To boldly go where no ninja has gone before

[Sierra]

<El-Cideon> It's somewhat less of an hour's wait after Erin's call that a pair of trucks pull up in the street outside the church and sit there with engines idling. A man emerges from one. Tall, chin bristling with stubble, sporting a collection of old and thin scars. He takes a moment to light a cigarette before approaching. "Right. Which one of you's in charge here?"
* Nadia_Chekova defers to Erin since this was her idea, and probably better than Nadia's idea of leaving the ninjas unconscious in the church and setting it on fire.
* Erin shrugs. "I will do," she replies, stepping forward.
<El-Cideon> He nods, takes a drag on his cigarette. "Right, then. Captain tells me you've got some bodies to move. What do you want to do with this lot?"
<Yomi> "Captain?" Yomi asks.
<El-Cideon> "Captain Walker. We at the wrong church, or what?"
<Yomi> "Ah, not. It just so happens that there are no bodies." Yomi gestures at the tied up ninja. "We would like all but the ringleaders to get a nice, comfortable cell or a good approximation thereof. Can this happen?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "Oh!" Nadia steps forward at that, "That would be me, I telegrammed Walker. Didn't think he'd be so prompt in replying, though."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Also I never gave him the address..." Nadia pauses suspiciously.
<Yomi> "Would you need to?"
<Erin> "It's unwise to underestimate the British service, after all."
* Yomi rolls her eyes, waiting for her answer.
<El-Cideon> "Called in an old favor, told me there'd be a mess to clean up, couldn't say whether the blokes would be alive or dead so he couldn't go right to the police, blah blah blah. No skin off my back either way, though. So what's it going to be? Got someplace in mind for this lot to disappear to?"
<Yomi> "Just for their three leaders. We did take great care not to kill any of them, so would it be possible to keep the other ninja jailed? Emphasis on ninja, hence why a normal prison would not do."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Well, he does have resources," Nadia allows, thinking of Myriam in particular and her scrying ability.
<Erin> "Even if they are simply imprisoned for a short time, that would be sufficient," replies Erin, glancing at Sayuri. "Without their leaders to organize and rally them, there is not much to fear, correct?"
<El-Cideon> "We could take 'em to the police. They're more sticklers for rules than we are and might not hold on to 'em for long without knowing what it was they did, of course."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Illegal immigrants," Nadia interjects helpfully. "None of them appear to have valid passports."
<Yomi> "There is this part where they are foreign assassins who came here to kill at least one British subject?" Yomi helpfully interjects.
<Erin> "Vagrants, to the last of them. Just look at how they're dressed! And with all these weapons, too!"
<El-Cideon> "Could do," he says to Nadia. "What've we got here, a bunch of japs?" He strolls over and looks at one of the fallen. "Could be they'll wind up deported. If that's where you want 'em to go, we'll load 'em up. Where's the rest of 'em going?"
<Yomi> "Their attitude needs adjusting."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Myriam's going to help us with the others," Nadia provides. "Walker should understand that, I think."
<Erin> "They can't be imprisoned by normal means anyway."
<El-Cideon> "Huh. Mentioned her, yeah. Posh place outside of town." He whistles, directs some other men briefly and they start carrying the unconscious ninjas into the trucks. "You lot coming with to help sort these three out? Plenty of room left if you want a ride."
<Erin> "We can accompany you to Myriam's place, then?"
<Yomi> "We really have nothing left to do here," Yomi agrees. "If you can drop us off by her place, it would be great."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Suits me," Nadia nods, not bothering to exert herself by helping carry the unconscious ninja as she goes to board one of the vans.
<El-Cideon> He walks back to the truck he came from, where the leaders are being loaded into the back. "Climb in, then. Give 'em a whack on the noggin if they wake up, eh?"
<Yomi> "It shouldn't happen for days yet," Yomi assures him, taking a seat by Sayuri.
