>>4429037
“I also brought some food,” you tell her, revealing that you’ve brought a small plate of cured meats, cheeses, and fresh vegetables. “Try it.”

Seemingly suspicious despite having come all this way specifically for this purpose, Solaris shakes a light dusting of spice onto the food you brought her.

“To your health,” you quip as she’s about to take her first bite.

She pauses for a moment, then takes a bite.

She chews, contemplating the experience, before swallowing and taking another bite to replace it. You let her eat in peace and quiet for a few minutes, keeping your questions to yourself even as you watch her intently for any outward signs of success or failure.

“So?” you eventually ask. “How is it?”

“I...” Solaris begins. “Feel… satisfied?”

“As in, it worked?” you press. “I need to know, Solaris.”

After a moment, she nods. “Actually, yes. I think so. It’s a strange feeling, having eaten even just a small meal’s worth of normal human food and feeling satisfied by it.”

“I’m… kind of at a loss for words.”

>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.
>I think we should show you how this is done. Come with me across the loch.
>Let’s introduce you to the rest of my cohort. It may not be comfortable but it needs to happen.
>Other?

>>4429042
>well, lets take this slowly. See that its working.
Better be sure about this when we got Helen worked up over our decision, plus unlike Sabela we font have a deep connection zo lean on for security, so safety is key.

>>4429042

>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.

>>4429046
Crap, please ignore those grammar mistakes, typing on mobile sucks

>>4429042
>>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.

>>4429042
>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.

>>4429046
Yeah better to do this carefully.

>>4429042
>>Let’s introduce you to the rest of my cohort. It may not be comfortable but it needs to happen.

>>4429042
>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.

>>4429042
>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.

>>4429042
>Well, let’s take this slowly. Confirm that the spice is ‘working’ for you first and foremost.
Lets see what happens if they only eat spice only directly, or spice extract.

Oh, and be fore we get too far, we should save stored samples or have a hidden room full of the stuff in case of emergencies or if the original and back up sources get wiped out.

Next step would be to test it on regular yoma.

>>4429507
Is there a point to feeding it to regular Yoma in the first place? Aren't they incredibly far removed from humanity unlike awakened beings?

>>4429659
FOR SCIENCE!

File: bothies.jpg (335 KB, 1300x850)

335 KB JPG

>>4429042
“Well, we should take this one step at a time,” you decide. “Make sure that the spice is actually doing its job first and foremost. So let me know if you start feeling a craving for people again… in the mean time we’ll work on building a more permanent home for you to move into.”

She nods slowly. “Okay… I understand. I’ll do exactly as you ask until we can be certain.”

…

There are a few things that need to be done which make sense now, first of which is to plan out the new building to be constructed. It’s a small bothy-like home, one might even go so far as to call it ‘humble’. Just three rooms, but with a rather clever under-floor heating system that evidently sees some use in the rural areas where Solaris grew up.

The “work room” is at the level of the ground, and features a wood-burning stove for cooking and heating. But accessible by a short set of stairs will be a tiny private room and an even tinier heated bath, the former raised about three feet from ground level by masonry pillars similarly to a hypocaust. The latter will sit slightly lower than that. The trick will be to line the underside of the slate floors with clay and sealed wax paper to prevent smoke from rising into the rooms above, but that won’t be much of a challenge. The materials aren’t exactly expensive, and the system should be able to retain heat through the night even after the fire is out.

On the outside wall however is the real payoff to this system: a raised garden bed under which ceramic pipes will run. These connect to a large, free-standing chimney at the opposite end of the garden, which will draw a strong draft that will pull smoke and hot air through the system.

Drainage will follow Solaris’ specifications, and the garden will be covered to protect against the harsh winters. A six-foot wall on one side, a four-foot wall on the other, with a series of glass windows set between a series of wooden frames connecting the two.

It may be a little cramped, but it should prove to be marvellously efficient at helping Solaris grow the flowers she took the time to save from her shop in the south.

It’s also something of a test of the concept: if Solaris can grow her delicate flowers out here, in Scaithness, then this sort of arrangement may be worth further developing in Hazaran. Not just for wealthy landowning dilettantes who want to grow their own citrus trees, or some similarly stupid thing, but for small rural communities that might otherwise struggle with the climate.

Once the design is drafted, you lay out the footprint of the structure and task soldiers with producing the necessary stone from the ruins of the castle on that side of the loch. You’re also very clear with them that they are not to get too close to the structure already built there.

Jenna, Nessa, and Alexa are supposed to take turns monitoring their progress, while Lucia and Sabrina will alternate keeping an eye on Solaris herself.
>1/2

>>4430356
The second task is to secure the spice supply you have in Scaithness against the possibility of unexpected problems.

It seems that the substance itself can be dried and still have the desired effect… so it must be a matter of properly concentrating the compound that nourishes an awakened being’s body rather than a question of freshness. Which is a good thing, because that means it can be stored safely.

Small boxes typically used for gunpowder are the ideal, lined and sealed so that the explosive grains can’t leak out, so you repurpose one such container for spice storage. You also use a trick for preventing salt from caking: while rice isn’t commonly eaten in Hazaran it is available. But more often than it’s eaten it’s mixed in with salt in the shaker, so it absorbs any moisture from the air. This same trick will help to preserve a small spice supply long-term, kept under lock and key beneath Blackthorn Keep, in case of an emergency or a ‘crop’ failure.

…

“Do we even want to try using this on regular yōma?”

The thought comes out one evening over a modest dinner, surprising more than one person sharing the table with you.

Serana shakes her head. [I don’t think so.]

“You’re probably right to ask the question,” Laura admits. “But it’s probably a mistake to actually try it.”

“You’re probably right,” you admit. “It’s not that I have any reason to think it would work, I’m just… pushing the logical boundaries I guess. Trying to work out in my head how far we should be willing to take this little experiment.”

“We’ve had more success than I could have anticipated already,” Helen muses. “But you know as well as I do that yōma and awakened beings are two different beasts entirely.”

“One thinks,” Justina agrees.

“And yōma really don’t,” you agree. “If common yōma knew what we were doing here it could become a problem.”

“I see what you’re saying,” Helen nods along. “It’s one argument for slowing down.”

“I still think the thought is sound,” Valentina insists. “Not that it’s a good idea literally, but the thought process behind asking the question, I guess?”

[How do we stop the yōma.]

“Yeah,” Valentina agrees. “What she said.”
>2/3

>>4430369
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?
>We should focus on a strategy of recruitment, but less haphazard. Sabela and Solaris probably have a few ideas of where we could look.
>If the Organization catches wind of this it could be a problem too. I think Helen has it right… we can’t really afford to go LOOKING for answers or recruits.
>Other?

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430369
>>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

This is relatively simple thing to do.

>We should focus on a strategy of recruitment, but less haphazard. Sabela and Solaris probably have a few ideas of where we could look.

And by this to go outside the safety spot of Hazaran and deal more with our neighbours and see if we could recruit more claymores.

>>4430373
It is even more pressing ....

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

FOR SCIENCE!!

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430373
>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?
>We should focus on a strategy of recruitment, but less haphazard. Sabela and Solaris probably have a few ideas of where we could look.
>If the Organization catches wind of this it could be a problem too. I think Helen has it right… we can’t really afford to go LOOKING for answers or recruits.

Why not all 3? Top option first of course.

>>4430381
What if they try to raise up some claymores specifically to join us and acts spies or saboteurs?

>>4430373
>>It’s even more pressing to figure out how a yōma becomes a yōma. Has anyone here ever… you know. Dissected one? As in, in a proper, medically-sound way?

>>4430759
That is a risk we kinda have to take. Having more Claymores under our command would be beneficial as there are a lot land to cover and yoma to take care off.

That is unless we manage to solve what is the source of yoma and tackle it directly.

>>4430773
the question is, can we do that and avoid a war with organisation, which is still a hard to read monolith in comparison to us.
or without pissing of one or more of the AB's which just as well could overrun us
or worse, both declaring as to much of a nuissence and try to wipe us out

>>4430777
I think that at the moment we could deal with one at a time. AB attacking us would be problematic, but I think that we have a change to beat one. Organisation sending Claymore killsquads to deal with us would be a problem, but unless they send single digits, they would be basically just speed bumbs.

