2026-02-26: Murder and Frost
- Log: Murder And Frost
- Cast: Yua Ijuuin, Miho Ijuuin, Hiroto Nakamura, Remi Ryuuja, Kurou Ryouhara
- Where: Mt. Katatsumuri Forest Trail
- OOC Date: February 26, 2026
- IC Date: Monday, October 1, 2012
- Summary: With a new mission, an NWO squad starts scouting up Mt. Katatsumuri. Miho and Yua Ijuuin, Hiroto Nakmura, and Remi Ryuuja find themselves accompanied by one Kurou Ryouhara... and talk demon philosophy along the way to preparing for a murder.
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 1: Did Anyone Bring a Map? - Challenge Level 1 ====================-
| Approach Options: Academics or Proficiency |
| Conditions: Clumsy - Proficiency Down L1 and Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Here in the forest on Katatsumuri Mountain, the trail walk allows people to get
well away from the hustle and bustle of Sumaru City. It's quiet here, the sound
as you start on the trail punctuated only by the sound of birdcall and the wind
rustling through the boughs. Perhaps it was the rumors that brought you to the
mountainside: story has it that there are spirits and other creatures in the
woods. Perhaps you have your own reasons. Perhaps you're here for perfectly
innocuous purposes.
As you walk up to the first fork in the path, a problem makes itself plain:
time and weather have done a number on the signposts! They're covered in moss
and are entirely illegible! Perhaps you can figure out where you want to head on
your own, or perhaps you can clean or fix up the signposts in some way?
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
"Good morning, Ms. Ijuuin," a mysterious, feminine voice greets Miho; and from a private number, though that's hardly surprising. "I understand you and yours have returned safely from Okinawa...?"
Chizuru Ishigami laughs, lightly, as she leans forward in her seat. "Yes," she smiles, "I heard about it. And from more than one source... the energies are thickening, around you, aren't they?" Her cheer doesn't entirely reach her eyes; there is a distance, there, not entirely owing to the length between her and her target.
An elegantly-kept nail taps, against her armrest. "Very good! Hm hm, I'm curious... how you'd perform, if someone just gave you a chance."
A light, airy pause. Her smile broadens.
"Can you kill the Joker Killer for me...? Both you and yours, I should say, this isn't something you should undertake alone... but I'll give you a hint. His horoscope says he'll be at the Asylum quite soon... why don't you get it ready for him?"
Click.
...---...
"We're going hiking!" Yua exclaims, excitedly, her tutu exchanged for a pink shirt and light saddle-brown jacket, and hiking pants of a similar shade. She wears a backpack, a floppy fisherman's hat, and hiking boots, and she's waving her curled hands in glee. "We're going hiking, we're going hiking! YAY!"
The disappointment she felt when she was told she'd need to take another sick day was soon overriden when Miho told her just what they'd be doing. And so, feminine, delicate Yua has shown an entirely different side of herself: a surprisingly apt outdoorswoman. She gave everyone strict instructions on what to wear (covered limbs! Comfortable supportive shoes! Hats!) and what she'd give them, and when they arrived here, she's handed out backpacks, just as promised. They've got everything! First aid kits, navigation tools, rescue signallers, emergency thermal blankets, firestarters, water bottles, trail mix!
Does... does Yua realise they're going to set up a murder?
She's so excited...
(Yua's own backpack, of course, is of a manageable weight; no one wants the pregnant woman to be overburdened.)
They are not, as it happens, here for innocuous purposes, but one wouldn't know that just by looking at Yua. "Oh!" She exclaims, as the base of the trail soon leads to... an obscured signpost! "Here, here! I'll show you all how to find 'North', okay?! It's really important!" She holds out her compass, demonstratively. "Like this, like this... see? There's magnets and stuff, so the pointer settles on 'North'! Okay! So now we take our map, see? And see that arrow? That's North! So we spin our map around so the map arrow matches the compass arrow, annnnd..." Tilt, tilt... "... there we go! See, it's the left path we want! No signs required!"
<Pose Tracker> Miho Ijuuin has posed.
Miho listens to the voice. There is much that pre-empts her saying anything; she doesn't have to answer the matter of Okinawa, because Chizuru already knew. The energies around her thickening...
A 'chance'.
Before she can answer, Chizuru has disconnected the line, but Miho is quite thoughtful as she sets down her phone. After a few moments, she inclines her head.
"...Yes," she says then. "Yes, I believe I can."
After all... they must be bold, and seize their destiny.
-=-=-
Hiking, hiking, hiking! Miho is still in her sling, but the wound hurts much less than it did at first; maybe that has to do with her intense focus, of course. It's been around a week, after all, and these things do take more time than that to heal. However...
She is also wearing comfortable shoes, a hat, and a flannel shirt to cover her arms. Long trousers, obviously. She....
Well, if Yua's excited, that's nice.
A map...
"Yes, that's in order," Miho agrees. "So long as we keep in mind the position of the sun, as well, we can avoid becoming lost."
She is quite intent.
"...But our target will not be moving yet. So we can rely on such things, still."
MONAD: Miho Ijuuin has acted with Proficiency toward Did Anyone Bring a Map?! Base! <Pose Tracker> Hiroto Nakamura has posed.
Hiroto was asked to join the group, and so, he has. He's not in his salaryman suit, somehow, instead wearing a hiking coat and a cap, having followed Yua's instructions to the letter and taken the backpack given.
"Your excitement is infectious," he mentions offhandedly, no deeper meaning to it except to be friendly. He kneels to check the trail as Yua grabs a compass.
"We can also go by tracks and other things in the trail itself. Before signs existed, people had to find a way to navigate themselves, after all."
He'll look to indicate which path is more travelled on, animal tracks, warning signs, and anything else they might need, though he does believe Yua's correct.