<El-Cideon> The three fallen ninjas are indeed quite oblivious to their impending fate as the truck rolls out of town, none of them waking or stirring at all during the ride out of town. Myriam and her assistant are waiting at the front steps of her house, the woman seated and reading a book by lamplight.
<Yomi> "It appears that we survived," Yomi greets Myriam, "in no small part due to your aid."
<El-Cideon> "I expected you'd be along in time, yes." She closes her book and stands. "No casualties, I hope? And how many of them do you have?"
<Erin> "None whatsoever. We have every last one of them, I believe," replies Erin. "Though the rank and file are to be deported back to Japan."
<Yomi> "After being detained for a few days, hopefully," Yomi adds. "The real challenge is ensuring that their leadership does not bother us again."
<Nadia_Chekova> "So that leaves the three leaders to be experimented on by strange magic," Nadia puts in breezily.
<Yomi> "And for you to seize their funds, in case some did escape. Lacking the means to mount another such assault on us would help, if they were to think of it," Yomi tells Sayuri. "Do you think it possible?"
<El-Cideon> "Yes," Myriam says. "Do you wish to be present for what follows? I believe I am capable of doing this myself, though at some risk to their minds if anything goes wrong. I have an acquaintance who can do it more easily and safely, though he is likely to ask something in return."
<Erin> "I would like to witness it," replies Erin. "I must see how this is done for myself. What price would your acquaintance charge?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "I really don't care. We're already doing them a favour by not killing them," Nadia shrugs, unconcerned for the fate of the ninja who wanted to kill her and her friends.
<El-Cideon> Sayuri shakes her head. "I don't actually know. I wasn't privy to where the money went after the client paid us. I would be surprised if the elders let anyone else know."
<Yomi> "I will be present if you feel concerned for your safety in any way or require the help, but otherwise...." Yomi trails off, shrugging. "As a matter of fact, Erin, I would be happier in knowing you can't perform magic like this."
<El-Cideon> "Difficult to say, Erin," Myriam says. "My associates are unpredictable sorts. One time when I needed a favor they wanted my voice for a week. That was very inconvenient, let me tell you. The only way to find out is to ask." She shrugs. "I feel this should be your decision, as these are your enemies we'll be working on."
<Erin> "Curiosity. You seem happy enough for others to know of it, yet make an exception for me," replies Erin, glancing oddly at Yomi. "In any case, it's us who have chosen to inflict this fate upon them. I intend to see it through."
<El-Cideon> "Well, if you want me to request his assistance in this matter, we'll have to walk some ways out onto the grounds to contact him. Otherwise, we head inside. In any event...Mat, if you'd be so kind?" Myriam gestures forward. Her assistant nods, walks up and easily hoists Daichi up on one shoulder.
<Erin> "There's nothing to be lost hearing him out, at least..."
<Nadia_Chekova> "I don't really care, so whatever is most convenient for you," Nadia waves her hand in a dismissive gesture.
<Yomi> "It's a question of expedience," Yomi tells Erin, after thinking of the right way to explain her thoughts. "If you were to have such a power, you would inevitably choose to use it more and more as we travel, rather than have it as a difficult, inaccessible last resort of sorts."
<El-Cideon> "We go for a walk, then. Follow me." Myriam turns and walks around the side of the house, into the darkness--though a sphere of light blooms around her with a wave of her hand. She walks away from the house soon, towards the woods ringing the estate. About thirty yards past the treeline, she stops at a circular clearing.
* Nadia_Chekova trails along after Myriam, her eyes blinking a bit at the light ruining her nightvision.
<Erin> "Even if that's so, it's still better than a bullet in such circumstances," replies Erin, starting to follow after Myriam. "Better to have it and not require it, rather than need it and be without. Besides, it isn't a decision I would make alone."