>>4430773
So what do we do after if we are made obsolete, or after most of the current claymores die of old age and Yoma and awakened beings start popping up again? We need to maintain a cadre of Claymores.....

I am surprised at how the Org doesn't reintroduce male claymores and try to get both genders to breed and see what pops out. Especially when you consider what kind of experiments the like to do.

>>4430889
I was under the impression that claymores stop aging

>>4431003
Doesn't stop em from dying tho.

but for real, I don't remember any lore telling that they have eternal youth or anything. Then again, most either die or awaken, then die.

Best manga box set I've bought so far. Fucking great read.

>>4431773
isn't it because the Yoma live longer than humans overall?

>>4431773
It's not really clear how long most Claymores serve in manga canon, only that there are no visibly "old" Claymores. We do however see that "Quicksword" Ilena doesn't noticeably age from the time Claire was a little girl and the end of the seven-year timeskip, which is at bare minimum a decade, and probably closer to two. The Ghosts don't visibly age in that time either, which suggests that once "completed" a Claymore basically stops aging.

Will update in a bit.

>>4430373
“Has anyone here either seen, or heard of, a yōma being dissected?” you wonder aloud. “I mean in a medically-sound, scientific way? We’ve all cut them up in the past, but that doesn’t tell us anymore about them than a lumberjack learns by hacking up a tree.”

“If it’s been done I’ve never heard of it,” Laura offers calmly. “I asked Olivia a similar question once, and she had no memory of anything along those lines either. So that’s at least seventy years of knowledge.”

“Interesting,” Helen muses, her expression grim. “Now that you mention it I find it difficult to believe that no surgeon or college anywhere in the known world has ever thought to try.”

“There is a stigma involved,” Valentina offers.

“Among scientists?” Justina counters. “Maybe.”

“But also maybe not,” you agree with Justina’s line of thinking. “There may be some evidence that someone has tried… but what would that evidence look like now?”

“If someone tried and was killed for it, then I doubt there would be any documentary evidence,” Helen reasons… and it’s honestly a strong line of reasoning. If someone went to the trouble of killing someone for prying too much into the source of the yōma, destroying any research documents wouldn’t be that much further trouble to go to.

“The alternative is to sponsor that sort of effort ourselves,” you suggest.

There’s a long pause.

“True,” Helen eventually concedes. “But is it a wise idea?”

[Comrades and knowledge], Serana muses silently. [Those are the things that can put us in a better standing against the Abyssal Ones and the Organization.]

>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.
>You may be right… assuming it’s the Organization that’s keeping that information suppressed.
>Open it up for discussion, then put it to a vote.
>Other?

>>4431817
>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.
>You may be right… assuming it’s the Organization that’s keeping that information suppressed.

>>4431817
>>Open it up for discussion, then put it to a vote.
my vote is
>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.

>>4431817
>>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.

>>4431817
>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.

>>4431817
>>Open it up for discussion, then put it to a vote.

>>4431817
>>4431822
this

>>4431817
>>4431822
This

>>4429037

BLACK

>>4431822
>>4431817
There's a frood who really knows where his towel is.
In with him.

Dissection? We X-COM now.

>>4431817
>The more we know, the better armed we are in the long run. I say we should do it.
>You may be right… assuming it’s the Organization that’s keeping that information suppressed.
>Open it up for discussion, then put it to a vote.

If we are doing this then can we feed yoma some spice? Like I intended to see if it works on yoma before killing them, but if we are dissecting yoma, then why not experiment anyways and then kill or cut them up?

>>4431817
“I think this is something we should open up for discussion,” you suggest. “Helen, would you disagree?”

“No, I agree,” Helen concurs. “We’ll all meet upstairs.”

…

It’s an informal setting, with the gathered members of your cohort taking seats on chairs, cushions, and couches all around the upstairs sitting room. Once assembled, you begin by offering your own thoughts.

“We’re here to discuss how far we should go in pursuing information and alliances that the Organization might disapprove of,” you begin. “On the one hand comrades are a thing that we desperately need to even stand a chance if an Abyssal One turns their attention onto us. On the other hand we’ve already seen that drawing warriors away from the Organization has become a hazard to those same warriors we’re trying to help.”

“Similarly, gathering information that may have been previously suppressed may put us on a course to open battle against the Organization.”

“And what do you think?” Helen asks. “I’m sure you have a strong opinion.”

“I think our need for ‘comrades and knowledge’ is undeniable,” you admit. “It’s just the nature of our tactical situation, and we can’t address it by tiptoeing around the Organization’s affected ‘sensibilities’ like we’ve been doing.”

Justina nods curtly. “Allies of convenience.”

[Who have become inconvenient to keep,] Serana argues. [I feel strongly that we are at the point where appeasing the Organization no longer serves us in any meaningful way.]

“But we shouldn’t go out of our way to antagonize them either,” Sabrina counters. “At least I’d hesitate to. Helen, what do you think our chances are if we were to clash with the Organization… say… tomorrow.”

“Noel, Aurora, Serana, and I alone could probably take them on in a fair fight,” Helen declares. “Even Clarice would be overwhelmed. But if Clarice were to awaken… as much as my own pride stings to admit it, we’d be totally reliant on Noel.”

You pause, stunned at the frankness of the admission. “Wait, what?”

Helen shakes her head. “Noel, your specialty technique is pretty much perfect for hunting down awakened beings who are stronger than you are. After seeing you in action I know that to be true.”

“You’re comparing her to a low-ranked warrior taking on a yōma,” Valentina muses. “Aren’t you?”

“That’s right,” Alexa nods quietly. “That’s what Zoe taught us… that even if we’re weaker than a yōma that doesn’t have to worry about using all of its yōki, we can still beat them through superior tactics and technical skills so long as the gap isn’t too wide.”
>1/2

>>4433514
“And because she can control her awakening to an even higher level than the rest of us half-awakened warriors,” Helen continues, “Noel can narrow the gap between herself and a fully-awakened single-digit dramatically. Enough that her style, which bypasses the most common defenses that yōma and awakened beings have, can affect enemies the rest of us could only hope to harry.”

“So, I think that the real question isn’t what the rest of us think about a possible fight against the Organization or the Abyssal Ones, but what she thinks. The rest of us should mostly be concerned with making whatever plan we walk away having agreed to can work.”

>I think I’m as ready as I can possibly be for a situation I can’t possibly know all the details of.
>I’d like to know more about our likely enemies before I say whether I’m ready or not.
>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.
>Other?

>>4433531
>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.

>>4433531
>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.
>But I’d like to know more about our likely enemies

>>4433531
>>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.
if i am the spear tip, then that still implies a spear

>>4433531

>I think I’m as ready as I can possibly be for a situation I can’t possibly know all the details of.

>>4433531
>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.

>>4433531
>>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.

>>4433531
>>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.

>>4433531
>>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.

>>4433531
>I’d like to know more about our likely enemies before I say whether I’m ready or not.
>Don’t sell yourselves short. I rely on all of you as much as you THINK you rely on me.
>Other?
Train and spar with solaris to get more combat experience. Maybe even in awakened form.

>>4433531
>>4433531
“You shouldn’t sell yourselves short,” you insist. “I rely on all of you as much as you seem to think you’re reliant on me… and even if you consider me the ‘tip of the spear’, the tip doesn’t do much with nothing behind it.”

“Do you think you’re ready to face the Organization openly?” Helen presses.

“Without knowing how strong Clarice is I can’t know for sure,” you admit. “I think you’re right, I should be able to fight her, but I also want to be sure that everyone else is ready for it as well.”

“Well, we’ll take a blind vote,” Helen sighs. “Toss some votes into a hat or something similar.”

…

You find a small box downstairs and tear some roughly-matching slips of paper, and have each member of your cohort write a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ before tossing the folded slips into the box. Upon counting all twelve votes, you declare the results.

“We have nine votes for ‘ready’, and three votes for ‘not ready’,” you announce.

Helen nods curtly. “Then starting today we’ll begin taking steps disregarding the Organization’s likely response.”

“That being said,” you add, “it does serve as a reminder that it may serve us to proceed cautiously… this shouldn’t mean we feel emboldened to go out of our way to antagonize anyone.”

