Nishida had rented a room again, but this time in the restaurant, mostly because it was early in the day and Akemis messages had given him some concern.

This time he wore more traditional clothes.

He sat in the cabinet and waited calmly.

Akemi came in, bowed, sat. Then spoke:

"We're in deep shit."

She continued on:

"Eriko will be here soon for the full explanation, but to sum it up in a few words, we've acquired a piece of information that we cannot keep quiet about without trampling on everything the Crab stands for, but we did so through means the locals might find... disputable."

She took a folded piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Nishida. On it could be read, in absolutely terrible handwriting:



After Nishida's inquiry for more information about the "rabid beasts" they've encountered, she will add:

"One of our... hounds was bitten quite hard. Might be a good idea to ask Eriko to look for traces of infection indeed.

Well... We went down there on a noble errand, were surprised to find the... forest refuge that well-preserved in spite of its age and of the fungi everywhere, with working doors and all. The... guardian or someone else locked the door behind us, we met a pack of rabid... squirrels while trying to find another way out, then a rabid... wolf.

We ended up exiting the place through another door that we might have muscled out. Not sorry, that guardian should really learn to not close everything if they don't want such incidents to happen."

---

(I fused three posts into one as a consequence of the forum crash)

Eriko would arrive to the restaurant dressed in the same way as she did at the funeral, a white robe-blouse with blue slacks. She took a slow stroll into the place took a moment to admire her surroundings until she was directed to where the Crab were waiting for her.

"Good afternoon, Yasuki-sama and Akemi-san," she said as she bowed. "It's a really swanky place...I'm kind of hoping that you didn't really splurge all out for this meeting alone. I kind of hate what our lords would say of us after they look at the expenses."

She then turned seriously and nodded at Akemi, "What, Akemi-san. I was thinking of going to the locals on my own but she talked some sense into me and we thought it was best to see you first."

He greeted Eriko with a bow. "Don't worry. This little cabinet is apporpiate for a more,.. private conversation than the common room."

After she explained herself, he answered: "It was very wise that you turned to me. Now that I thought a little bit about your little adventure, something came to my mind. Have you ever heard the name Mushin?"

Some rusty cog turned with difficulty deep into Akemi's brain.

"Oh. Fuck.

I was just so focused on traditional Spider tactics I... Fuck.

Can the situation turn even worse?"

He drank a bit of the tea that wsa erved on the small tbale before them.

"It can. But it wont, hopefully,...

I hope you've got prove that you've been there,... not that i need evidence, but it's a possibilty that the Lord-magirstate will question my word on that."

"Well... The good news is that I was wearing a gas mask and cleaned all my equipment thoroughly after that incident, so I shouldn't have brought anything into the city. The bad news is that no, I didn't think of taking a specimen into a sealed box or something. Don't think any of us did. Wasn't first priority at the time.

I can describe our opponents with a wealth of details... But that's the best I can do sadly.

Eriko, maybe...?"

Eriko narrowed her eyes at the mention of Mushin and then gave a shake of her head. "Ah-ah. While, we should always consider the possibility of mushin returning wherever we go, I think I have a very good feeling that these were not mushin. I understand there are spores involved on both fronts, spores everywhere here. I can't explain a lot of things about them and that big one that tried to follow us but I'm quite sure what we faced on that ship was dead returned to the...well, not living. An obvious walking corpse, albeit with several additions that looked like the local flora. I didn't stop to have a one on one conversation...but I could sure take it down like a Shadowlands zombie."

Nishida pondered.
"I'll take the witch-hunters word on that. But that does not make the threat any less threatening. The living dead need a Maho-Tsukai to be resurrect, which is not easy to do."

Another sip of tea.

"There is a chance that the Lord Magistrate will ask many questions. I have a certain status and my word should not be questioned, but I will not promise that you will come out of this unscathed....

Nevertheless, I will do my best to minimize the damage and get the Phoenix to act. The governor seems to be a fighter, which should be to our advantage."

He put down the cup again

"What drove you out, anyway?"

Akemi tapped something on her communicator then read a few messages:

"Okay, we might have a specimen in the end. One of us hadn't had time to get rid of their soiled shirt yet. I've sent Kyoko fetch it – in a sealed container of course. Dunno when or how we could analyze it and if it will teach us anything new but that's one more option on the table."

She appeared quite embarrassed at the last question:

"Well we definitely thought about solving the problem on the spot... But against unknown numbers there was a chance we couldn't make it and that would have meant not being able to warn anyone else about that danger. So we kinda played the long term game by retreating? Cowardice is a sin but proper discretion is often the path to victory. Akodo's Leadership I believe."

