Following Sairen [closed ]

[enucleation]

WHO: Kaneki, Hermione, Akira, Five
WHEN: Beginning of March
WHERE: Ruins near the fortune fetters
WHAT: Stalking Sairen
WARNINGS: Violence, some limbs being lost, some limbs being eaten (cannibalism), gambling. Will add as needed.

Pursuing Sairen at one point leads the group to the highly knocked-down ruins of a fortress near the fortune fetters. The stone remains now crudely host a gambling arena, with fierce thugs and associates of the revered Sairen waging bets on anything from dice throws to card games, snake fights, arm wrestling and various challenges or games of wit. The stakes range from coin to some men pledging their services, others their freedom, and a scant few even volunteering their body parts in gory, ad hoc amputations. All play and pay, to Sairen's entertainment.

The infiltrators will need to pretend to be servants or gamblers and participate in the games, to avoid arousing suspicion. They might also wish to steal some ritual stone masks from the participants already in attendance — everyone in the den is wearing such a face covering, including Sairen.

While Sairen nominally presides over the Hok-Shinn, he appears too distracted to partake of their petty cruelties and retreats in wine and the gossip of his counsellors. He sometimes passes judgement over conflicts among his generals, receives or awards gifts and is introduced to new clan conscripts.

Feel free to spend some time 'mingling,' drinking exceptionally strong swill, gambling and smoking opium by the fires — as well as perhaps overhearing or remarking:

■ Sairen's guests seem to include visitors from other villages,

■ Some guests question 'old man' Sairen's ability to keep the younger, more aggressive rising stars of the Hok-Shinn clan from rightfully taking over the fellow villages of Ke-Waiar and Ke-Waicai and 'teaching them who is truly in charge.'

■ Word is that Sairen has been... fretting about the iminent return of the the Beastmaster, who was dissatisfied with the previous, nondescript Hok-Shinn offering during his previous visit.

■ A group of drunkards whom Sairen refuses to receive into the Hok-Shinn murmur that the day will come when the entire clan falls, once it is no longer the sole custodian of a certain substance that helps revive the highly arid and infertile agricultural terrains of Ke-Waihu.

■ One drunk mutters that the white wanderer who brought the first vials of the chemical to Ke-Waihu handed it out freely, before disappearing. Since then, it has been monopolised by the Hok-Shinn, who charge an arm and leg for this substance, withholding it from any farmers who rebel against their rule.

By sunrise, the crowds start to dissipate, with some leaving their masks behind by hanging them on the branches of an ancient willow tree. No one wears their mask back into Ke-Waihu, making it difficult to figure out which villagers participated.

Comments

[enucleation]

[ Spatial jump...? That's -- ] Teleporting? [ it's what it is, right? To instantaneously travel from one point in space to another without passing through the intervening space... Kankei is not a huge fan of sci-fi books, but he knows this much.

But he pauses when he hears Five wants to approach Sairen. ] Approaching Sairen is a big risk. Specially because we are the only ones not drunk and out of our minds. [ a longer pause ] You are also a child. [ LOOK! He had to say it at some point because it's true ]

[somebadnews]

[ He should have seen that coming. After Five was so understanding of his cannibalism, it's an added layer of insult to be called out for his appearance. He knows what he looks like, and how much that stands out in this setting, but anyone should be able to see past that after talking to him for any length of time. Instead he finds himself in this exact situation again and again. ]

I'm old for my age. [ He responds curtly, purposely holding in anything that could classify as a tantrum. Loudly insisting that he's 'not a child' tends to have the opposite effect. ] Teleporting. Luckily, I can blink over to get close without him ever noticing.

[enucleation]

[ Look, he accepts that Five is not a normal child. But he still looks like a child and Sairen would take that into account, regardless of how mature the kid is ]

I understand that. But Sairen would not, don't you think? [ he isn;t trying to be insulting, simply stating a fact.

But it's true, Teleporting could be a very useful power to eavesdrop unnoticed. Kaneki hums, looking at Five, but here is the thing: even if Kaneki's instincts had told him to cut off Five's limbs not so long ago, a Kaneki who is in control doesn;'t like the idea of shoving a kid into something dangerous like spying on the clan's boss. ] It's a bit risky, don't you think?

[somebadnews]

[ With the way he's patronizing him, he sincerely doubts he understands anything. There likely won't be much more to gather, unless Sairen openly starts talking about some relevant strategy in the middle of their gathering, but that's not the point.

Five isn't the only one here who looks like a teenager, even with the mask. He doesn't need to be judged by someone who thinks he's the most capable because he has a more literal monster living inside him. ]

Suddenly that's too big of a risk for you? [ Minutes after he was ready to take his head off. Five scoffs and makes a move to turn back before his temper gets the better of him. ] Just try not to eat anybody before they're dead and let me worry about the rest.