M10: Part 3

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Mission 10 - Part 2	Mission 10 - The Tea Party	
In the center of the harbor stands a large house, complete with a pagoda tiled roof and stones leading up to the entrance: this is where Yagami, leader of the guild headquarters in Sazanami, lives. He is home now, having flown back and forth between the warlords’ territories in an attempt to rescue the Aetherian citizens who’d come to his homeland. Pacing to and fro, the snowy owl is preoccupied with his worries -- so much so that he almost misses the shouts from outside.
: Yagami-sama! Open the door this instant, I wish to have a word!
: Is it in regards to your retirement, Ichikawa-sama?
: Hanako-chan? What are YOU doing here?
: … besides get insulted?
: O-Oh, I thought -- well, I was such good friends with your father, and I’ve watched you grow into the strong and lovely woman you are today, I thought it would be okay if I --
: Well it’s not.
: Then I am sorry, Masuyo-sama. Please, tell me why you are at Yagami-sama’s house.
: … I came to deliver a letter to him -- one that he would have taken to that foreigner king, Alaric.
Right on cue, Yagami answers the door, feathers fluffing out expansively at the sight of the two warlords on his doorstep… accompanied by their retinues of guards.
: And I will take that letter without delay, thank you Masuyo-sama, most appreciated. Now, if you wouldn’t mind --
: Wait a moment -- YOU were the one to abscond with the Aetherians?!
: Yes -- and right under your long, overly-moustached nose!
: Ah-ah, Masuyo-sama, there’s no need to --
: You had no right. These are my lands, and I have the power to govern them as I see fit.
: Yes, I know, and that’s the problem. You have already proven to be lax on your borders, since you’ve let these same foreigners onto our shores before. How can any of us trust a warlord who would knowingly open his harbor to strangers?
: The Shōgun does.
: Oh boy…
: Sure she does, you’re her favorite. But then, who doesn’t love a lapdog?!
The Samurott’s face crumples from confident to horrified; even Hanako appears to have been taken aback by her bold remark. But before either of them can come up with a reply, another voice sounds from the end of the street:
: YOU! SAWSBUCK! WE NEED TO TALK!
The Serperior king is madly slithering up the road, followed closely by Gawain. Ignoring Yagami’s vigorous head-shaking, Alaric goes up to Hanako and glares at her fiercely, his expression a mask of shadows.
: How DARE you kidnap my citizens without cause! You must release them -- NOW!
: And why should I? Your people came to Sazanami uninvited, unannounced, and unwanted. They forced my hand, hebi. To protect my people, I had to capture yours.
: We were not uninvited -- Yagami and the guild were happy to allow us into Sazanami to stop the fighting.
: It is true, Masuyo-sama. There has been much strife in our country, and since Alaric and his people have helped us in the past, it seemed only right to give them a chance to help again.
: Be that as it may, I for one do not think we need any assistance from outsiders -- especially ones that land on our shores in the dead of night. They will not leave my dungeons until appropriate recompense has been made, or until the Shōgun herself tells me!
: Haaaaaaaaaay, everyone! We made it out!
Hanako (and the others) whirl: Reilly is trotting up the street, leading the previously-captured Pokémon to the house. He pulls up to a stop beside Yagami and casts an accusatory hoof-point at Hanako.
: That was really mean what you did -- you shouldn’t have captured us!
: Hmph, I don’t need to answer to you... In fact, I don’t answer to any of you!
: That’s correct. You are under the Shōgun’s command -- and I’m certain that she would give King Alaric and his subjects her permission to help, given all that they’ve done for us in the past.
: She barely KNOWS them! They obviously cannot be trusted as they escaped my palace without waiting for their release! How can the Shōgun make a crucial decision like this WITHOUT the rest of the warlords’ approval?!
: Maybe because she’s the Shōgun -- or did you forget about that?!
Around the corner approaches the Toxicroak, accompanied by the other Pokémon who’d made the journey from Aether… and Prince Nicholas, unsuccessfully trying to hide behind Bon. Alaric quickly sees his disobedient son, shock momentarily coloring his cheeks; then the serpent king shakes off the surprise and gives a sage nod to the rest of the ‘mons.
: It is good to see all of you have arrived in one piece.
: Yeah, but what took you so long?
: …
: We, ah, got slowed down by these whirlpools and vortexes.
: … to think that the crown prince of Aether would put his life in such a risk, just to get back at his father…
: B-But Father, I -- !
: *sigh* … I only wanted to help…
: Your “help” is duly noted, and we will discuss what punishment awaits you for having disobeyed a direct order from your king...
