Iku Quest Cztery: A Z-Machine Adventure

[Hello Purvis]

> "I guess I have some work to do toward myself as well."
> "C'mon, let's keep going."

>She nods, and resumes following you.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Continue on toward Yukari's

[Hello Purvis]

> Continue on toward Yukari's

>You continue on toward the Yakumo household. You find Yukari is still laying in the grass, having shifted over again to stay in the sunlight. She doesn't seem to have taken notice of you yet.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Alight on the ground at a respectful distance.
> Visually check to see if Yukari is awake.
> If she is, say "Good day again, Yukari."

[Hello Purvis]

> Alight on the ground at a respectful distance.
> Visually check to see if Yukari is awake.
> If she is, say "Good day again, Yukari."

>She seems to be gazing toward the sky, still.
>"Ah, hello again," says Yukari, not looking toward you. "And you as well, Tenshi dear."
>"Uh, hi," says Tenshi.
>"What brings you to my doorstep again?" Yukari asks. "Oh, and did Renko like her present?"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Um...she was....very impressed you knew her sizes."

[DracoOmega]

>"As for why I have returned... in your sky-gazing, I don't suppose you've happened to notice the oddity with Bhava-Agra's shadow?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "Um...she was....very impressed you knew her sizes."

>She chuckles. "It's not really a secret."

>"As for why I have returned... in your sky-gazing, I don't suppose you've happened to notice the oddity with Bhava-Agra's shadow?"

>"I've hardly paid any attention to them," she says.
>She sits up for a moment and glances at the shadow of the island near her home. "Hm," she says, reclining again.

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"As you can see, they're much fainter than they should be. We think this is directly related to why they've fallen: some part of them has been taken away. We've been unable to find out where they've been taken or how, however."
>"Moreover... we've also discovered a person similarly affected. Someone with no connection to Bhava-Agra. Whereas the islands simply fell, losing her shadow has nearly severed her conscious connection to the world. Whatever this phenomenon, it is having much wider repercussions than an unexpectedly populous sky. And it seems plausible that its effect will continue to spread unless we can isolate the root cause. I don't want to see another person in her condition."

[Hello Purvis]

>"As you can see, they're much fainter than they should be. We think this is directly related to why they've fallen: some part of them has been taken away. We've been unable to find out where they've been taken or how, however."
>"Moreover... we've also discovered a person similarly affected. Someone with no connection to Bhava-Agra. Whereas the islands simply fell, losing her shadow has nearly severed her conscious connection to the world. Whatever this phenomenon, it is having much wider repercussions than an unexpectedly populous sky. And it seems plausible that its effect will continue to spread unless we can isolate the root cause. I don't want to see another person in her condition."

>"Hm, that does sound rather serious," says Yukari. "Shadows shouldn't be lost lightly. And it would rather unsettle me if you did want to see someone else like that."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"It would unsettle me if anyone did. But clearly something has precipitated this. Whether it is a person or an inanimate phenomenon, I cannot say. I was hoping you might be able to provide some insight; most who I have spoken with have been at a loss to explain any of this, or even usefully theorize."

[Hello Purvis]

>"It would unsettle me if anyone did. But clearly something has precipitated this. Whether it is a person or an inanimate phenomenon, I cannot say. I was hoping you might be able to provide some insight; most who I have spoken with have been at a loss to explain any of this, or even usefully theorize."

>Yukari puts a finger to her chin. "Hm. I could think of a couple phenomena that would lead such a thing, but I would also have known about them a while ago. So, I want to say we can rule out that it's just a happenstance."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Meaning that this is likely a deliberate act by someone? Even if perhaps not all of its consequences might have been expected or intentional."
>"Who do you know who could do such a thing?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Meaning that this is likely a deliberate act by someone? Even if perhaps not all of its consequences might have been expected or intentional."
>"Who do you know who could do such a thing?"

>"Or the side effect of such," says Yukari, as she folds her hands behind her head again. "Though if it only caught this person you mentioned, it would be oddly localized, then oddly widespread, wouldn't you agree?"
>"I could think of a few people that might potentially do it. Any of the magicians, save my neighbors, the Moriya Shrine, Eientei... Possible even the princess of Hakugyokurou. Now, who do I think is likely to do it? Well, I am tempted to remove the Moriya Shrine from the list. They have nothing to gain by upsetting the natural order when they profit from it as they do; not to mention we had a little chat over tea in the wake of their last escapade. Eientei...it's possible. They've certainly dabbled into odd things in the past. I don't believe Yuyuko is behind it, she tends to warn me when she's going to play. Any of the magicians are possible, though I would suggest Patchouli is by far the most likely. Byakuren second most. I doubt any of the others would cause this kind of problem. Alice might surprise me, though. Does that help?"