“Agreed,” Laura decides. “That matches my thoughts on the matter exactly.”

“So what are the ideas we can begin pursuing?” Valentina wonders.

“One at a time,” Justina interjects.

“She’s right,” Alexa agrees. “It would probably be best to only do things one step at a time, so as to avoid notice.”

“But also to give more time for our possible rivals to notice what we’re up to and plan a response,” Sabrina observes.

“With less urgency,” Lucia muses. “I can see arguments in favor of both approaches.”

“Let’s not resort to another vote,” Helen sighs in frustration.

>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.
>We can start making some discreet inquiries, looking for potential Awakened allies.
>I think if we’re careful we can do both, it may just take longer to do it right.
>Other?

>>4434798
>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

!!SCIENCE!!

>>4434798
>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

>>4434798
>I think if we’re careful we can do both, it may just take longer to do it right.

>>4434798
>>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.
one thing at a time and this one will give us the most information for long term planning

>>4434798
>>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

>>4434798
>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

>>4434798
>>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

FOR SCIENCE!

>>4434798
>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.

>>4434798
>We should procure a yōma for testing. That move will attract more than enough attention.
Why can't this be done quitely?

Its not like anyone will miss them, and we can destroy the bodies.

>>4435389
I think it was implied we would need to bring in someone with actual medical or biological knowledge?

That would require a lot more care to keep totally under wraps.

Oh, and before I forget: do we know if Sabela has any awakened subservient to her? I remember the General mentioning she wished she worked for Sabela, but was wary of her.

>>4434798
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 3, 8, 5 = 16 (3d10)

>>4436702

Rolled 6, 8, 9 = 23 (3d10)

>>4436702

Rolled 8, 8, 5 = 21 (3d10)

>>4436702

Rolled 1, 5, 10 = 16 (3d10)

>>4436702

>>4436702
“I think we should capture a yōma and have it dissected,” you decide. “It’s a single goal as opposed to a long-term process, so if we can attain that goal without arousing any suspicion that would be ideal… we could then treat discreetly finding allies as a long-term project until such time as it draws the Organization’s attention.”

“Seconded,” Justina replies flatly.

[It’s a well-considered strategy,] Serana agrees.

…

It doesn’t even come to a vote, since there’s no logical counterargument to you were saying. The plan begins to take shape: it’s going to be a bit difficult, but you can probably make a good argument to have an expert physician transferred from the capital to Scaithness on the argument that the half-blooded warriors here require some special attention every now and then due to their stigma. While not necessarily true, as you’ve all learned over the years how to care for yourselves in the field, there’s at least some face validity to the claim that will keep anyone from asking too many questions.

From there it’s only a question of how long it will take to find a yōma and defeat it, then bring it back to Scaithness for examination. Any of your former single-digits can easily do it… in fact, even the ducklings can probably handle the mission with fair confidence, so it’s truly just a question of time and convenience.

…

In the mean time, a question arises.

“Mother,” you greet Sabela the next morning on her side of the loch. “I have a question.”

“And what would that be?”

“Yulia mentioned you,” you recall. “It didn’t really register strongly at the time, but she implied that she had mixed feelings about working as your subordinate.”

“She would,” Sabela muses patiently. “Please, by all means, continue.”

“Do you have subordinates somewhere?” you ask.

Sabela shakes her head. “I’ve had subordinates in the past… yōma I pressed into service through fear before… well, eliminating them. As for awakened beings, I’ve been known to forge temporary alliances. Not all of them have ended with the other party alive.”

>Did you kill them personally? Why would you do that and why would they agree if they knew?
>I suppose not taking care of your allies would establish a pretty poor reputation.
>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?
>Other?

>>4436921
>>I suppose not taking care of your allies would establish a pretty poor reputation.
>>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
>>I suppose not taking care of your allies would establish a pretty poor reputation.

>>4436921
>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
>>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
>>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
>Did you kill them personally? Why would you do that and why would they agree if they knew?
>I suppose not taking care of your allies would establish a pretty poor reputation.
>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

Man, this situation with Awakened having an alternative to being insane, man-eating monsters is kinda tricky.

We need to be really careful and really sure about anyone we extend that amnesty to.

The guilt for any lives they've taken rests mainly on the Organization, but obviously not entirely.

In many cases, the kinder option might still be to put them down.

>>4436921
>So does your sense of responsibility not extend to warriors who have awakened? Should Solaris be worried?

>>4436921
“… should Solaris be concerned?”

Sabela shrugs dismissively. “That depends entirely on her conduct, like with every other awakened being I’ve ever met. I’ll admit, in the past I have been somewhat overzealous in ‘taking care’ of my own subordinates.”

“Do try to remember, the concept of an awakened being even having the option to try to redeem herself is new to me.”

“So you did kill them?” you read between the proverbial lines.

“Yes,” Sabela admits more directly. “In each case there was a proximal reason… eating someone they shouldn’t have, eating too many people in general, killing a current warrior, but mostly for requesting it.”

“That’s why some would seek you out,” you realize. “Because they knew you would be willing to euthanize them if they asked you to.”

“And before we learned that there was an alternate source of nourishment,” Sabela clarifies, “euthanization was the alternative.”

“It must have been difficult.”

She shakes her head. “At first, yes. But after the first few times I convinced myself that I was doing what I had to do. It made it easy.”

“And now you’re back to having to make a judgment call every time,” you guess.

Your mother nods curtly. “That’s about the size of it, yes.”

>If you’re not comfortable with that, I’ll be the one to make the call each time.
>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.
>My main concern is with unawakened warriors. Can I trust you to lead the way with any awakened ones, like Solaris?
>Other?

>>4437968
>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.

>>4437968
>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
>My main concern is with unawakened warriors. Can I trust you to lead the way with any awakened ones, like Solaris?
>Because for all the similarities... there are some major differences between claymores and the Awakened.

>>4437968
>>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
cause
>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.

>>4437968
>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.

>>4437968
>>If you’re not comfortable with that, I’ll be the one to make the call each time.

>>4437968
>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.

>>4437968
>>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
>>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.

>>4437968
>>Even if you’re not comfortable with this, I could really use your insight.
>>Getting this right is your responsibility as much as it is mine.

>>4437968
“I really stand to benefit from your insight,” you admit. “I won’t demand that you do anything, but I hope you’ll consider it… because the better my decisions are the better we can do for others.”

After considering your point for a moment, your mother nods in agreement. “Okay, I agree.”

“Is there anyone you would suggest?” you ask. “Any awakened beings who might be the sort we can work with?”

Sabela shakes her head sadly. “I don’t exactly meet many awakened beings and not kill them, either sooner or later. But I will meet with and assess anyone you encounter that seems promising.”

“Okay,” you agree. “Fair enough. I guess I’ll just have to be careful to vet awakened beings before it gets to that phase.”

“That’s one way to handle it,” Sabela agrees. “The alternative would be to arrange an intermediate location to meet me other than Scaithness. I would propose the ruins outside Kraljevo.”

“That seems sensible,” you nod curtly. “Good thinking.”

“That’s what you’ve asked me to do for you,” she dismisses the compliment.

>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.
>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.
>Timeskip to when the physician arrives in Scaithness.
>Other?

>>4439710
>>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.

>>4439710
>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.

No sense going for the hunt when the physician arrives and make the fellow wait around doing nothing.

>>4439710
>>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.
she is our responsibility and i rather have her close until we know we can trust her

>>4439710
>>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.

>>4439710
>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.
>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.
Why can't we do both? Delegate, people.

>>4439710
>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.

>>4439710
>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.
>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.

Obligatory reminder that we did promise to spend time with momma. There was a major development that sorta threw that for a loop, but come on: do we really want to make Noel a liar? She probably already thinks we forgot about that, and that now all she's good for is AB stuff.

For shame!

>>4439710
>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness.
>Try to find a yōma to capture ahead of time.
>Make an effort to spend free time with mom

>>4440248
>>>4439710 #
In with this guy

>>4439710
>Try to get Solaris settled here in Scaithness

>Remind Sabela we haven't forgotten the time we promised her

>>4440240
What if we combine youma capturing with family bonding?

