Entering His Realm

Gathering / Conference

Perhaps some time had passed, or perhaps Hakutaku had seen to that in her own subtle way. Regardless, when Knight Commander Maxim arrived back on the deck of the Matsumoto Black Galleon, he found the two guard dogs still there waiting for him. Both Gamou Terukazu and Jirōuemon were grudgingly willing to let him in now. Not because they thought he had any business being there—Maxim still reeked of suspicion to both of them—but because orders had come down from the ship's owner that he was to be let through.

Be that as it may, Maxim didn't know what might await him under the deck of this ship. It had borne an envoy of chaos into his realm. What other terrors could lurk beneath? Jirōuemon offered to guide him to "The Door," whatever that meant, but Maxim made the decision that Terukazu was coming to. The surly Kushin disagreed. His job was to guard the ship when he wasn't delivering messages, and it was a task he took seriously. When Maxim stepped up to Terukazu and grabbed him by the front of his armor, easily lifting him into the air, the situation changed. It turned out he'd be accompanying them after all, his relatively squat form tucked tidily under Maxim's arm.   The interior of the galleon was...not what Maxim had been expecting. Rather than a ship's hold, the room before him more resembled a gambling hall. Opulent gold ornamentation wound its way around the wooden walls, framing a red-carpeted floor boasting several different game tables. There was even a hostess. At least, that was the only thing that came to mind for the curious bee-like-girl who welcomed Maxim's group below as honored guests.   Shō Hachiya, for that was her name even if Maxim was not to know it, was happy to lead them to The Door and welcome them to its other side. The only sour note in their otherwise bubbly interaction was a slight tinge of resentment in her voice when she spoke of Maxim meeting the lord of this ship. Apparently that was an honor reserved for few. Of course, Maxim had only been here a short time, and he'd already met with a number of rogue characters who seemed to be doing whatever they liked. It was becoming obvious that the Black Blade did not take a greatly active hand in managing the vessel.   Meanwhile, the Black Blader herself* (at least for the moment) was entering a bath house in the Mirror Palace Gardens. Shōjō and Okājo were both still with her* and both seemed eager to dip into the hot, placid pool that lay within. Upon request, Fubuki conjured for Shōjō a bathrobe (which the girl just wore over her clothes anyway) and let them loose. Predictably, the younger of the two dove straight in while Okājo took her time slouching over to the water's edge. With one foot extended into its depths, the golden sheen on her skin melted away immediately, revealing porcelain skin beneath.   That was the last that Fubuki saw. For reasons of her* own, or perhaps just privacy, the Black Blade manifested a wall around herself* to separate from the other bathers. There seemed to be some splashing and shouting on the other side, but that sounded like Not Fubuki's Problem.   Elsewhere, Maxim passed beyond The Door, where things made even less sense. After traveling through a curtain of shimmering liquid (which didn't leave him wet but did make Terukazu sneeze) he found himself in what looked quite like an expansive palace garden. The palace itself rose up against a starry sky ahead of him, but the moon wasn't in the same position as it'd been above deck. Indeed, even the air here seemed a different temperature. It was warmer, with a hint of dew on the air. These inconsistencies aside, there was no way this entire palace garden could possibly fit into the belly of a galleon. Maxim put it down to magic.   Fortunately, his host had given him enough instructions to find his destination: the bathhouse. His companions Shishikura Makiko and Kitsuno followed behind with Jirōuemon as Maxim took point. Nothing more chaotic than a light breeze assailed him as he traversed the grounds, fortunately. Arriving at what could only be the bathhouse from the steam rising above its room, Maxim steeled his will and opened the door.   Inside, the expansive room with a pool at its center seemed to be empty at first. Empty except for a slight golden sheen on the water and a pair of empty bathrobes floating, forgotten, at its surface. On the opposite side of the door, a portion of wall stuck out at an odd angle. That slice of wall soon disintegrated as the Black Blade beyond heard his visitors enter. What was revealed was not Fubuki, but rather a great Sable Fox, nearly the size of a horse. When the sleek beast spoke, some of the crowd might have been surprised. Maxim was not. He'd had the pleasure of seeing this particular form during the White Rabbit Bowl. Why the Black Blade had chosen it now was a mystery, but perhaps the least mysterious he'd encountered so far.   Regardless, the Sable Fox welcomed its guests and offered them a bath. That was, of course, not why Maxim had come. Before moving on to actual matters, however, he thought it might be prudent to figure out where the two people obviously missing from the baths had gone. Evaine managed to pick up some splattered footprints leading out the door they'd just come through, so Maxim offered to take up the chase. Somehow, the Fox seemed entirely unconcerned, however. With a flick of one of its many tails, Shōjō appeared in a brief flash of light next to the others.   She was soaked down to the skin, although mercifully still fully clothed. More pressingly, a fluffy white cat was latched onto her face, eliciting a series of yelps and cries as it scrabbled around. The Sable Fox conjured a fish, which the white cat leaped for and gobbled down before jumping right back onto Shōjō's head.   Maxim tried not to let the rising chaos in this chance-blighted place to distract him from his true mission. Forcefully turning a blind eye to whatever was happening with Shōjō over there, he finally broached the subject. A trade deal. Something between The Wolfpack and the Black Blade's flying galleon. It would benefit both of them and strengthen bonds of trust between allies at the same time. That is, if they could trust each other. The Sable Fox seemed to believe that they could. It promised that they would sign an agreement, with someone from the Matsumoto side journeying to Ago Manor in the morning.   In fact, the Sable Fox mused, they had someone of Maxim's on board now. A trader from Baharna. She'd come here on business with Tanahase Muramatsu, but these days, that meant business with Maxim by extension. The Black Blade would ensure that she made it to the Manor after dawn broke as well.   While they spoke, a girl with dark hair and shining eyes entered the room. She stalked over, grabbed the cat off of Shōjō's head, and muttered something about a premonition before leaving just as quickly. None of this interrupted Maxim and the Fox's discussion, but it did leave Shōjō suddenly free to take in the burly foreign beauty before her. She volunteered a bit too quickly to be the one to take care of all that business in the morning. Perhaps fortunately, the Sable Fox ignored her.   Despite the chaos that seemed inherent in this strange realm, Maxim had accomplished his mission. A trade deal with a truly unique power. Now, perhaps he could leave and return to the land of sanity.