"Have you done a lot of hiking?" he asks the rest of the group. It's clear he has at least a little experience, but that might be his secret martial arts master background...
MONAD: Hiroto Nakamura has acted with Academics toward Did Anyone Bring a Map?! Base!
<Pose Tracker> Remi Ryuuja has posed.
Hiking! It would be nice, if this were an excursion for lesiure and not for... 'work.'
(Remi will appreciate the presence of emergency thermal blankets, though.)
But she is not afraid to hunt the Joker Killer (indeed, she cannot be), but she still has concerns. Yua is pregnant, and Miho is still injured. These are disfavorable states to conduct an ambush with, but if today they were only here to scout...
... no, she still has concerns.
Remi herself is dressed in a thick, fur-lined leather jacket, denim pants, hiking boots, and fingerless gloves. And also a hat. Her long hair is secured back in a low bun, and she has a hat for the shade. She accepts the backpack, but she has two additions of her own to her kit.
Her Evoker rests in a holster under her jacket, and she has not a rapier but a machette on her hip.
Look she's not going to do this without some kind of weapon on hand.
She looks a bit more grim and serious, but as Yua describes how the map and compass works she does look on in interest. "I see, dear... how resourceful."
But she looks at the nearest sign thoughtfully. "Hmm... perhaps..." She looks through her backpack and takes out the canteen, using a little bit of the water to dab at the sign. "I've studied a little bit abut caring for and restoring old weapons... perhaps I can touch up the sign enough to give us a bearing."
MONAD: Remi Ryuuja has acted with Proficiency toward Did Anyone Bring a Map?! Base! <Pose Tracker> Kurou Ryouhara has posed.
Shiryuu made it clear that there was to be peace between Ijuuin and Ryouhara, and that Ijuuin should receive their protection. This is not something Kurou treats lightly.
Nor were any of Yua's instructions.
Kurou dresses uncharacteristically in a long sleeved shirt with a grey windbreaker over top, and pants with cinched ankles. His shoes are the same sneaker boots as ever... he only has the one pair. But they are comfortable. And, of course, a hat: a very pragmatic, wider brimmed bucket hat in a pale color. His hair is tied under it, at the nape of his neck, into an actual full ponytail.
As soon as he was handed a backpack, he took immediate and thorough inventory of its contents.
They're going hiking. "Yay," he echoes of Yua's excitement in dead monotone, but there is a halfway bump of his fist that suggests this is a genuine attempt to join the sentiment, if subdued. Yua Ijuuin may be under his protective by Ryouhara order, but she does teach one of his favorite classes... even if he may not have indicated as much over his time in them, and attends with deadly seriousness.
But this is not class. This is a hike. There can be yay.
It might also be a murder.
That's why while everyone focuses on the path forward, Kurou lingers toward the back of the group, and takes efforts to mask that any of them as individuals have passed this way. No fallen items, no torn clothing, no overly clear prints left in their wake, and most importantly... a check to make sure they are not already being followed.
MONAD: Kurou Ryouhara has acted with Without a Trace toward Did Anyone Bring a Map?! Diligence and Patra! (|============================= Monad - Results ==============================|) -==== Did Anyone Bring a Map? - Round 1 =======================================- Yua Ijuuin Proficiency Success Proficiency Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Miho Ijuuin Proficiency Success Proficiency Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Remi Ryuuja Proficiency Success Proficiency Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kurou Ryouhara Proficiency Success Without a Trace Diligence and Patra Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hiroto Nakamura Academics Success Academics Base Fatigue: 0 -============================= Party Conditions: ==============================- Starting Conditions: Clumsy-2 and Stupor-2 Final Conditions: Clumsy-1 -======================================== Party Result: Success: Reach Up! ====- -==== Reach: 1/6 |= | =====================================================- (|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has drawn a new Challenge!
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 2: Unseasonable Weather - Challenge Level 1 =======================-
| Approach Options: Academics or Guts |
| Conditions: Clumsy - Proficiency Down L1, Heartening - Guts Up L1, and |
| Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Hee ho!
If you know, you know: that sound should fill you with dread. Something is out
in those woods, and it means you mischief.
Because, indeed, it is abruptly snowing -- regardless of the weather a few
moments before. In fact, in this immediate area, it has been snowing for awhile.
There are several large snow banks ahead. You're going to need to find a way to
navigate the snow.
And, of course, if you're so inclined... maybe you can find the Jack Frost
behind this and give them a stern talking to. After all, this Jack Frost likes
to be scolded and enjoys logic puzzles!
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
"Mm, mm! The sun matters, too!!" Yua hands off her map to Miho, so she can clap, excitedly, for Hiroto. "Mmhm, mmhm!! Tracking trails! Yeah!!!"
Remi manages to scrub the sign up a little, revealing that there is, indeed, an arrow pointing left.
Yua doesn't actually remember inviting a ninja, as it happens. However, a ninja is here now. Yua isn't going to question that. Kurou is a very nice boy who has always been an excellent student in her dance classes! She did, however, put her hands on her hips to insist: "You should be in school, young man! ... but if you're excited to come, too, there's no harm in it, right, Mimi?"
But since Kurou is the one who was following them (he drew the cushy job of following Yua today evidently), he can certainly make sure no one else is. That also means he'll be the first one to realise that someone's been through here, recently...
... and then, the first snowflake falls.
"Hee ho...!"
Yua blinks, as she looks up at the snow. "Huh? But it's only October...?" A snowflake falls on her nose, and she sneezes. "A-chuh--!"
Important Yua facts: she sneezes like a kitten.
"Who's behind this?!" She demands, hands to her hips again. "In a place like this... I won't guess!" She takes her Evoker out from her own jacket -- Remi made sure she had a holster to keep it there, surely -- and fires on her eyepatch. "Gretchen!"
The Persona rises up, in this Supernatural space, and her gems gleam as she scans...
