Puddle in the Gobi Desert: RP Transcript

3:30 PM] Fushichou: After receiving the notification from Mr Stroi, Aka stands from his desk and moves to Vanessa's cubicle.
He bows lows to her smiling.

"My greetings Miss Renard, you may recall me from the other night, I am Shiba Aka, it seems we are to travel to Mongolia soon. Would you like to discuss the case for a bit?"
[4:25 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa gives a little half-wave to him. "Hey. I remember you, yep. And sure, uh - have a seat?" She looks around for spare chairs nearby.
[4:27 PM] Fushichou: Aka bows slightly and takes a nearby chair to sits.

"Thank you, I take that this is your first mission with Knightbridge but that may not be your first field mission right. Have you read the case already and what are you thoughts on it?"
6:00 PM] MochaKimono: "It's my first one here, but I've done missions before, yeah. Some freelancing work."

Vanessa pulls out a copy of the case. "Well... my first thought about an impassable fog cloud is that it sounds a lot like New England. My other thought is someone should tie a camera to a rope and drop it through the puddle to record what's on the other side, then reel it back in and watch the footage."
[1:23 PM] Fushichou: Aka nods and counts one on his left thumb.
“Hai, that will be a good way to experience how that spring works on items, so a couple of ropes and recorders…”

Having said that he seems to ponder tapping his chin in rhythm with his right index.
“You know the report mention that the spring had been shifting items to an unknown location for a few years but Buddhism was forbidden in Mongolia during the time of USSR so I wonder if that did not occur prior to that, because building a temple over a saltwater spring isn’t exactly the best of locations in a desert…”

He makes a dismissive hand gesture and continues:
“Do you think we should interview Mister Ansui? Ulaanbaatar is not exactly nearby, it’s over thirteen hours plane from London and then Dalanzadgad is like five hours drive from the capital, and if we plan to meet him we should arrange a meeting ahead of time, may be even try to have an interview over the phone that way we could do some research here before moving to the no man’s land that is the Gobi desert… which leads to another question: do ou speak Mongolian?”
[2:57 PM] MochaKimono: "Oh, wait, electronic devices don't work going into the fog, so a camera might break. Worth trying to bring a cheap one at least, just to test it," Vanessa says with another glance over the case file.

She shakes her head after his question. "Just English, sorry. Aren't there any closer portals from Agartha though? There's gotta be something faster than a plane all the way from here."

She looks over the document again, face neutral in thought for a moment. "Is there anything in Buddhism that mentions anything like this? Like old legends or something about mysterious fog, springs, or holes to other worlds? There could be some old tale to read up on that gives a hint, if it's ever happened before in ancient history."
[3:16 PM] Fushichou: "Very good points that means that we will have to see it with our own eyes... that said testing that a rope tied to an item still exist in both world could be useful if we need to go back."

Then he gives her a small nod "We will have to do without Mongolian then, I hope a bit of Chinese and Tibetan will help as well. And well may be the voices of the Fortunes will give you information since you can walk the pass of the Agartha... I for my part does not share your spiritual acumen and I will have to take the long road. Then we shall met in Dalanzadgad, I have been there some times ago. We could met at the Khan Hotel there."

He seems hesitant for a moment before speaking again at the Buddhist question. "Depending who you ask I guess that most of the sects and teachings insitst that this world is an illusion... as such a hole in this illussion leading to other illusions is not underheard of. Usually fog and smoke means the Underworld, since the fog seems noxious that's a possibility but I would rather not jump to conclusion..."
3:23 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa's brows raise a fraction, briefly. "You're not a Bee? Huh. Plane it is. I can fly if you want, if you think it's safer to stick together."

She nods slowly at his last answer. "I wonder - Hmm... We should find someone who's breathed it in and ask 'em what kind of hallucinations they had. That could help us figure it out."
[3:29 PM] Fushichou: He lowers his head "Do not delay yourself for me, I am sure you will fare well by your own."

"Considering that Mr Ansui is the only caretaker of that remoted temple I had assumed that he had experienced it himself hence his call for assistance. At least if that's not him he can point us to others that may have experienced as such... at worst I could be a guinea pig."
[3:32 PM] MochaKimono: "Prolly, but maybe some others wandered into it. It's a big enough area." Vanessa mulls for another moment. "If we have to, we could try trading off guinea pig-ness. Just not at the same time."
[3:37 PM] Fushichou: He shakes his head again "You are a Blessed One, that may not affect you at all... beside that's your first mission that would not be wise to have you take unnecessary risks."

He pauses "You know if your point of entrance is not in complete wilderness, your ability to travel fast might be a greater asset for this mission, since we are supposed to have the fog tested, without fast travel it would prove difficult to have results in relative short times..."
[4:12 PM] MochaKimono: She gives a little huff of amusement at the term 'Blessed One'. "Yeah, that's fair."

"Do we have a lab here to bring samples back to?"
[4:18 PM] Fushichou: Aka nods "I have not seen it, science isn't really my strong point, but I know Mr Pertwee has one out there with all the needed facilities. And there are certainly enough masters of the arcane sciences here to have the samples probed in more than one way."
[4:35 PM] MochaKimono: She nods back. "Okay. So, we pack supplies, head out there, meet with Ansui, and start investigating the fog and spring." She says this not as an order, but to summarize and remind herself for her own benefit.

"I had another thought about it - the spring's been doing the mysterious teleportation for years now, but the fog is brand new. Maybe something went into the spring that shouldn't have, and it... reacted."
[4:37 PM] Fushichou: Aka smiles "Hai I like your thinking, may be someone found a spring and throw his own version of the camera through it... we should check if the fog expends too."
7:20 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa arrives in the area from a nearby Agarthan portal, loaded up with a duffel bag and backpack of supplies and weapons, and dressed in warm layers, as the region is at or below freezing at this time of year. She jogs on foot to reach the mission site, not difficult considering it's a giant fog cloud in a desert. Keeping safely out of it but wearing her gas mask and earmuffs nonetheless, she does a scouting circuit around the entire perimeter, taking photos, and noting the distance traveled to figure a circumference - just in case the size had changed. Her eyes are peeled for anything else of note while doing so.
[4:20 PM] Fushichou: It's cold but still above zero celsius in the day times. The ground in the area is rocky with patches of green and there are small  hills nearby but beyond only a sea of sand and dunes can be seen.

