Scion – Petro Campaign – Session 47
This account was originally found on Livejournal, I am not the original author—I am just a fan of the journal and have found reading it on livejournal clunky to navigate and rife with errors/instability (such as having to refresh multiple times due to the page in questions becoming unavailable often requiring multiple refreshes. The original post can be found here, published by DJ-Yomi, and was published on Mar 22nd 2009
Phase three of our master plan has been completed. We just got back from Duat with the Eye of Chaos. Now…it’s on to the Poison Sun Ward. We’ll need to talk to Miyako about that since she’s been there recently and might have some good advice for us. She may even be willing to come along, but I kinda doubt it since she hates me. >_<
Before leaving for Duat, though, we compared notes on timing and realized that we probably wouldn’t be able to finish up in both Duat and the Poison Sun Ward before Izanami’s four-day limit on restraining Miko was lifted. And while it’s unlikely Miko would be able to turn Hinako immediately, none of us wanted to take that risk, and we certainly didn’t want to go out searching for Miko once we were ready to purify her.
So, Ray suggested that we go ahead and bring her with us. That suited me just fine, as it would let us keep an eye on her in the meantime. I just had to convince her to come without making it look suspicious, which, honestly, was easy to do. I just had to tell her that I needed her strength where we were going and that she was the only one I could rely on since my other shikome were a bit weaker (all more-or-less true, actually). She was surprised but ecstatic. She’s been traveling with us since, temporarily taking Tabby’s place as my bodyguard. Tabby’s not happy about that, but once I explained my ultimate goal to her, she agreed to at least tolerate it.
By the way, I had no idea Miko was as completely obsessed with me as she is. Her rooms in Yomi are filled with everything from concert posters, stickers, CDs, and DVD recording to resin model kits of me! There was even a shrine dedicated to me, but since I’m an up-and-coming Shinto goddess, that’s not really out of place. A number of my fans keep similar shrines. Anyway, the depth of her obsession shouldn’t have surprised me, but it did. I guess I just didn’t expect it to manifest in such a fangirlish way! ^_^
Anyway, the trip to Duat was eventful. We were met on the shores of the river by Karen, Annie, and Angela, the three goth ghost guides I introduced to the afterlife. They’re good kids. ^_^ But they were acting really strange, talking in unison and staring at us like they were in a trance. They weren’t their usually friendly selves. Instead, they seemed almost possessed. Adam informed us (with some irritation, since he hates fate-meddling) that they were acting as agents of fate. Fate had taken control of them directly in order to get us where we needed to go.
We all loaded up on the three girls’ boat and sailed on to Duat. On the way, I entered a strange dreamlike state. It was like everyone else faded away and it was just me and our three guides. I instinctively knew that I was more-or-less in direct communication with fate. So, naturally, I had to ask a question or two. ^_^ Talking directly to fate might be second nature to people like Adam or Miyako, but it’s a rare thing for me. ^_^.
I decided to ask about Erebus and Mikaboshi. I’m anxious about what my apparent connection to Erebus might mean in the long run, but at the same time, it seems like it could be a powerful weapon against Mikaboshi. It may be the best chance we have to weaken and undermine him so that he can be destroyed for good.
The three girls answered in unison. They told me that yes, the shikome taint could be a powerful weapon against Mikaboshi. Right right now the taint is only a diluted echo of Erebus and his power (thanks to mom’s contract with him), but it can be strengthened and could backlash against me and fly out of my control. In other words, I’ll be playing a dangerous game if I try to use this connection to defeat Mikaboshi.
Even so, the payoff of defeating my pantheon’s most terrible foe will be worth it if I can succeed, and hopefully Erebus can be weakened and ultimately defeated as well. I won’t be able to do it alone, though. Sooner or later I’ll need to bring the others in on the secret. But can I trust them to understand? T-Bone definitely. Adam, Pierre, and Elisa…maybe. The others? I don’t know…
Even though I didn’t directly ask about Miko, the three girls also revealed a bit of what fate has in store for the two of us. They said that no matter which path Miko and I take—taint or purity—together we can create powerful allies. We’re bound by fate, after all, and I get the feeling that regardless of whether she’s a shikome or a kami or just a priestess of Amaterasu, Miko has the potential to be just as important to me as Echo is. I don’t know how I feel about that, and I’m not sure Echo would be very happy about it.
