Tannin's Journal - Monastery in the Mountains III

*29 Highsun*

One disaster after another. Those blasted Mugo Brothers, they had the *damned arrogance* to threaten an old man into a false accusation against us, and *worse*, that toothless bumpkin of a Mayor had the audacity to **believe them**. The fact that we brought a dead body down from that accursed place, covered in wounds, wasn't enough to convince her to take action against the Mugos'. I miss my old Masters. They might have looked down at me as a Goblin at first, but once I had some trust they listened to me. This gutless sow won't dare step out of line in front of those two because they're 'her people', or rather, *we're* not.

We didn't even have time to argue it over, not with her or the Mugo brothers. She demanded more evidence, and after challenging her over the Mugo's refusal to let anyone go up to collect said evidence, she allowed us to go (so gracious). We agreed to go to the temple and rest there, since the Mayor's adamant refusal to help us in any way had driven a proper wedge between her interests and ours. But before we could even leave, the so-called 'wind monster' by the name of Fuko arrived, bringing the tainting mists and more of those wretched little oni imps with him. Swallowing my desire to see the Mayor made sorry for her complete lack of sense, I looked to the rest, and we agreed to return to the people's defence. The Mugo brothers, initially, seemed to be doing their damned job. It wasn't until we were nearly done with the runts that they *turned tail and ran*. I want to find them, and I want to see what happens when you fire those cannons when halfway down their scrawny necks. Fighting Fuko was something else; he seemed to weather our hardest hits, failing to resist only Blaze's magical stones, which I helped him in properly administering to this overambitious maelstrom. Fuko nearly killed us, but with only myself, Blaze and Gigi standing, we saw him off, as his body broke down into a gaseous state and blew away on the wind.

I very nearly lost my temper fully when the dust settled. I ran to the Mayor's house with tears in my eyes for seeing four of my teammates hit the ground and nearly die, and this spineless wench of a self-proclaimed politician-come-mercenary-ass-kisser had the sheer gaul to accuse me of threatening her. I was loud, and I wanted her attention. I refuse to apologise for having a heated reaction after risking my life for her and her town. Until I get an apology she'll have no more of my help than is beneficial for those she speaks for.

*30 Highsun*

We were finally allowed to rest, and she earned some respite from my tongue by feeding us and allowing us to sleep in her home, even though Blaze's greatberries had seen to our hunger for the day. We left the next morning, hoping to catch Fuko before he could fully reconstitute himself, and clear the last of the temple out of those spectres.

The last part got done, at least. With less numbers, and some semblance of an idea of what to expect from this horrid place. After dealing with the ghosts residing within the corpses of murdered monks, Drago looked for clues as to their murderer's identity. What we found were a few valuables, and while it was clear we'd be able to use them better than the 'present' monks, I didn't feel comfortable in stealing. I offered the best I could; a prayer and some meagre offering from my own pocket. After searching the ground floor, we went down into the darkness, finding a large warehouse rife with junk. Junk and a pair of corpses, whose greed had been their end in the form of boobytrapped chests. My keen eyes, in the darkness, spotted a hidden doorway, and we continued on to what must have been Fuko's secret lair.

~~~~~~~~~

*3rd The Fading*

A Tsukumogami. That's what was down there. That's as far as we were willing to go, after it *ate* me and Drago. I nearly died in that thing's belly, and after I was pulled, unconscious, from that thing's corpse, we turned and left. We're not ready, and I hope Shibai can hold out until we are.