<El-Cideon> The ninjas are set down at the edge of the clearing. Myriam steps into the center, carefully avoiding trampling any of the flowers that proliferate there, and is about to speak when another woman's voice breaks in. It's clear and high, in tones like a ringing crystal glass. "Oh my, did you bring me guests? It's been a long time." (more)
* Yomi nods, walking by Erin's side. "That's the sort of thinking I want to avoid, you see? Where matters of life and death have an easier way out, that will get easier the more it is used. How long before there is no longer any need to look for a better solution even for enemies who might otherwise be persuaded to part amiably?"
<El-Cideon> A figure steps into the light. It appears female, insofar as you can tell for someone with skin like bark and hair made of vines and leaves. "Only coincidentally," Myriam says. "Though if you wish to be of help, ensure none of those three wake and cause trouble?"
<El-Cideon> The figure nods, traipses over to the ninjas and looks down at them. Roots emerge from the ground, hold ankles and wrists in place.
<Nadia_Chekova> "You have very interesting neighbours, Myriam," Nadia remarks, eyeing the tree woman curiously.
<Nadia_Chekova> She then can't help but look at Rena.
<El-Cideon> "This is one of many appropriate adjectives. Although she's really more like a tenant, as much as she likes to think of me the same way."
<Yomi> Her attention drawn from Erin, Yomi finds herself studying the dryad.
<El-Cideon> The strange woman looks over each of you, amber eyes going wide when she too looks at Rena. "Oh my!" she exclaims with some excitement. "How did you leave your grove?"
<El-Cideon> "I don't understand," Rena says, looking to anyone else for help here. "I grew up in a house."
<El-Cideon> "Oh? Oh." The dryad sounds disappointed. "I guess I was wrong, then," she pouts.
<Nadia_Chekova> "Rena's not the same as you, even though you're both... plant-people," Nadia offers, trying to think of how best to phrase it when she knows nothing about demons and the like. "She's, um... like a potted fern that can move around while you're like a tree?"
<Erin> "Rena is not quite the same manner of being as you, my lady," replies Erin, turning to the spirit. "It is best to think of her as another human, with plantlike physiology."
<Erin> "She is not a potplant."
<Nadia_Chekova> "It was only an example!" Nadia protests. "I don't know of any ambulatory foliage otherwise."
<Yomi> "You read as human," Yomi tells Rena, trying her part to help with her confusion.
<El-Cideon> "Ohhhh. So she's like a cousin instead of a sister. I see! I knew I sensed something familiar. I guess being partly vegetable is better than not at all."
<Nadia_Chekova> "I'll take your word for it," Nadia shrugs, her attention going back to Myriam and the reason for being out here.
<El-Cideon> "We actually have business here, Krystalla," Myriam says. "If you could keep interruptions to a minimum during the proceedings?" The dryad nods, hugs Rena, then bounds away again to watch over the ninjas. "If we're all quite ready?" Myriam continues.
<Erin> "Mmhmm," replies Erin, quite unflappable tonight.
<El-Cideon> Myriam nods, steps into the middle of the circle. She pauses, as though preparing to intone some stirring pronouncement, then instead says, in the voice of someone chiding an old friend for bad habits: "Lord Egilmont? I know you're still awake at this hour. Detach yourself from your wineglass if you can, because we have business to transact." (more)
<El-Cideon> A soft, wavering light fills the circle, quite distinct from Myriam's eldritch torch. Someone steps into view suddenly, as though through a slash in reality. A blond man. Tall, thin, elegant, wearing a loose gown that seems to shimmer a different color from every other angle. The light boils around him, as if in a heat haze.
<El-Cideon> "And you can cease the light show as well," Myriam says archly. "I'm sure they've seen better."
<Nadia_Chekova> "It's still very nice," Nadia says nonetheless, "But Paula's is more understated and elegant."
<Erin> "Were the world at large to know of it, magical fabric would surely be a powerful market."
<El-Cideon> "Majesty should overwhelm the viewer," the man challenges, wounded pride evident. "Else what's the point? You grow more mundane every year, Myriam. You've been living with humans too long."