She notices nothing unusual outside of the ... if the fog moves or expands that's not visible to the naked eyes. Still as she makes her scouting circuit she got the impression to be observed...
[4:32 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa continues the circuit, circling back around to where she started. She ignored the sense of being watched before, but now she gets out a pair of binoculars and scopes the landscape suspiciously.
[4:40 PM] Fushichou: Looking around with her binoculars she finally spots her observer: a lone wolf near the roots of the nearby hills.
[4:49 PM] MochaKimono: "...Hm." She approaches it cautiously to see its reaction. She doesn't have any weapons visibly holstered, just the worn backpack, and the large bag in hand now.
[4:51 PM] Fushichou: The land is flat and there is truly nowhere to hide and before she can really moves near the animal, he turns and runs toward the hills.
[5:12 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa stops, pulling up the binocs again to watch it, before slowly backing toward where she came from.
[5:15 PM] Fushichou: As she backs down while at the same time observing the wolf, she seems to have miss something because at some point she is watching a wolf making his way into the rocky hills, at another point there is no more wolf but the back of a human silhouette in traditional mongolian clothings.
5:23 PM] MochaKimono: Well, that's interesting. Vanessa stops backing away and starts moving forward, this time again at a jog, packs rattling heavily.
[3:05 PM] Fushichou: You quickly make up for the distance and start to jog up to the hills, only to find a yurt on top.
[3:07 PM] MochaKimono: "Hello?" she calls out as she approaches, slowing down cautiously once again.
[3:10 PM] Fushichou: You hear a voice coming from the yurt but you do not understand the overtone language...
[3:12 PM] MochaKimono: "...Oh. Right. Uh. I don't suppose anybody in there knows English."
[3:14 PM] Fushichou: There is more words coming from the yurt, then the fabric door slides open revealing an old woman wearing the same clothings you have seen previously
[3:15 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa, no longer approaching - she stopped a couple meters away - just gives an awkward wave with her free hand. "Hey?"
[3:15 PM] Fushichou: The elderly woman smiles and gesture you to approach
[3:18 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa walks up with a quizzical brow raise.
[3:20 PM] Fushichou: As she enters the yurt... this happens
[3:21 PM] Fushichou: Our wisdom flows so sweet. Taste and see...
TRANSMIT - initiate the song of Dayan Deerh - RECEIVE - initiate riding the drum horse -  FROM THE BLACK, THE SKY THE LIMIT - initiate the four hordes of Temujin - SPIN THE SWASTIKA, BE ONE WITH THE SPIRITS - follow the yellow silk road - WITNESS - the Tengerism.

A shaman plays a drum and chants over a fire. A spirit has no body and can travel across flesh. An eagle flies high above the impassable moutains. A wolf runs low in the endless steppes. Oboo to the sky gods in the heaven. Oboo to the earht gods in the hells. Summoned white protectors, summoned black destructors, ride on both to balance and heal the world.
[3:31 AM] Fushichou: and right after the elder woman starts to speak again, still in a tongue you cant understand, she does say "Nergui" showing herself
10:22 AM] MochaKimono: As soon as the voice starts, Vanessa flinches with a muttered, "Ah crap, there it goes," and closes her eyes as she reaches up to touch her forehead as if having a headache. "Hold on."

When it passes, she relaxes. "Sorry. Uh." She points at herself. "Vanessa?"
[3:43 PM] Fushichou: The elderly woman smiles and moves to an old stove where some pot is heating, she continues to speak, but again you do not understand.
You can see that the interior of the yurt is furbished with alot of old wasted materials, some animal skulls and occult trinkets.
Nergui pours the liquid from the pot into two bowls, it's greenish and steaming.
[11:16 AM] MochaKimono: Vanessa's mind goes between "pea soup" and "witch's brew" in assumptions. She leans over to sniff the steam.
[2:53 PM] Fushichou: Nergui smiles and offers you the 'witch brew'...
[2:55 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa pauses, deliberating on that, before slowly nodding and trying a sip.
[2:58 PM] Fushichou: Let's face it tastes pretty bad... but the hotness somehow makes it 'edible'. As you take a sip, Nergui keeps smiling and drinks down her bowl of stew...
[3:52 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa grimaces a bit but offers a thumbs-up with a cough. "Er, thanks."
[3:58 PM] Fushichou: Nergui smiles broadly showing the lack of many teeth, she says something again and gesture drinking from her now empty bowl.
4:36 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa takes a deep breath, and chugs down the bowl.
[4:53 PM] Fushichou: Really that tasted bad but certainly not that bad when down in one go.
Nergui seems quite happy after you take the bowl and after putting down her bowk she picks up a small drum and bone stick.
You start to feel dizzy as Nergui starts to chant and plays her drum
6:31 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa groans, rubbing her head again, and plops down to sit on the floor of the yurt. "Urgh. I thought it'd be some potion to make me understand you..." she mutters.
[3:48 PM] Fushichou: Your senses starts to go wrong as you can now see the music that Nergui, you see strands of yellow, black and blue dancing before your eyes and then you feel yourself drifting away...
[3:49 PM] Fushichou: When you regain your senses, well some senses, you find yourself flying high above the desert... above a temple set in the very location you arrived earlier.
[1:04 PM] MochaKimono: After assessing the situation, she takes advantage of the vision by swooping down directly at the temple to investigate 'in person' - to so speak.
[4:22 PM] Fushichou: As you adjusts your wings to swoop down you feel the wind on your feathers, that flying sensation is really intoxicating. As you go down you now see near the temple vehicules, trucks and jeeps, and people are now exiting the temple some looks to be monks while others are armed and dressed in military uniforms. The monks are aligned against a wall and what seems to be a commanding officer approaches them while the rest of the troops point their kalashnikovs at the monks.
[6:18 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa circles overhead a few moments, before deigning not to interfere, instead swooping down to the military vehicles to look for any useful information - documents or such that might be left in the open. Unsure if this is 'real' or not, she'll try to grab something in her presumably birdy talons and make off with it.
[4:02 PM] Fushichou: You do circle a few times but you dont get the words that the protagonists were exchanging, just the routine that the officer would ask questions to one monk and then shoot him and go to the next one.
You see one soldier looking into your direction as you swoop down but there is a new BANG and he turns his head back to where the execution proceeds. Unfortunetely there are no secret plans or maps hanging out the vehicules but you do see a machinery in the back of one of the trucks, if you had some diploma in engineering or physics you might have guests of what is it. As for the rest of the equipement you see three cosmonaute suits.
[4:48 PM] MochaKimono: Any small piece that she can grab, she'll grab, a bit desperate for some means to affect this -- if anything, probably just a small nut or bolt, or somesuch. She doesn't know anything about mechanics or engineering, sadly, so has no clue what to make of what she's looking at. Her main concern is to squirrel something away, maybe to ship to the lab.'
1:39 PM] Fushichou: You managed to get your talons on a military chapka belonging to one of the soldier that was left at the back of a jeep. As you collect your memory token you hear one last gunshots, all the monks are dead save one, a young novice that is crying. The russian leader starts to laugh like a megalomaniac psycho and takes the last monk by the collar as he and his men enters the temple. This is when you start to see the strands of yellow, black and blue again.

You just have time to fly away enough to squirrel the chapka before you feel dragged elsewhere... And awakens in a dusty and old yurt, all colors are gone and the various trinkets are gone, except the drum and bone stick. The place looks like it had been abandonned for a couple of decades.
[11:03 AM] MochaKimono: Vanessa stares around a while, before getting up and heading out, directly toward where she left the chapka.
[11:06 AM] Fushichou: Going back to where you droped the chapka you do find it, it is quite worn now but the red fist on the front is still visible. In the distance you hear a wolf howling... or is it the wind?
[11:08 AM] MochaKimono: Vanessa stores it in a ziploc baggy as she heads back to the rendezvous point. Once there she whiles away the time typing up notes on her phone, and waits.
[11:18 AM] Fushichou: A bit before the rendez-vous time, you see the Clark Kent version of Aka arriving at the hotel, he has a goatee and round glasses, at first he does not approach you, speaking in a sabir of Chinese and Tibetan he registers at the hotel then noticing you, he approaches and proposes a handshake.

"Hello I am Hojitsu Sabakuro from Nagoya University, you must be Miss Renard from Oxford University, a pleasure to make your acquaintance, I hope your travel was good."
1:32 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa nods and returns the handshake, showing only brief surprise at his cover identity, but responds in stride easily. "Close, Reynolds, but yes. Victoria Reynolds, good to meet you."
[1:34 PM] Fushichou: "Ha Miss Reynolds! My excuse my memory is not as good as it was in my prime, well be may we can continue that conversation in a less crowned place"
[1:36 PM] MochaKimono: She smiles a little. "Yeah- Yes. Of course."
[1:40 PM] Fushichou: "I would not say to my room but I could get you a tour of the town, and we can discuss as we do the tour"
[2:18 PM] MochaKimono: "Sounds good to me. Lead the way."
[2:26 PM] Fushichou: 'Sabakuro' leads you to an old jeep parked outside, there are a couple of trekking outfits inside including foldable tents.
He opens the door for you "If you please!" then after you get in starts driving.

