Sword Quest II - A Z-Machine Adventure

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod.
> "Thank you!"
> Head through the hole into the bedroom, then head out its open door and reassess where we are.

>You head through the bedroom and through its doorway, coming out into a small hallway that runs southward. It is empty, save for a single ghost who is presently sweeping.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Hello. Did a woman in blue come through here?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "Hello. Did a woman in blue come through here?"

>The ghost looks up, then points down the hall without a word.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Allow ourselves a small grin. We won't be outsmarted that easily!
> Close the door behind us.
> "Thank you!"
> Motor on down the hall! (Don't run into anyone or knock anything valuable over, of course.)

[Hello Purvis]

> Allow ourselves a small grin. We won't be outsmarted that easily!
> Close the door behind us.
> "Thank you!"
> Motor on down the hall! (Don't run into anyone or knock anything valuable over, of course.)

>'Welcome," says the ghost.
>You close the door behind yourself, and take off down the hall. You get the feeling that Seiga must be at least a little lost, or she's really planning something. There isn't too much of interest in this direction, and going south is not going to get her out any faster. You pass by a few ghosts,  and come to another intersection with a hall that runs from east to west.

>_

[Suwako Moriya]

> Take a look down both directions, looking for Seiga, ghosts, or holes in walls.
> Is south still an option, or have we hit a T?

[Hello Purvis]

> Take a look down both directions, looking for Seiga, ghosts, or holes in walls.
> Is south still an option, or have we hit a T?

>South is still an option.
>Looking down both directions, you notice a hole in the floor to the west, with a few ghosts gathered around it.

>_

[Suwako Moriya]

> Head to the west.
> "Did a women in blue come this way?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Head to the west.
> "Did a women in blue come this way?"

>The ghosts look up toward you.
>"I'm sorry," says one, "But I haven't seen anyone like that. I only just noticed this hole a minute ago.
>The other ghosts gives nods and affirmatives.
>"Did she cause this?" asks another.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Yes, but it will hopefully close up fairly soon. The other one she made in the ground did."
> Peer down the hole.

[Hello Purvis]

> "Yes, but it will hopefully close up fairly soon. The other one she made in the ground did."
> Peer down the hole.

>"Ah, that's convenient," says the ghost.
>You peer into the hole. It is a bit more angled than the last one, and about the same size. It is deep enough that you cannot see the bottom.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> We left Yuyuko in the third floor dining room of the southernmost tower, yes?

[Hello Purvis]

> We left Yuyuko in the third floor dining room of the southernmost tower, yes?

>Yes, though it is some distance from here.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Okay. I need someone to deliver a message to Lady Saigyouji, in the third floor dining room in the southernmost tower. Please tell her I am in pursuit of an intruder, who cast an unknown spell at the base of the Saigyou Ayakashi. If she is still entertaining a raven youkai guest, please ask if this raven youkai can head to the Saigyou Ayakashi and retrieve that intruder's jiangshi minion, who is hostile but not exceedingly dangerous."
> Crawl far enough into the hole to shoot danmaku to light it up.

[Hello Purvis]

> "Okay. I need someone to deliver a message to Lady Saigyouji, in the third floor dining room in the southernmost tower. Please tell her I am in pursuit of an intruder, who cast an unknown spell at the base of the Saigyou Ayakashi. If she is still entertaining a raven youkai guest, please ask if this raven youkai can head to the Saigyou Ayakashi and retrieve that intruder's jiangshi minion, who is hostile but not exceedingly dangerous."
> Crawl far enough into the hole to shoot danmaku to light it up.

>"I'll go," says one of the ghosts, who scurries off while you kneel by the hole.
>You fire some danmaku into the hole. You cannot see the bottom, but you note that it continues to incline at the same angle for as far as you can see, tilted westward. It seems to go some distance underground.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Fly down the tunnel, keeping a danmaku stream in front of us to light it up.

[Hello Purvis]

> Fly down the tunnel, keeping a danmaku stream in front of us to light it up.

>You fly down the tunnel, keeping it lit up as well as you can. It's hard to gauge just how far it goes, but you note that it never seems to change direction. Then, suddenly, it comes to a dead end.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> How quickly can we fly in reverse?

[Hello Purvis]

> How quickly can we fly in reverse?

>Normally? Reasonably fast. Keeping yourself diagonal while you can't see behind you in a confined space? Much less so. Unfortunately, you may not have a choice unless you wish to go to the bottom in order to turn yourself around.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Does the bottom offer a wider area to turn around in?

[Hello Purvis]

> Does the bottom offer a wider area to turn around in?

>Not that you saw.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Ugh, nothing for it, then.
> Reverse flight direction and head back to the surface. At least we know there's nothing in our way and no turns...

[Hello Purvis]

> Ugh, nothing for it, then.
> Reverse flight direction and head back to the surface. At least we know there's nothing in our way and no turns...

>And thus, you begin making your way out.
>ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD: Miko.
>You and Reisen have spent the last little while combing over this region of the bamboo forest, finding little. At one point, Reisen came across some footprints, and there was some brief excitement, but the footprints were much too large to be Futo's. You suspect that they belonged to the huntswoman you met earlier. Since then, you've found nothing of interest. Until now; this bit of ground has some reasonably fresh red stains on it. Reisen is somewhere to your left; you can't see her, but you can hear her moving around.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Mmm, what is this?"
> Bend down and take a closer look at the stains. Perhaps they are blood?

[Hello Purvis]

> "Mmm, what is this?"
> Bend down and take a closer look at the stains. Perhaps they are blood?

>Taking a closer look, you believe so.
>"What'd you find?" Reisen calls.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Frown.
> "It appears to be blood stains. I hope they come from that boar. The other possibility is not pleasant to think about."

[Hello Purvis]

> Frown.
> "It appears to be blood stains. I hope they come from that boar. The other possibility is not pleasant to think about."

>"I don't think I could tell you which of the two it is," says Reisen.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Do the stains form a trail?

[Hello Purvis]

> Do the stains form a trail?

>They may faintly form a line.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> How fresh do the stains look?