* Yomi wonders at the pride of a man in a dress, but keeps her musings to herself.
<Erin> "Mundanity is the eye of the beholder, isn't it?"
<El-Cideon> "You know I'd trade barbs with you all evening if we had time, but we don't," Myriam says. "My friends require your services." She looks to the three of you here.
<Erin> "Myriam's made us aware that you have a certain facility with minds and memories?" asks Erin, fronting up to the fae lord. "It's that power we wish to use."
<El-Cideon> "Oh yes. A sufficiently undisciplined mind is really just so much clay. I've not had need to exercise these talents for some time. It would be...rather nostalgic to do so again. What is it that you require?"
<Erin> "I'm curious as to the extent of your powers," replies Erin, cautiously. "The fact of the matter is that these fellows are assassins, and they are out for our heads, and simply will not stop until they take them. It's both their profession and their desire for revenge I would want to expunge, as a goal."
<Nadia_Chekova> "What exactly *are* we going to do with their minds?" Nadia asks, now curious. "Just make them forget us? Turn them into communist revolutionaries? Christian missionaries? Village idiots?"
<Erin> "That is something I've struggled with," admits Erin. "And I suppose why I don't think this is an 'easy' way out at all. I'd prefer it, personally, if they were to renounce their old ways and resolved to seek employment in some other field."
<El-Cideon> "The more important the idea, the more it defines them, the more difficult it will be to eradicate. You present me with a challenge. This is not unwelcome. If you do not present me with some driving impulse to replace these memories with, I will have to...improvise. I don't mind, but if you have a preference for their 'new' life, do agree on it."
<Erin> "Is it easier, then, to change an idea with something that seems similar, rather than inter something completely new?"
<Yomi> "I prefer to have as little involvement as possible," Yomi states. "I would be perfectly happy to know that they would not try to harm us and ours in some way in the future. If their drive simply has to be replaced, however, perhaps they could be persuaded to help those keeping watch on Kurou's village?"
<Nadia_Chekova> Nadia's eyes widen excitedly. "Explorers! Make them obsessed with climbing the highest mountains, exploring the darkest jungles, reaching both poles!"
<El-Cideon> "I'd suggest that whatever it is keeps them out of Japan," Sayuri says. "Even if this works perfectly, I'd rather they not encounter any old clients or allies by chance."
<El-Cideon> Egilmont nods to Erin. "Some details can be...transmuted, yes."
<Erin> "Explorers would certainly keep them busy, and far away," admits Erin. "And it has a certain aspect of thrillseeking that I believe some ninja take as their core passion."
* Yomi rubs the bridge of her nose.
<Nadia_Chekova> "It's perfect," Nadia nods happily, "And think how funny it would be if a few years from now we see them in the news as the first to climb Everest or something like that?"
* Yomi sighs. "It's neither perfect nor amusing to alter someone's mind and personality. At least it isn't to me."
<Erin> "I don't find this a cause for humour, but if the simplest method is to change their drives, then something relatively innocuous would be preferred."
<Nadia_Chekova> "We're doing them a huge favour," Nadia frowns as people fail to share her enthusiasm. "Better than stuffing them in a car and driving it into a lake. They could become heroes, this way."
<El-Cideon> "Mm. I can do this yes. I must ask, though: might I have one of them in return? It's been a long time since we had human servants. And they would find it quite beyond their capabilities to leave my realm without permission."
<Yomi> "We are doing ourselves a favor, first and foremost," Yomi counters. "Because we don't want to kill them, so we are doing something only slightly less reprehensible."
<Erin> "This is only a step or two above killing them," agrees Erin. "If you consider the human being to consist of three parts, the body, soul, and mind, we are certainly slaying the mind, at least..."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Okay, I suppose when you put it like that," Nadia sighs and nods to Yomi. "So do we care enough to avoid killing two that we'll sell the third into slavery as well?"
<Yomi> "There will be no slavery," Yomi says, shaking her head. Turning towards the fae, she frowns. "If this is your price, I am afraid that we must respectfully decline."
