Soldiers of Light - Chapter 2: "You Belong To The City"

[Raiden]

The members of Kurama's group had their rationed lunch of some scavenged fried tofu retrieved from the refugees in exchange for some of their other reserves. That night they slept within the protected confines of the Genkai Family House, and the following morning made their way to the horses kept for them outside. Kurama promised a better method of transportation once they arrived at the city of Aomori.

Aomori was a city built from necessity and trade. Beginning as a town residing near a forest on a hill, the trade of fish caused merchants and traders to make their home in that area. The presence of money and protection of said money meant the area was attractive to the common folk when the presence of Demons began to rise. There was always work to perform for the merchants or farmers, and enough hired blades to protect merchandise and the workers themselves. The town had built outwards to fit all the refugees and workers and slowly developed into a full city. The outskirts were tightly patrolled, as well as the roads. Kurama's group approached the city limits and were stopped by the group of armed men holding spot on that road.

"Hold. Visitors or customers?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~

Aomori was a tricky city for a demon.

The city was by no means a fortress. It had been a simply fishing village at its start, and while walls had been built they were made of wood rather than centuries old stone. Defensively it would not be a hard city to invade. The issue, however, was numbers.

The city was full of money. And money made people paranoid. The guards were not just some drunk mercs looking for an easy copper. The merchants were rich enough, and the current times dangerous enough, that they were able to pick and choose from the mercenaries and ronin available to them. While none would individually be a threat to any decent demon worth their snuff, the hundreds of them working together was a much more significant threat. And the workers and refugees, many moving to the city to avoid such things, were quick to report Demon activity. The outskirts of the city would be safest to become Not A Giant Cat, but that would be up to a certain demon's discretion.

[Krylo]

"Hungry!" Nanako answered the men. "Do you know where we could find some good unagi? Maybe someplace that also sells dango! Ohhh or maybe udon soup. . ." She then glanced back at Izuna, "Oh and, um, maybe fried tofu? OH OH, and dango, I certainly need some dango! Or maybe Habutai mochi!"

She rattled of dish after dish, seeming lost in a land of sweet rice cakes, fried foods, and noodles, her mouth hanging slightly open as she looked expectantly at the guard, leaning in toward him.

[Arhra]

Masumi raced through a half abandoned countryside with only a slight hitch in her stride from the unaccustomed burden of her passengers. She balanced lightly on teetering old fence tops as if she weighed no more than an ordinary cat, streaked down overgrown forest tracks and sprang down boulder choked hillsides, the old roads along them no longer maintained and washed away by rain.

Aomori was near. The nekomata slowed her pace, going lower to the ground and slinking forward. The land around the city was more populated. Farmers huddled in close for protection. She crested the hill and there it was.

The city and its hastily reinforced walls were little more than a smug of brown in the distance, smoke slowly rising from it to stain a washed out sky. It had been a fishing village once. But trade by sea had grown and that bait had brought merchants in. Masumi wondered if the walls had been built with the serious intent to repel an invasion, or whether to choke the slow stream of penniless refugees abandoning the demon haunted countryside in the hopes of a better life.

Masumi decided here was close enough. She shed her passengers, depositing Zel, Chizuru and Kagi in a tree shrouded, mouldering ruin of a farm house, excused herself and then prowled into the better kept fields nearby.

An ox wandered to water, mooed once and was hit by a black, ginger and white thunderbolt. The monster cat bowled it over and clamped powerful jaws on its neck. When its struggles ceased, Masumi glanced around furtively and dragged the cow into the cover of the copse of trees.

Having fed and wrung her body back into the beautiful shape she'd worn when she had first met the others drawn to server Lord Talkatz's cause, Masumi came back to the others. Though pristine, a suggestion of blood hung about her. She looked a little dishevelled, her clothes hanging loosely on her.

"I hope the wait hasn't been too troublesome." she said. "Changing shape isn't easy for this old cat." She shifted uncomfortably; rolled her shoulders, flexed her back, twisted her hips and adjusted the folds of her kimono. She half smiled, a little happier that everything had settled back into place.

Masumi clapped her hands. "Ah, but the comforts of civilisation are ahead. Hot baths and hot food, how wonderful." she purred. "But I suppose we mustn't lose sight of why we are here. I believe Zel said transportation could be found here," a winning proposition in her book, "and I believe Shizuka said she suspected the wielder of the sword might be here as well?" She nodded to Zel, waiting for her to set out the rest of the agenda.

[Steel Shadow]

Zel spent the time waiting for Masumi to return considering the group's options. Aomori was a city with a reputation - one that didn't speak well of their chances of remaining undetected. Paranoia and money made a fascinating combination, one that would have the entire sprawling region in flames by the end of the day, the Sorceress was mildly confident.

The fact was her group was never going to blend in. They consisted of, in no particular order, a Samurai made of metal that weighed more than an Ox, a timid Noble complete with her own ninja assistant, a Nekomata Priestess whose ears and tails tended to pop up at inopportune moments, a towering Sorceress from a far of land, and the raging spirits of the dead. In fact nearly all of the party was demonic, excepting herself and maybe Yuurei depending on how picky you were. Being revealed wasn't a question of if, it was only of when.

