With Unclouded Eyes {Quest}

There's a turn of phrase.

"Death is as light as a feather, duty is heavier than a mountain."

If you're not familiar with it, it's a Japanese saying.

It basically means that you shouldn't take the easy way out, while also saying that you should take the easy way out.

Better to have died serving your lord, then to live with the eternal dishonor of having betrayed him.

In ye olde Japan, I'm sure it was very popular. Or maybe not. A lot of that stuff you hear about the 'Honorable Ways of Bushido' nowadays was a fabrication of world war two Japan's propaganda machine.

The reason I'm bringing this up, is because it's hilariously ironic.

The age of the Samurai died a long time ago, and while you can certainly say what you want about equality, people willing to die for their beliefs, and the many welfare programs offered by the governments of the world to help the less fortunate, most people don't buy too hard into personal honor.

Politicians tend to be liars, even when they wish otherwise. Corporations don't trust individual people. And of course, general faith in one's fellow man tends to be disappointed far more often than not.

And yet.

In this modern world of lies and deceit, I find myself honor bound with the masters of the arts of deception and trickery.

Ninja, while an intriguing pop culture icon, are believed to be fictional by the masses.

This is one of those things that while technically true, is actually a lie.

The crazy man in the black pajamas who runs around screaming is dead.

The gentleman down the street who talks softly, and walks with a cane is still alive. The discreet messenger is aware of the contents in their parcels. The black silenced pistol lurking in the shadows has a target. The hidden blade lingers in a disguise of scented silk.

Ninja didn't die. They simply did what any human would do when faced with adversity.

Adapt.

But, for one reason or another, these people who walk in shadows have always kept a code of honor. Discretion. Secrecy. Loyalty.

And they value such things in others.

So, when a person with a certain set of wandering eyes catches sight of them, and says nothing, even with a reward dangled beneath their nose and the threat of violence hanging in the air...

They notice.

And are appreciative.

Well, there's more to the story than that.

Once just doesn't end up in my position because someone's "Appreciative."

But that strange winter's eve, is where it all began.

It's a tale of blood, magic, intrigue, honor, beautiful women, and one very, very tricky fox.

Interested... ?

[X] Yes.

Well, like all good stories about life, it's hard to know where to start.

If you want to start from the very beginning, we'll be going almost two hundred years into the past. That's when the first pieces for this story began to be laid down on world.

Personally, I'd say that when I got personally a few years ago in this fairy-tale is when things really started to get interesting. But then, that could be the ego talking.

Whichever's fine with me. I might pass off a few bits of the history lesson onto someone who was actually there, though.

How could a person who saw something back when the nineteenth century was considered the present still be around? Pretty simple really. The world's bigger than you know. Even know, there's plenty of things I don't understand.

Yes, I'm aware just how much of a non-answer I just gave you.

If you really want to know, why don't you ask her about it? She loves playing the mysterious wise woman. Until you call her old.

Heh.

Pro-tip, though: Unless you're fireproof, don't do that.

Anyway, where do you want to start?

[ ] Why don't we begin with the past?
[ ] How about we just jump in?

 

Dramatis Personae

?? ??
~ The Narrator ~

"Consider me your guide, to this strange world. Or at least, a guy who's willing to give you an honest opinion about most things."

 

[X] We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good place to start.

Because for some reason, upon reading the vote, it chimed in my head. And now I can hear the simple music, but can't remember any of the other lyrics, or if it's even a song or something I heard once getting sing-songey. Probably disney. Thanks, Walt.

And so I have to spread the pain around as much as possible. Sorry!

Edit: Not disney cartoons. Sound of music. Whee.

 

[X] How about we just jump in?

 

[X] Why don't we begin with the past?

 

[X] We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good The best place to start.
Rule number 1 when dealing with conspiracies, intrigue and other stealthy stuff: The earlier you get into the game, the more powerful you are as the game picks up.
Knowledge. Is. Power.

 

[X] We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good place to start.

Let me guess the woman in question is a kitsune of some sort.

 

[X] We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good place to start.

 

[X] Let's start at the very beginning- The very best place to start~

 

[X] We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good place to start.

 

>"We'll start at the very beginning. A pretty good place to start."

Alright then.

I'll tell you what I know, but I'll warn you right now, that I don't know everything. So, if you hear something and it doesn't really make sense... Well, I don't know. Use your head or something. If you really feel like it, I can call that woman I was talking about earlier over.

>"Let me guess the woman in question is a kitsune of some sort."

Well, not really sure what made you jump to that conclusion.

>You watch the man sitting across from you roll his eyes.

Anyway, this particular mess begins in the last days of the Bakumatsu. Or the early days of the Meiji period. Whichever you want to call it.

If you really want to know more about the Bakumatsu, find that out on your own. I'll keep it short and say that it was just a big revolution that stretched all the way across Japan, and it ended with the Imperial family back to being proper rulers of the country.

And I have just glossed over several years of a war that basically shook up all of Japan.

The point is, it was an era of change and transition. Lots and lots of very messy change and transition.

For a talented group of spies, saboteurs, and intelligence gatherers, it could be a very profitable time.

Or, end with your homes burned down, fields salted, women and children brutally slaughtered, and other such fun consequences that came of ever shifting political alliances, and lords who didn't want it to be known that they were less than completely honorable in war.