"I arranged for a meeting with Ansui tonight, there is a small temple in town, we will meet there as representative of Knightsbridge. For anything else we are here on an archeological trip... So did anything happened while I was on my way here?"
[2:52 PM] MochaKimono: Her supplies are loaded into the Jeep, fetched quickly from her room if necessary first.

She replies as they drive on: "Yeah. So, I measured around the perimeter, it hasn't changed sizes one way or another so far. And then... I dunno how to describe it. I think there was a time bubble - or something - I saw this wolf, and followed it out to this yurt, and the wolf turned into an old woman who gave me soup that made me have a vision.

"Except... not a 'vision'. An actual trip to the past, in the body of a bird. There were military trucks all over the place, and soldiers lining up the monks and executing them. They had some machinery in their trucks, but I dunno about machinery to know what it was, or what it did."

She pauses a few long moments. "I couldn't - there was really nothing I could do to save the monks. Even if I was myself and not a bird... I woulda been outnumbered badly. So I did what I could, I tried to spot any info lying in the open. In the end, all I got was this."

She pulls out the plastic-bagged hat. "I stole it in the past, found it again in the present once I got back. The woman was gone and the yurt was old and abandoned. But, hell, maybe the lab can find something useful on this, some kinda samples, DNA, who knows. Best I could do for now. I didn't... wanna do anything too risky, by myself."
3:35 PM] Fushichou: Aka listens to her story and nods at the end.
"I can hardly give you any direction in regard of your... experience... I heard those things happen to the Blessed Ones on occasions. Then again what is not risky in our line of work?"

Then he eyes the hat while still watching the road. "Do you know what this is?"
[3:48 PM] MochaKimono: "Russian hat... Red Hand. They were talking in Russian too, and had AK-47s. Oh. Wait, I just remembered. They had spacesuits too. Nobody was wearing any, but they had a few in their trucks."
[3:50 PM] Fushichou: "Spacesuit? May be we should have bring those too... And what do you know about the Red Hand?"
[3:53 PM] MochaKimono: "If they're still there by now, for sure. And I know a little... Like, old Russian, USSR-era secret world science experiments in bunkers. Well, 'science' as in, magical science."
[4:01 PM] Fushichou: "Magic, science, ... is there really any difference? But you are right they were dwelling in our World much like many others occult divisions of the other countries... They mainly dabbled with human augmentation and things like alternate space exploration. So they were probably there about the well."

He tilts his head as he keeps driving "We could always call Knightsbridge and see if by luck they go anything on 'space operations' handled by the Red Hand in the area... there is a slim chance but..."

"As for your vision, may be we can ask around for a shaman and see if there is one that is good with soupomancy..." He chuckles.
[4:15 PM] MochaKimono: "Maybe I was right about that pool being some kinda portal to another dimension. How long ago do you think that vision happened? And uh..." She looks down thoughtfully at the hat. "Only one monk was left who didn't get shot by the end. At least not while I was still there. Maybe he's still alive today."
[4:20 PM] Fushichou: "I defer to your wisdom Miss Reynolds!" He smiles "May be he is alive indeed and may be mister Ansui knows who he is..."
1:28 PM] MochaKimono: "My only other guess is that he is Ansui. But then I'd wonder why he didn't tell us more info in the report... unless he just couldn't say it safely unless it's in person. Uh, either way, let's hope he's got some info to tell us, Mister, uh... Sabakuro?"
2:45 PM] Fushichou: After ten minutes they arrive at a 'modern' Buddhist Temple, a concrete building that doesn't exactly look like a temple from the outside. On the inside though he does look like one.
Daicho Ansui rapidly arrives to greet them, he looks like a young man in orange monk's robes and seems quite 'eager' when he speaks to you in quite a good english.

"I am glad that you arrived so fast, I was worried that something terrible would happen with that fog but now that you are there I am sure things will be okay. I have read alot of things about Knightsbridge and you seem to solve all sorts of problems!"
[4:14 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa takes social cues from both men - if there are bows, or handshakes, or whatnot, she'll copy whatever they both do - as she returns the greetings to Ansui.

"We uh, came pretty prepared to handle it. The expected and the unexpected." She offers what she hopes is an encouraging smile. "Is there anything you can tell us that wasn't in your original... uh... report? Request?"
[4:25 PM] Fushichou: Ansui goes to handshake both of them and Aka seems 'retreat' letting her handle the conversation.
"Well before the fog I must admit that I was reluctant to handle that temple, it was rumored to be haunted, at least that's what Tuga Enkhjargal told me when I took up his role as caretakers of the three temples..."

He picks up a cellphone from under his robe and shows you picture of the fog.
"Well I may have an idea of what happened there, well with you I know you won't laugh at me but I thing this is a cursed a witch placed on the site. You see long ago before Buddhism came to Mongolia, black hearted shamans ruled the lands, I think one of them called that fog."
[4:35 PM] MochaKimono: She nods. "How long ago? You said the fog appeared suddenly... a few years ago, right? Did something specific happen then? Or now?"
[4:43 PM] Fushichou: "Well I only tend to those temples 4 times a year, so it was between ten days up to three months that it occured, I must say that I was not staying the night there, but Tuga told me sometimes creatures would emerge from the pool at nights."
7:09 PM] MochaKimono: "Oh, hm. How long has Tuga been here? And how long have you?" she asks, taking out a notebook to jot things down.
[4:49 PM] Fushichou: "He was caretaker years before me, for like ten years, I only reached that level three years ago."
[4:50 PM] MochaKimono: "Was there anyone else besides him? Anyone as far back as uh... the 80s?"
[4:55 PM] Fushichou: "Ah the 80's no there was noone, the government shut down all the temples, I heard stories about monks still maintaining the teachings but..." he seems to ponder a moment and again checks his phone "I can ask a friend if you want to know more, that's my uncle."
[4:57 PM] MochaKimono: "Yeah. Or get us in touch to ask. And if there was any..." Pause. "Violence that happened here. It might be related. We uh, would also like to know more about those creatures you mentioned."
[5:01 PM] Fushichou: He seems torn a moment but finally says "Well according to Tuga those were demons"
[5:02 PM] Fushichou: "There was alot of violence against us, Buddhists, in that era, most of us had to renounce our teachings or continue in hiding, alot of temples were pillaged too"
[5:02 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa frowns, nodding sympathetically. Then asks, "Do you... Uh... Think they're not demons? Something else?"
[5:05 PM] Fushichou: "I think Tuga believes in the most... esoteric aspects of our teachings... I heard that he was thrown in jails and tortured, I think the demons he mentioned are 'his' demons from his past and no real demons... but then again you are here so... Have you actually met demons?"
[5:12 PM] MochaKimono: "Uhhh..." She pauses, wondering how much to say. "I'm keeping an open mind? ...Maybe they're not real, maybe they're physically real but he's wrong about what they are exactly... It's what we're here to find out." She offers a small but hopefully reassuring smile.
[5:17 PM] Fushichou: That seems enough to comfort Daicho who nods and smiles in return "And I dont think it is a curse either but... well I had entered the fog and I dont know what to think about what happened, I heard voices I am pretty sure they were in old Mongol"
[5:19 PM] MochaKimono: "Old? Like old Latin versus Italian? Er... Do you know how old, or what they were saying?"
[5:24 PM] Fushichou: "Sort of well not that old, old Mongol is like what was used in the Middle Age... I dont know old Mongol but I... well that gave me that impression... I didnt understand but I was under the impression that they wanted me to leave... I did that right away!"
[5:41 PM] MochaKimono: "Probably a good idea," she says with a nod. "So - hm. Has anyone else breathed in the fog?"
3:33 PM] Fushichou: "Hopefully not, there was a tribe that settled near the temple during the spring season but too years ago they moved away."
[4:13 PM] MochaKimono: "Hm... Did they live in yurts?"
[4:15 PM] Fushichou: "Most people in the countryside do still yes, well even if the wealthiest have satellite and TV, they must have moved further North, the desert is changing nowadays"
7:30 PM] MochaKimono: "Hm..." Vanessa looks over her notes, trying to put together a timeline, arrows and circles running all over the page by now from. "Is there anything else you can tell us? Anything else strange or disturbing or... any strange animals or people nearby, trespassing maybe?"
[12:16 PM] Fushichou: "You mean beside that the place was rumored to be haunted... well not that I can think of really but may be after going there we can go visit Tuga, he knows alot of stories, like when they were visited by a French woman once. Does that count as disturbing?"
[2:35 PM] MochaKimono: She snorts. "Depends on how you feel about the French," she deadpan jokes. "But thanks, we'll talk to Tuga and start doing tests and stuff to figure out what's going on here."
[2:37 PM] Fushichou: "Oh ok well I can drive you to the temple, it's easy to get lost in the region. As for Tuga he lives in a monastory outside town, I can give you the location or drive you there on the way to the temple."
[2:39 PM] MochaKimono: "Well, if it's on the way we might as well hit him up first..." She looks to Aka for confirmation.
[2:40 PM] Fushichou: Aka nods and smirks "Hai, we might as well as your elder for stories about French people and witches may be there are not related!"
[2:48 PM] MochaKimono: She nods back. "Okay. To Tuga, then. And then the temple."
3:18 PM] Fushichou: They arrive later during the day to a small temple, with a dozen of monks in prayers. Daicho adresses one of the monk and then returns to you saying "Master Enkhjargal will see us after the prayers."
They wait for a bit then they are introduced to an elderly monk who talks to Daicho who serves as a translator.

