Nakatura Valley game thread

[mfrench]

The wise old Master mutters and pulls on his chin as the rain continues to soak his clothes through completely. He comes to the conclusion that the runes must be some sort of ward against evil spirits.

 

[mfrench]

As the old mage stands in the rain, furiously trying to get his brain to cooperate, he hears the horse whinny from the other side of the stone. Perhaps it grew tired of waiting out the storm when dry shelter seemed too close to resist.

 

[Lorthanoth]

"Well, dang it, I guess you've got more sense than me, old girl." he mutters and waddles under the shelter as well.

"You know, you're pretty smart. For a horse, I mean. Like old Jigatai's horse, now there was a smart horse! When we were fighting bandits out in the borderlands, he just had to whistle and that horse would come a running, ready for a quick getaway! Course back then I could fly..." the geriatric sorcerer reminisces, through chattering teeth form the damp cold.

 

[mfrench]

The old mage follows the horse under the protection of the tunnel. One of the symbols from the outer stone, a series of three spirals that meets in the middle, is repeated here in places. On the rough rocks that make up the walls, grafitti in several languages can be found. Ahead of the horse, a faint glow can be seen down the tunnel. If he strains his ears and blocks out the sound of hooves, he can just manage to hear what might be intelligible speech.

 

[Lorthanoth]

Putting a finger to his lips and looking at the horse in a gesture for silence (whether the horse understands the gesture or not is another matter), and then making "stay, stay... stay..." gestures, Chen leaves the horse and tiptoes closer to the voices.

 

[mfrench]

Moving forward to the end of the tunnel, a large chamber opens up into the hill. A group of eight people - mostly women - dressed in common clothes are huddled around a meager fire next to a small wooden cart. The ox that had been pulling it is off the one side, rooting around the floor of the room, searching for something to nibble.

 

[Lorthanoth]

Staying hidden, the old man listens in to their conversation... Hmm... they look pretty normal, but that's not to say they couldn't be a whole band of kitsu or tanuki (tricksy little beggars!) or maybe even demons! Although demons tend to be a bit more on the ostentatious brazen hussy side and have lairs to match.... he thinks to himself, getting a bit sidetracked.

 

[mfrench]

With eight people all talking at once, it is difficult for the old man to capture entire conversations, but his ears are well-tuned enough to recognize certain phrases: some of them are arguing about how to best prepare that night's dinner. They seem captivated enough by their subject that they fail to notice the old mage watching their cooking.

The Master is briefly startled as the horse nuzzles up to his back from the tunnel.

 

[Lorthanoth]

"Eek!" Chen involuntarily yelps. Oh, that's done it now...

"Um... any room for an old man?" he asks sheepishly, "Oh, and a horse. It's not my horse though. I'm just looking after it."

 

[mfrench]

The chatter from the far side of the room stops, and the gathering turns to look at Master Chen. Even the ox turns his dull, stupid eyes at him briefly before resuming his search. A man breaks off from the group, turning a wary eye on the one who interrupted their preparations. He is stout but well-muscled, and seems like he can handle himself well enough. "Come out and show yourself, stranger. We've room enough for another to warm up by the fire."

One of those by the fire that had struck Chen as a child before is revealed by his fu manchu as a korobokuru. On second impression, his clothing is much more travel-stained, despite the effects of the storm. After a giving the new arrival a quick once-over, he turns his shaggy head back to the fire and spits a big, fat lougy into it. There is one older woman at the fire working there on the cooking who shoots the boorish man a disapproving glance. What must be the two oldest daughters look disgusted; the two youngest, covered up in blankets at the wheel of the cart, begin to giggle. A slight, bookish man, too thin to be a member of this family, chides the girls from his place at the fire.