going nowhere.

"But you are entitled to your view. I doubt I will catch anything out here of use, so I better turn elsewhere. Good day, Speaker of the Cranes"

Reo begins to limp away.

/moving to exit

Nanzi just nodded at the man and then turned back to looking at the river and fish.

This was going to get worse before it got better.