(D7, ME) A very special tour (Closed)

[Saibankan]

(For Usagi Kagien)

After hours upon hours of interrogation, while most of the Legion was cleared for duty upon the Wall, Usagi Kaigen was led away from the group by a couple of very untalkative, very gruff Hida guards. Down, down they went deeper into the earth through twisting hallways all alike. Very far distant the Hare's sharp ears started to hear something....screaming? Crying? It was very faint...but getting louder and his honor detail didn't seem bothered by it, or any request the Usagi might have had about such.

After awhile, the pair led him to yet another Kuni, face painted white, with a scroll satchel.

"Ah, Usagi-san, so nice of you to join me on this little excusrion. I imagine you must have been quite tired of that tiny room Kuni-san had you cooped up in, so I hope you appreciate this chance to stretch your legs a bit. My name is Kuni Yasu, I am one of the doctors serving the Watchtower." he offered with a light nod. "Forgive the lack of bow. Did you know that the tradition of bowing was a way to say 'I offer you my head as a sign of trust/submission'? I'm not sure Hida Hideki quite understood that when one of the patients accepted the offer as it was given. Or perhaps appreciated the irony of them being felled like a tree after the cut above the stump."

[Usagi Kaigen]

Kaigen smiled blandly. And bowed.

"I presume this is something to do with the fact that I told your colleagues I was here to kill things."

[Saibankan]

Kaigen smiled blandly. And bowed.

"I presume this is something to do with the fact that I told your colleagues I was here to kill things."

The prompted a smile from the Kuni.

"Ah, something like that. What were his exact words? 'This koma thinks killing bandits makes his remotely qualified to be here.'" he recalled.

He shook his head.

"Do you know where that little quirk of the language popped up? Stories say that long ago, there was a Yasuki who made a bad trade deal. Our clan is always in need for resources, and this bright spark managed to trade some of our clans valuable weapons for a bunch of lame ponies. It was a bad deal to begin with, you cannot ride into the South. Anything that's not warded by Jade, or is a rat or a raven is warped by it's foul influence, but they were lame on top of that?"

The Kuni looked about in his satchel for one of his scrolls while talking, though the Hida guards certainly didn't take their eyes of the Usagi.


"It was the Kaiu who found a way to salvage the situation. You see, Usagi-san, besides the brave samurai who guard the Wall, the Wall is lined with all manner deadly traps. Spiked pits, roller balls, swinging blades...anything that might buy the defenders a second or more two of life. But as I said, everything, even stone itself becomes warped over time. You cannot put your faith in a trap that will not spring. And so the koma were put to use. Their weight and their struggles were an excellent way to verify that the traps still worked. Dead weight turned into dead weight, but knowledge gained."

Having found his scroll, he turned his attention back to the Usagi.

"You see, nothing is wasted here, Usagi-san, there is simply no room for it."

[Usagi Kaigen]

El taggo

"And yet others with a similar lack of specific experience seem to have missed out on these lovely accommodations."

His tone gave no hint whether he actually thought they were lovely or not- neither sarcasm, nor probably-demented genuine praise.

"I'm a bit scrawny to test most traps of size, but I suppose I could be a stand-in for a pair of goblins."

Was it a joke? Again, unclear.

[Saibankan]

El taggo

"And yet others with a similar lack of specific experience seem to have missed out on these lovely accommodations."

His tone gave no hint whether he actually thought they were lovely or not- neither sarcasm, nor probably-demented genuine praise.

"I'm a bit scrawny to test most traps of size, but I suppose I could be a stand-in for a pair of goblins."

Was it a joke? Again, unclear.

Yasu tilted his head a bit at the answer.

"Interesting that's where your mind went, Usagi-san. I'll make a note of that." he replied.

"But as my sensei was fond of saying, before he was torn to shreds by something too dark to name, 'Ignorance can be cured, but Stupidity is inevitably fatal.' And while those wise words did not ultimately save him, I like to think that the lessons he passed on have saved countless lives and souls."

A small shrug.

"Your previous interviewer felt you were stupid, I believe you ignorant. And so I asked to have you join me on my rounds. Either we shall cure your ignorance, or we shall confirm your previous diagnosis and move from there. And speaking of moving, I believe we've dallied here long enough. Come along, Usagi-san."

The Kuni took a couple of steps before stopping.

"Oh, and do be sure to walk where I walk. Like I said, traps. I'd hate for you to lose your life quite so readily simply because you were not warned sufficiently." he said before setting forth again.

[Usagi Kaigen]

Tag

"Ignorant or stupid, I would hardly know, would I?"

The Hare fell in step.

"So I suppose we'll see. In the interests of full disclosure, I have a personal piece of jade. Should anything happen to me that leaves my body where it might be easily retrieved, that's a resource you might want."

[Saibankan]

Tag

"Ignorant or stupid, I would hardly know, would I?"

The Hare fell in step.

"So I suppose we'll see. In the interests of full disclosure, I have a personal piece of jade. Should anything happen to me that leaves my body where it might be easily retrieved, that's a resource you might want."

Yasu nodded.