"I told him that you wanted to learn about the origin of the temple, he says that he was build on an 'oboo', an ancient shamanic site."
[3:20 PM] MochaKimono: "Hmm..." Once again Vanessa is taking notes. "Can you tell us about the creatures you saw coming out of the pool?" she asks, looking at and addressing Tuga even though it'll have to pass through Ansui as the interpretor.
[3:41 PM] Fushichou: There is a small exchange then Daicho says "He says that they were demons that would lure faithless people into their hell beyond the mirror"
[3:45 PM] MochaKimono: "What did they look like? Like animals, or... people? Clothing or weapons or anything?"
[3:48 PM] Fushichou: Another chit-chat and some hesitations "He says they looked like beast-men, without clothings or weapons, just beast-men"
[3:48 PM] MochaKimono: Some more notes scribbled. "Any specific beasts, or just..."
[4:18 PM] Fushichou: "He said wolves, eagles, horses..." Daicho stops a moment looking how you take notes "I am not sure what he says is very reliable"
[4:19 PM] MochaKimono: "...Oh, huh." She crosses something off in her notes at that. "Okay. Wait - have any of those animals, actual animals, ever fallen into the pool before?"
[4:23 PM] Fushichou: More chatting and more hesitations "He says they come from the other side of the mirror, he says that he has been there."
[4:23 PM] MochaKimono: She blinks in surprise, eyebrows lofting. "What's on the other side? How did you get there and back?"
[4:29 PM] Fushichou: "He says that there is a great crystalline plain and the sky is different, and it's inhabited by demons, he went there because he was lured there by a witch but he escaped and he has been praying since then to keep the demons at bay" even Daicho has trouble conveying belief in what he says.
[4:34 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa just nods, her expression conveying only curiosity at this point as she rapidly writes this all down. "Have you breathed in the fog at all?"
[4:34 PM] Fushichou: Daicho says "I have not talked to him about the fog yet..."
[4:36 PM] MochaKimono: "Oh, er. I thought he'd been in the area recently too...?"
[4:37 PM] Fushichou: "Recently? No, well I dont know... as far as I am aware I was the only one to get there but I can ask him if you want"
[4:39 PM] MochaKimono: "Oh." Pause. She looks at Aka. "Should we? Or does that break the rules?"
[4:42 PM] Fushichou: Aka tilts his head "I do not think we are impolite to ask if that is your question... we might as well ask him if he had been to the other side with someone or if he knew someone that visited this... hell"
4:47 PM] MochaKimono: "Oh, I meant the company rule about disclosure. Though uh, I guess if he's been to some other world already, fog hallucinations aren't really a lot more to take in than that."

She looks to Ansui and Tuga again. "Yeah, ask him if he's been in the fog, or if anyone else has. Or through-- er, into the pool."
3:25 PM] Fushichou: Aka taps his index on his chin "I am not a lawyer but I am pretty sure if people believe in demons, ghosts and witches I am not the one to dissuade them nor does Knightsbridge's policy... then again there might be scientific explainations and that's why we are here for, analyse that fog... not to mention that if Tuga-san truely believes in diamond sutra he knows deep down within him that those are mere illusions that impede his enlightment, wouldn't you agree Ansui-san?"

Ansui looks quizzycal for a moment "Are you some sort of monk mister Sabakuro?"

Aka shakes his head "iie" and makes a dismissive hand gesture with his left hand at which a Tibetan prayer beads is tied.

Tuga looks at you all as you discuss, he looks thoughtful as if the conversation on the pool had recall old memories, you can notice that he is counting the beads of his own prayer beads as you speak.

Finally Ansui asks him about the fog, you can all understand that he doesn't know about the fog but at the second question he seems more talkative. Ansui then tells you this, his retelling his cut by several exchanges with Tuga as if Ansui was not sure if he was recollecting what he was told correctly:
"He said that the elder of his temple once told him that a western witch once came to visit the temple, it was forbidden for woman to enter but she was wearing a white cross and they let her in then she conducted some ceremony and immerged into the pool and vanished... she returned days later with a crystal... lightening? A diamond vajra? I am not sure how to say that... After that she left the monasteries but all the monks were furious at the abbot. Since then he says that only bad things happened at the temple... he also said the woman name was Davinyl"
[4:45 PM] MochaKimono: "Hm... Do you know anyone who was here way back when the temples were attacked?"
[4:50 PM] Fushichou: Ansui asks the question but the answer seems short, the translation a bit less "He said he was away when the temple was attacked by the Russians. As I told you I can call my uncle he is more knowledgeable in the USSR era."
[4:57 PM] MochaKimono: Nod. "We might talk to him, if that's okay. We'll see... We might not need to, if we can figure out what's going on here first."
[5:10 PM] Fushichou: Aka whispers and nods "I can see where you are heading."
6:42 PM] MochaKimono: She nods. "I think we're good to start exploring and testing. Getting samples and stuff."
4:31 PM] Fushichou: After a 3 hour drive, both vehicules, a rather modern car for Ansui and an old jeep for Sabakuro/Aka arrives on site. The place looks like the same as Vanessa left it, with that fog cloud still in place.
[5:25 PM] MochaKimono: When they pull up, she reaches into her packs to pull things out. "Gasmask, vials, baggies, tongs, rope, camera..."
[5:18 PM] Fushichou: Ansui looks impressed "You folks are serious!" and he watches you as you do your stuff.
Meanwhile Aka rummages in his own attire and gets similar items minus the camera and adding some first aid kit.
"So how do you want to do it Miss Reynolds?"
5:21 PM] MochaKimono: "Uh... Easy work first, we get up real close and snatch some fog samples in a couple vials. Thennn... We move further in until we find the pool, get a sample of the liquid, and then turn on the camera and drop it in on a rope? Might not work but, eh. And the tongs to grab any little solid things that are too dangerous to touch directly."
[5:23 PM] Fushichou: "Sounds like a plan to me!"
[5:23 PM] Fushichou: collecting the fog doesn't involve too much effort
[5:24 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa cannot help herself from making a joke at one point, muffled behind the gas mask slightly, "I tried to catch the fog once before....... but I mist."
[5:27 PM] Fushichou: chuckling is hard with a gas mask on but the body shakes could not be hidden "Bad pun is a delicate art like haiku I bow to your wit miss!" then Aka puts his earplugs and enters the mist on their way to the temple...
5:57 PM] MochaKimono: She just grins behind her mask, only visible in the crinkling of her eyes through the lenses, as she puts in her own earplugs.