<Erin> Erin grimaces. "Is there no other price you would consider?"
<El-Cideon> He sighs dramatically. "Ah, slavery, that's a terrible way to put it. I merely considered the request a palatable alternative to slaying the mind, as you put it. Instead of destroying that which they were, they are simply transported somewhere they can no longer cause you trouble, no? But it seems I misjudged. It *would* be quite an adventure for them, I assure you. When they're not busy scrubbing floors."
<Yomi> "No thank you," Yomi states firmly.
<Erin> "After the mind is changed, they would continue to grow as people, wouldn't they?" asks Erin, doubtfully. "That is the best end result I can see in a bad situation."
<Nadia_Chekova> "We could give all three to Lord Egilmont," Nadia suggests, "Then instead of anyone losing their minds, they simply lose their liberty. No different than putting them in jail here, except with no chance of parole."
<Yomi> "I don't think I can live with that," Yomi tells Nadia apologetically.
<El-Cideon> "Oh, very well. I must struggle to imagine something you can offer me, then. You are travelers of sorts, I assume? Your international composition suggests such. I spent some years walking your Earth myself, until I grew bored with it. But perhaps I will entertain the slight possibility that you have seen something that will surprise me."
<Yomi> A human plantgirl would probably do, but Yomi waits to see where the fae is going with this.
<Nadia_Chekova> "Mmmmh..." Nadia murmurs and rubs her head. "What about the greatest treasure of the Tsars?" she finally addresses the faerie lord. "Would that be sufficient pay for you to remake their minds without anyone feeling more upset by the hoops we must jump through to kindly deal with murderous unrelenting assassins?"
<Erin> "I have seen how the world will end," replies Erin, forthrightly.
<El-Cideon> "It would bring me some amusement to know that a human ruler seeks the symbol of his lordship fruitlessly, forever. I was going to ask for a story of something you've seen in your travels, something unusual and beyond the petty business of human bickering, and a token to demonstrate the veracity of the story. I find that the most compelling gifts are always the most personal, don't you?"
<El-Cideon> "I would, of course, be very interested to know that detail, my dear," he says to Erin. "Although I don't know how I could know the truth of the matter beyond waiting for it to happen."
* Nadia_Chekova sees no need to point out that the Tsar has been dead for twenty years or so.
<Nadia_Chekova> "We do have a few spare translocation bracelets, don't we?" Nadia asks Erin as he demands stories and trinkets of unusual things beyond 'human' bickering. The monsters in the other world surely qualify!
<Erin> Erin finds herself rather reluctant to speak of other worlds, seeing how well it went the last time she told a supernatural being about them. "I don't know about spare, but we were able to travel to another world," she admits. "I have even transcribed writings from it, a language that nobody on this planet can speak or name."
<El-Cideon> "Mm. Other worlds? I have some interest in such, as I reside in one."
<Erin> "It is a dead world, for the most part," replies Erin. "Evidence of human civilizations have been found there, however. By all appearances, it is totally underground, and possessed technology on par with what we use today. Here, I can show you my notes on their words- and this, too!" Erin opts to produce another of the telecomm child orbs, which is certainly pretty enough...
<El-Cideon> He takes the marble-like gem, scrutinizes it closely for a long moment. "Ahh, fascinating. There were times, when I resided on your Earth, that I found objects suggesting that humans were once considerably more intelligent and skillful then they are now. This seems one of such."
<Erin> "Their technology is certainly different to our own- though, in all honesty, the power of modern science has empowered far more people than the obscurities of magic ever did... still, they did have their mass-transit systems, and weapons of some potency as well."
<El-Cideon> "Yes, go on," he says, holding the gem in his palm and closing his eyes. "Such objects sometimes hold traces of their past. I will see if I can recover such as you speak."
<Erin> "The civilization was eventually wiped out," continues Erin, sombrely. "They were attacked by some enormous horde of creatures that overwhelmed even their most advanced defences, and by all appearances laid waste to their entire society without even resettling it themselves."