... and Yua points, right behind an icy bush.
"There's the miscreant!"
"Hee ho!" Jack Frost exclaims, when he's discovered. "You'll never stop me, hee! Not unless you answer my questions three-hee!"
He's just a little guy, guys.
You know what to do.
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has acted with Blindsight toward Unseasonable Weather! Focus and Find! <Pose Tracker> Miho Ijuuin has posed.
Miho of course does have a weapon. She hasn't retrieved it from its case yet.
But Hiroto mentions excitement, and Miho nods. "It is," she says.
And... Kurou is here. Hmm.
Yay.
"There's no harm," Miho agrees. "By all means, come along. But you'll operate according to our approaches."
Snowflakes...
"I have done much hiking," Miho says to Hiroto, as she looks around and sees. Yua doesn't have to guess, because behind that icy bush...
Miho turns to look upon Jack Frost.
"Jack Frost," Miho says. "You are standing in our path. Such demons must know..."
She pulls her sword case, and opens it one-handed, pulling forth a beautiful scarlet-hilted sabre, with a dragon motif.
"...That to do such a thing is quite naughty."
She slashes forward, cutting the air with her sword, and points it at Jack Frost. The blade exudes heat for a moment, power.
"I will tell you your riddles."
"The first: what is the nature of separation?"
"If you do not cease to stand in your way, I will allow my friend Remi to etch that lesson into your very bones."
"...Your second question: What... is Yua's favorite color?"
"And your third: Where does Jack Frost go when he leaves my sight?"
MONAD: Miho Ijuuin has acted with Swords Talk toward Unseasonable Weather! Efficient and Bravery! <Pose Tracker> Hiroto Nakamura has posed.
As they progress (and gather a ninja, which, okay), Hiroto feels that snow chill as he follows the tracks. His body tenses, as a Persona is summoned and they locate a Jack Frost.
Miho handles it swiftly and exceptionally, but Hiroto does chime in. "As much as I am interested in your riddles, we're burning daylight. You should know better than to waste our precious time.. I do wonder, however..."
He looks over to the Jack Frost. "Do you bleed, or are your veins cold as the frost? Curious question, isn't it?"
He exudes menace, despite barely moving. There's definitely the feeling that Hiroto could snap a neck right now. (He doesn't *really* want to, but, threats!)
MONAD: Hiroto Nakamura has acted with Inner Beast toward Unseasonable Weather! Bravery and Patra! <Pose Tracker> Remi Ryuuja has posed.
Remi cast an appraising look as she watched Kurou cover their tracks from the corner of her eye. Surely she's only watching him because she cares for his well-being and--
... okay no she's suspicious. (But she's suspicious of a lot of people.)
Still... she appreciates the diligence, at least.
Remi looks up at the snow, her face set as she's instantly alert. She turns her head as she catches the call of 'Hee ho...!'
"Jack Frost," she states, quietly, her voice flat and deadly serious.
She's surely faced... many of these in the time she was forced to spend patrolling the lab to keep it safe. Among others.
Yua points the way, and while Miho talks to the demon, Remi instead circles to approach from behind. She withdraws her machette, and holds the tip a mere hair's width away from the Jack Frost.
She is looking down her nose at the demon, with a focused stare that suggests she is not impressed by what she sees, nor afraid.
Maybe one might consider the look to be a type of scolding?
"Give me cause, demon," Remi says in response to Miho's threat. "... and I shall separate your existence from this earth."
Okay no that one is more of a threat.
Her eyes do flicker over to observe Hirot as he lets loose that sense of menace. Hrmm. But they're back on the Jack Frost soon enough.
MONAD: Remi Ryuuja has acted with Unflinching Stare toward Unseasonable Weather! Focus and Patra! <Pose Tracker> Kurou Ryouhara has posed.
Yua points out that Kurou should be in school, and his hand lowers slow enough to suggest an ounce of shame at this scolding. He glances down before mustering his courage to speak back to Yua. "I have completed my assignments and scheduled time for make up work, Ijuuin-sensei. Please allow me to assist you. I will be very excited."
This may not be untrue, internally, but they'll be hard pressed to verify that based on the look on his face.
Miho has her own rules, and Kurou nods once in acquiescence. "Yes." He gives a polite bow to Remi and Hiroki both. "Thank you for having me."
Unfortunately, as the ninja boy does ninja things, he learns there was someone else before them. Kurou's eyes darken with suspicion.
"...Hee ho," Kurou repeats, flat as ever, as a snowflake lands upon his gloved palm. Yua confirms it with Gretchen. Kurou draws his sword.
Miho does not make the move to attack. Kurou sheathes his sword with the same slowly wilting enthusiasm he had lowered his hand with earlier. As he just agreed, he will obey Miho's approach, even he must endure riddles-three.
But it really is quite naughty.
"Snowfall this early may disorient the biorhythm of a number of species native to this area. Are you prepared to carry the burden of the souls who perish before they ever had the chance to make the proper adaptations?"
MONAD: Kurou Ryouhara has acted with Guts toward Unseasonable Weather! Base! (|============================= Monad - Results ==============================|) -==== Unseasonable Weather - Round 2 ==========================================- Yua Ijuuin Guts Success Blindsight Focus and Find Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Miho Ijuuin Guts Success Swords Talk Efficient and Bravery Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Remi Ryuuja Guts Success Unflinching Stare Focus and Patra Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kurou Ryouhara Guts Success Guts Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hiroto Nakamura Guts Success Inner Beast Bravery and Patra Fatigue: 0 -============================= Party Conditions: ==============================- Starting Conditions: Clumsy-1, Heartening-2, and Stupor-2 Final Conditions: Heartening-1 -======================================== Party Result: Success: Reach Up! ====- -==== Reach: 2/6 |== | =====================================================- -==== Loot So Far: ============================================================- Items: 1, Money: 0, Gear: 1 (|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has drawn a new Challenge!