Assuming Ansui did NOT come with them by this point, she has now armed herself visibly: Pistols on her hips, and a shotgun slung over her backpack.
[8:54 AM] Fushichou: Ansui, lacking the proper equipment and not willing to experience some trauma stayed out near their cars.
Vanessa would notice if she checks it that her camera went out when they were in the fog. Even with the earplugs she has the feeling that there are noises outside in said fog.

After a while, and some search in the now thick fog, they would arrive at what appears to be an ancient temple. If she is familiar with Tibetan Bouddhist building, she could recognize it as such.
Aka stays close to her if only to not lost her and he will hand her a scrapbook and a pen
"What now?" is written on it
[4:58 PM] MochaKimono: She also has on her bulletproof vest... Somewhere under all those layers, anyway.

She checks her camera after seeing his question, finds it inoperable, and makes a throatcut signal and thumbsdown after pointing at it, then stows it away again. She then points forward to the temple with a nod, and continues forward, seeking the pool itself.
[1:02 PM] Fushichou: In the temple the concentration of fog is even thickier making vision really difficult and forcing them to touch the walls of said temple to keep some balance and advance without getting utterly lost. After quite a while, they arrive at a central room in which lies the pool.

The pool itself is bubbling heavily but not due to temperature as the water seems to be rather cold.
[2:37 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa approaches carefully and crouches down and attempts to scoop some of the water into a vial from the edge.
[2:40 PM] Fushichou: She does that without difficulties.
[2:42 PM] MochaKimono: She puts it away with the other samples and returns to Aka, trying to give a questioning look and shrug about what to do next.
[2:43 PM] Fushichou: Aka writes down "Have those analysed as planned" then again "We can always return later"
[9:50 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa nods, and turns to head back the way they came.
3:19 PM] Fushichou: After a while they exit the fog and as they do the sound of thunder can be heard in the distance.
Aka removes his mask and earplug, both of them notice that there is a thin layer of dust on their clothings, akin to a white powder.
[5:35 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa brushes some of the dust into another vial before removing her mask and earplugs. "Should I just pop back to HQ with these samples for research? So you don't have to keep taking the plane."
8:59 AM] Fushichou: After a short trip back and forth to KBC's lab in London and getting the result here is what Vanessa collected:
 The fog seems mundane but there are concentration of methane in it which may explains the headaches and overall potential dangerousness of the fog. And yes methane means the fog is 'explosive', tread with caution.
 The dust is composed of silice but is very slightly charged with 'magic', very faint anima to be precise. It is hard to say more on it.
 The water contains a mix of the previous too : methane and silice. Unlike the silice the water is heavily charged with anima. Lab operators at KBC does not have a definite conclusion on this: either the water is able to absorb energies and it was contaminated by the transportation to London or it was charged previously, either way some extrapolation on the concentration of anima levels on the water samples makes it comparable to an Agartha portal.
 Last but not least none of the above would explain the shutdown of electronic devices. Study on her camera would have the lab operators guessed that this seems similar to some magical field projected by spells or practioners of the magical arts.

When she returns by through the portal back she can see that Ansui and Aka had set up trio of tents.
3:11 AM] MochaKimono: ((aha, good timing!))

Vanessa trots up to the tents, looking for either of the two men. She has a new suitcase (well... it's clearly old, covered in scuff and scratch marks, but it's new for her) in hand, as well as a manila folder with copies of the test results printed out.
[3:14 AM] Fushichou: "Welcome back Miss Reynolds, I hope you get some answers from the headquarter!"
[3:29 AM] MochaKimono: "Well... the fog's gotta lotta methane in it, so we should be really careful about... anything that might cause a spark in there. The dust and the water both have anima in it, but the water has a lot more. Like... there could be another Agarthan portal somewhere under us, amounts. Or an anima well. Or uh - well, there's some kinda magic in place that's causing the electronics to fail. So, it could be anima residue from that. Like, a wizard's concentrated anima in a ward."

She offers over the folder to him, then shakes the suitcase a bit. "I had some ideas, since cameras won't work. We could dunk some other things in the pool on ropes. I got a waterproof notepad and pen, like the kind you can tack up in a shower, to start."
[3:47 AM] Fushichou: Aka looks at Ansui who is conveniently praying in his tent then he takes the folder.