<Erin> "That orb, in itself, is the child of a secondary orb. It serves as a sort of... mobile voice-message transceiver?"
<El-Cideon> "Yeees, that seems right," he says, concentrating on whatever arcane senses he's employing here. "But who attacked who, I wonder? There are impressions here--traumatic events can leave such. Someone's last moments. Tenseness, preparation for a daring raid, firm conviction that one's actions are justified for the betterment of their race--speaks very much of your kind to me--then surprise, a blinding light, oblivion."
<Nadia_Chekova> "They came to a bad end, by all appearances," Nadia agrees.
<Erin> "I can't say who struck first," admits Erin. "Exactly who the belligerents were, and their motivations, is entirely unknown to me. Despite what we found there, we couldn't find any concrete accounts or records of what transpired."
<El-Cideon> He opens his eyes. "Quite so, yes. And then it waited for a very, *very* long time, I believe. 'til men found it again. Another soldier, though he didn't hold it long before being run through by some horned beast, and abandoned in a panic by his fellows. Hopefully your fortunes will be better than past owners?"
<Erin> "Are we supposing times within the realm of ten, fifty, a hundred thousand years?"
<El-Cideon> "No less than such, I think, though the impressions aren't clear enough to give me numbers. Much of mystery about it, isn't there? I must concede that that does meet my demands. You are not exactly average mortals."
<Erin> "I suppose that you must have seen images of ourselves, as well as the unfortunate prior owner?" asks Erin, frowning, slightly.
<El-Cideon> "Nothing too unflattering," he says with a smile.
<Erin> "Then, your end of it?"
<El-Cideon> "Yes." He walks over to the Tsukino elders, kneels down. "Explorers, was it? Was that your decision?"
<Nadia_Chekova> "I rather like it," Nadia nods her assent.
<Erin> "It will do."
<Yomi> "As long as it gets them to abandon their grudges for anyone present," Yomi agrees reluctantly.
<El-Cideon> "Very well. No interruptions, then. It could have unfortunate consequences." He unmasks the nearest ninja, Junko, and places a palm on her forehead. Her eyes open, but there's nothing much of consciousness in them. Egilmont begins to speak. There is something very fluid and musical to his voice--it feels as though you couldn't help but nod in agreement were he speaking to you personally, though fortunately his attentions are wholly focused on the Tsukino elders. (more)
<El-Cideon> "You could never resist the lure of the unknown, could you? No, throughout all your life, there was no greater thrill than knowing that where you set foot, what your set your eyes upon, were places and sights undreamed of by your countrymen. Shunning the tangled cities of men, you devote yourself to taking up the challenges posed by nature and timeless history. (more)
<El-Cideon> "When you wake next, you will remember that your business in this land is concluded, that you only stopped here on the way to another adventure, that your only true destiny is to boldly go where no Japanese citizen has gone before. You have mountains to climb and ruins to explore, and you will never look back as long as there remains something in the world to be curious about." (more)
<El-Cideon> "What need have you for petty vendettas and grudges? None, for life is too short to dwell on such things. You have no connections to hold you back. Go, and live your life without malice or violence." He repeats the speech with little variation for the others, then stands. "It's done. There is no notable resistance they can offer in their current state."
<Nadia_Chekova> "I'm sure they'll have lots of fun in their new lives," Nadia smiles, thinking that the life of adventure the ninjas have been forced into sounds quite appealing.
<Erin> "Thank you for seeing this done for us," replies Erin, as it's only proper to be polite.
<El-Cideon> "Thank you for giving me the opportunity. It has been some time, as I said. One forgets what it is like to shape another's life when surrounded by other immortals."
<Erin> "This is something more than a novel distraction to us," replies Erin, feeling slighted. "But- no, we're finished, correct? Then, goodbye."
<Yomi> "So we are," Yomi agrees.