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"I have spoken with most of the people you mention already. Some of them at length. Kanako was the one who first pointed out the unusual shadows the islands were casting, and Suwako attempted to search for the missing shadow. It was due to her efforts that I feel comfortable that parts of these shadows have been taken elsewhere. Given their assistance alone, it would seem unlikely they're behind it."
>"I spoke with Patchouli on the subject in detail, as well. She claimed not to have a great deal of knowledge on such shadow magic as this, although did try to speculate as much as she could, with what little information I could provide her. If she played a role, she disguised it convincingly."
>"Why did you think she's most likely by far, in any case? Although I suppose she does seem the most likely to risk fallout, or ignore repercussions in the pursuit of her craft. Given Byakuren's reputation, I would find it hard to see her knowingly causing such harm to others."
>"What would anyone have to gain from this, I wonder? I could think of some reasons in connection with Bhava-Agra itself, perhaps, but this other person renders most of them invalid. Moreover, they did not occur at the same time. Her shadow went missing a couple days ago, now."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I have spoken with most of the people you mention already. Some of them at length. Kanako was the one who first pointed out the unusual shadows the islands were casting, and Suwako attempted to search for the missing shadow. It was due to her efforts that I feel comfortable that parts of these shadows have been taken elsewhere. Given their assistance alone, it would seem unlikely they're behind it."
>"I spoke with Patchouli on the subject in detail, as well. She claimed not to have a great deal of knowledge on such shadow magic as this, although did try to speculate as much as she could, with what little information I could provide her. If she played a role, she disguised it convincingly."
>"Why did you think she's most likely by far, in any case? Although I suppose she does seem the most likely to risk fallout, or ignore repercussions in the pursuit of her craft. Given Byakuren's reputation, I would find it hard to see her knowingly causing such harm to others."
>"What would anyone have to gain from this, I wonder? I could think of some reasons in connection with Bhava-Agra itself, perhaps, but this other person renders most of them invalid. Moreover, they did not occur at the same time. Her shadow went missing a couple days ago, now."

>"Why would I suggest Patchouli?" asks Yukari, "For exactly the reasons you said. Not to mention she is quite convinced she has nothing to lose in regards to her own soul, and feels the heavens hold nothing for her. As well, she may be acting at the behest of another. But, perhaps you are right. As for Byakuren, she may feel her own need to tinker with the fabrics of reality in a well-meaning but not fully considered aim."
>"Well, if one is usurping something from Bhava-Agra," says Yukari, "Then Patchouli is another likely culprit. She would do it simply for the sake of power. Really, any magician might, even my own proteges that I exempted earlier. As well, it's quite possible Eientei may do the same. Perhaps, though, it's more useful to trace things from the incident with your friend?"

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"I agree, since she seems the far less likely target. Suwako couldn't find where her shadow was, however. All she could narrow it down to was: not on the mountain. Kanako said she'd also heard other hints of disrupted shadows on the winds. I suspect there may already be more in her condition. I'm not really sure where to look, though. I've canvassed much of Gensokyo already this morning. To be honest, I don't even know that it would be in a form I could recognize, if I even passed near it."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I agree, since she seems the far less likely target. Suwako couldn't find where her shadow was, however. All she could narrow it down to was: not on the mountain. Kanako said she'd also heard other hints of disrupted shadows on the winds. I suspect there may already be more in her condition. I'm not really sure where to look, though. I've canvassed much of Gensokyo already this morning. To be honest, I don't even know that it would be in a form I could recognize, if I even passed near it."

>"Mmm, there's quite a bit more than can be explored in one morning," says Yukari. "And if you hear talk on the winds, you should go where people talk, don't you think?"

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"I realize there's quite a bit more. I'm simply saying that I've covered much of the more obvious or notable places, beyond which would be akin to searching almost aimlessly. And for potentially something quite small. It would simply be helpful if I had something more to go on."
>"As for places people gather, Kanako assures me it was not on the mountain. And Tenshi is satisfied that if there'd been any talk of it in the human village, she'd already have gotten wind of it by now. There are a few places left to examine, of course."
>"I simply came here because you tend to be aware of a great many things, quite a few of which others are not."

[Hello Purvis]

>"I realize there's quite a bit more. I'm simply saying that I've covered much of the more obvious or notable places, beyond which would be akin to searching almost aimlessly. And for potentially something quite small. It would simply be helpful if I had something more to go on."
>"As for places people gather, Kanako assures me it was not on the mountain. And Tenshi is satisfied that if there'd been any talk of it in the human village, she'd already have gotten wind of it by now. There are a few places left to examine, of course."
>"I simply came here because you tend to be aware of a great many things, quite a few of which others are not."