He smiles "I am not sure I understand past the methane part... you mentioned a portal, is it through it that the methane and dust comes from? So it's opened... So you suggest we go to the other side and see what's there?"
[3:55 AM] MochaKimono: "Uh... Maybe? No idea. And as for the pool-portal, I figure we can try lowering some things in there on rope first, see if something reacts, and then go through."
[3:55 AM] Fushichou: "That sounds like a plan to me, acting with caution."
[3:56 AM] MochaKimono: "If the notebook comes back shredded up with giant monster claws, we'll know to jump in a little more cautiously than if it comes back with a 'hello' written on it."
[4:01 AM] Fushichou: Aka chuckles at the hello mention "I am not sure I won't prefer claws over a hello, if they say hello we should be even more cautious."
[7:03 PM] MochaKimono: "...Hm... True. And no ambiguity with claws. Should we do it anyway? Or just go through?"
[12:59 AM] Fushichou: "Well we better do it, just in case there is some toxic thing on the other side..."
[1:38 AM] MochaKimono: She nods. "Anything else we need to do out here, or should we get to it?"
1:41 AM] Fushichou: Aka nods "I am ready."
[4:09 AM] MochaKimono: "Should we still bring weapons?" she asks more quietly. "Non-firearms only?"
[7:55 AM] Fushichou: Aka smiles "We can have a talk about weapons but later... I guess running is a good one you should always bring. Do you know how to use weapons beside firearms? Else I would advise you keep at least one firearm with you just in case we need to go in a blaze!"
[8:03 AM] MochaKimono: "I brought a basic folding knife... And I'm okay-ish in a hand-to-hand scrap. It's not exactly my forte, though. Maybe I should get a crossbow, for the future," she says, the last sentence with a wry half-smile.
[8:06 AM] Fushichou: "I guess crossbow would be cool but we have to do with what we have now, keep your knife ready then"
[8:07 AM] Fushichou: "We should get geared up and go back into the fog again then"
[8:12 AM] MochaKimono: "Yep... That's why I said future. And I was mostly joking anyway." She shrugs and goes to get her gear on.
[8:14 AM] Fushichou: "Oh! Is that a joke about vampires?"
[8:16 AM] MochaKimono: "Oh, uh, no, just that I can still aim and fire it like a gun, but without gunpowder to make a spark."
[8:22 AM] Fushichou: Aka tilts his head "I guess so, well even with your knife you can make a spark technically... but I get your point"
[8:24 AM] MochaKimono: "I mean... Yeah. But a knife doesn't work by exploding every time I swing it. I guess if we have anything like a baseball bat..." she trails off some. "I didn't think to bring anything like that."
[8:28 AM] Fushichou: "You have your dance training dont you?"
[8:34 AM] MochaKimono: "Yeah. I'm pretty agile, and, well... I look thin but this is all muscle." She pats one of her lean arms.
[8:36 AM] Fushichou: Aka nods "Hai dancers are athletes of their own, low kick and run away if things get messy."
[4:06 PM] MochaKimono: She smiles a little. "Okay. What about you?"
[4:08 PM] Fushichou: Aka smirks "I run fast... and conventional airplanes doesnt exactly allow for weapons..."
4:10 PM] MochaKimono: "Do you have any unconventional weapons?"
[4:17 PM] Fushichou: Like a mantra he says "I have no magical power; I make my personality my magical power."
[4:17 PM] MochaKimono: "Okay... So are you gonna kill demons with a winning smile or is the combat all up to me then?"
[4:19 PM] Fushichou: "If we met demons we better hide and run and seal that portal... we are an investigating team not a seek and destroy team..."
[4:22 PM] MochaKimono: "Well, I'm not... super thrilled about a strategy that involves going into possibly really dangerous territory with zero plan B except 'hope they don't run faster than we do'. If we go to close the portal, there's a chance they'll start coming out of it to stop us."
[4:31 PM] Fushichou: "True but the portal has been opened for quite a while and nothing went through but chemical elements so far, and from what we know people have been through and back without being torned into pieces of driven crazy..."
[4:32 PM] Fushichou: "In all honesty I think that doesnt lead to Jigoku... but we can always just blown up the place..."
7:56 PM] MochaKimono: "Let's hope it doesn't... Or if it does we can just close it easily anyway. I do wonder why it would start acting up after all these years though if it's been there for so long already..."
[4:12 AM] Fushichou: "There is only one way to know."
4:31 PM] MochaKimono: ((of course it's all because she decided to like them because of her name XD))

Vanessa finishes getting geared up with everything except the earbuds which she'll put in once they're about to enter the fog.
[4:32 PM] Fushichou: Aka does the same, and yes he is unarmed...
7:23 AM] Fushichou: They entered the fog again, with the gas mask and earplugs, and it took then like a hour to reach again the temple and the pool.
[9:36 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa rigs up the waterproof notepad and (marker chained to it like a bank pen) to a rope, gives it a windup twirl and chucks it at the pool like she's lassoing cattle. Keeping hold of the other end of the rope of course.
1:48 PM] Fushichou: It goes down... time pass and nothing seems to happen the rope just seem to vanish at the bottom of the pool (or so she guessed because visibility is almost null)
2:13 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa reels it back up eventually.
2:11 PM] Fushichou: Eventually the rope and what's tied to it emerge from the pool but nothing was written on it...
4:44 PM] MochaKimono: She shrugs, and writes, "worth trying. we go in now?" on it and shows it to Aka.
[4:46 PM] Fushichou: Aka looks around even if there is nothing to see in the fog and he answers writing "I go first"
[4:47 PM] Fushichou: and doing as he says he immerges himself in the pool... and vanishes!
[4:51 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa unties the notepad and pockets it, ties the rooeis instead around a nearby piece of architure or large stone or something, and then holds onto the empty end as she takes a running leap into the pool.
2:36 PM] Fushichou: Somehow she got the same strange feeling she had after drinking the witch stew, strands of colors flew past her eyes as she seems to be falling... upward? She emerges from a pool surrounded by a thick white fog quite similar to the one she just left... did she even move at all? What's for sure is that she can 'sense' her Bee being frantic about something.
Nearby, there is a shape on the edge of the pool, someone is on his knees and does not seem to be well...
[7:29 PM] MochaKimono: She waits until she lands before scrambling toward the shape. "Aka?" she says, likely muffled in her mask but the tone of hurry and concern is clear.
[3:51 PM] Fushichou: The shape looks like a changing Aka, his bones and skins is slowly shifting from human to something else with red fur, his face is starting to become elongated and will certainly remove his gazmask at some point. Last but not least the pain of the shifting totally overhelms Aka who is not able of spoken communication...
[6:05 PM] MochaKimono: Her followings vocalizations sound like panicked cursing next. She rushes to grab him around the waist and haul him back through the pool.
[10:39 AM] Fushichou: she tosses a half transformed Aka into the pool and they vanish underwater... after a brief moment they are back on earth...
10:44 AM] Fushichou: Aka seems to have revert back to human on the way back but he looks exhausted, he does give her a thumb up even if he doesnt speak yet
[10:45 AM] MochaKimono: She hurriedly writes a note to show him: "Are you a lycan?"
[10:47 AM] Fushichou: after a moment he is able to take the pen and writes "I am not a tanuki"
[10:51 AM] MochaKimono: She stares for a second before underlining 'tanuki' and adding a question mark. Another incident of Vanessa not knowing much of anything about Japanese culture.
[10:52 AM] Fushichou: Aka draw some sort of huge round raccoon next to a pot next to another round raccoon and writes "shapeshifter"
[10:53 AM] MochaKimono: She tilts her head but nods, and writes, "so that was abnormal?"
[10:54 AM] Fushichou: he nods several time and writes "thank you"
10:55 AM] MochaKimono: "Now what?" she writes.
11:00 AM] Fushichou: He writes "We should head out first then talk"
[11:07 AM] MochaKimono: She nods, and helps him stand if needed before heading away from the pool.
[11:10 AM] Fushichou: after a while they are back at their camp and they can remove their masks
[11:11 AM] Fushichou: Aka massages his jaw as he speaks "Well that was unexpected, I guess some wardings are needed for me..."
[12:14 PM] Fushichou: He seems to be thinking of something "May be there is some wards that we missed, we know people passed through this portal and returned..."
[8:08 PM] MochaKimono: "I wonder why it didn't affect me though... oh, wait. I guess the Bee prolly stopped it."
[2:35 AM] Fushichou: "Hai most certainly, with your Bee you can even travel to Jigoku without wards... for a time"
[2:42 AM] MochaKimono: "I think we know where the beast abominations came from now too."
[2:44 AM] Fushichou: Aka tilts his head then grimace in pain and gets his head straight again massaging his neck "Probably but that doesnt solve our mission..."
[2:48 AM] MochaKimono: "We have to close the portal, or at least get rid of the fog... If something on the other side is holding it open we might be able to destroy it, or negotiate if it's a spirit or something, appease it somehow, find out why this is happening now all of a sudden and not before..." She sighs in mind frustration. "We'll get you something to keep you safe in there..."
[2:49 AM] Fushichou: Aka's smirks "A leash?"
[2:51 AM] MochaKimono: She snorts. "We already have rope so I guess we could rig something up if you want to try it. Did you feel... mentally yourself? Or did you change mentally too?"
[2:54 AM] Fushichou: "I... that was strange... I felt... iie I sensed a lot of different things and with the pain I cant say I was thinking... and the flames, I cant say I was still myself I guess"
[3:27 AM] MochaKimono: "Prolly better to put an anti shapeshifting spell on you then."
[3:31 AM] Fushichou: Aka chuckles "Unfortunetely I do not have that in store, do you?"
[3:42 AM] MochaKimono: "No... So am I supposed to drag you around on a leash?"
[3:43 AM] Fushichou: "I guess as long as that is not in the report I am ok with it..."
[3:44 AM] Fushichou: "But I would be more at ease if we get our hands on a ward just in case you turn as well..."
4:14 AM] MochaKimono: "Yeah... Know anywhere to get something like that?"
[4:39 AM] Fushichou: "I would guess all the major factions must have something like that up their sleeves and Mister Hadden probably have some wards or can craft some but I suspect there is something similar around here... may be you can try contact that medecine woman or the elder monk knew more than what he told us."
[4:42 AM] MochaKimono: "I'm not even sure the medicine woman exists anymore... But..." Pause. "She turned me - or sent me into the body of - an animal. Maybe there's a connection."
[4:42 AM] Fushichou: "May be you are warded then..."
[4:43 AM] Fushichou: "Have you tried turning into an animal?"
[4:46 AM] MochaKimono: "Not since we started the mission, no."
[2:08 PM] Fushichou: "Well may be you can try else you can always bind me and we go back"
[6:16 PM] MochaKimono: "I could try but I dunno how it'll help, besides being cool."
[1:24 PM] Fushichou: "Well I guess if you are tanuki and you shapeshift you cant shapeshift again... or something"
[5:14 PM] MochaKimono: "I'm just not sure how we can do anything over there if we're both animals... Or even one of us is."
[3:11 PM] Fushichou: "I dont know I am just trying to understand what happened I guess. What is sure is that people crossed this portal and that someone beyond that portal is doing something that affects this place."
2:47 PM] Fushichou: There is a crude stone structure around the well but it seems to be in disrepair as blocks of rock are shattered on the grassy ground. The fog is thick and seems to spawn on a broader surface than its Earth counterpart and despite the earplugs a distant drumming sound can be heard.