<Nadia_Chekova> "Thanks for your help," Nadia smiles at Egilmont, and then Myriam.
<El-Cideon> "If I'm unwanted now that my services are completed, then I'll see myself out," he sniffs. "Farewell. Let me know if you ever wish to speak about something other than business, Myriam." He walks back to the circle and vanishes the way he appeared. The light returns to normal, just Myriam's magical aura now.
<El-Cideon> "I'll speak with Walker's friends about placing them in separate boarding houses," Myriam says. "Coastal cities if we can get them there before they wake. They should pursue their new destiny with vigor on waking next."
<Yomi> "You keep interesting friends," Yomi comments to Myriam. "I wouldn't worry too much over being mundane, though, if the alternative is taking matters like reshaping people's lives lightly."
<Erin> "I wonder if all immortal beings think that way," murmurs Erin. "I have the feeling they must laugh at us often, if so."
<El-Cideon> "Yes, well, we don't always get to choose our friends, do we?" She shrugs. "They see things...differently than we do. It can cause problems. It's no wonder there are few of them about these days."
<Yomi> "However much they might laugh, our viewpoint is the one that dominates, in the end?" Yomi shrugs as well. "But I am getting off track. Once more, Myriam, our sincerest thanks."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Comparing Paula with Kurou with Elgin with Egilmont, I'd say that such beings are as varied as humans can be," Nadia observes. "But to the last they are all more removed from us than any other human."
<El-Cideon> "It is, Yomi, yes. You're welcome, at any rate."
<El-Cideon> "I do find it unwise to make assumptions based on who or what someone is, though caution is always called for. But it's late and you've all been through an ordeal, and you've another to rest for."
<Erin> "Others have suffered far worse than us," replies Erin, raising her chin. "We'll make do!"
<Nadia_Chekova> "We should still rest, since we surely have to travel back to Russia soon," Nadia points out.
* Yomi snaps her fingers. "Right! Sayuri, do you have a place to stay? We have a house, now. Well, Nadia, Rena and myself. And it has a spare room...." She trails off, glancing at her companions to see if there is any disagreement to her offer.
<Nadia_Chekova> "Well, you had your best chance to betray us and didn't take it," Nadia mutters, not meeting Sayuri's eyes. "I suppose you're alright."
<El-Cideon> Myriam promises to notify you all as soon as she has news, and leads you back to the front of the estate, where Walker's men are still waiting to ferry people around wherever they need to go tonight.
<El-Cideon> Rena shrugs. "I don't care who else lives in the empty room as long as their presence doesn't change the rules."
<Erin> "What are the rules?" asks Erin, curiously.
<El-Cideon> Sayuri considers this for a moment. "I should go home for a time first, I think, before reaching a decision. The other agents know I betrayed them and I can't rule out that they won't be even as circumspect as the elders were if they decide to strike back. I feel I should watch over my parents for a time to be sure. I may visit the old hideouts as well, to see if there is any trace of the group's earnings."
<Yomi> "You probably don't want to know," Yomi assures Erin.
<Nadia_Chekova> "Now you're thinking like a thief!" Nadia shows Sayuri some rare approval at that last part.
<Yomi> Ah, right. Sayuri actually does have a family back in Japan. "If you need my help, you know how to reach me?"
<El-Cideon> "But I likely cannot stay there long, as Fukui did alert the authorities to us and they may know of my past activities. So be it, I have always known I would not be satisfied with a normal life. I will likely return when I find it safe to do so."
<Erin> "If you can't recover suitable funds, we can see they are provided to you," adds Erin, haltingly.
<El-Cideon> "Damning with faint praise, Nadia?" Sayuri says. "I suppose I *should* say thank you for the intention, at least," she admits. "I know of Erin's address, Yomi. Not yours."
<El-Cideon> "You needn't worry about me overly much, Erin. I worked an honest job as well, remember. I have some money."