>>4439710
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 2, 6, 9 = 17 (3d10)

>>4441002

Rolled 4, 9, 1 = 14 (3d10)

>>4441002

Rolled 3, 6, 2 = 11 (3d10)

>>4441002

Rolled 3, 5, 6 = 14 (3d10)

>>4441002

>>4441002
You decide that in addition to the long-term preparations for dissecting the yōma, you have a personal responsibility for the awakened being who you’ve brought in to join your mother in their still-small cadre.

So that means spending several days cutting and laying stones on the far side of the loch, working together with Sabela and Solaris. The work doesn’t go exactly to plan, but you can pretty easily modify your idea to work. The entry room floor you line with cut slate on a packed clay foundation, with a single vertical timber support in the center from which the roof ribs will run. The advantage is that you can put these together quickly and easily to form the roof, and because it’s made from timbers you can fit windows into the roof for light.

The cut stone forms the walls, six feet high, with a single conical roof finished in flat planks, then waterproofed with a casing of lime mortar and slate similar to the stone walls.

The room above that is essentially square, with a series of stone and lime mortar pillars that support the slate and clay platform which will form the floor. The walls of that room, and of the future garden beyond, are initially only completed up to the level of the heated floor.

One afternoon, Alexa comes across the loch to find you. “The physician arrived just now.”

“I think we can handle the smoke-proofing on our own,” Solaris admits. “Then we can finish the rest of the walls.”

“I wish the stove were ready,” Sabela muses, “but Solaris is right. The bases of the walls are all in place, from here it should be just as easy as following the example of the first room.”

“Okay then,” you nod politely. “If anything comes up just let me know and I’ll sort out a solution.”

“Thank you for your help, Lady Noel,” Solaris bows politely.

…

“Sorry it took a while,” you apologize to Helen after Alexa follows you to where she and the physician are waiting.

“I understand,” Helen inclines her head. “You feel responsible for those you bring into our circle… that’s a good thing. If you didn’t I’m sure some of us would be concerned that your heart wasn’t in the right place.”

…

“You would be… Mr. Knox,” you muse once inside the tavern and seated at the table. “Is that correct?”

The physician, a man with gray stubble and a grim expression, nods curtly. “That’s right.”

“In case you weren’t aware,” you greet him, “I am Queen Noel. Whatever you may have been told, you are here at my request.”
>1/2

>>4441105
“The job is simple,” you continue. “I want you to do a dissection.”

“Is that all?” he wonders with a frown.

“On a yōma,” you add.

“If that’s a joke I’m not laughing.”

“It’s no joke,” you insist. “We find the yōma, you do the cutting, and you tell us what you see as being significant about it.”

“Why?” he demands.

“Because yōma decay at an unusual rate,” Helen clarifies. “To our knowledge no one has ever done a proper examination because whenever we kill one in the field, it takes too long for someone with some medical knowledge to arrive at the scene.”

“So how do you plan to involve me?” Knox demands.

“By bringing you one alive,” you explain.

“I hope you don’t have any ethical concerns,” Helen muses.

“Yōma are no longer human,” Alexa adds. “You will be able to see as much for yourself. They only choose to look human some of the time, in order to have an easier time hunting and slaughtering people.”

“Decide what you want to focus on,” you insist. “We’ll secure any equipment you determine that you’re likely to need.”

>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.
>Don’t worry. We’ll kill it quickly and painlessly, and you can begin your work before the corpse is cold.
>You may need to do this work in the field, with minimal preparation, so keep that in mind during your planning.
>Other?

>>4441107
>Don’t worry. We’ll kill it quickly and painlessly, and you can begin your work before the corpse is cold.
I'd be scared to operate on a live youma

>>4441107
>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.

>>4441107
>>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.
at least two of us will be present, in case anything happens, so do not worry

>>4441107
>>Don’t worry. We’ll kill it quickly and painlessly, and you can begin your work before the corpse is cold.

We can do this first, and still do the live yoma later if it doesn’t work

>>4441107
>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.

>>4441107
>>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.

>>4441107
>We’ll bring you a live yōma, incapacitated. You can begin your dissection while the subject is still alive.

Morals or ethical concerns don't stop !!SCIENCE!!

>>4441107
“We’ll bring you the next one we’re called to exterminate, incapacitated,” you decide. “If you want to try using anaesthetics on it that’s fine, but it should give you a chance to study it while it’s still alive… if you object to cutting into it before it’s dead we can finish the job before you do so.”

“I don’t think any of us would particularly share that kind of qualm,” Helen admits. “But I think most of us can understand it and wouldn’t mind accommodating it.”

“I would certainly be a bit uncomfortable,” Alexa admits. “It seems a little too… inhuman?”

“Agreed,” you sigh. “I might feel differently if there was a compelling reason to go so far.”

“So,” Helen presses. “Mr. Knox, will you agree to this? It could be a leap forwards in our understanding of what the yōma actually are, and how to stop them.”

The old doctor considers your ideas for a few minutes, before nodding. “I’ll come up with a list of tools I’ll need and ingredients for a general anaesthetic.”
>3d10. Best of four

Rolled 5, 9, 10 = 24 (3d10)

>>4441236

Rolled 10, 6, 4 = 20 (3d10)

>>4441236

Rolled 10, 3, 5 = 18 (3d10)

>>4441236

Rolled 1, 5, 2 = 8 (3d10)

>>4441236

>>4441236
The breakthrough comes three days later, when you successfully knock a yōma unconscious outside of Ostkirk… a lucky day, seeing as it’s just about the closest major settlement to Scaithness that you can ask for. It took a lot of restraint to keep from blowing its brains out through its mouth with a punch, but you pull it off using your White Fist technique at just about the weakest level you can manage.

Then, together with Aurora and Nessa, you tie its limbs up and gag it with a heavy chain and drag it back to Scaithness.

…

“Here we are,” you declare, strapping the monster’s limbs down to a specially-designed and hastily-built stone platform in a small building on the edge of town. “You want to knock it out?”

“Here,” Knox insists, handing you a damp rag. “Shove this in its mouth.”

You oblige him, and the beast’s thrashing slows dramatically.

“Now,” Knox continues, “the bottle.”

You then pour a pungent liquid down the monster’s gullet, and eventually the yōma stops moving entirely. It’s barely even breathing, though you take the time to double-check the strength of the bindings around its neck, head, shoulders, and arms in particular.

“Lets’ see what we’re looking at here,” Knox muses.

“Nictitating membrane,” he muses as he pokes at the hazy, open eyes. “Like a reptile, or a cat.”

“The mercury thermometer measures higher than human normal. Heart rate is over one hundred beats per minute. Musculature is extraordinarily dense. Ears are elongated, dentition appears to be all canines in terms of structure… no molariform or spatulate teeth. There are also two more in each rank than human norm.”

Then Knox places his hand on the monster’s chest. “The heart and lungs don’t seem to… hang on… it seems that the lungs are operating similarly to the heart, which is in the wrong place.”

“Can you say much else about it from the outside?” you ask.

Knox shakes his head. “Beyond the obvious, and its vitals… no.”

“Alive or dead?” Aurora asks.

“Dead please,” Knox replies calmly. “There’s nothing to be learned by a live dissection.”

“Okay then,” you reply, carefully severing the yōma’s head at the neck. “Work quickly.”

“I’ll need your swordsmanship to cut through its hide,” he admits. “I need a Y-shaped incision in the upper torso, get me cross-sections of the upper and lower segments of each limb, and I want to see its brain too.”
>1/2

>>4441439
You, Aurora, and Nessa are in your element: cutting a yōma apart is something you were handcrafted to do with power and precision, and you do so in this instance according to Mr. Knox’s explicit instructions.

…

“So what do you know so far?”

“It’s fascinating,” Knox admits. “The blood for example… yours is blue when it’s not oxygenated, red when it is. That’s why when you see a vein beneath your skin it looks blue, but if you were to knick it with a blade it would bleed red. That implies that this blood is completely different on a chemical level. I can’t even begin to guess as to how.”

“Its lung action is more powerful, its heart is enlarged relative to a human’s, and its ocular nerves are massive,” Knox continues. “This thing is almost half-lizard, half-mammal in some cases, with other aspects totally alien to how either works. I can barely make heads or tails of it.”

>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?
>Speculate. What medical mechanism could be behind this transformation?
>Other?

>>4441451
>>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?