After a while the slope of a hill can be found, from there the whole scenery can be viewed by the alien onlookers for the first time. Above are more hills covered with scattered remains of trees, bellow in the valley hollow a thick fog covers all. The source of the fog, like a giant snake comes from a dark castle on one edge of the valley, its spiked towers reach for the crystal blue sky. The drumming sounds seems to come from that direction also.

His tongue out the black furred Were-Shiba Inu Aka looks at Vanessa with wet puppy eyes.
[5:10 AM] MochaKimono: Vanessa has the dog-version of Aka on a makeshift leash and body harness via the rope. Seeing he's not going feral and attacking her, she leads the way toward the castle. Straight to the source of the problems here...
3:55 PM] Fushichou: As she approaches the castle, with the Were-Shiba Inu Aka hopping left and right, she can better see what is going on: at the base of the castle huge pipes vomitting fog. Nearby the castle long lines of creatures, mostly wolfmen, carry crystal shards in makeshift bags on their backs. Along the line bigger creatures, bearmen in uniforms holding sledgehammer seem to be watching over them.
[8:11 PM] MochaKimono: "Definitely can't go unnoticed here unless I'm a furry too," Vanessa mutters in her mask. "Or fight them all..."

She tries circling around the castle looking for unguarded entrances.

"If there's no way in I'm gonna try to shapeshift... In case some of the old woman's mojo stuck with me..." She doesn't expect Aka to understand or respond, seemingly to be mumbling to herself.
[10:41 AM] Fushichou: The castle is huge and seems quite old and while there is alot of activies in the southern gates where the lines of workers go, the rest of the area does not seem watched by anyone. From time to time she can see a couple of wolfmen working at repairing the eastern wall, again under bearmen wardens. The northern wall for it's part is in dire disrepair and sneaking in seems the easiest way. Last but not least the western wall seemed to have seen recent restoration and that's where she sees the more bearmen, all and all so far she counted over 30 of them.
[10:43 AM] Fushichou: The Were-Shiba Inu Aka looks at her as she is mumbling but does not react in a special way, the only thing is that he is growling when they had been watching the western wall.
[5:06 AM] MochaKimono: Once a perimeter is done, Vanessa backtracks to the northern wall, and begins an attempt at sneaking in. She tries to stick close to any rubble, tree stumps or whatnot for better chances of cover. For this at least her heightened athleticism and grace make her much stealthier, able to move with light and quick precision to avoid making much noise. She just hopes that shiba-Aka doesn't start barking suddenly...
[4:06 PM] Fushichou: Sneaking in by climbing through the rubbles isnt that hard. The shiba-Aka follows her wiggling his tail as they climb inside. The view from inside the wall is even more dire as starving wolfmen lines go from the South to the center of the castle to one level square building obviously leading under the castle. Makeshift pipes lead from this building to the highest spire on the western wall. There are a couple of bearmen guards in front of the spire entrance armed with huge sickles but there are openings in the higher part of the tower though that might require some acrobatics.
[9:43 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa ties the rope around her torso to harness herself as well, then tucks up the doggo under one surprisingly strong arm, keeping one hand free. She then starts attempting whatever stealthy-but-acrobatic route she can to ascend, trying to parkour their way up without being seen.
3:34 PM] Fushichou: There is a "woof!" from shiba-Aka when she lifts him but by some luck or coincidence that doesn't attract any attention from the bearmen. Van makes a small jump to reach a cornice then using speed, strenght and grace she manages to reach up to a balcony. This is part of a room that seems to be filled with discarted papers with hand writings and schematics on it as well as some crude makeshift tools. Oddly enough there is a spare dirty white lab coat on straw matress.
[4:54 PM] MochaKimono: That... Is unusual enough for her to pause to creep closer, inspecting it for any nametags or insignia. She doesn't linger long however, either moving deeper in or returning to the balcony to ascend if there's a path to do so by.
5:18 PM] Fushichou: There is a nametag and an insignia on the coat '????? ??????' and a small red fist insigna. There is still way to go up with agility but there is also the room door. A glimpse after opening it reveals that the tower seems hollow, there is a round stairs and several level of promontories around a great tube of metal rising up to the tower top. A black glow pulsates from the top but from where she stands she can not see what emits it. There is a buzzing sound coming from the tube but she can hear faint voices coming from like two levels above her.
[8:14 PM] MochaKimono: ((I, fully able to read Cyrillic, am already amused at how badly Vanessa's going to interpret that))