<Yomi> "You should have a few days of a head start on the captive ninja, if that helps?" Yomi says, before blinking. "Right. Well, it's actually pretty close to Erin's place!" she continues, giving Sayuri detailed instructions of how to reach her.
<El-Cideon> Sayuri nods, carefully memorizes all she's told.
<Erin> "I just think that helping out deserves some kind of reward," continues Erin, hastily. "That's fair, correct?"
<El-Cideon> "It is. The thought is appreciated. But I didn't do it for money."
<El-Cideon> Everyone parts ways, going home, wherever that might be, to recuperate from recent events. Several days pass, the estimated deadline looming larger with each setting of the sun. Finally, just a couple days before the date Myriam speculated would be Masha's chosen time to strike, Erin receives two telephone calls in short succession. (more)
<El-Cideon> One is from Myriam: her last check on the woman soldier guarding Masha showed them preparing to leave. Masha, her bodyguard, an officer of some sort, four men accompanying them, boarding a train bound east. If you're going to stop them before they can commit their act of mass destruction, now is the time to leave. (more)
<El-Cideon> The other call is from Grace: just this afternoon, she received a letter from the acolytes cleaning up the mess Nicolas made of Paula's neighborhood in Poland. The letter was rife with paranoia about being under surveillance, receiving veiled threats from an unpleasant German in sunglasses. Grace has since attempted to call the acolytes and received no response.
<Erin> Erin checks the description of the German and checks to see if it matches up with her current suspect for possession, before bitterly suggesting that maybe the Lodge would need to arm itself in earnest just to survive, at this rate. Then she pops around to Yomi and Nadia's place to relay the calls she has received.
<El-Cideon> It does sound like the man Erin heard about from the acolyte she interrogated, actually.
<Yomi> "An entire city annihilated, or a suspicious German directly attacking us?" Yomi asks, offering Erin a cup of freshly-brewed tea. "We have to deal with the former, and then look into the latter on our way back."
<Nadia_Chekova> "And we should probably get packing now," Nadia forgoes tea, and departs briefly to grab her prefilled travel bag, returning with an eager look.
<Yomi> "Between Paula, Lucia and Hazel, the Lodge should be decently guarded, and I doubt we need to worry over Myriam's safety. This should allow us to deal with our problems in detail, one after the other."
<El-Cideon> Rena wanders in, wholly unclothed as is her preference at home, and sits down opposite Erin. "I smelled tea. Are we leaving again?"
* Yomi pours a cup for Rena as well! "Yes, so it seems. We still have time before we must rush to the airport, however!"
<Erin> "This isn't the dilemma," replies Erin, shaking her head. "I'm already prepared. The acolytes that were interrogated can't know anything about our plans, either," she mutters. "It would be purest stupidity to attack the Lodge at the moment, but I will have to ask Grace to consider sending Paula back to Poland to investigate it."
<Yomi> "There is a reason Paula left it, as you recall."
<Erin> "I am aware, but we cannot let this slide, either! There's no telling if yet another crisis will delay us further once in Moscow, either." Erin grits her teeth. "There are others who are able to investigate, as well. Some of the more advanced students. I'll have Grace consider it, at least."
<Yomi> "I can't tell you how to run your lodge, but I don't think it would be good to split our forces further at this time," Yomi notes. "If you value my expertise, please consider listening to it now."
<Nadia_Chekova> "Well, that's up to them if they want to go," Nadia doesn't see any need to argue, "But right now millions of lives are at stake in Moscow, and we really can't afford to delay."
<Erin> "I know we cannot stop there ourselves," replies Erin. "Until I know their fate for certain, though, there's no room to hesitate. May I use your phone?"
<Yomi> "By all means. Order the tickets once you're done, too?"
<Erin> "Yes, yes."
<El-Cideon> Grace listens, worry evident in her voice, and promises to look into it as best she can before you return. With tickets purchased, there's no more cause for delay--there's a maniac to stop and not much time to do it in!
<El-Cideon> ~