"That is a good thing to know, Usagi-san. If at all feasible, we will try to take your head and return your daisho as well. If feasible. Sometimes circustances don't allow." he confirmed.

The tour walked awhile before coming to a cell with iron bars. Behind the bars was a large man dressed in the colors of the Crab clad shackled to the wall. As they approached, the lept to his feet and began yelling.

"KUNI-SAN! LET ME OUT OF HERE! I MUST GO OUT AND KILL THE ENEMY!" he yelled.

"Much as you killed your wife, Teru-san?" Yasu asked.

"SHE WAS A MAHO-TSUKAI! A FOUL WITCH THAT WOULD HAVE DOOMED US ALL!" came the response.

"And your daughter, Teru-san? You crushed her head with your bare hands." Yasu continued.

"SHE WAS A SHAPESHIFTER! SHE WOULD HAVE KILLED US ALL!"

Yasu turned his attention back to the Usagi.

"What do you think, Usagi-san? This man wants to kill things and knows about the dangers. Would you like me to let him out to march alongside you while you go out and kill things?" he asked.

[Usagi Kaigen]

"What do you think, Usagi-san? This man wants to kill things and knows about the dangers. Would you like me to let him out to march alongside you while you go out and kill things?" he asked.

Kaigen cocked his head to the side.

"If it were just me, perhaps Might even get something done before we died. But if we're discussing a military unit, no. Your colleague didn't think to ask about the distinction between my basic intentions and how I might carry those out. Seemed far more intent on getting a rise out of me, which... well. I try to be a patient man, Kuni-sama. Because it allows me to go on living."

[Saibankan]

"Noted, Usagi-san." Yasu said with a chuckle. "Although I should point out it's not just that he enjoys that. Don't get me wrong, he does, but the Enemy will use anything it can to get to you, whether it's promises of power, or your pride, or your anger, and well...."


"THAT'S NO USAGI! THAT'S A SHAPESHIFTER! RELEASE ME SO I CAN KILL IT!" yelled the Crab prisoner.

Yasu shook his head.

"He'll take his last walk South soon enough, though not with the Legion about...probably. There are lines that are not crossed, until they must be."

"Let us move forward a bit, so we can talk without listening to the allegations of everyone here being a shapeshifter."

Yasu moved forward with the tour in tow and the sounds of the Crab prisoner grew fainter, bouncing off the stone hallways, but fading still.

Yasu looked to the Hare again.

"The reports say you fought Shippai. Do you know what turned him?"

[Usagi Kaigen]

"The reports say you fought Shippai. Do you know what turned him?"

"I can't say with certainty, obviously, but he probably got a stronger dose of the voices I managed to ignore. They promised me strength. Power. Something about humbling the 'snotty bastards' around me."

He smiled blandly.

"We might lack your specific expertise, Kuni-sama, and certainly we lack the Crab's long history, but the Hare aren't without our own cautions about those we we hunt."

[Saibankan]

"The reports say you fought Shippai. Do you know what turned him?"

"I can't say with certainty, obviously, but he probably got a stronger dose of the voices I managed to ignore. They promised me strength. Power. Something about humbling the 'snotty bastards' around me."

He smiled blandly.

"We might lack your specific expertise, Kuni-sama, and certainly we lack the Crab's long history, but the Hare aren't without our own cautions about those we we hunt."

Yasu shakes his head sadly at that.

"Ah, I begin to see more of why Kuni-san disliked you so much, Usagi-san. A belief that you are better than others and that were you to fail, the fault lies with others, not yourself." Yasu said, mentally noting the symptoms.

Yasu picks up the pace a little bit.

"Come come, Usagi-san...my next visit should be quite illuminating I think." he said, with a hint of eagerness.

It wasn't long before the tour found itself before another cell. The smells about the cell were not pleasant ones. Within the cell, there were two Crab, one woman and one man. The man was curled up into a ball...and was also inside a cage inside the cell. The woman sat next to him, outside of reach of the cage, and she whispers something to him in a voice husky with use.

"You will likely need a bit of context for what you see here, Usagi-san." Yasu noted. "You see, there are a wide array of maladies that come with service on the wall. It's not all being ripped part, eaten, and/or having your mind filled with sweet promises. There's a lot of that too of course, but this is something quite different, though saddenly common."

He gestured towards the man.

"You see, with long service at the Wall, some samurai fall into this mindset that they are in a trap without end. They fall insensate much like Hiruma-san there has. They do not move or eat or bath or drink or do much of anything really, other than mutter that they are in a trap without end."

Yasu clapped his hands together, but the Crabs in the cell paid him no heed.

"Fortunately, we have a treatment for that, which you see here." he explained. "The person who is closest to the one has fallen stands a vigil over them for three days, the victim within the cage, the loved one in the cell, but outside the cage. During those three days, the loved one speaks to the fallen, assuring them they are not in a trap without end, coaxing them back to reality. It is quite gratifying when they are successful, which is more often than not."

He turned back to the Hare.

"I wonder, Usagi-san, were you in such a position, inside the cage, who do you think would stand vigil over you to bring you back?"

[Usagi Kaigen]

Yasu shakes his head sadly at that.