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 3: Lost Hiker - Challenge Level 1 =================================-
| Approach Options: Charm or Understanding |
| Conditions: Bless - +1 to Group Roll (Per Character), Heartening - Guts Up |
| L1, and Shuffle - Draw 1 Minor Arcana. |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Um, hello? A young voice breaks the solemn ambient noise of the forest. Standing
up the trail from where you are, a hiker stands, looking very exasperated.
While he looks very prepared, his backpack seems weighed down with various
knick-nacks and symbols, which clink and clang with every movement he makes.
On closer inspection (or due to a party member being able to sense it) a few of
these pieces, from many different cultures and faiths, either contain protective
energies, or somehow ward off danger.
This is likely why he's been safe from the forest's supernatural dangers... much
to this hiker's chagrin.
"I've been looking all around for all the paranormal stuff people are talking
about, but I haven't found a dang thing, not even another artifact to add to my
collection." He sighs. "This whole thing's been a wash. No offense, but you guys
are probably the strangest things I've seen so far..."
It's up to your group whether or not you want to help, as well as *how*.
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
Luckily, Yua knows a thing or two about embracing flat affect (hi, Miho! Kisses!!!), and so Kurou's dispassionate excitement gets full marks from her. "Yay!"
Jack Frost, however, gets no marks.
"H--hee-y! You don't tell me the riddles, I tell you the riddles!" Jack Frost insists, hopping back a step. "W-why do you have a sword, lady?! Your arm's all mummified!"
Hiroto steps in, then, and he gasps: "Whoa! You guys are really bad-bad customers, huh?! O-okay, okay! I totally have blood, normal blue blood just like everyone else, and I need it inside me, thanks!" He hops from one foot to the other. "Uh, uh -- and separation is -- what makes the heart grow fonder?! I swear I heard bro say it like that..."
"Hmph," Yua folds her arms. "So what's my favourite colour?"
"Uh, uhhhh --" He looks across her, desperately. "P--pink?"
"BZZT!" Yua holds up her hands, in the sign of an 'x' across her chest. (Kurou, take note: this is the most powerful jutsu which once destroyed the shihaisha in a single blow. ... it's the ballet mime for 'no'.) "My favourite colour is green! The green of Mimi's hair! Duh!"
"How was I supposed to know thaaaat?!" Jack Frost wails, as he hops back -- only to yelp and jump up five feet, because he hopped right into the pointy end of Remi's machete. "YIPE!"
Little tears stream down his dumb demonic face. "I thought killing all those deer would give me tonnes of XP and let me become as strong as my coolest bro! Haven't you met Black Frost before?! He's so cool...!" He sniffles, looking to Kurou. "But I didn't expect anyone tough to come around! You guys all have too many swords!!!"
He looks at Yua. "Hey, except you... you don't have a sword, but you don't look like your hands are swords like that other guy...!"
Unfortunately, Remi, who is right behind him, is still right behind him, and a good stab of that machete send him wailing off into the distance. "JACK FROST IS GOING BACK DOWN THE MOUNTAAAIN!" He wails, in answer to the third riddle, and he leaves behind a shiny Crystal Ring!
He'll be fine.
No sooner has the frost faded from the mountain trail, though, that they come by another... threat?
No, it's a normal human.
"Hello...?" A Backpacker calls, turning to the noise of your approach. (Well. /Yua's/ noisy, anyway. She provides her own sound effects as they climb -- "Hike, hike, hike... o/`")
"Oh!" Yua exclaims, when she spies him. "You're... very well-protected, aren't you?"
"I came prepared," he confirms. "But I've been looking all around for all the paranormal stuff people are talking about, but I haven't found a dang thing, not even another artifact to add to my collection."
"You must have been collecting them for quite a while," Yua blinks. "You even have Shiisaa statues...!"
"That's right," he nods, only to slump over with a heavy sight. "This whole thing's been a wash. No offense, but you guys are probably the strangest things I've seen so far..."
Yua looks at Hiroto, and tilts her head. "Ton-ton, are we strange?" She asks, a woman with an eyepatch surrounded by people armed with blades.
She takes a step forward... only for the hairs on the back of her neck to raise. Yua shortly takes three steps back, away from the man.
"Are you all right, miss?" He asks, giving them a queer look.
"I, er..." Yua starts, grasping at her eyepatch, with a grimace. "I just had a bad feeling..."
"Do you need a protective artifact?" He asks, stepping forward. "I can help!"
"N--no no no no!" Yua insists, taking another couple of steps back, waving her hands. "That's all right! Please, just don't come any closer! You want to see something magical, right? There's -- there's lots of magic right over that way!" She points him towards a fork in the path, safely away from her.
It's another route off the mountain... but it's rather more windy than the one they took.
So, you know.
Maybe he'll meet something magic.
Over there where he can't make her eye hurt!
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has acted with Nurturing Direction toward Lost Hiker! Automap! <Pose Tracker> Miho Ijuuin has posed.
Miho accepts Kurou. His flat affect makes sense to her, anyway. "That is naughty," Miho agrees at Kurou's statement. "Thoughtless actions lead to senseless results."
Remi is a wonderful enforcer. And Hiroto..
Miho smiles at his question.
Jack Frost balks, but Miho does not relent. Jack Frost... goes down the mountain. She kneels down to pick up the Crystal Ring.
"And that," she says, "Is why it is good to parley with demons."
A pause. "...Also, he was cute."
But a normal human is here, and the hairs on the back of Miho's neck stand up, too. he is prepared,, but--
"We are strange," Miho confirms for Hiroto and Yua both. And then--
"..."
Miho suddenly reaches into her pocket and grabs a stack of yen.
