Nue Quest II: A Z-Machine Adventure

[Hello Purvis]

> "That...doesn't really tell me what it is, though."
> Why isn't that red one back yet? Argh.

>"I'll go get it," says the white-hair, as she jumps down the hole. You hear a shout in her wake from the one in red, who rises up the hole a moment later.
>"Who put ideas in her head, I swear..." says the ghost in red. "So...all our money's gone, and there's just a bunch of river rocks in its place."
>"Oh," says the blonde, frowning deeply.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "River rocks? That doesn't sound right. The rest of us got gems. Did you happen to grab any of what was there?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "River rocks? That doesn't sound right. The rest of us got gems. Did you happen to grab any of what was there?"

>"Yeah, just these stupid things," says the ghost in red, as she produces a few stones.
>Glancing at them, you can immediately tell that they are onyxes. You could see why one might make the mistake that they're just rocks, they do have a sort of natural smoothed over look that a lot of low value minerals do. You'd price these somewhere between 8-13☼.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Nod.
> "Onyxes. Worth roughly 10☼ each. You're the same the rest of us."

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod.
> "Onyxes. Worth roughly 10☼ each. You're the same the rest of us."

>"Who'd pay 10☼ for these?" says the ghost in red. "You can find them in rivers."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Yeah, they do look like that, don't they? But nah, you'll have a hard time just going out to any ol' river and collecting real onyxes. They're rare enough to be worth a little bit."
> Turn to the blonde ghost and point at the hole.
> "So, uh, what's up with her? Should I ask the Buddhists what happened, maybe find out if whatever the issue is can be fixed?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "Yeah, they do look like that, don't they? But nah, you'll have a hard time just going out to any ol' river and collecting real onyxes. They're rare enough to be worth a little bit."
> Turn to the blonde ghost and point at the hole.
> "So, uh, what's up with her? Should I ask the Buddhists what happened, maybe find out if whatever the issue is can be fixed?"

>"She," says the blonde ghost, frowning and pausing. "It's just, she didn't like the music she was supposed to make."
>The ghost in red stares at the onyxes, as if trying to derive their secrets through concentration alone.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Frown.
> "Huh. I bet I can have a word with Byakuren about that, if it's gonna be a sticking point. She wouldn't make anyone play something they don't want to."

[Hello Purvis]

> Frown.
> "Huh. I bet I can have a word with Byakuren about that, if it's gonna be a sticking point. She wouldn't make anyone play something they don't want to."

>"If you want," says the ghost in red.
>"Here it is!" comes the white-haired ghost's voice from below. A moment later, she emerges from the hole, with what seems to be a broken sword blade in her hands.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Raise eyebrows.
 >"Whoa. You just found that in the forest?"
> Inspect the object visually.

[Hello Purvis]

> Raise eyebrows.
 >"Whoa. You just found that in the forest?"
> Inspect the object visually.

>"Yep!" says the white-haired ghost, beaming.
>It is the blade of a style of sword you've not seen before: straight, double edged, and around two and a half feet long. It's blade is covered with curious glyphs that look kind of like writing. You have no clue what it is.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> What do we know of Kourindou?
> "And...why might it be gone by the time I get back?"

[Hello Purvis]

> What do we know of Kourindou?
> "And...why might it be gone by the time I get back?"

>It's a pawn shop in the Forest of Magic. You've browsed there once or twice.
>"I might've traded it."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Oh boy, business time.
> Give an impassive look.
> "Really. Perhaps you could be...motivated to hang onto it until I return?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Oh boy, business time.
> Give an impassive look.
> "Really. Perhaps you could be...motivated to hang onto it until I return?"

>"Why?" says the white-haired ghost, frowning.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Well. Not only should I ask the Buddhists before committing them to a project, I'm also doing some investigation into why everyone's money turned into gems, and how to fix that problem."
> Point at the onyxes in the red one's possession.
> "Including yours, of course."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Well. Not only should I ask the Buddhists before committing them to a project, I'm also doing some investigation into why everyone's money turned into gems, and how to fix that problem."
> Point at the onyxes in the red one's possession.
> "Including yours, of course."

>Oh," says the white-haired ghost. She frowns, then adds, "I don't get it."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Mmm? All right, let me see how I can explain it."
> "I can go talk to the people that could repair your roof in exchange for that thing."
> Point at the sword handle.
> "But I can't agree on their behalf. That would be rude, like if I agreed on your behalf that you three would put on a concert for someone that would pay less than the usual rate. You wouldn't go and perform, and you'd be angry at me for trying to give you away."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Mmm? All right, let me see how I can explain it."
> "I can go talk to the people that could repair your roof in exchange for that thing."
> Point at the sword handle.
> "But I can't agree on their behalf. That would be rude, like if I agreed on your behalf that you three would put on a concert for someone that would pay less than the usual rate. You wouldn't go and perform, and you'd be angry at me for trying to give you away."

>The white-haired ghost nods. "Okay!"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "Now, I need a little bit of time to go ask them, because they're in the human village. If you trade that away while I'm gone, then I can't offer their roof repair services, because you don't want to perform for them. So I need you to promise that you won't trade it away until after myself or one of the Buddhists returns here."

[Hello Purvis]

> "Now, I need a little bit of time to go ask them, because they're in the human village. If you trade that away while I'm gone, then I can't offer their roof repair services, because you don't want to perform for them. So I need you to promise that you won't trade it away until after myself or one of the Buddhists returns here."

>"Fiiiiiine," says the white-haired ghost while rolling her eyes.

[Kilgamayan]

> Nod
> "Good. Now, about those."
> Point at the onyxes again.
> "Like I said, I'm investigating how all of Gensokyo's cash got turned into gems, and how to get it back to normal. Yours and everyone else's. I want to check out Hakugyokurou to see if the is near here, but I'm not sure precisely where. Can any of you tell me how to get there?"

[Hello Purvis]

> Nod
> "Good. Now, about those."
> Point at the onyxes again.
> "Like I said, I'm investigating how all of Gensokyo's cash got turned into gems, and how to get it back to normal. Yours and everyone else's. I want to check out Hakugyokurou to see if the is near here, but I'm not sure precisely where. Can any of you tell me how to get there?"

>"You go that way," says the blonde, pointing eastward and up the mountain. "It's not far. But, it's just, it's really easy to miss. You know what you're looking for, um, right?"

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "I've heard about giant columns."

[Hello Purvis]

> "I've heard about giant columns."

>"It's weird," says the blonde ghost. "It's just, hey're really easy to miss until you see them. Then you wonder how you missed them at all. Borders are strange, I suppose."

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> "That is pretty weird. Anything else specific I should look for?"

[Hello Purvis]

> "That is pretty weird. Anything else specific I should look for?"

>"There's this path that leads to it," says blonde. "But it's really hard to see; it's just,  the mountains hide it well."
>"I'm not seeing anything special," says the ghost in red, still glaring at the onyxes.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> How long did it take us to gain a passable knowledge of the art of jewelry?

[Hello Purvis]

> How long did it take us to gain a passable knowledge of the art of jewelry?

>You spend some years learning that part of the trade. Well, it was probably just months for learning what things are, and years to learn to appraise them correctly.

>_

[Kilgamayan]

> Turn to the red one.
> "It took me years before I was a passable jeweler. Don't worry about not being able to see a difference, most people won't. You could ask the jeweler in the human village about it if you want, though. And actually, if you go there, you'll get to meet another ghost like you three. She's working through a jeweler apprenticeship there."