Visiting the Neighbors - Kanako in the Netherworld

[Oldmansour]

>Chuckle slightly. "Indeed. A little something from the world I've based myself in. Very handy for resolving conflicts there you know, it's called a 'Spellcard'. Non-lethal, yet never fails to cause damage against those unskilled at dodging. And due to Pyremaw's bulk he had no chance, as Spellcards are designed mostly for use against human-sized opponents. The damage inflicted by a Spellcard is, by and large, temporary. So if say, I were to strike one of you with a simple burst of Danmaku, the attacks that a Spellcard produces en masse, you would simply feel like you were struck with a punch or three, but that pain would subside after a short while."
>Smirk slightly. "Though that's not to say that I don't have to rely on those for my other techniques. It's been some time since I got to 'fight seriously', as some would put it. And I know a few who would rather like how things are resolved here as well, they've always been fond of being as flashy and extravagant as possible you know."
>We should be able to restore the young lad's energy with a little healing skill, yes?

>"Well, we're certainly glad you and your spellcards were here today." the female says gratefully. "We had been expecting trouble, but.. Well, you saw what we got."
>Provided the young man is suffering from simply physical exhaustion, that's well within your ability to heal. The winds and the rains can refresh and soothe as much as they can heal.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Then let's do that.
>"If you would, I would appreciate it if you were to enlighten me as to a few things. First of all, what exactly are 'prinnies', and what is the 'Red Moon'?"
>"There are, I understand, multiple individuals vying for the title of Overlord. Do you serve one of these people, and if so, which one?"

[Oldmansour]

>Then let's do that.

>What form would you like this expression of your power to take?

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Keep it basic. Functionality over flashiness. No need to show off; the battle established quite well what we're capable of.
>Spell list.

[Oldmansour]

>Spell list.

>Spell List:
>Wind
>Mega Wind
>Giga Wind
>Boulder Crush
>Skull Splitter
>Boomerang Axe

>Kuzui Clear Water - Heals up to four units.
>Heaven's Dragon - Heals all units in an 'S' shaped pattern, damages undead and diabolic types.
>Expanded Onbashira - Deals physical damage to an enemy up to three squares away.
>Yamato Torus - Columns of slashing wind deals damage in two lines.
>Meteroic Onbashira - Deals heavy physical damage to all enemies in an X-shaped area
>Virtue of Wind God - Ultimate Spell. Deals massive Wind damage to all enemies around you and in a targeted square area.

>Keep it basic. Functionality over flashiness. No need to show off; the battle established quite well what we're capable of.

>You have indeed demonstrated your might, time for something subtler. A gentle white healing wind flows from nowhere and swirls around Alexandros. The young man's sweating stops, and his breathing starts to come more easily. You're quite certain you've restored his health, though for some reason his face still seems strained and somewhat pale as he pulls himself back to his feet, his armor clinking on the way up.

>"If you would, I would appreciate it if you were to enlighten me as to a few things. First of all, what exactly are 'prinnies', and what is the 'Red Moon'?"
>"There are, I understand, multiple individuals vying for the title of Overlord. Do you serve one of these people, and if so, which one?"

>The woman nods. "Of course, we'd be happy to fill you in on anything we can. You saved us from Pyremaw, it's the least we can do. But, would you mind if we talked on the go? The Prinnies need to reach a certain hill before the Red Moon sets. This fight obviously delayed us a bit."

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"Then let us go. You explain along the way."
>They're the ones who know the destination, so let them lead the way.

[Oldmansour]

>"Then let us go. You explain along the way."
>They're the ones who know the destination, so let them lead the way.

>"Of course."
>The two saint dragons seem to have reappeared, and with the archers riding atop them, they fly back down the valley towards the prinnies, who are in the process of coming out of hiding among the rocks of the eastern hill.
>While the quartet of them gather up the small penguin-things, the woman turns and walks over to Alexandros as the young man retrieves his fallen shield. "You okay to keep walking, Lex?" she asks him. His shield, you note, now depicts a black dragon emblazoned on the front of it, black fire spewing from his open mouth. Even the image of that shadowflame gives off a faint aura of blasphemy.
>"The Sanctifying of that Wyrm was indeed taxing, Cassiopea." the young man replies, his voice indeed strained. "Yet I shall be fine. The benediction of this goddess hath alleviated the pain that might otherwise hath wracked my frame." He turns to you and inclines his head. "Thou hast our everlasting gratitude, noble divinity. Thou hast saved the lives of the servants of Exalted Chromium, and more, thou.... th-" His noble speech falters as his face contorts, his cheeks puffing out slightly.
>"Oh, no, I was afraid of this." the woman called Cassiopea mutters just before Lex falls to his knees again, and with a racking cough, a dark black ichor spews from the young man's mouth, reeking like something unholy and steaming inky smoke in the frigid air.

[Hanzo K.]

>Ugh. That's definitely not easy on the body, especially for a mortal. "Afraid of what?"

[Oldmansour]

>Ugh. That's definitely not easy on the body, especially for a mortal. "Afraid of what?"

>The young man coughs, and expels more brackish ichor, the stuff bubbling as it fumes.
>Cassiopea supplies, "That spell you saw him use. It takes a great an enormous toll on our bodies to use that technique. Each time we Sanctify an evil being, part of that person's evil, their sins and vileness, comes into us. That wind you used healed the strain the spell takes on his body, but not his soul. What you're seeing is his soul grappling with the evil that's staining it." She frowns, concern plain upon her face. "I had a bad feeling about what Sanctifying the dragon would do to him. It's what we do, but, the demands it asks of us can be great."

[Hanzo K.]