"Nrop...b... Reohna..." she whispers, a few times, to help herself memorize it. She sets down Aka on his four feet again and goes through the door, cautiously ascending the tower with him in tow.
5:17 PM] Fushichou: shiba-Aka wiggles his tail again, looking quite happy to be on his four paws. He follows her as she goes upstairs. They dont cross anyone at the next floor but arriving at the stairs that leads to the second floors above them she can see two people discussing: one is... a bearman in lab coat and the other is none other than the commanding officer she had seen in her drug induced dream... what is odd beside that he is human, is that he did not seem to have aged from when she saw him.
Both seems to be in a heated discussion in russian and have no noticed them... yet.
[6:56 PM] MochaKimono: She'll dart past the door to keep going up the stairs if possible, if there's anywhere else to go up from there. If not then she looks for a place to duck aside and hide with Aka, in case the pair of potential hostiles leave the room.
[4:01 PM] Fushichou: She manages to dart upward as the two individuals are still discussing, reaching what seems to the the top of the staircases and the top of the tower. There she can see a huge dark crystal connected to the metal tube. That's the source od the pulsation.
[4:08 PM] MochaKimono: She watches it, and leans down to place a hand on the floor to feel its vibrations (still having earplugs in), trying to discern if there's any specific rhymth to the pulse.
[4:23 PM] Fushichou: She can sense that the pulsations are not harmonious, too fast too strong too chaotic, something is wrong.
[4:25 PM] MochaKimono: She circles the room, looking for any other clues, and seeing the crystal from all sides.
[4:36 PM] Fushichou: Observing the crystal better she can that it is not just resting on the tip of the tube but it is attached to it by broad wires etched with some inscriptions. The cables and wires seemed to be powering the crystal but to what end there is no clue there... did she see some drawings on the pages of the lab bearman?
[5:35 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa takes her shotgun and tries to smash the crystal with the butt of the weapon.
[1:34 PM] Fushichou: The first blow from her shotgun’s butt is not enough to dislodge the dark crystal but that’s certainly enough to make a loud sound. Her second attempts moves the crystal a bit out of its socket and swirling black energies start to leak from the disconnected cables then the Shiba-Aka barks and…
[1:34 PM] Fushichou: Initiate secret histories. Initiate the Wheel of Souls.
Among the places constructed by the builders in the time before time before time, Tengri served as storage area for unassembled souls. It was forgotten when the Age turned anew. A small cog but an essential one. The show must go on!
Rosa, rosa, rosam, animal, animus, anima. How many souls does it take to make a wolf? In this vast storage there is Temujin, he returned to Tegri with all his secrets and now the Red Hand wants to reap it all with its sickle. The wolf disguised as human wants to be the big bad Wolf. His name is Grigory but he does not want to watch he wants the power of the Wolf for himself.
Will you unleash the beast sweetling?
[1:34 PM] Fushichou: BANG BANG
She feels nothing at first then there is a red dot spreading over her left shoulder shirt and she feels an intense pain before her arm becomes numb.
She can see below the Red Hand commander aiming at her with his pistol and the bearman scientist rushing up the stairs while Shiba-Aka rushes to meet the beast man maw on.
8:10 PM] MochaKimono: "Shit," she mutters as the effort makes a loud noise, "shit," she hisses as the buzzing cuts through her senses briefly, "Shit!" she shouts as the bullet hits.

She wheels, braces the shotgun butt against herself awkwardly with only one working arm, and fires twice to empty the barrels at her attacker, aiming a little high to avoid hitting Aka with the scatter. She then drops the gun, letting it swing loose on its strap against her torso. As quickly as possible she draws one of her pistols and starts unloading it at the bearman.
[3:30 PM] Fushichou: The shotgun round does stop the bearman and hits the Red Hand Commander right in the face, turning his face in some bloody pulp as he is sent flying downstairs. Shiba-Aka rams into the bearman who in turn falls as she keeps firing at the scientist.
The bearman is groaning helpless with the shiba-Aka on top of him growling and there is a brief moment of calm.
The pain is still there, somehow the Bee didn't regen her... yet...
But then the Red Hand Commander stands again, his face is regenerating fast as he picks up his pistol...
[3:40 PM] MochaKimono: She uses that moment of calm to turn and keep bashing at the crystal, as well as she can with only one good arm.
3:49 PM] Fushichou: Ignoring the deadly aim of the Red Hand Commander, Vanessa smashes the dark crystal free of the cables... Grigory screams as yellow strands of energy emerges from his chest and dark strands of energies swirls in front of her as the crystal is about to fall down...
[3:51 PM] MochaKimono: She darts around to the other side of it, hoping it will shield her as she keeps smashing it; possibly inadvertantly tugging Aka along as she never un-tied the rope from either of their torsos.
[3:59 PM] Fushichou: She tugs shiba-Aka along as she turns and finally completly frees the crystal from its socket and it plummets down the tower, the dark energies going wayward and enwrapping the Red Hand Commander... he screams as he is turning him into something else... a vulture-like creature.
[4:03 PM] MochaKimono: She starts to run, shooting at the commander as she goes. "C'mon Aka! Come!" she calls.
4:24 PM] Fushichou: Shiba-Aka goes with her as she escapes to the balcony, oblivious of what may happen inside the tower... she can feel her left arm again even if her grip is weak still, she sees that she can probably tie her rope to the balcony and rappel down the scientist room.
But not oblivious for long as a powerful howl shakes the castle!
[4:27 PM] MochaKimono: She unties the harness from Aka and ties that end to the balcony instead, then grabs up the shiba-Aka in her good arm and rappels down to that room below and setting him down once inside. Quickly she tries to find those plans or papers she saw, grabbing whatever she can find and stuffing them into her pockets.
[4:43 PM] Fushichou: She grabs all the documents she can, outside the howling continues now with screamings... shiba-Aka barks as a shadow pass of the window... a large vulture with a crystal pendant around the neck tries to fly down and away from the tower.
[4:44 PM] MochaKimono: She runs to the window in time to see that... Draws her pistol and fires off the last of that one's ammunition at the vulture.
4:51 PM] Fushichou: She shoots at the vulture, did she miss or hit? At first nothing happens then the creature swoops down falling fast... as she looks at it falling she can see what is howling: a huge (10 feet tall) grey wolf is sending the bearmen flying left and right. All around in the castle there is havok as the wolfmen assault the less numerous bearmen.
4:53 PM] MochaKimono: She holsters the pistol to pick up Aka again, and works on rappeling down as far as she can.
4:56 PM] Fushichou: The battle still rages on as she gets down the tower with shiba-Aka.
[4:56 PM] Fushichou: Noone seemed to have noticed her going down.
5:02 PM] MochaKimono: Vanessa simply makes a run for the pond.
5:04 PM] Fushichou: ((you dont pick the crystal pendant? :smile:
[5:07 PM] Fushichou: The fog in the valley is still there and she has to wear her mask again and protects shiba-Aka's muzzle as she makes her way back to the pond.
[5:10 PM] Fushichou: On the other side the fog had disappeared but as she will learn from the monk, while she has been gone for less than a day, four weeks had passed there...
[5:10 PM] Fushichou: ((and I guess we can wrap up this with the report section.
[5:12 PM] Fushichou: ((while she had not used the power of the stew, I let you free to use it later or not as you see fit if you want to add a more 'foxy' element to Vanessa
[5:20 PM] Fushichou: ((also I didnt mention but Aka returns to human form... eventually :smile:
[5:24 PM] MochaKimono: ((oh oops. I suppose she would try to get the pendant if possible))
2:37 PM] Fushichou: ((sure thing, this is a crystalline https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vajra
[2:44 PM] MochaKimono: ((interesting... But yeah, I had no idea collecting it first was possible eheh))
[2:50 PM] Fushichou: ((no worries
[2:50 PM] Fushichou: ((also if you have any questions about that adventure now is the time
[2:53 PM] MochaKimono: ((she would ask the monk about the crystal, and also try to analyze the papers, but I'm guessing they're all in Russian so she would end up having Aka translate or just bringing them back to HQ. And hmm... What would the potion's power have done?))
[2:55 PM] Fushichou: ((unleash her animal spirit/totem as it were to allow her mmmh whatever you think is appropriate :wink:
[2:59 PM] Fushichou: ((the young monk would know nothing, after some research back home or asking the old monk it seems to be some mystical vajra that belonged to Temujin, secret lore history would dig that it had been recovered by a French Templar Agent https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandra_David-N%C3%A9el then lost again
[3:02 PM] Fushichou: ((the papers are in Russian indeed, and it seems to be theories about channeling anima - something similar to the Orochi Group current researches - it seemed that the Red Hand or at least that precise Commander Grigory had planned to harness Anima for himself in ways to enhance his body & create some army of beast men. There seemed that they found crystal storing souls in this world and they used technological and mystical ways to extract it.