"If you want to see something strange," she suggests, "Place this in the offertory box nearby. Then, wait."
"...That is my suggestion."
MONAD: Miho Ijuuin has acted with Bribe toward Lost Hiker! Focus and Patra! <Pose Tracker> Hiroto Nakamura has posed.
Hiroto considers. Perfectly normal blue blood...
But, once they scare the shit out of the Jack Frost and he leaves, he's continuing forward. When they meet a hiker, he approaches, and *also* feels the hair stick up on the back of his neck. Oh no.
"We have plenty of protection, thank you. The heavens watch over us," Hiroto lies through his fucking teeth, nodding to the man as Yua asks if they're strange and Miho gives him money.
"I recommend going down that way. We saw no artifacts on our way in, so our route is a bad one," he agrees with Yua.
Perfectly pleasant man! No evil bones in his body!
MONAD: Hiroto Nakamura has acted with Chained Mask toward Lost Hiker! Focus and Efficient! <Pose Tracker> Remi Ryuuja has posed.
Remi gives a short nod to Kurou as he thanks them. "... of course," he says quietly. She's not really feeling her normal, effusive self today.
Remi barely had to do a thing, just let the Jack Frost back itself into her blade. She watches it flee with narrowed eyes, before letting out a contemptuous snort. "You suffered it to life," she says, dispassionately, to Miho.
She makes sure to sheathe her machette again as a backpacker appears. She's quiet as Yua talks to him--and then frowns as Yua suddenly steps back.
That makes something in her bristle, yet the man doesn't seem like a threat... not a type of threat she is familiar with, at least.
But Yua clearly doesn't want him nearby... and Remi demonstrates her own strangeness as she suddenly turns more animated, taking a step closer with a smile. "Well look at you, not many would think to be as prepared as you are, but clearly your efforts have paid off. You must be quite clever, dear, and I've no doubt you'll find what you're looking for if you follow my dear friend's advice. She is quite clever herself, you see."
Everything always goes over better with a little bit of flattery.
When the Backpacker is (hopefully) gone, the cheer drops from her face as she looks to the others. "... Are all of you alright?"
MONAD: Remi Ryuuja has acted with Flattery toward Lost Hiker! Friendliness and Efficient! <Pose Tracker> Kurou Ryouhara has posed.
"Yay," Kurou repeats, same as before, but this time his fist pumps all the way up.
BZZT. Kurou's mouth makes a perfect 'o' as he witnesses the most powerful of jutsu. A complete rejection. The utter denial. He is here to assist, but Kurou has learned something powerful today. He notes, too: not pink, as some may expect from one whose life is painted in the illusion of fragility, but green, to match Miho.
Jack Frost was prepared to carry the burden, and Kurou gives a nod of respect. "Very well. Then you, too, will be worth great 'XP'..."
But Miho said he had to follow their approach... Which has worked quite effectively. A ring is left behind. This has demonstrated another new and powerful jutsu: parley. "Oh. They leave valuables behind even if you do not kill them? I didn't know..."
Is... is this his first time not just killing one...!
But more stressful than parley with a demon is their next task: an unexpected and completely normal social interaction. His eyes light up at the mention of Shiisaa statues, but then Yua takes a whole three steps back and Kurou immediately fills the vacuum, fully between her and the hiker.
His gaze does not leave the young man, but Kurou himself says nothing. He simply nods along with what the adults around him are suggesting.
And when Remi asks if everyone is all right, he looks directly at Yua.
MONAD: Kurou Ryouhara has acted with Shut Up and Nod toward Lost Hiker! Amrita!
(|============================= Monad - Results ==============================|)
-==== Lost Hiker - Round 3 ====================================================-
Yua Ijuuin Understanding Success
Nurturing Direction Automap Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miho Ijuuin Charm Success
Bribe Focus and Patra Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remi Ryuuja Charm Success
Flattery Friendliness and Efficient Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kurou Ryouhara Understanding Success
Shut Up and Nod Amrita Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hiroto Nakamura Charm Success
Chained Mask Focus and Efficient Fatigue: 0
-============================= Party Conditions: ==============================-
Starting Conditions: Bless-0, Heartening-1, and Shuffle: Sword-0
Final Conditions:
-======================================== Party Result: Success: Reach Up! ====-
-==== Reach: 3/6 |=== | =====================================================-
-==== Loot So Far: ============================================================-
Items: 1, Money: 0, Gear: 1
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has drawn a new Challenge!
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 4: Unseasonable Weather - Challenge Level 1 =======================-
| Approach Options: Academics or Guts |
| Conditions: Heartening - Guts Up L1 and Stupor - Academics Down L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
Hee ho!
If you know, you know: that sound should fill you with dread. Something is out
in those woods, and it means you mischief.
Because, indeed, it is abruptly snowing -- regardless of the weather a few
moments before. In fact, in this immediate area, it has been snowing for awhile.
There are several large snow banks ahead. You're going to need to find a way to
navigate the snow.
And, of course, if you're so inclined... maybe you can find the Jack Frost
behind this and give them a stern talking to. After all, this Jack Frost likes
to be scolded and enjoys logic puzzles!
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
"He was rather cute, wasn't he?" Yua sighs, a hand to her cheek as she watches the snow thaw.
But they -- are strange! Miho said so. And Miho approaches the man, as several of his watches(?) begin spinning wildly, and the rings on his fingers grow cloudy and black as their gems are obscured by something ink-dark.
The hiker fully fails to notice all these portents of evil, because he's focused on the way she has her arm extended out to hand him that yen bag. "Hey, it's okay, I don't bite," he assures her, as he takes it. "But you think it's the offertory box that's the key? I think I saw one at the base of the mountain, but..."
He sighs, looking to Hiroto. "So your route was a bust? That's too bad. Hey, when you say the heavens, do you mean the Christian Heaven? I don't see a cross on you guys..."