That wasn't a terrible problem of course. Zel had lived through the fall of cities before, and she had no doubt that the warriors summoned by Lord Talkatz were capable of handling whatever this place could throw at them. Being caught was much more Aomori's problem than it was theirs. But it would make finding new transportation that much harder, and that was something of a concern. Finding something like that would require asking around, and that was much, much easier when people weren't screaming or wasting their breath begging for their lives. Plus all that fire would make moving around such a pain.

She was still considering the situation when Masumi returned.

"Hm? No, no problem. You were gracious enough to bring us here, we can hardly complain now, can we?" She replied easily to the Cat-demon's apology, sliding off the tree-branch she had seated herself on. It was time to begin.

"Right on both counts," she agreed, stepping up to take in a better view of the city ahead. "So that leaves us with two goals. Transport, and the Sword. There's no need for us to waste our time dealing with transport, I can handle that, with Shizuka-hime's aid if she'll oblige me. Everyone else can handle the other objective - Find the sword. If it's here - and knowing Fate, it definitely is - it's a good opportunity. I don't need to tell any of you why."

She shrugged, looking back to the group. "I expect the wielder will have allies with them. Don't engage alone if you can help it, if you find the sword send up a signal - you should all be able to manage something, yes? Everyone else should come running. Best result would be killing the wielder, failing that stealing the sword, and failing that, find out what their plans are. The more we know about the other side, the better we can plan against them."

It felt a little like she was setting them up to fail when she said it out loud, but that was Fate. It would hardly allow them to foil their enemy's plot during phase one. If they got the sword, great, the war was won. If they didn't, they'd have plenty to show for it.

"Oh, and one last thing." This was the most annoying part, but it had to be done. "Since we're trying to keep a low profile - at least we are if you want to enjoy any of those hot baths - we'll have to use a cover story, just to get us past the guards. I'm thinking our best bet is to say we're a guard escort for a Priestess on her pilgrimage," she nodded to Masumi, "possibly with a bound spirit for exorcism, if need be. We could go with the minor noble or merchant options, but this one sounds like our best bet. It only has to last until we've split up, anyway. Thoughts?"

[lazy man]

Yuurei had remained silent for the duration of the group's journey. It hovered a short distance away from the group, aware that its presence was disturbing to some of the others. Thoughts about how it could assist the group beyond combat capabilities had been occupying it ever since they had departed. Upon seeing the battle between Kagi and Zel, it knew that the group needed more than just another addition to combat. There was something it could do, but it would leave it a touch weaker in combat while helping the group overall.

Upon their arrival at the outskirts of the city, the suggestion of a way to get into the city became the prime matter at hand. Now would be as good a time as any to present what it had thought about on the way to the city, speaking for the first time since Talkatz had introduced itself.

"It is possibly for the better, but the citizens of the city should not be able to see this one's form unless allowed to, or if they are especially sensitive to a spiritual presence. Unless the Raigaki's wielder is encountered, it is highly unlikely detection of a spirit will occur. For that reason, this one could search the city for any signs of the enemy. Also," it added, holding out a hand that split into a group of small, ghostly wisps that floated out to each member of the party, "these fragments of this one's body should help to relay information between all, and are easily hidden. Communication should be possible even when separated."

As if to confirm this, it sent another wisp toward the city. Sounds that normally would have been hard to notice from the distance they were at slowly became magnified as the wisp moved closer, and cut off when Yuurei called it back and absorbed it. This solution to their communication issues would help even if the group had to split up to scour the city, as likely as that was for the spirit at least.

"If possible, this one will avoid combat while this is being used, or else communication will have to cease to engage an enemy."

[Raiden]

The guard looked down at Nanako, then up to the group.

"Customers then?" Kurama gave a nod. "Here to supply ourselves for a trip, and I intend to visit an old friend."

"I see. Well, keep your noses clean." He looks down at Nanako again. "And get the girl something to eat before she starts chewing on leather." The guard waved them in as they passed into the city limits, hit with all the smells of cooking, leatherworking, mass of bodies, and dirt.

[Astral Harmony]

Chizuru was glad for Yuurei's communication solution. "Now I won't have to remind you what to buy us, Mizuno-sama."

Shizuka had just cleansed her feet and legs of the many miles of distance she covered on foot by soaking them in the river while fashioning a fishing trident from a branch. She always had a knack for thinking up the next thing she needed to do while working on her current task. Keeping up with Masumi was certainly a challenge. Shizuka didn't expect her to be that fast, especially toting Kagi around, and it took Shizuka more than half an hour to finally arrive after the others had. Oh well, at least Masumi wasn't difficult to track. But wait-

"What the hell am I going to use to buy things, Chizuru?" Shizuka demanded. "I didn't bring any money with me."
Chizuru reached in between her overly ample bosom and produced a sizeable money pouch with a tightening rope. "Ta da," she said cheerfully, then tossed the warm bag over to Shizuka.
Shizuka took one look at the bag and frowned. "Chizuru, how did you get this?"
"Hirasaka-san gave it to me just before I left."
"Tsubasa did?" Shizuka blinked. "Well, I hope she knows what she did because we're not going back."

