[EA 16] - Hunting for One Last Gift to Give (Expecting)

[Nozomi]

Phi had ground up the last of her jade finger into powder and added it to oil the moment she'd gotten the order to remain behind with the wagons. Whatever opinions she had on it, the lack of mortal terror in her bones was... cheering. But she looked around the camp for anyone who might be going down. Deep down, she knew they would need this infinitely more than her.

At the sight of a massive wall of muscle, she called out. "Taochusu!"

[Taochusu]

Taochusu nodded to her. "Hey. Phi. Are you prepared?" he asks, as he was inspecting his hammer.

[Nozomi]

"Prepared enough. My job only matters if all of you fail," she admitted, before giving the big man a single look and thrusting the pouch towards him. "This. I won't need it the way you will. I want you to come back with the others. It should coat that big hammer of yours a few times. Either way, I figured... we haven't talked much, but it was good to meet you. Here's hoping we're drinking that crappy beer they shill back at Seidou lands in a week, eh?"

(OOC: slight miscount - 4 doses of jade powder!)

[Taochusu]

He takes the pouch and looks inside. "It's the only beer I've ever had. Don't know what's supposed to be good or bad." Tying it off, he gives a nod of thanks. "I'll try to make good use of it."

[Nozomi]

She barked out a laugh. The really really still had a laugh a bit like a hyena when she was either nervous or laughing too loud. Shaking her head, she managed a grin up at the man who stood head and shoulders over her. "You'll make better use of it than I will back here. I guarantee you're going to need it out there. And I need to get some fermented goat's milk in you. Much sweeter than that stuff they give. It's not terrible, but I like my drinks a little sweet."

[Taochusu]

"Only other time I had anything like that was juice from fruit I left in a bucket too long. Smelled sweet still so I drank it, but it tasted funny and messed with my head," he replied. "I never had any alcohol when I was a kid. We didn't have a lot in our tribe and the adults didn't want to share."

[Nozomi]

"The Goat's Milk stuff's pretty mild. That beer had more of a kick to it, but I heard they kept it going for a lot longer than they do the milk back home. Bet the fruit's something like that, assuming it wasn't just spoiled." She snorted and smirked at him. "But I'd bet you could take a lot of things with that constitution of yours, one way or another, mister I beat a bear up with a tree once."

[Taochusu]

"Best way to beat anything bigger than you is to use something bigger than it. Unfortunately I don't got anything bigger than that hole," he says looking in the direction of the pit. "Probably was just spoiled. I've eaten bad food before. Sometimes fevers can make you see crazy stuff."

[Nozomi]

"That's putting it mildly. Gotta watch the mushrooms," she said, shaking her head and chuckling. "Mushrooms will get you something fierce if they're the bad kind. And don't worry... ok, try not to worry about the pit. Plugging that hole's supposed to be other people's job. You worry about getting that hammer clean in the face of the things that come out of the hole to stop them."

[Taochusu]

"All I can really do," he replies. "Just gotta keep swinging."

[Nozomi]

"It's all I would ever ask of you, big guy. And lie when you come out of that hole and tell me there were twice as many as you actually killed. I won't even try to check the facts," she added with a broad, slightly nasty grin. "But... seriously, try to come out of the hole, alright? I'd rather not have this be the story of the big guy's stand." She knew it might be for some, but she hoped.

[Taochusu]

"I never try to die. But then, I never fought to defend anyone directly like this so running's no good here. Either I can handle it with the folks that are with me or I can't. Just gotta do it," he replies. "If I walk away from it then that at least means more folks will survive, so I hope I do."

[Nozomi]

"You've got that pair of girls with death in their eyes backing you up I hear, and one of the spider with a bow. Think he was clanless to start on this trip, but he seems to know his stuff," she said, nodding. "I'm going to say at least in hell you're in good company staring down the hole." Ko had done damned well against that bandit, and Satone... well, everyone had heard her take that hit from Shinjo so god help them she shoud be able to take a hit or two.

[Taochusu]

"Yeah. Just hope some giant monster don't come out of that hole. I saw how big this stuff could make a spider. If it does that to a bear or a tiger we're probably gonna be in a bad way. And me without a tree around."

[Nozomi]

"Let's ... definitely hope this isn't a bear turned by that place. I heard about the spider." She managed to surpress a shudder. Of all the horrors of this place, that was definitely not as bad as some things could have been, wasn't it? But thankfully none of them personally got to try out its venom first hand. Who knew what that would have been like. "Though, if you did beat up a hell bear, that'd be one hell of a tale."

[Taochusu]

"I don't really want to. Never wanted to fight normal bears either. But you don't always get to pick what dangerous animals come after you."

[Nozomi]

"No, I don't think that we ever get to choose the kinds of monsters we face unless they're the human sort, and not always even then." She was reasonably certain of that. "But this is the last of it. Whatever comes, it's over finally. And that's the most important part right?"

[Taochusu]

"Well, the last of this effort. Not the last of fighting monsters. I'm sure there are plenty more in the world. Someone's gonna have to fight those eventually."

[Nozomi]

"It would seem so. Up in the mountains, we don't usually run into them, so that's been... eye opening." She grunted, shaking her head at that. It was a lot to take in. "Let's hope the rats plug the hole. the less monsters that come out the better." The thought o the cycle, of the war, it was all there in her head, but it was also not something she could deal with right now, was it?

[Taochusu]

"Just gotta put in full effort and hope that's enough. The rat folks want it closed as much as we do, I'm sure. This hole is not doing anyone any favors."