"Oh, we're from a different sect!" Yua insists, quickly. "We have to keep them against our bodies, or they'll stop working, so we can't show you!"
"Well, I guess that makes sense..." He rubs at the back of his head, and looks to Remi. "You must be right," he admits, "she clearly knows her stuff. Ah," he adds, under Kurou's stare, "are you her little brother...?" Both Yua and Kurou are darker than the average Japanese person, and they both have dark hair, and apparently that's as far as he got in guessing. "If you're off of school, you must all be here for an important reason... I'd best be off."
If he hurries off a little quicker than he needed to, well -- Kurou's got a creepy ol' stare.
Yua breathes a sigh of relief, when he's gone. "Um..." She starts, rubbing at her eyepatch. "Hey... are we evil? Those evil-deflecting amulets made me feel really uncomfy... moouuuuu..."
How can Yua be evil? She looks so sad!
She's so sad, she's a sad girl in snow...
... hey, wait a minute...
... "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee---!!"
Jack Frost is running back up the mountain!
He runs right up to Miho, and leaps behind her. "Hide me, hee! There's a crazy creepy guy barging down the mountain and he SUPER freaks me out! Who-ho goes around with that many amulets?!"
That's not really a safe place to hide, little buddy... especially as Yua folds her arms and stomps her foot. "Get away from Mimi!" She huffs. "If you can't even handle one normal human, you're a disgrace of a demon! Don't you have any pride in your awful work?! If you don't, you can at least not call attention to it by pleading for help!"
"BUT HE'S SO CREE-HEE-HEE-HEEPY..."
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has acted with Guts toward Unseasonable Weather! Base! <Pose Tracker> Miho Ijuuin has posed.
"Killing every demon is a waste of energy," Miho tells Remi simply. "And often unproductive. There will always be more of them; by negotiating with them, you can gain advantages against those you do need to destroy."
"They do," Miho confirms for Kurou. "Sometimes you can make deals with them, gain information, or spread information to other demons. This is useful for various purposes..."
The heavens...
Well, it's sort of true. In that it isn't true at all.
Miho sighs, as the hiker goes away, having answered, "I do."
"Why does it matter if we are 'evil' to the Christians?" Miho wonders. "We were at war with them for a while. Perhaps they held a grudge."
It wasn't just Christian symbols, Miho...
"The world opposes us because we seek to change the status quo. That is all."
But suddenly--
"Jack Frost," Miho says icily, as Yua stomps her foot. "...This cowardice will not do."
"Take up a sword," Miho recommends. "Defend yourself against that which you fear. Only then will you become worthy."
"Only then will you become... Frost Blade."
MONAD: Miho Ijuuin has acted with Swords Talk toward Unseasonable Weather! Efficient and Bravery! <Pose Tracker> Hiroto Nakamura has posed.
Hiroto lets Yua answer about their sect, nodding. "We're very different."
He's quiet for the rest, until the Hiker is gone. "Sorry about that," he says with a small wave. "It's easier to lie to those types." Then, he smiles. "That kind of evil... doesn't matter. What matters is action."
Though they also kill people...
Either way, it starts getting cold! And then, Jack Frost returns.
As Yua tells him to have pride, and Miho tells him to take up a sword, Hiroto walks over to a nearby tree branch that's fallen, kicking it up into his hands. "Take this. Your sword."
Why is Hiroto indulging this? Honestly, he likes the Jack Frost better than he liked the occultist.
"I am no swordsman, but remember to point it outward."
MONAD: Hiroto Nakamura has acted with Inner Beast toward Unseasonable Weather! Bravery and Patra! <Pose Tracker> Remi Ryuuja has posed.
Kurou is looking to Yua, and to be honest, Remi is also largely looking at her first. When Yua asks that question, Remi shakes her head. "Of course not. Though perhaps our... 'benefactors' have left a taint upon us."
Remi regards Miho for a moment as she gives her advice. "... hmm. I suppose. My first instinct is... not towards negotiation."
She won't say more of her conditioning than that.
But soon it is cold again, and Jack Frost is back. Remi has her machette out in an instant, and she is stalking up on the Jack Frost with a steely gaze. Miho advises to take up a blade, and Hiroto hands it one.
"... you will require tutelage." But the way her hand grips her sword and that look makes it clear she's not interested in starting with the beginner lessons.
She is, in fact, looking to Miho as if to say 'Do we still need to suffer this demon?'
MONAD: Remi Ryuuja has acted with Guts toward Unseasonable Weather! Base! <Pose Tracker> Kurou Ryouhara has posed.
Kurou is also shutting up and nodding along as Miho explains the benefit of demon Negotiation. A waste of energy. Unproductive. Deals... And the ability to destroy even more of then. Yes. A net gain in their eradication is valuable. There are many aspects to this he had not considered.
But is Kurou Yua's little brother? He does not say anything to this, either. The assumption could be useful in the moment. (It's not really that important to if the hiker leaves or stays, though, Kurou...)
Finally, the interaction ENDS. ... And then Jack Frost RETURNS.
"... Very well. Then be hidden."
"Gashadokuro."
Kurou pulls on his scarf. Needles sink into his skin.
A giant skeleton Persona rises up under Jack Frost and seeks to devour him into its skull entirely, and yank him back into the earth.
...
...
...
If Jack Frost does not avoid this to face his foe with courage, then know that, mercifully, Gashadokuro did not bite down upon the demon. There is room for him to escape, dig out of his would-be-grave, and continue on. Maybe.