>"Well, if you have those two eliminated," Yukari says, "that does narrow it down.  And, I suppose I could answer some more of your questions, if you like."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"You said that you could think of a few phenomena that could cause this sort of effect. Does that mean you have some understanding of the mechanics at work here? Do you think that a person's shadow, separate from itself, would still be in a recognizable form? Or would it likely be subsumed in something else?"
>"On a related note, do you know of any method or means I could use to track it? Something other than sight, perhaps? Something that might be able to point in the right direction or tell me if I were close; anything, really."

[Hello Purvis]

>"You said that you could think of a few phenomena that could cause this sort of effect. Does that mean you have some understanding of the mechanics at work here? Do you think that a person's shadow, separate from itself, would still be in a recognizable form? Or would it likely be subsumed in something else?"
>"On a related note, do you know of any method or means I could use to track it? Something other than sight, perhaps? Something that might be able to point in the right direction or tell me if I were close; anything, really."

>"A little," says Yukari, "But it is a bit removed from what I do. Shadows frankly aren't very interesting. As for a separate one, that would depend, I think, on how it was separated. The more violence used, the more mangled it would be. I suppose, if it were stuck onto another object, over time it would lose its shape."
>"Tracking it? Hmmm..."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Might that suggest you have an idea on how it might be done?"

[Hello Purvis]

>"Might that suggest you have an idea on how it might be done?"

>"I'm not sure, yet," says Yukari. "Hm. Ask me some other things, I'll ponder it a bit."

>_

[DracoOmega]

>"Very well. I suppose this is simply academic, until we can actually find them, but do you think that these shadows can be... properly reattached? Would a person so affected be able to return to themselves again?"

[Kilgamayan]

> "Also, on a completely unrelated note, do you happen to know where Yamame Kurodani is? Her friends have lost track of her."

[Hello Purvis]

>"Very well. I suppose this is simply academic, until we can actually find them, but do you think that these shadows can be... properly reattached? Would a person so affected be able to return to themselves again?"

>"Why, I have no idea," says Yukari. "But I would like think it would."

> "Also, on a completely unrelated note, do you happen to know where Yamame Kurodani is? Her friends have lost track of her."

>"I've not seen her," says Yukari. "But perhaps you should consider where she was last, and start from there?"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "That was my next plan, yes. I figured it was worth asking, though."
> "And that actually neatly segues into the other people I meant to ask about. Yamame was last seen at Renko and Maribel's, but I'm pretty sure they're not home right now. Do you happen to know where they are?"

[DracoOmega]

>Was there an island of any appreciable size near Renko and Maribel's house?

>"Yes, I suppose the alternative doesn't bear thinking on. Whatever is responsible needs to be found and stopped before others are harmed, regardless of what we can do after that point."
>"I don't suppose you have any idea what it could do with a shadow? Patchouli seemed to think drawing on them as a sort of power source would be terribly inefficient, but she didn't really know what uses they could be put to, either."

[Hello Purvis]

>Was there an island of any appreciable size near Renko and Maribel's house?

>"Yes, I suppose the alternative doesn't bear thinking on. Whatever is responsible needs to be found and stopped before others are harmed, regardless of what we can do after that point."
>"I don't suppose you have any idea what it could do with a shadow? Patchouli seemed to think drawing on them as a sort of power source would be terribly inefficient, but she didn't really know what uses they could be put to, either."

>There was.
>"I think I can agree. Though to be honest, I don't find this so bad." She makes a lazy gesture toward the nearby island, "Though I suppose it would be a problem for the realms to mix."
>"I've heard some things," says Yukari. "I am certain if you can steal someone's shadow, you can use it to affect or manipulate them. Of course, if you can do this, likely there are more effective methods at your disposal. Patchouli has a point, but likely she knows there are better ways to do that kind of thing. I've heard stories of a sorcerer, quite dead now before you ask, who would take shadows as payment for services and use them as familiars. Much to the chagrin of those whose shadows were taken."

> "That was my next plan, yes. I figured it was worth asking, though."
> "And that actually neatly segues into the other people I meant to ask about. Yamame was last seen at Renko and Maribel's, but I'm pretty sure they're not home right now. Do you happen to know where they are?"

>"She has not come this way, at least," says Yukari.
>Yukari smiles. "Sure you don't believe I am watching them so closely I would know where they are at any given time?"

>_