>>4441451
>blue when it’s not oxygenated
Looks like the state of the biological science in the setting is pretty shit. Let's hope this doctor find at least something useful.

>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?
>Speculate. What medical mechanism could be behind this transformation?
All of this is interesting.

>>4441451
>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?

Can't say I'm too surprised about the blue bit, I've always assumed that the organization was also doing their best to keep science stagnant, aside from their own advances.

>>4441518
>>4441548
Seeing how we didn't actually know what hemoglobin even did until 1840 it shouldn't be surprising. In canon iirc they were still using the four humors concept.

>>4441451
>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?
>Speculate. What medical mechanism could be behind this transformation?

Have to agree, this is all very interesting

>>4441451
>>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?

>>4441451
>>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?
>>Speculate. What medical mechanism could be behind this transformation?

Wall me.

>>4441451
>And did you find any sort of parasite? Perhaps in or around the brain?
>What about the innards, the guts. Was there anything peculiar about them?
>Speculate. What medical mechanism could be behind this transformation?

>>4441451
“Did you notice anything unusual about the brain or the intestines?” you ask. “Anything that looked like it could be a parasite or an infection that could account for… all of this?”

“Not in the brain tissue,” Knox admits. “But I haven’t taken a close look at the insides of the intestines yet.”

“If you’re going to now would be the time,” Aurora muses. “It’s already starting to decay.”

>3d10, best of four

Rolled 3, 1, 4 = 8 (3d10)

>>4442583

Rolled 4, 6, 2 = 12 (3d10)

>>4442583

ROLL OF !!SCIENCE!! GO HIG!

Rolled 10, 3, 1 = 14 (3d10)

>>4442583

>>4442583
3d10

Rolled 8, 4, 6 = 18 (3d10)

>>4442583

>>4442594
Thanks anon for saving our asses. The previous rolls were absolutely dreadful.

>>4442597
i was bracing myself, really expected a 10 or something, but it went well all things considered

would have been dreadful to fail This roll

Worst case scenario we just get more corpses

>>4442583
After several more minutes of cutting, you notice that Knox is frowning.

“What is this?” he wonders aloud.

“Something we should know about?” you ask calmly.

He spares you a glance. “If I didn’t know any better… I’d say that the insides of its intestinal tract are luminescent.”

You exchange a knowing glance with Aurora. “Interesting… very interesting. And the stomach contents?”

“I suppose I should be prepared for a strong acid content,” Knox muses, before making an incision in another organ. “I’ll isolate some and see if it can be kept in a glass flask.”

Knox does as he said he would, transferring the foul-looking liquid into a glass flask. “I can perform some other tests on this to confirm whether it functions similarly to a human stomach, though I have no reason to assume otherwise.”

>Then we’ll wait for those results before drawing conclusions.
>It seems that there’s no clear evidence of how this happened?
>No need for that. But I DO need your word you’ll never speak of this.
>Other?

>>4442650
>>It seems that there’s no clear evidence of how this happened?
>>No need for that. But I DO need your word you’ll never speak of this.

>>4442650
>It seems that there’s no clear evidence of how this happened?

>>4442650
>>Then we’ll wait for those results before drawing conclusions.
>>It seems that there’s no clear evidence of how this happened?
>But I DO need your word you’ll never speak of this.

>>4442650
>Then we’ll wait for those results before drawing conclusions.

>>4442650
>Then we’ll wait for those results before drawing conclusions.
>But I DO need your word you’ll never speak of this.

No hasty conclusions

>>4442679
>>4442650
This is a good combo

>>4442650
“Then we’ll wait for your conclusion,” you decide. “But we will need you to never speak about this to anyone… ever. Under any circumstances. I will have you thrown in prison.”

After a long pause, Knox nods in understanding. “Alright, message received.”

…

“So what have we learned?” Nessa wonders aloud.

“That the yōma have similar dietary needs to awakened beings,” you confirm.

Aurora shakes her head. “I don’t think that we can ‘solve’ the yōma problem as easily as we did with your mother, and with Solaris.”

“Why not?” you ask.

“We warriors are created by implanting us with the flesh and blood of a yōma,” Aurora observes. “We all know this. However, what can we say in general about the monsters that we’re made from, and about ourselves relative to them?”

“It seems like we’re… oddly stronger,” Nessa reasons. “I always thought that our strategy needed to be one of smarts and skill over brute power, but even as a total novice I was able to kill yōma… while barely tapping into my yōki.”

“Yes,” Aurora agrees. “Especially we single-digits are distinctly stronger than most yōma, to the point that we can effortlessly slaughter them with only a fraction of our potential. In fact, the only real danger to myself or to Noel is awakened beings, which we know to to be an unnatural occurrence.”

“Most warriors also have stigma,” you add. “The yōma don’t show any evidence of that. On top of that I don’t know about you… but I don’t have any decide to eat human guts. That changes when a warrior awakens fully. So it implies that yōma are quite a different thing.”

“Whether they’re an infection or not,” Aurora nods curtly.

“I didn’t expect the result we seem to be getting,” you admit. “No obvious signs of a parasite.”

“We may need to consider two possibilities,” Aurora muses.

“That they’re not an infection,” you reply calmly, “or that they’re being created.”

“Exactly,” Aurora nods.

>I think this means we’ve hit a dead end.
>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.
>Other?

>>4443937
>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.
>>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>I think this means we need to know what the Organization knows, but isn’t telling us.

>>4443937
>I think this means we need to know more about awakened beings.

>>4443937
>Other: since the awakening is triggered by using full yoki, and presumably stems from the implanted youma organs, let's try to apply powerful yoki to fresh youma innards via application of the White Fist and see what happens.

>>4443937
“Then I think we have two problems here,” you muse, gently cradling your chin as you work your way through the logic of your situation. “One is that we need to know more about awakened beings, which is thankfully an easy question to answer seeing how we have two of them here in Scaithness. The second is that we have to assume the Organization knows more about the source of the yōma than we do, and simply chooses not to tell us.”

“I cannot say I disagree,” Nessa frowns, biting lightly at her lower lip. “But if someone were to disagree, how would you support the argument?”

“The Organization seems to have always known about the ‘outside world’ that the rest of us could only ever guess at,” Aurora answers first.

You nod curtly. “Exactly. It’s a pattern that I think we’ve all experienced that the Organization always knows more than it tells any of its warriors, ourselves included. So I guess my argument is a challenge: why wouldn’t we assume the Organization knows more than it’s letting on, given the truths we already know they’re hiding?”

“So now let’s assume we’re right about the Organization,” Aurora presses. “What do we even do about it?”

“There are two ways to move ahead,” you reply. “Either we need to take bold action, or we need to get lucky and have information drop into our laps. The former will require us to take a more confrontational stance, the latter would be improved by widening our proverbial net.”

“Either one requires caution,” Nessa realizes. “Same as seeking out awakened beings who might be reasoned with, and who may become allies.”

>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.
>If we could get the Organization to strike first in a way we could prepare for… maybe?
>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?
>Other?

>>4445697
>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.
>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?

We need to Shadowrun and this ain't no milk run.

>>4445697
>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.
>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?
>Other: I still think the experiment idea from >>4444177 has merit.

>>4445697
>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.
>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?

>>4445697
>>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.
>>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?

>>4445697
>I think one feeds into the other. The more allies we have the more information we get.

>>4445697
>Maybe we’re assuming a confrontation too much. Maybe subterfuge could work instead?
>Other?
Can't we get an AB to go "swimming" and explore for us? That or get a fast boat and sail around.

>>4445697
“The more allies we have,” you muse, “the more information we’ll be getting in. As for the Organization, perhaps there’s a method based more on subterfuge?”

“We should talk with the group about it,” Aurora suggests, “but I’d assume there is a way to figure out what we need to know. It’s just a matter of figuring out what that way is.”

…

A few things happen that week after the dissection.

The first thing is that Knox gave you his final verdict on the intestinal fluids that he extracted from the yōma: it’s not clear whether it’s due to the rapid decay, but it seems that the contents of its stomach are oddly inert. The implication is that yōma digestion may work along different principles to living humans, or even to yourself.