MONAD: Kurou Ryouhara has acted with Overkill toward Unseasonable Weather! Specialty! (|============================= Monad - Results ==============================|) -==== Unseasonable Weather - Round 4 ==========================================- Yua Ijuuin Guts Success Guts Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Miho Ijuuin Guts Success Swords Talk Efficient and Bravery Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Remi Ryuuja Guts Success Guts Base Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Kurou Ryouhara Guts Success Overkill Specialty Fatigue: 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hiroto Nakamura Guts Success Inner Beast Bravery and Patra Fatigue: 0 -============================= Party Conditions: ==============================- Starting Conditions: Heartening-2 and Stupor-2 Final Conditions: Heartening-1 -======================================== Party Result: Success: Reach Up! ====- -==== Reach: 4/6 |==== | =====================================================- -==== Loot So Far: ============================================================- Items: 1, Money: 0, Gear: 1 (|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has drawn a new Challenge!
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 5: The Fork in the Road - Challenge Level 2 =======================-
| Approach Options: Charm or Understanding |
| Conditions: Bothersome - Charm Down L1, Hard - Understanding Down L1, and |
| Heartening - Guts Up L1 |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
You've reached the end of the forest trail. Ahead is a fork that will take you
back towards the entrance if you want, or, if you ignore the signs here that
state that ahead is private property and that you absolutely shouldn't
tresspass, you could potentially take an approach that would take you right up
to the back of the Morimoto Sanitarium.
Assuming, that is, that's somewhere that you want to go.
But tresspassing is a crime, and there are plenty of stories that, true or not,
suggest eerie things take place in the sanitarium. It's quiet here. You can't
even hear the birds. There's nothing for you but the sound of the wind in the
branches.
Do you have a good sense of your group's mood and whether this is an adventure
you want to chance? Or would you prefer to bolster their spirits and urge them
on ahead?
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
"I'm not sure if it's just them, Mimi..." Yua points out, pouting. But she sighs, finally, shaking her head. Even if it's just that they're tainted... "... all the world's against us, huh...? Well..." Her expression grows cheerful again, though it's a little put on. "Then we'd better smile!"
But Miho has some advice for Jack Frost -- and Hiroto has a way for him to act on it. "Hee ho!" He declares, as he picks up the branch Hiroto kicks up for him. "Don't worry," he adds, to Remi, "I remember the last time you skewered me! It was like this! And that! Hyah!"
He stabs the branch once, twice!
He twirls!
He faces down Goliath!
"HEEEEE--!!!"
He stabs at Gashadokuro's teeth with his branch, but it doesn't do anything to stop him from getting gobbled up whole.
... and Kurou is left with the deeply annoying sensation that there's something stuck in his teeth.
"Oh," Yua sighs, as she watches him disappear. "I feel kind of bad for him... well, nothing to do now but keep going!"
Up the path... there are no more challenges. Only a fork in the path -- a decision.
"Even though I was smiling... we came here to get ready to kill someone, right...?" Yua sighs, looking down. "It's not that I didn't know... I just wanted to forget, for a little while. Sake-san is someone like us... we thought we could work together. But now... as easy as someone changing their mind... we've been sent to get rid of him. It's not really fair..."
She wipes at her good eye, and smiles, again, just like she told them to. "... it's okay," she assures them. "Even if it's me you have to come for, one day... it's okay. It's not your fault." She pulls her Evoker out, again. "I'll help you prepare your route," she promises, as she uses her other hand to unlatch and open her eyepatch --
-- revealing the three pupils of her eye, whites marked by black bands which spill out onto her skull from the inside. It's inert, right now, the menace leeching from it quiet and understated... but it's immediately obvious why an evil-abjuring amulet would bother her.
"Gretchen," she invokes, as she fires on her exposed Eye, and bids herself to see and inhabit it all.
She won't have fun, but everyone will be able to get all the information they need to assault the Sanitarium, when the call comes down.
MONAD: Yua Ijuuin has acted with Nurturing Direction toward The Fork in the Road! Automap! <Pose Tracker> Miho Ijuuin has posed.
"Of course," Miho says. "But we must use all tools available to us in order to prosper."
Yua is not sure... but Miho is very sure. "Yes," Miho agrees. "We'd best."
Jack Frost does his best...!
"Hmm," Miho reflects. "I suppose he couldn't do it."
She nods to Yua. "Onward," she agrees.
A beat, as they travel on, "Good work," she says to Kurou, and then nods to Hiroto and Remi. "I will remember his bravery."
Then... up there. A decision. Yua wanted to forget... about Sake-san.
"...No," Miho says. "It will not be you."
"...'Fairness' is an illusion in this world," Miho says. "It is possible that they are attempting to divide us... But remember, Yua. Remember the fortune-teller's words. What we must do."
"If it is to protect you and Hiroki..."
"Then I will be injustice itself."
They'll get what information they need, and what information Yua cannot get them on a scan, Miho's wallet can get them from workers--with discretion.
MONAD: Miho Ijuuin has acted with Bribe toward The Fork in the Road! Focus and Patra! <Pose Tracker> Hiroto Nakamura has posed.
"He was an honorable fellow," Hiroto says as Jack Frost is devoured by a skeleton. Then, he proceeds!
Yua is struggling, though. She'll help them prepare the route, but...
"To think about betrayals, to think about being pit against each other... only you can hold your own chains. I hope that one day, all of us can seize our chains for ourselves, instead of being bound to cruel masters."
A pause, as he'll use whatever information is gained to vector entrances and exits and other information.
"...for now, let us control the delivery of said cruelty, and gain in power and knowledge we may need."
MONAD: Hiroto Nakamura has acted with Chained Mask toward The Fork in the Road! Focus and Efficient! <Pose Tracker> Remi Ryuuja has posed.
All the world's against them. "... perhaps so, but we do not stand alone."
Jack Frost remembers, and Remi frowns deeper at that. "... we have created a menace," she declares, quietly.
There is, though, a flicker of a smile as Kurou just... summons his Persona to deal with the problem. "Hmm. A tidy solution." She nods in Kurou's direction.