: But that doesn’t matter right now. We are here, and we must help settle these petty disputes between the warlords and make Sazanami whole again.
: PETTY?! Is THAT what you think of us, outsider?!
: He is only trying to help, Hanako --
: If you call me ‘chan’ one more time, so help me --
: Please, everyone, be reasonable --
: By order of the Dragon Palace, enough!
All arguing halts as a Wartortle approaches the crowd, holding a white flag over his head. He gives the flag a little wave, making his intentions clear, before standing in their midst.
: Greetings. On behalf of Otohime-sama, I, Hoori, welcome King Alaric and his subjects to Sazanami, eager for his support in these trying times.
: You can’t be serious…
: Oh, I can, Masuyo-sama. The Aetherian citizens are delegates, brought here as emissaries by the guild, and thus should be considered honored guests of the Dragon Palace, not to be harmed in any way. Katsumi-sama has received news of this from Otohime-sama herself and given her approval on King Alaric’s and his subjects’ presence on the island.
: Thank you again for the last time you were here, Lord Alaric, your help was much appreciated. Otohime-sama is glad to have her brother and our patron deity back.
: It was our pleasure.
: Though I think we’d rather be tusslin’ with an outta-control Gyarados than these uppity warlords…
: We are pleased to hear of the Dragon Palace’s support. Does Otohime-sama have an idea on what to do in order to begin negotiations between the warlords?
: In fact, she does. In an effort to create peace, we will host a tea ceremony, inviting all of the warlords together under one roof. Once everyone has arrived, King Alaric and his people will discuss options with all of them, and choose which warlords to work with in order to strengthen the bonds between our countries.
: That sounds like a wonderful idea! I will gladly attend this summons -- and right now, I will tell you that I would be proud to serve alongside our Aetherian neighbors. I live to make Sazanami a better place, and I would do whatever it takes to keep her safe.
: Of course you’d say that, you spineless fool…
: Pardon?
: Nothing. I will go to this party as well… though I am sure you know perfectly well how I feel about these… “neighbors”…
: Ahem, so, Hoori-san, where will this tea ceremony take place, and when?
: Minoru Sho has a wonderful plot of land with a tea house big enough to host everyone. There are also various gardens and a pond on the grounds, so our guests can mingle outdoors.
: Oh sure, back to the place we just came from!
: Still, I guess it’s not all bad…
: I must admit, I am not overly fond of the location of this ceremony. True, Sho-san has a great love for tea, but is his territory safe for the Shōgun? I hear that there are some unscrupulous ‘mons that his soldiers cannot track causing mischief.
: I can understand your reluctance, Ichikawa-sama, but Minoru-sama’s lands are the closest to the Shōgun’s palace. Not to mention, the Hariyama himself is neutral in many of the disputes plaguing this land.
: Besides, Otohime-sama will provide some of her handmaidens to channel her power in order to keep people calm during the ceremony. With them around, nothing will happen to the Shōgun.
: Well, then I suppose it’s okay. As long as Otohime-sama’s power can be felt.
: There will be little doubt about that. We will even provide appropriate tea ceremony apparel for your subjects, King Alaric, courtesy of the a tailor we invited from Chanyu.
: Ah, yes, Sara-san would be most pleased to create attire for you. I will make sure to introduce her later this evening.
: Sounds like a plan. Thank you, Hoori, for coming forward with this opportunity; we will make sure to make the most of it.
----
IMPORTANT NOTE
The sea routes are no longer closed off! Those who were unable to make a placeholder for part 1 may now have their characters make their way out to Sazanami. Yori will be returning to Artiphron to pick up anyone still willing to lend a hand in the mission’s effort. Your character will be safe upon arriving and will be escorted out to where Alaric and the others are. So if you are just now joining in on this mission, depict your character riding out to Sazanami with Yori.
MISSION GOAL:
Attend the party, and talk to all the guests you can so we can decide, as a group, which warlords we trust to help save Sazanami from itself. The tea ceremony will run much like the wedding ball event we had earlier this year, except with less rooms to explore and more time to complete it. More information on the specific tea party event can be found here:
Tea Party Journal
Congratulations for escaping the dungeon -- now it’s time to relax. Enjoy the party!
((shoutout to VrikrarVictorious for predicting this 3 months ago. How do you do it, lobsterman, how do you do it?))
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Mission 10 - Part 2	Mission 10 - The Tea Party	
Category:Missions
Category:Arc 1
Category:Sazanami
Category:Live Event