"Ah, I begin to see more of why Kuni-san disliked you so much, Usagi-san. A belief that you are better than others and that were you to fail, the fault lies with others, not yourself." Yasu said, mentally noting the symptoms.

That simply got a shrug.

"I am sorry if my manner of speech gives that impression. I am not better. I am simply different. And as I noted, I think the unfortunate Dragon got a stronger dose than any of the rest of us."

"I wonder, Usagi-san, were you in such a position, inside the cage, who do you think would stand vigil over you to bring you back?"

That... got a snort.

"If you mean of those actually here, with the Legion? No one. And I doubt most in the Legion could offer you a better answer. We were thrown together in haste, marched south in haste, and most of us would be lying through our teeth if we told you we could even name ten samurai outside of our own kaisha, let alone trust them with our lives or sanity. If you mean in a more... speculative, wider sense? My older brother Daigoro would certainly try. My parents would give it a shot. There's a sweet-natured Dragonfly girl named Yukiko who gave me this jade I carry. I like to think she'd give it a go- she's always been a cheerful optimist at heart. Assuming I don't end up dead, insane, or damned, I hope to marry her in the near future."

[Saibankan]

"And yet we Crab are being asked to entrust our lives, sanity, the very soul of the Empire itself to those who cannot even do so with each other." Yasu retorted back.

He shook his head.

"As I said, there are lines that are not crossed until they must be. But say what you will, you give an honest assessment, Usagi-san. Of course, our first patient's honest assessment of you is that you are a shapeshifter that will kill us all. But he is in chains, yet you walk free." he noted with a bit of amusement.

Yasu took a moment to adjust his scroll satchel.

"But then let us dig a little bit deeper Usagi-san. You believe Tonbo-san would stand vigil over you, were she here. Would you do the same were the positions reversed? Would you stand vigil over her and try to coax her back to reality for three days?" he questioned.

[Usagi Kaigen]

Yasu took a moment to adjust his scroll satchel.

"But then let us dig a little bit deeper Usagi-san. You believe Tonbo-san would stand vigil over you, were she here. Would you do the same were the positions reversed? Would you stand vigil over her and try to coax her back to reality for three days?" he questioned.

"I think three days is a bit... modest for someone you intend to raise a family with. I won't pretend I'm head over heels besotted with her, but I care about her. I think three days would be a bit abrupt, being honest."

[Saibankan]

Yasu tilted his head at that.

"Interesting response, Usagi-san. Allow me to humor you then. How long would you think such a vigil should last?" Yasu asked, his curiousity picqued.

[Usagi Kaigen]

He scratched his chin.

"My heart would say at least a month. My head says that such vigils take not one but two warriors off of duty- one who might be able to serve eventually and one who absolutely could. A week might be all that can be afforded. A week might be seen as too long based on your experience. But it's my answer."

[Saibankan]

Yasu shook his hand in a so-so gesture.

"There is some truth in what you say Usagi-san. There are pragmatic things to consider, two warriors off the wall rather than one, both of whom must still be fed and cared for, one more than the other. And this IS an old phenomenon, the Kuni have studied it for many generations." he offered in agreement.

He paused for a moment to glance in the cell for a moment to check on the situation.

"But both of your solutions; the one that you said and the one that you implied simply do not pan out as one would hope. Again, imagine that it is Tonbo-san so afflicted in the cage, and you have been told to stand the wall and leave her to the care of strangers. Are you quite certain you could totally put her out of your mind? That you would devote your every fiber of your being to the watch? It only takes a maru or less for some of the Enemy to kill you. Despite all the warnings that have been drilled into your head about the price of assistance from the Enemy, are you truly without a doubt that you would pay them no heed at all, not even for a moment if they offered you a way to save her?"

Yasu shook his head.

"Or you tend to her for a month. You watch as her body withers from disuse and whatever is left of her mind is destroyed from within. Every day she gets weaker and more feeble without a moment's rest. Could you truly bear that for an entire month, Usagi-san? When you are told by doctors that there is no chance of her ever returning to reality, would you still watch over her suffering each and every day?" he asked.

[Usagi Kaigen]

"Hope dies slowly, Kuni-sama, and without it, what have we got?"

He paused. Considered.

"Revenge, I suppose. But I would stand the watch as long as permitted. If they matter enough for me to be in the room with them at all, then my own discomfort is beside the point. I either care enough to stay with them, or I don't."

He cocked his head to the side. Half-smiled.

"I also think almost no one in the Legion would have an answer for you that passes muster. They might be able to say glib things when we're all just talking one on one, but if you think I'm a liability, than I have some horrible news about almost everyone who's already been approved."

[Saibankan]

Yasu actually laughs at that assertion.

"Ah Usagi-san, have you ever, in your entire life, spoken with a monk? I'm just picturing you smirking at one while you take your hand and go like this."

Yasu takes one hand, and rapidly opens and closes it.

"I would pity them, but if suffering leads to enligtenment, I would wager Usagi-san could go into a temple and create a Legion of Shinseis." he says, clearly amused.

[Usagi Kaigen]

"If monks ever get a dose of their own medicine, then I'll have done my part to bring some tiny scrap of balance to the universe..."