The second thing is that Solaris’ new home is more or less completed, and she’s able to move in and start growing her flowers. It still doesn’t look quite like a “home” (she invited you to visit her once the building was finished), but you gather that a lot of that for her is the flowers that she spends so much of her time and effort tending to. And those just haven’t had the chance to grow in yet.

Third, you follow Aurora’s suggestion and meet with everyone else to discuss the idea of gathering information directly from the Organization again.

“I’d like to pursue something like subterfuge,” you broach the subject. “I’d rather not go looking for a fight that pits us against our own kind.”

“A fight may be unavoidable,” Laura admits grimly. “While I have faith that all of us here are prepared to treat our own properly, I don’t have that same faith in the Organization.”

“I don’t think any of us do at this point,” you grumble. “Which is why I’d rather find a way to do this that doesn’t require a fight.”

“We could use someone as bait,” Valentina suggests. “Trouble is, I’m not sure we can predict what ‘taking the bait’ will look like.”

“There’s also Lavinia,” Helen suggests. “The beating heart of the Organization’s operations as well as its brain”

Lavinia… the place where every warrior’s career begins in darkness and pain. Where you were cut open and crudely stitched back together plus or minus a few extra parts, before being left in a cell to either survive or not. Where the survivors are trained to fight and die, and the ‘failures’ are buried. Where you’re issued your swords, weapons much more advanced than anything else you’ve seen in the world, along with your emblems.

It’s also the place where the council of old men have their fortress, sitting at the center of a world which they control.

“The only times I’ve ever been there have been with the Organization’s knowledge and permission,” you frown. “And then there’s Zoe to consider.”
>1/2

>>4447561
“You don’t think they’d bargain with her life?” Lucia wonders aloud.

“I wouldn’t put it past them,” Sabrina sighs. “I mean, if there’s anything that everyone here shares by now it’s an awareness of how far the Organization is willing to go.”

“If one could suppress their yōki aura,” Laura suggests. “It might be possible?”

[Quite the lions’ den,] Serana observes. [I wouldn’t envy whatever warrior made the attempt.]

“Serana’s right,” you admit. “If someone were to try that, they’d be surrendering their only defense on the hope that they’d be able to avoid notice.”

“And we don’t know what their actual defenses look like,” Alexa adds.

“They may even have changed since last we saw them,” Nessa agrees. “So what little we ever knew may no longer apply.”

>Then the answer is simple. We need someone to go there and examine their defenses under some pretense.
>There IS a drug that helps suppress yōki, but we have no access to it. So unless we manage that it’s not even an option.
>I guess our only alternative is a proxy, someone who doesn’t have yōki for them to notice.
>Perhaps the better idea would be to charter a ship to try leaving… well, this ISLAND we call home. Bring THEM to US.
>Other?

>>4447574
>I guess our only alternative is a proxy, someone who doesn’t have yōki for them to notice.
Chartering a ship sounds extremely interesting, but will likely lead to huge human casualties. Unless the group can crew it on their own.

>>4447574
>I guess our only alternative is a proxy, someone who doesn’t have yōki for them to notice.

>>4447574
>Perhaps the better idea would be to charter a ship to try leaving… well, this ISLAND we call home. Bring THEM to US.
Can't we have Sabela or and AB try and "swim" around the island for us?

>>4447574
>Perhaps the better idea would be to charter a ship to try leaving… well, this ISLAND we call home. Bring THEM to US.

>>4447574
>I guess our only alternative is a proxy, someone who doesn’t have yōki for them to notice.

>>4447574
“Short of trying to leave this island we’re apparently living on,” you frown, puzzling out the limitations of what you can reasonably do to gather more information, “it seems like our only real alternative to going there in force is to find a proxy. Someone who can go to Lavinia who doesn’t have yōki for the Organization’s defenders to detect.”

“And who might that be?” Laura quizzes you.

“It could be a lot of people,” you shrug. “Depending on what you expect them to do when they get there.”

“We do have access to some military and scouting assets here,” Helen muses calmly. “It would simply be a matter of determining the best way to avail ourselves of those advantages.”

“Military force isn’t a realistic option,” you decide. “I mean, how would you even define a “victory” in such a contest?”

“And how would the Organization respond?” Valentina wonders. “No, really… do they maintain some sort of standing military force we don’t know about that’s not warriors?”

“Rumors to that effect,” Justina grumbles curtly. “Laura?”

“Justina is right,” Laura agrees. “It’s a rumor that persists out east, closer to Lavinia. But it’s not one I was ever able to substantiate.”

“Why haven’t I heard of this?” you ask her.

Laura seems to take some distaste in the answer. “Because you’re one of the western warriors. The ones that the Organization want to be isolated and out of the loop are the ones who were your distant neighbors, working in larger regions on average than their eastern counterparts.”

“I see,” you frown. “So it’s like that, you think?”

[It would explain a lot of things,] Serana admits, before emphasizing a few of the next words with almost violent energy. [Though I would hesitate to attribute EVERY action the Organization has ever taken to malice. Some may be pure incompetence, we are ALL only human after all.]

“Either way, it leaves us in the same place,” you shake your head. “We don’t know what the Organization may have in the way of defenses.”

“So what does that mean for our strategy?” Valentina muses. “We could always contact the merchants’ guild, have one of their members in good standing take a look?”

“There are also mercenary bands which may be willing to take a potentially dangerous job,” Aurora offers.

>Sabela has some human… “facilitators”. One of them might be willing to take this on.
>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.
>The problem is that WE are the ones who can sense yōki. So one of us will have to go eventually.
>Other?

>>4449406
>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.

>>4449406
>>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.

>>4449406
>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.
>The problem is that WE are the ones who can sense yōki. So one of us will have to go eventually.

We should choose who is the one of us that will go in the future soon, so that she could prepare and train to suppress her yōki as much as possible.

>>4449406
>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.
>The problem is that WE are the ones who can sense yōki. So one of us will have to go eventually.

>>4449406
>>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.

>>4449406
>I like the idea of sending a merchant. Have them observe Lavinia for Organization defenses.

>>4449406
“I like the idea of sending a merchant,” you admit. “They can survey the inhabited part of the island for anything that looks like conventional defenses, then report back to us without attracting any notice.”

…

You spend the next few hours brainstorming a short list of just a few characteristics that you might expect to see on Lavinia if the Organization had developed a large-scale ‘conventional’ defense system. The tricky bit is considering how that may look different from a town guard that exists simply to protect the people who happen to make their living on the same island.

“It should be a merchant from closer to Lavinia,” Helen declares. “We could ask the Guild in Tarsus to offer an introduction to a merchant in Hibernia, perhaps.”

“That shouldn’t be difficult to arrange,” you agree. “I’ll take a team of four and handle it personally.”

“That would be fine,” Helen nods. “Laura, any suggestions?”

“Serana, Justina, and Vanessa,” Laura replies curtly.

An offensive-type single-digit, a defensive-type double-digit, and the best sensory specialist you have available… yes, that certainly would make sense. Especially since there is a chance of encountering other warriors along the way. You’ve actually never travelled overland that distance in all your time as a half-blooded warrior, and to you much of the east is still a confusing and unfamiliar place. Shortcutting it by boat will only achieve so much.

The important part, however, is reducing the likelihood of encountering single-digit warriors along the way.

“I agree,” you nod in understanding. “Those would be ideal choices.”

…

You head out of Hazaran to the north, making for the coast of Karluk overland where you intend to arrange passage to the South Bay of Kagiu. From there you can make a surrupticious land crossing of the border into Hibernia where your contact will be waiting in a small town along the coast.

“I need to rely on your senses, Nessa,” you admit. “Make sure we don’t run into trouble.

“I understand,” she agrees.

…

You nearly make it to the coast before Nessa gestures for you to walk a little closer to her.

“We are being followed,” she informs you. “Four warriors. Either they know we’re here already, or they were already heading the same direction we are.”

>Let’s make an abrupt turn, see if they continue to shadow us.
>We’ll let them follow us. Wait for them to take the initiative and demonstrate their intents.
>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.
>Other?

>>4451139
>>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

>>4451139
>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

>>4451139
>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

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>>4451139
Also, have a quick reference map.

>>4451139
>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

>>4451139
>>Let’s make an abrupt turn, see if they continue to shadow us.

>>4451139
>Let’s make an abrupt turn, see if they continue to shadow us.