After that, I kinda came back to my senses. I looked around and noticed that the others seemed to be emerging from similar dreamlike trances, so they must have each been visited by fate too. No one really talked about what they learned though, so I have no idea what revelations the others experienced, though T-Bone did ask me whether Dahlia still hates him. Hate’s probably too strong a word…but she’s definitely still mad at him. I wonder what fate told him…
Miko had a talk with fate too, apparently, and when she emerged, she looked so smitten with me that I was almost afraid she was going tear my clothes off try to take me right then and there. But fortunately she kept her wits about her. Still, it was nice to see something softer and more loving in her eyes…it’s so much more appealing and loveable than the hardcore visage of barely restrained violence she so often wears.
Something about my relationship with Miko has been changing over the past few days now that I’ve seen more of her affectionate, devoted side. Well, I guess it also helps that I’ve gotten over my fear of her, which makes a huge difference too. But I’m finding her attractive in ways I never did before. Sure, she’s stirred my lust in the past…but this is different. It’s more real. It’s a good thing we’re purifying her soon.
Oh, I should note that Ray vigil branded Miko, which made me very happy. I’m glad he’s kinda accepting her. He even sparred with her afterward, getting a feel for how strong she is. She’s no match for him, of course, be she is pretty damn tough. ^_^
Anyway, as we neared Duat, we ran across Seth (you know, the god) fighting two titanic black serpents. They were huge…like miles long! Seth didn’t have much trouble with them, of course, and they’d been defeated by the time we crossed his path. He was more curious about us that anything. I made a sincere effort to express my respect (and that of my companions) as we talked. I was very kind and friendly, trying to present a very different impression than he’s accustomed to receiving from the rest of his pantheon, who don’t really like him very much. As usual, Ray also showed him a lot of respect and even gave him a small, immaculately folded origami salawa as a gift.
We couldn’t tell Seth the real reason we were in Duat, so we gave him our secondary reason for begin there. We told him that in light of the recent attack on Yomi by Suko-no-kuni, we were visiting some of the other Underworlds to see if they’ve been attacked as well. He seemed to accept that and let us go on our way. And he must have been impressed by us, because he and Ray exchanged vigil brands and he bolstered our confidence before we went on our way. ^_^ I know Seth’s got a bad reputation, but he seemed pretty nice, if a bit lonely, to me. ^_^
And then we entered Duat. As before, we had to slowly, painstakingly hike through miles of empty, hostile desert, passing through one gate after another until we reached the Orb’s hiding place. Titanspawn are still wandering throughout the deserts, and we had to fight several viciously powerful serpents of Apophis. We got a few of their skins. I’m going to turn mine into a nice set of black snake-skin boots that will improve my ability to sneak around a little, according to Adam.
We also ran across some old acquaintances: Benten and Laura. I didn’t see them myself, but the more perceptive among our group caught sight of them from afar and we decided to avoid them rather than confront them. Their Dionysian friends weren’t with them this time, but they were accompanied by a man and woman in matching suits (probably twins) and a girl in a black wedding dress. We don’t know what they were after, but they were armed to the teeth and seemed to be fighting titanspawn too. It’s probably best that we avoided them, though. There’s still a question as to whether or not they actually betrayed us back in Kaymakli. >_<
Ultimately, we retrieved the Orb of Chaos without too much difficulty aside from a democratic discussion in which we decided to attack a final group of titanspawn that we could just as easily have avoided. For a change, I fell in with Ray and Elisa on the side of fighting, partly because I feel like I have a personal stake in the various invasions of the Underworld, and partly because I wanted snake skin boots. ^_^
Once the Orb was safely in hand, T-Bone used it to shorten our trip back, and we made it back to Yomi in less than half the time it took us to get to the Orb’s hiding place. Now we’re taking a short breather before heading into the Poison Sun Ward.
Of course, not everything is well with my girls (when is it ever?). Nothing tragic has occurred, but Keiko’s vaguely upset because Kimiyo did something that was obviously and intentionally meant to get under her skin. I can’t really go into the details, but it has to do with Quinn and Echo, both of whom Keiko feels…close to. I’m sure Keiko will overcome a lot of her issues once she’s married to Oda and they’re installed in their new home on Red Mountain, but I’ll need to have a discussion with Kimiyo about the lingering grudge she bears over the arguments Keiko and Sera had some time ago. Kimiyo’s so mild-mannered that it’s easy to forget that she can stay angry for a loooooong time. >_<
Until later…