The bag of money in question was an emergency fund, but that purpose had long been lost many centuries ago. Now it was just the booze fund. All monetary gain the Mizuno Clan ever achieved was simply dumped in there after Takano did the monthly finances because quite a few of the clan's top fighters had a strong love of those sweet, sweet adult beverages. This particular bag was filled as much as possible every month.

Shizuka sighed. She didn't even want to know what kind of chaos would reign at Mizuno Castle now that they had no money for additional alcohol, but at least Chizuru and her would be able to purchase everything they needed for now.
"We could probably buy a decent house for this much," she conceded. "I worry about the future of the Mizuno Clan, I seriously do."

Chizuru was all business and started cleaning up the place. There was always a possibility that Kurama would be in the city for multiple days. "Rice, tea leaves, wire, and some healing herbs," Chizuru instructed. "I'll think of other things you could get, but that will suffice for now."
"Wire?"
"Mending Kagi-san's kimono was a temporary measure and that thread will break the moment he gets into a real fight. The threads that actually compose his kimono are quite similar to the monofilament wires Tsubasa-san uses for combat. I'm sure you can find them somewhere in the city."

"Right, then." Shizuka said, putting the money pouch in between her breasts. Simply tying it to her waist or affixing it around her neck was just begging for thieves to steal it. "I'll be going now. I'll let everyone know through Yuurei's wisps should I spot Kurama."
"That should do it for cleaning for a while," Chizuru stretched, then retrieved the fishing trident Shizuka had created. "Time to spear us some dinner. I'm sure Masumi-san wants the lion's share of that bovine to herself."

[Inbred Chocobo]

Kagi replied to Zel, waving him off for a moment. "While that is a decent idea for most of you, I've come to this city before actually. I just let them know I am here for work and in I go, no problems. Gives me an excuse to ask around too so I can go poking my nose in other people's business." Kagi waved off Zel's response. "I wouldn't even be surprised if we encounter someone I've worked before with. So yeah, go ahead and use the priestess with the guardhood thingy going on, just remember you guys will have to stick as a group and be careful about asking too many questions. The whole place is filled with mercenaries. Gossip is something that spreads like wildfire, you will have to play your act farther into it if you don't want to be caught lying."

Then Kagi smiled. "If this person wielding the Raigaki is out and about, then he may be putting a force together. Wouldn't surprise me actually. Being a sellsword would mean that would be right in my area to overhear as well. So I think I am going to go on that route." Kagi started to walk towards the exit of the house, and stopped for a second to speak with Shizuka "Do you want me to pick up that thingy Chizuru is talking about or should I?" He asked. He looked down at his kimono. No one could tell it was being held together, but the second he started trying to get into a fight and making harsh movements, he doubted the thread would hold, falling apart on him easily.

His thoughts then wandered on the city. He actually hadn't been here in a while, so he doubted anyone would know him exactly, or if they did it wouldn't be from his last visit, more of a coincidental engagement. Though he was thinking of a few places where sellswords tend to gather, bars, escort places, and the like. Maybe he would get himself a drink and a nice meal while he was here. He certainly had a chunk of change on him he wasn't telling anyone about. Though if this wielder of the Raigaki was actually hiring people for a group, and was active, what the hell was his goal? For all intents and purposes Talkatz was a dead demon, where they after his spirit? What would be the purpose of putting together a group. Kagi thought on this a bit after getting his answer from Shizuka and walking into town.

[Astral Harmony]

"That might be a good idea, if you have good connections," Chizuru smiled at Kagi. "I don't think normal merchants go around selling monofilament wire. I can't imagine there's a huge market for that kind of thing. Besides, who knows your kimono better than you?"

After that, Chizuru hit the river and discarded her getas and stockings. "It's so cold and clear," Chizuru said to no one in particular, then gazed at the fish swimming around inside. She groaned. "I wish there was something other than salmon. I was thinking of making octopus balls. I should ask Shizuka to buy some"

After stepping into the river, Chizuru became motionless and tried to focus on a single fish. When she succeeded, she had her first fish in nearly an instant. She held up the trident, the salmon still struggling after been impaled completely through.
"Damn it, it happened again but I don't know how I'm doing it!" Chizuru cried pitifully. With a sigh, she put the fish into the bucket. "Even when she dumbed it down, I still don't know what Mika-san was telling me. Just what the hell is a brain wave state, anyways?"

[PhoenixFlame]

Kurama agreed that they were customers, which caused Izuna to brighten up. Between the gold lace in her outfit and her coin-and-magatama tassels, she seemed quite wealthy indeed. The continuing lack of suitable food offerings had gotten to her almost as much as Nanako. Aside from 'travelling heroes' not really being a profession or, more likely, getting one kicked out of a city for fear of razing it, customers was the most suitable moniker.

"Shopping~!" Izuna waved her arms with a little hop from behind Nanako, "Let's go sample everything!" and then placed her hands on the martial artist's shoulders and steered her through the gates. At least someone else around here knew what the most important part of adventuring was.