>So he's fighting his own darkness so to speak, hm? We should be able to aid in that effort, no?

[Oldmansour]

>So he's fighting his own darkness so to speak, hm? We should be able to aid in that effort, no?

>As a divine being, purging evil from living beings is something you have done before, and could do so again.
>On the other hand, this manner of sin transfer, for lack of a better term, isn't something you've seen before. The process may have complications you're not familiar with.

[Hanzo K.]

>"I believe I can help somewhat with that. Removing evil is a trivial matter for me, but I do not know how it would react with this sin transfer technique."

[Oldmansour]

>"I believe I can help somewhat with that. Removing evil is a trivial matter for me, but I do not know how it would react with this sin transfer technique."

>The woman smiles, gratefully. "I appreciate that, goddess. Believe me." She then shakes her head once, slowly, before looking at the young man on the ground, who is no longer expelling fluid but is still making choking and coughing noises. "But the Sanctifying of the Wicked is a process that no one can help with. Even Exalted Chromium himself could not help Lex now. It is a sacrifice we make every time. It is our sacred duty, our calling. Our burden to bear."
>The prinnies have gathered again and are marching towards you and the paladins, led by the saint dragons and their archer mounts.

[Hanzo K.]

>Well then, let's hope that this brave young mortal can handle it then. "Well, let's move along then. I can at least save him the effort of walking."
>Let's help the young lad by carrying him on the wind. That way he doesn't have to expend the effort in walking, and can devote himself to recovery.

[Oldmansour]

>Well then, let's hope that this brave young mortal can handle it then. "Well, let's move along then. I can at least save him the effort of walking."
>Let's help the young lad by carrying him on the wind. That way he doesn't have to expend the effort in walking, and can devote himself to recovery.

>A cushion of air forms beneath the noble young man, lifting him off the ground.
>"Thanks again, goddess." the woman says, planting her ranseur on the ground. "By the way, what do you prefer to be called?"

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"My name is Kanako."

[Oldmansour]

>"My name is Kanako."

>"Cassiopea." the paladin replies. "But you can call me Cass, if you want. I'm not big on long names."
>One of the prinnies waddles out ahead of the main group and calls up to you, in a high-pitched and somewhat grating voice, "Thanks a bunch for helping us out, dood! We thought that dragons was gonna cook us for good, dood!"

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>...'Dood'?
>"You are welcome."

[Hanzo K.]

>Slip an aside glance to Cass, with a neutrally questioning expression. "Do they usually talk like this?"

[Oldmansour]

>...'Dood'?
>"You are welcome."

>Slip an aside glance to Cass, with a neutrally questioning expression. "Do they usually talk like this?"

>The paladin, her face that of a woman gamely trying not to laugh, nods. "In every world we've seen them in."
>"'tis..." noble Alexandros starts, coughs, then tries again, "'tis the way... of the Prinny..."

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>Can we sense anything about the Prinnies? What do our divine senses tell us?
>"What are they?"

[Oldmansour]

>Can we sense anything about the Prinnies? What do our divine senses tell us?
>"What are they?"

>You detect a very faint trace of sin, like old crimes weighing on their souls.
>"Let me do the talking, Lex." Cass orders her partner. "You just try to catch your breath."
>With the prinnies in tow, you and the group set off towards the north end of the valley.

>"I'm guessing your world doesn't have Prinnies?" she asks you.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"You guess correctly. But I can feel the sins they bear. Are they attoning for past actions?"

[Oldmansour]

>"You guess correctly. But I can feel the sins they bear. Are they attoning for past actions?"

>"On the nose." Cass says with a nod. "When a human dies, if their soul is burdened with sin, they are sent to the Netherworld and incarnated as a Prinny. Prinnies are employed by powerful Netherworlds and work to atone for their sins."
>With a verbal shudder, one the prinnies cries, "You mean we're used, dood! It's HORRIBLE!"
>"We have to work 23 hours a day, dood! No days off, no vacations!"
>"Work for pennies a day, dood!"

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"Were it not, it wouldn't be effective. Atonement isn't supposed to be easy."
>"What, then, is this 'Red Moon'?"

[Oldmansour]

>"Were it not, it wouldn't be effective. Atonement isn't supposed to be easy."
>"What, then, is this 'Red Moon'?"

>"They didn't warn us it was gonna be this when we were human, dood!" one of the prinnies whines.
>As you mention the red moon hanging in the sky, the prinnies take up their strange song again.
>"Well, the Prinnies earn money for their work. The goal for them is to earn enough money to pay off their debt of sin." She points with her ranseur to the crimson orb in the sky. "When the Red Moon appears, the prinnies that've earned enough to pay off their debt come to this place."
>"Why this place... Well, we're not sure." Cass admits. "There's something special about this place that no other place in the Netherworld has. And I'm also not clear on why exactly the Red Moon is special. But I do know the prinnies revere it, and it is definately tied in to their reincarnation cycle."

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"Then they'd best be taken there while this 'Red Moon' remains."

[Oldmansour]

>"Then they'd best be taken there while this 'Red Moon' remains."

>"That's what we were doing. We think the prinnies handle this affair themselves, normally. But we were told that prinnies making this kind of pilgramage often get attacked. We wanted to make sure they made it here safely. "
>"Which we couldn't have done without your help."

[GuyYouMetOnline]

>"I wonder, though. What did Pyremaw hope to gain by attacking the pilgramage?"

[Oldmansour]

>"I wonder, though. What did Pyremaw hope to gain by attacking the pilgramage?"

>The woman's face goes dark. "He did it for fun. The Black Wyrms of Draykl live to inflict terror on 'lesser' beings."