"I won't," Remi responds to Miho, of Jack Frost's bravery.
But when Yua expresses that they might have to come for her one day, Remi looks to her... and then steps right up to her to take her hand. "We shall spurn fate, scorn death, and bear Our hopes 'bove wisdom, grace, and fear," she murmurs softly. "I swear, while I still draw breath, none will turn my hand against thee."
She steps back, then, to let Yua work. She doesn't seem perturbed by the unusual pupils.
She nods to Hiroto, as he speaks of chains. "Yes. We may be chained hounds now... but one day we may yet slip the leash."
She will use her honed senses to aid in scouting--and she can use flattery to convince anyone else to look the other way if they are discovered.
MONAD: Remi Ryuuja has acted with Flattery toward The Fork in the Road! Friendliness and Efficient! <Pose Tracker> Kurou Ryouhara has posed.
Kurou breathes out, long and slow, then bows to Miho and Remi. "Thank you."
...
It would be deeply unhygienic for Kurou pick at his teeth on a hike, without the ability to wash his hands.
Vexing.
He must simply endure. Kurou moves on with neither commentary nor remorse. Into the silence he goes, where they must prepare for their grim task. He watches, quiet, as Yua's happiness finds where it must part ways to embrace reality. Miho, who identifies fairness as a solution. Hiroto, who seeks to be free of the chains they all know themselves -- and each other -- to be in. Remi rejects fate and swears loyalty.
Kurou is as silent as the space around him. He tightens his grip on the strap of his backpack.
They're powerful sentiments.
He hopes they're true.
But he knows that truth has to be carved with a knife.
MONAD: Kurou Ryouhara has acted with Shut Up and Nod toward The Fork in the Road! Amrita!
(|============================= Monad - Results ==============================|)
-==== The Fork in the Road - Round 5 ==========================================-
Yua Ijuuin Understanding Success
Nurturing Direction Automap Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miho Ijuuin Charm Success
Bribe Focus and Patra Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Remi Ryuuja Charm Success
Flattery Friendliness and Efficient Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kurou Ryouhara Understanding Success
Shut Up and Nod Amrita Fatigue: 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hiroto Nakamura Charm Success
Chained Mask Focus and Efficient Fatigue: 0
-============================= Party Conditions: ==============================-
Starting Conditions: Bothersome-2, Hard-2, and Heartening-1
Final Conditions: Bothersome-1
-======================================== Party Result: Success: Reach Up! ====-
-==== Reach: 6/6 |=====| =====================================================-
-==== Loot So Far: ============================================================-
Items: 1, Money: 0, Gear: 1
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
(|===================== Monad - Katatsumuri Forest Trail =====================|)
-==== Round 6: Finders Keepers Losers Weepers - Challenge Level 1 =============-
| Approach Options: None |
| Conditions: Revelation - The best result. |
-==== Challenge ===============================================================-
You've made up your mind, and you know what you're doing next. From here, it's
straight shot to the Sanitarium: you think you know how to make your approach to
mitigate any chances you might be seen by security, automated or otherwise.
You take one step forward to make your approach then and nearly trip over a
small chest that heretofore had been partially hidden in the underbrush. It
opens easily: inside are some Medicines that can be used to heal yourself from
the damage received in a fight and a single shiny piece of obsidian. The right
person could turn this into a potent accessory. Was this a demon's horde?
Right now, it may be the least of your concerns. A present is simply a present,
however it comes into your possession.
Final Loot: 1 Item and 1 Pieces of Gear!
(|============================================================= Monad 1.1 ====|)
<Pose Tracker> Yua Ijuuin has posed.
<poem>
"Sometimes demons aren't very strong," Yua sighs, to Miho. "But," she adds, to Remi, "it would be a little cute if he did menace us later, wouldn't it...? Mm... unless he died honourably..."
Perhaps, one day... Frost Blade will rise!
But today... is not that day.
Today, as it happens, is a grim day, not a happy one. Miho assures her that she will become injustice to protect them, and Remi steps up to take her hand. Yua nods, steeling herself, as she squeezes Remi's hand in turn. "You will not be called to bathe in that ill fountain bereft of me," she assures them, in that strange way she has, when she's seeing with both eyes. "I will go with you, too!"
Miho is a woman who blends in with the cruelties of the Sanitarium; her money greases palms which would otherwise abjure them, and she learns valuable things about the comings and goings of the guards... and the one guard they do meet who doesn't care for money instead finds himself bewitched by Remi's flattery.
Hiroto and the others will hear Yua in their minds, as he investigates the exit points and the most efficient routes to them. "... they say I am a doll, an ornamental thing. They think my chains connected to my hands and feet, to dance at their discretion... but I'm not dancing for them, Ton-Ton. Mimi... I'm here because Mimi asked me to be!"
Kurou, as it happens, takes care of the automated detection systems which might have stymied them -- no camera will detect their gentle intrusion, today.
"Return now to the stem of our existence," Yua urges them, when the deed is done. "Yet more petals are to fall before our coming."
She'll need Remi's hand, on the way back; luckily, Remi's right there. And as it happens, in that exact place Gashadokuro dragged Jack Frost beneath the earth...
"There, in Gaia's veils!"
... they find a small chest.
You Got: Jack Frost's Secret Stash!
He must have dropped it when he was fighting his fate bravely... it's full of Medicine, plus a sharp-edged flint of obsidian.
"Carve flesh from the heart," Yua says, as she lifts it up, delicately. "Split to delicate pieces, surgical in precision... yet the blade is a mirror, and what reflects there marks your existence."
She turns to Kurou, as she extends it out. "You, mirror boy, shall now be reunited with your element. It claims you; use it well."
He will need to be devastatingly precise to lift it from her palms without nicking her delicate, tawny skin...
... but perhaps a boy like Kurou is someone who has that kind of skill.