[Dungeon Rescue] Come, and let us forget that vision of our fate

[isthe99percent]

WHO: Bernkastel, and those inclined to rescue her
WHAT: Bern's mortal past coming back to haunt her after Harrogate
WHERE: Liminal Space?
WHEN: Immediately after the Unquiet Dead.
WARNINGS: Insanity, fomication, violence, a Creepy Swamp, and okay look her mortal life was Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni, it's gonna be Highly Unpleasant.


Bernkastel is notable by her absence after the Jaunt. One would expect her to gloat, or even to begrudgingly acknowledge the Traveller's victory. But she did neither, and coupled with Nyarlathotep coming into possession of her, perhaps it's not surprising to hear cicadas in the distance. Or for those cicadas to lead to a pair of lotus blossoms, framing a large toori gateway.

Beyond the belled gate is the sulfurous scent of a swamp, and the drone of the cicadas, and the sight of a small Japanese village down a path that skirts both mountains and swamps.

Comments

[crouching_sin]

"Of course not." For both things, really. But hm... something other than cotton? He can guess what that might be, and why something around that might trigger someone to snap.

He'll have to figure out how to get more information. Four years... should he prevent it, or just figure out what's going on? Information might be best for right now, so he nods. "And if someone were to look for what you were here for... where might they begin?"

It's worth a try.

[isthe99percent]

"Assuming you thought you could do it without becoming a part of the festivities," he says, "I'd poke around the Furude shrine. But there's a reason I'm out here birdwatching," he says. "It's too nice a day to annoy both the Sonozaki and the Furude."

[crouching_sin]

"I see." Definitely what he thought of, then. He's not going to get answers by being safe. "Well, thank you. And I won't ask your name - there's no reason for you to be involved in anything, of course."

[isthe99percent]

"Of course," he says. "Good luck. Remember rule zero."

And then he's back to his birdwatching, stopping only to scratch his neck once.

[crouching_sin]

Rule zero being don't talk about Fight Cl - that's something different.

He starts heading back towards the temple. Now... he should find that girl from the beginning again. Maybe she's still at the games....

[isthe99percent]

What luck. (Indeed, what kind of luck?)

The girl from earlier is in the area of the shrine - though not the main entrance. No, you spy her creeping towards another set of buildings on the sacred grounds, partially obscured by forest.

She looks nervous - agitated, rather, searching for some phantom out of the corner of her eyes. And those eyes have awfully constricted pupils, don't they?

[crouching_sin]

He has no idea what kind of luck, his luck is Weird in general.

... But that's odd. She looks... distressed? What's going on? He follows along behind her, curious and slightly concerned. ... Mostly for the fact that if she looks that agitated, she may not be that easy to talk to.

[awitchdidit]

Beatrice, after excusing herself from the gaggle of schoolgirls elsewhere, arrives at the shrine and spots Naoya rather than the girl. She can, however, tell that Naoya's following someone, and with supernaturally-muffled footsteps falls in behind him.

Don't jump. Mind if I join you? she asks telepathically.

[crouching_sin]

He doesn't move, just keeps an eye on the girl. He's... not familiar with what's going on. Some kind of strange psychotic attack?

That's fine. Do you have any idea why she's doing that?

[awitchdidit]

Nothing certain, she thinks, keeping her eyes on the girl now. She could just be sneaking around to do some nefarious kid thing, but something seems off about her eyes.

[crouching_sin]

Agreed. Should we follow her for a while? He can be sneaky, but not totally silent...

[awitchdidit]

Should be possible. Sneaking during daylight is a pain, but I can keep us quiet with magic, she replies, focusing on her Bando techniques. Her skills can't so much eliminate sound as they can create an auditory illusion of noiselessness, but they should help avoid the attention of some kid.

[isthe99percent]

Thus stealthed, you escape notice, what with Rena distracted by less tangible phantoms. She scratches her neck and her wrists as she goes, heading for a padlocked storeroom.

And taking a carpenter's saw with a single, sharp nail at the tip from a package, to hack open the chain on this room.

[crouching_sin]

Naoya frowns at the sight of her sawing on the chain. Any idea what might be stored in there? Nothing that would be in use during the festival, so why? That's... distressing. Quietly, Naoya casts Shield All on himself and Beatrice, just in case. There's a brief shimmer in the air, and then it disappears.

[awitchdidit]

Beatrice can't help but quietly click her tongue. She's never going to be able to seal that back up.

I recognize that scratching tic. She has the same affliction I felt briefly and Ghost-Bernkastel's other victims may be stuck with. Whatever she's after, she must be desperate.

[crouching_sin]

Oh, wonderful. That sounds... lovely. I'm not entirely sure what that entails, but it isn't likely good if it's associated with that place. Like he's not going to knock Nyarlathotep in general, but Harrogate sounded awful. Interesting, but awful. Awfully interesting, if you will.

[awitchdidit]

It seems more like that place is resonating with this one, Beatrice says. We see different parts of ourselves and our pasts - even our potential futures - reflected in our Overlays. Bernkastel just got a particularly unflattering reflection, and this is connected to it.

[isthe99percent]

The chain clatters to the ground. Crows take flight, cawing their dismay. The buzzing cry of the cicadas does not relent.

She opens the door just wide enough to enter, then shuts it behind herself, leaving it open just a crack and that by accident.

Dare you follow?

GUESS WHO LOST A NOTIF IT'S MEEEEEE

[crouching_sin]

Naoya huffs in amusement, but then glances at the door.

Let's go.

He slowly creeps towards the door. he's not afraid, he just doesn't want to deal with more trouble than it's worth.

I just haven't been tagging non-Jaunt threads

[awitchdidit]

I mean we can't not, can we? Everyone forgets the second half of the saying about cats and curiosity.

Beatrice is as quiet as her ninja skills and habitual dealing with homicidal people have taught her to be as she creeps to the door and puts an eye to the crack.

CW: torture, blasphemy

[isthe99percent]

The shed is a torture chamber.

A rack. Spikes. Manacles. A table to hold someone down, long iron crucifixion nails, and a mallet to drive them.

An iron maiden, or perhaps - in a chilling and blasphemous touch - an iron Jizo, a statue of a shinto god charged with protecting lost children hollowed out so you can lock someone inside it's spiked interior.

At the center of it all is a polearm looking something a little like a silver hoe. Perhaps that's what it originally was, a simple tool for making furrows in fields, before becoming a ceremonial weapon in a dark ritual.

Rena turns to stare straight at Beatrice - the quite invisible Beatrice. "Who's there!?" she shouts, carpenter's saw. "I know you're there, Rika! I know you're behind this, Rika! I know what you did!"

It's the ravings of a paranoid madwoman. But how much is based on something true?

[awitchdidit]

Welp. The things they get up to out in the country. Torture has never been her style except emotionally, and it's sudden enough to be shocking without her mind really registering the ramifications immediately.

Beatrice pulls herself back out of sight quickly - the "invisibility" granted by Akuryuu Illusion Magic is fleeting, especially in daylight.

I don't...think...this is a productive pursuit unless we want to fight her. She's clearly far gone with that paranoiac affliction. Maybe we should go find Rika.

[crouching_sin]

Naoya pulls back as well, hesitant. He has very little doubt that he can take a normal human down to the ground with his spells and generally by hurting them a lot, but those who are deranged have access to more strength, in some cases. The torture implements don't seem to bother him, even as part of him shudders in the back of his mind at a memory.

You're right. Lead on - I'll cover our backs if she starts to go after us.