>>4451139
>>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

>>4451139
>>We’ll turn and confront them now. Can’t have them following us TOO far or TOO closely.

>>4451139
>Let’s make an abrupt turn, see if they continue to shadow us.

>>4451139
>>Let’s make an abrupt turn, see if they continue to shadow us.

>>4451139
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 9, 10, 2 = 21 (3d10)

>>4452216

Rolled 2, 9, 6 = 17 (3d10)

>>4452216

Rolled 9, 7, 2 = 18 (3d10)

>>4452216

Rolled 4, 7, 3 = 14 (3d10)

>>4452216

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>>4452216
“We’ll need to turn and stand,” you decide on the spot.

[Are you sure?] Serana enquires silently, with a frown on her face.

You nod curtly. “We can’t have them tailing us any further than this, otherwise our plan loses the element of secrecy.”

“Agreed,” Justina agrees tersely.

“I was hoping we could avoid a fight,” Nessa frowns, readying her sword as well.

“So was I,” you admit. “But it makes more sense to nip this in the bud than to risk getting the whole Organization involved.”

You take up a strategic position with yourself at the front and center of the trail, Serana to your left, Justina to your right, and Vanessa, your sensor, at the back. That should be the ideal against warriors, instead of relying on other defense-types to take the hits for you and give you openings. In fact, now that you think about it, you were originally classed as a defender… funny how completely outdated that concept feels to you now.

…

“Well well, look who it is!” a familiar voice belonging to a familiar face muses. Luciana, her features twisted into a feral grin, looks exactly how you remember her: that same curly silver hair, those same leaf-shaped ears, and that same plain hatred.

“We have a couple of celebrities… Noel, formerly the Number Seven warrior, and Serana… demoted from Third to Ninth.”

“Formerly?” a younger girl, with short white hair kept with floofy fringes… of the four warriors, this one bizarrely seems the strongest to you. “What do you mean, Miss Luciana?”

“I mean they’re a couple of traitors!” Luciana proclaims. “So we can cut ‘em up same as any other piece of trash.”

“Is that really necessary?” a tallish warrior with a long blonde braid and slightly pointed ears muses. “I feel like I would rather avoid fighting other warriors, even former ones, without explicit orders.”

“It’s fine!” the fourth, a defender with blonde hair tied in two tails near the back of her head. “You should lighten up, Diana, we’ve got Luciana and Lunara with us after all!”

“So your name is Lunara,” you muse, ignoring the other three. “Too bad that we had to meet like this. I’m going to have to ask you all to leave.”

“That’s not happening,” Luciana insists. “After all, leaving you traitors free to wander around as you please would make us look like traitors too, you get it?”

“I didn’t expect that to work on you,” you admit.

[You have a thing with her?]

“You could say that.”
>1/2

>>4452290
“I’ve always wondered,” you admit, “why it is you always seemed so angry at me all the time. Did I actually do something to you without realizing it?”

“No,” Luciana shrugs. “What eats me is that you’re just such a bitch… your whole attitude pisses me off, always has.”

“Alright then,” you frown back at her. “Good talk.”

>I’ll play with them myself. The three of you get a good feel for their abilities by watching, then jump in when you’re ready.
>We’ll split the duties. Serana versus Luciana, myself versus Lunara. Justina and Nessa can act as you each see fit, the others are no threat.
>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.
>Other?

>>4452310
>>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.
No need to brutalise those who don't know any better.

>>4452310
>>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.

>>4452310
>>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.

>>4452310
>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.

Probably not going to work, but worth a try. If not then everyone picks their own target to fight against.

>>4452310
>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.

>>4452310
>Why not do this like civilized people, one at a time? Seeing what I do to Luciana should change your minds about continuing.

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>>4452310
“Why don’t we do this like civilized people?” you muse. “One on one, me versus Luciana? Maybe seeing what I do to her will make the rest of you think twice about forcing the issue.”

“Nah, how about we don’t do that!?” Luciana counters, drawing her sword and slashing at you, forcing you to draw your own sword and parry.

“What’s wrong!?” she demands with a wicked grin. “Don’t tell me you’ve gotten even worse at fighting since we last scrapped? How the hell did a piece of garbage like you ever make the single-digits!?”

“No!” you demand as Serana steps forward, ready to join the fray. “Let me.”

Your opponent may be talking big, but she’s having a tough time getting through your tight guard. Versatility lets you put a stop to whatever specialty technique it is she keeps trying to use… she must have devised something new for you over the last few years, so it must be eating at her not to be able to use it.

Eventually you spot a blatant opening and slash her across the chest, keeping the stroke deliberately shallow which when combined with her last-second backpedal means the wound is more show than substance.

“Got you!” the girl with the twin-tails shouts, turning rapidly as she attacks to fill her blade with a powerful momentum. It’s a lot like Lucia’s specialized style, actually.

You lean back to slide under her diagonal sweep, using the edge of your sword to deflect her blade upwards and reaching out to plant your hand for balance. With her side left wide open, you land a powerful kick on Rin’s ribs, sending her crashing off the path and into a tree trunk with a little arc of blood droplets trailing from her open mouth.

Pushing off with your hand you avoid a downward strike from Diana and plant your boot firmly in her face, sending her off through the air just the same as Rin.

The two defenders stagger to their feet, both bleeding dramatically, at about the same time as Luciana prepares to come at you again.

“All four of us against just one warrior?” Lunara demands. “That can’t be right!”

“Think of it as getting rid of an awakened being,” Luciana muses. “She’s about that much of a pain in the Organization’s collective ass.”

“I don’t like it either,” Diana admits, straightening out her nose with her thumb. “But what choice do we have?”

“The same one as always,” you insist. “To think for yourselves.”

“I am thinking for myself!” Luciana crows, unleashing a rapid series of completely disjointed and awkward slashes. “This is something I wanted anyway, so quit being such a bitch and die already!”
>1/?

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>>4453036
Diana and Rin in particular join in from there, slashing and thrusting between Luciana’s more powerful attacks.

Growing annoyed, you sidestep her first downward strike and use the White Fist technique with your forehead, breaking Luciana’s nose and stunning her while you grab her by the front of her uniform and sling her bodily at Rin.

The girl doesn’t quite seem to decide how to respond until Luciana’s body is already crashing into her, knocking both warriors to the ground in a sprawling heap. Meanwhile you’re able to block an attack from Diana by piercing her forearm with your own sword’s crossguard, using that point of contact to twist her arm out of the way before pulling it free, grabbing her by the wrist, and tossing her in a high arc so that she lands flat on her back.

Finally, it seems Lunara is ready to join the fray. The floofy-haired junior warrior releases yōki into her arm, essentially half-awakening it the moment before it would strike you. Its movements are blindingly fast, but by watching her arm and wrist you parry it, stopping the technique in place.

“What’s wrong?” you muse. “A sword like that isn’t good for anything unless it’s moving.”

You very nearly match the next series of blinding attacks, at first being forced to block with all the parts of your sword to keep up including the hilt. But once you discern the pattern her attack has to follow to chain together so swiftly.

Once you have that knowledge it becomes easy to stop her.

“I know your weak point,” you muse.

“Oh?” Lunara asks you, gritting her teeth in concentration. “And what would that be, Miss Noel?”

“This,” you explain, taking off her right thumb with a simple slash.

Her eyes go wide as the sword flips out of her hand, now completely uncontrollable. She stares at the stump, then at the fleshy bit as it lies on the ground.

“But… how?”

“Take a moment to reattach that,” you insist. “For a warrior with your base power, even if you’re an offensive-type, that much should be easy if you take the time to do it properly.”

Meanwhile, you can sense Luciana’s yōki aura flaring as she pushes herself. Her eyes turn from silver to golden and veins bulge on her face and forearms, and her grin is now filled with sharpened teeth.

>Did you seriously think that would help? I have yōki too, you know.
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.
>I suppose it can’t be helped. Serana, let’s incapacitate her quickly.
>Other?

>>4453038
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

>>4453038
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

And if she awakens

>I suppose it can’t be helped. Serana, let’s incapacitate her quickly.

Can't reason with stupid

>>4453038
>>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

>>4453038
This seems to have a decent chance that it's going to end in Luciana awakening, she seems the sort to get more and more frustrated if she's on the back foot.