He looked at her.

"Hmm tha would indeed be a good thing to have."

A nod.

"I did not mean why you retreated. I asked why you went to that old wreck in the first place. From what I understand, this is a no-go zone. The Phoenix won't be too happy about that."

He then looked at Eriko

Eriko couldn't help but sigh at the talk of retreating, feeling that regret with her obligation that should she should have returned. However, that wasn't here or there anymore. "We've questioned how we should proceed from this and seeing as we were already trespassing and had sustained injuries, it was decided that perhaps it was best to go to the Phoenix. Again, I initially thought it would be best that I go on my own and nobody else was connected to this. If there are any repercussions, it would be my own...Lone wolf it, you know."

She dipped down to a deep bow. "Of course, I trust that Yasuki-sama will know best with the administrative proceedings...If you must know, I had done my research before landing on Asakaze, perhaps something out of fancy digging into my family tree and ancestry. One of my ancestors was a member of the Imperial Explorer and a crew member of the ship that crashed here. Quite a coinkidink."

"I spent several days looking into the local records and while they've cleared the ship of the deceased and found most of them...they hadn't found my ancestor's daisho. Not wanting to pass this great coincidence, I wanted to venture into the ruins to find that daisho, no matter how unlikely. I was successful in the end but as you know...found other things."

Nishida was silent for a while.

"Sometimes you have to look into the darkness to bring forth the light,.. a noble deed, achieved by questionable means. You are Kuni through and through, aren't you Eriko-san? But do not forget that we are a clan, no soldier survived alone on the wall, there were no lone wolves, only the strong unity of the crab. "

He relaxed his impression a bit.

"It will be a struggle to convince the magistrate. I hope I can persuade her to act. Meanwhile, you should examine this bloody garment for traces of Taint or the Mushin. I also need to know who else was involved. We should keep an eye on them. Regardless of whether we are dealing with Maho or Mushin."

"I... I don't think we can reveal their names to you without their consent. But we'll keep an eye on them, and we'll discuss about putting you in the known the next time we meet.

Actually Eriko... Could you take care of that sample analysis and of insuring none of the wounded has been infected somehow? I think you're the only ones among our group with the skills for that."

"Sure...I mean talking to the magistrate about this isn't exactly me giving up my soul so we can reconstruct the wall, Yasuki-sama..." she said with an amused smirk.

"But yeah, taint I can check, mushin is something else. That's not my expertise or anyone here. You're going to need a lab and you're pretty far from one who can do a sure reading. That's perhaps also over looking the obvious Rokugani-speaker down the hall too."

She gave Akemi a glance, wondering if they were over-complicating thing. "Yeah, no. No names from me. Consider them under my watch until they show something, then no secrets."

"I think i didn't ask a question" he said calmly.

He waited a few moments before continuing.

"Anyway. I'll arrange a meeting with the lord-magistrate and talk about this incident. If we're here anyway, how's the miai going?"

He said drinking a bit of his tea.

Akemi embraced the change of subject with great enthusiasm:

"Last days have been a bit chaotic but I'm getting back on track. Should join a promising Lion officer for dinner in a few hours. Still no hard commitment toward anyone yet though.

And you? Any progress with Asako Chiruha?"

She turned to Eriko:

"And you Eriko? Decided to officially woo someone? Matsu Hide maybe?"

Eriko pursed her lip at the question and straightened in her posture. "You know, Akemi-san...I'm starting to believe that Hide-san knows far more people than she lets on. This must have been the third time I've been asked about my opinion on Matsu Hide-san and our potential future together."

She looked at Nishida intently. "Well, with the cat out of the bag, you may as well say your piece too. Go on, why don't you ask me? May well fill all the ticks in the meeting."

"Hmmm, I have another meeting with Asako Chiruah-san planned for today. I think she is very interesting, even if the rumor mill is bubbling around her. I may have created a good position for myself by making a deal with the Lord Quartermaster." he answered.

He did not adjust his On, but Nishdia was slowly getting annoyed. First they denied him, the higher status, the whole truth and now he had to deal with an offended Kuni. At least he could find a little amusement when Eriko got stingy.

He adjusted his glasses: "So, what's your opinion on her?" he asked simply.

Eriko crossed her arms and gave a shrug. "She's a great many things, clever, popular and able-bodied. I'll admit that she's interesting and that I like her. But it kind of feels strange when the walls are closing around, you know? Now it feels like every conversation is going to be about Hide-san here."