Now, during this little clusterfuck, what I'm going to call a genuine fairy tale happened.

Somebody fell in love.

A young peasant who may or may not have been there to assassinate somebody, spent a few months as a gardener at a certain Daimyo's castle. And during that time, he met a princess.

Well, princess isn't exactly the right word, but it means about the same. He met the beautiful daughter of the Daimyo, and somehow managed to have a conversation with her. And another, and another. And wouldn't you know it, they started to like each other. The young peasant was handsome enough, fairly skilled with his hands in a variety of ways, and remarkably well versed in poetry. The princess was beautiful, skilled with a naginata, and had a surprisingly sharp tongue.

She also wasn't actually the Daimyo's daughter.

That particular girl died years before the gardener even got there.

Now, the impostor princess was...

[ ] The Kitsune?
[ ] Another Ninja?
[ ] What? Mystery option~

 

[X] The Kitsune?
[ ] Another Ninja?
[ ] What? Mystery option~

Because I yearn for the possible vague 'Fluffy Tail' Route, assuming it happened at all... Before the Soul Eating Eclipse hell shenanigans happen.

Ah, please ignore the rambling part Mr. Narrator, as I also had to quote a possible 'Mystery Option' that is most likely, ze Write-In assumption.

And besides~, you play your cards right, and you MAY end up with a Loyal Foxgirl for a companion, who MAY be skilled with Illusions. MAY not be that bad a deal you know...

 

[X] The Kitsune?

 

[X] What? Mystery option~

 

Actually, it's the mystery box.

Each time you guys have the option to vote on something, it's framed like you're actually talking. Hence the arrows and the green text for actions occurring outside the narration.

The reason it's a mystery box, is because the story is still fluid, even though I have the basics laid out. There's only so much you actually know. So, if it's not the Fox or a Ninja, then it's something your don't know about yet.

 

[X] The Kitsune?

 

[X] The Kitsune?

Less a conclusion and more a guess. As for why I made said guess it's because of the references to a tricky fox, a wise woman who has lived for quite a while who can use fire.

 

[X] The Kitsune?

The fluffy tailed romance calls to us. Preparing for feels.

 

[X] The Kitsune?

 

[X] Kitsune
Because I like fluffy waifu.

 

... Guys? GM already straight up told us it was the mystery box option... I also want Kitsune though.

 

[X] A goddess?

 

[X] A tentacle monster!

 

[X] Kitsune

 

>"Less a conclusion and more a guess. As for why I made said guess it's because of the references to a tricky fox, a wise woman who has lived for quite a while who can use fire."

Sarcasm. Apparently, I need to work on my deliver of it.

>"So, the princess was a Kitsune?"

Bang on the dot, give the man a prize.

>The man tilts his cup to you, before taking a long drink. You're not quite sure what's supposed to be in it, but it has an overpoweringly sweet scent.

Ah, right then.

So, you see, when out with her mother a few years before all this actually began, they were the victims of, no points for guessing this time, more assassins. Now, conveniently, a certain clever fox watched the whole thing. And figured that a life of luxury as the daughter of a Daimyo probably wasn't that bad of a gig. So, when the search party came out looking for the missing wife and daughter, they found a horribly traumatized girl hiding in a field of corpses.

They brought the young princess home, and after a few days of recovery, she was able to finger the people responsible for this attack.

You may recall an earlier mention of a village getting burned to the ground?

Well, that was the consequence of the 'miraculous survival' of the princess. It's not important right now, but you're gonna want to just keep it in mind.

Now, it comes down to the day when the the Daimyo's to be assassinated.

The gardener, predictably being the type who's well versed in toxic plants, is starting to have second thoughts about this. Not enough to stop him, but he's been working for this Daimyo for months. The lord's honorable, looks after his people, managed to keep a surprising amount of them safe and fed through a war, and is basically everything you could think of when it came to being a stand-up guy.

So, the gardener prepares his poison, discreetly has the food dosed, and then just sits and waits to make sure the job's done before leaving.

Imagine his surprise when the Daimyo personally called him up to his hall.

The poisoned food sits on a tray, not a bite taken out of it.

And the Daimyo asks him, straight up, what the gardener intends to do about his daughter.

After all, you don't exactly get to be the lord of a castle without knowing what's going on. And while the gardener was fairly discreet, it's really hard to hide all the evidence of... Well.

Anyway-

>The world pulses. Your eyes seem to pound in their sockets, as the world tilts.

Whoa!

>The man reaches across the table for your shoulder, barely keeping you from falling out of your chair. The room starts to spin, as his voice echoes through your brain. It's too much. A white wriggling mist floats through the air, while black feathers drift down the back of a pretty waitress. You see her, and see beyond the pale skin and charming smile. Bloody talons instead of hands, and-

>A pin-prick on your throat.

>And the world goes back the way it was.

>The man sitting across from you grumbles, as he puts an auto-injector back into his pocket.

Listen, kid. I know you're new, and you want to know it all, but maybe you want to take it easy for a day or so? Getting a fresh set of eyes isn't exactly a procedure most people recover from in a day, you know.

[ ] I'll be fine. Just fine.
[ ] What the hell was... that?
[ ] You've got a point. I think I'll just head home.

 

[X] What the hell was... that?

 

[X] I'll be fine. Just fine.