I would suggest that we leave her fate up to the others with us, if she does end up awakening, as Noel is a bit to personally involved to make a truly objective decision here.

>>4453038
>>4453048
Supporting

>>4453038
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

>>4453038
Is it possible for us to mess up a warrior's ability to draw on yoki by hitting them with the White Fist technique? Temporarily?

Might want to work on that one for later.

>>4453038
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

>>4453038
>>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.
>And if she awakens
>>I suppose it can’t be helped. Serana, let’s incapacitate her quickly.

>>4453038
>Calm down. I may not like you as a warrior, but I’d hate you as an awakened being.

>>4453038
>>I suppose it can’t be helped. Serana, let’s incapacitate her quickly.

>>4453038
“Luciana!” you raise your voice, a bit alarmed at how this is going. “I don’t like you as a warrior, but I’d really hate you as an awakened being! Try to calm down!”

“Calm down!?” Luciana taunts you as her newfound speed and strength begin to slowly overwhelm you, in combination with Rin’s acrobatic weaving. “This is calm… in fact I’ve never felt better!”

“Now that has to be a warning sign!” you protest, drawing just enough of your own yōki to change the color of your eyes, and swinging the fight back in your favor.

You incapacitate Rin again with a deep slash across the front of her thighs, cutting to the bone, and a blow to her chest that brings up even more blood before she slams through an even thicker tree this time.

Lunara, having finally reattached her thumb and grabbed hold of her sword again, attacks you from behind, forcing you to parry behind your back and leaving you open for Luciana… who is obviously ready to just cut both of you in half with a single attack.

“Luciana, no!” Diana shouts, moving to place herself between Luciana and Lunara… and by extension, you.

>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.
>Hit Lunara hard enough to drop her, then try to save Diana from Luciana’s attack.
>Partially-awaken, save everyone’s lives and just deal with any consequences.
>Other?

>>4454453
>Partially-awaken, save everyone’s lives and just deal with any consequences.

>>4454453
>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.
Partial awakening will be a PR disaster. Saving two warriors at the price of our health, on the other hand, is a PR victory. We're a defensive type, we can take it, and we have three other warriors here to take on Luciana.

>>4454453
>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.

We’re a defensive type after all. Partially awakening could poison their opinions.

>>4454453
>>Partially-awaken, save everyone’s lives and just deal with any consequences.
fuck, Noel wouldn't let any warrior sacrifice herself like that, rather reveal a secret

>>4454453
>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.

>>4454453
>Partially-awaken, save everyone’s lives and just deal with any consequences.

>>4454453
>>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.

>>4454453
I usually like the 'save everyone' button, but that might just make Luciana more mad, so.

>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.
Maybe this'll make the others snap out of it a bit. maybe.

>>4454453
>>Disengage, let Lunara hit you, but get both her and Diana out of Luciana’s line of attack.

>>4454453
>3d10, best of four

Rolled 10, 2, 9 = 21 (3d10)

>>4454791

Rolled 3, 6, 5 = 14 (3d10)

>>4454791

Rolled 5, 2, 7 = 14 (3d10)

>>4454791

Rolled 3, 6, 5 = 14 (3d10)

>>4454791

>>4454791
The solution is… not especially pleasant for you. You’re obliged to yield, turning and lowering your blade, and in doing so allowing Lunara’s sword to slice deep into your right shoulder, right at the base of your neck. You can see her surprise for a moment as you push against her, releasing yōki into your feet and pushing her off her own.

In just a moment you’ve tackled her and Diana out of the way, rolling off Lunara and knocking her blade out of your body. You have to hold your own shoulder in place as you weave around Luciana’s frenzied attacks, all while the wound slowly closes.

Then Luciana suddenly finds her sword stopped by a new challenger: Justina parries her sword, having released her own yōki aura, then grabs hold of her right wrist. With a precise and powerful downward strike Serana then severs Luciana’s sword-arm at the elbow.

“That’s enough,” Justina declares, tossing aside both sword and arm.

Luciana glares sharply at Justina. “So, you wanna play too, Justina? Fine, I’ll just have to kill you all!”

Pushing your own yōki to even greater strengths, just for a second or two, you grab Luciana by her face and slam the back of her head into the ground. Between the twin blows and the yōki you project from your palm, her brain is sufficiently muddled that it knocks her out, at least for the time being.

“Well, that turned into a mess,” you grumble, finally taking a few moments to close the wound in your shoulder the rest of the way. “If only Valeria was here… we might have avoided this.”

Diana and Lunara are both clearly on-edge, swords still raised as Justina and Serana position themselves carefully to intercept any more attacks targetted against you.

>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.
>Take Luciana and Rin and leave immediately. Don’t follow us.
>Other?

>>4455800
>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

Stand down, time for diplomancy!

>>4455800
>>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
>>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.
sword down, but stay alert

>>4455800
>>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
>>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.
Can we slam Luciana's head into the dirt so she can't hear us?

Should we scan the area for anybody watching?

>>4455800
>>It’s okay, everyone stand down. Now that Luciana is out of the picture I think we can talk.

>>4455800
“Since Luciana is out of the picture for now,” you muse, turning your attention wholly to Lunara, “I think we can take a moment to talk.”

She takes one last swing at you, which you calmly parry.

“The arm is fully healed,” you continue.

“You were a defensive-type?” Lunara wonders.

“Mis-classified due to my high regenerative ability,” you clarify. “You know how the two types are supposed to differ, right?”

“Offensive-types are driven by an aggressive desire to kill yōma,” Lunara replies, still without lowering her sword. “Defensive-types are driven by a desire to survive.”

“There are technically two other types,” you continue, “both of which are technically considered the ‘special-type’: warriors with no personality to speak of, and warriors whose motives are different than aggression or survival.”

“And what was your ‘desire’?” Lunara demands. “Assuming that any of what you’re saying is true?”

“My friend Emma,” you explain. “I felt like I had to be strong for her sake… not for my own survival, or out of some commitment to fighting yōma. So I gained… well, all of the things I needed.”

“Now, will you lower your sword?”

After a few moments, Lunara silently does so.

“Thank you,” you tell her, lowering your own sword as well. “I appreciate that it can be hard to trust sometimes.”

“I don’t trust you,” Lunara replies, her eyes flicking towards Luciana. “I just think it was a mistake for us to attack the four of you. I’d like to withdraw.”

“I’ll allow that,” you nod. “After all that was our goal in the first place.”

Diana grabs Rin off the ground, and Lunara throws Luciana over her shoulder and grabs her arm off the ground.

“So we can trust you not to come after us?” Lunara presses.

Justina rolls her eyes. “Just go.”

“We’ll be on our way as well,” you insist. “So long as you don’t decide to come after us, it’ll be fine.”

Eventually, Lunara nods. “Okay. Then we’ll be going.”
>1/2

>>4457005
[Is it really okay to let them go?]

You nod in response to Serana’s question. “I think so. Nessa, if you could keep your eye on them I’d appreciate it.”

“Consider it done,” Vanessa agrees, glancing in the direction they left in. “Do you think Luciana will be okay?”

“She’ll be able to reattach the arm,” you insist. “Mentally though… I’ve never seen her quite that bad before.”

“Awakening?” Justina asks with a frown.

You can’t say you’re sure… it’s possible a warrior so prone to fits of rage like Luciana could awaken from a fight like that, especially since she lost an arm. If she regains consciousness but loses control again, Lunara may not be able to keep her under control. But at the same time, Luciana has never awakened before despite being the way she is, so it’s also possible that everything might be okay in the end.

“I don’t know,” you eventually admit. “She’s come close in the past, and she’s got a team with her. So while it’s always possible she might awaken, I’m not sure if it’s more or less likely now than at any other time.”

>If we could find Valeria that might improve the situation.
>Either way, there’s nothing we can do without compromising our mission.
>Maybe we should track them for a while as a team, just until Luciana wakes up.
>Other?

>>4457047
>Either way, there’s nothing we can do without compromising our mission.

Two other options could be said, but we shouldn't stray out from our current mission

>>4457047
>>Either way, there’s nothing we can do without compromising our mission.

>>4457047
>>Either way, there’s nothing we can do without compromising our mission.