Side Adventure The Quill and The Straightedge

[Kaii Nashirou]

It wasn't long before Kaii could walk again. His wounds apparently were not that severe, he just lost a lot of blood. Of course, that didn't mean he should be walking so quickly after returning from the island of Urk. Barrett told him at least seven times he is supposed to rest and recover until the pain in his stomach won't subside. Naturally the chirurgeon couldn't believe the Marble Fox's word for it. Even when Kaii did his absolute best to suppress the pain to the point where it was not even an inconvenience.

But the old beast too had to sleep from time to time. Kaii used that time to get up, put on his shirt to cover many bandages Finn diligently put all over him and then stepped out of infirmary. There was no attempt made at stealth for now. His movements were confident, efficient and purposeful. It wasn't long till he got back to his cot and retrieved his tools of trade. Finally, for the first time since he awoke, his expression shifted from stoic one. That is because now he could sate the horrid lust for knowledge that built up within him.

It wasn't just his Mind, nor his Emotions willing him to act. He himself had to know everything about the Idol they have retrieved. He would be damned if he didn't at least try to do so. Aside from pang of sadness his twin sister couldn't partake in this mystery, Kaii felt nothing but inquisitiveness and conviction. Yet he wouldn't dare to take this Idol. More so, he swore deep to himself to sooner give life than let it be damaged in any way. He spilled blood and watched his shipmates die for it, thus he was responsible for keeping it safe to honour their tragedy.

Now moving again through the ship, Kaii made sure to avoid as many crew members as he could. It wasn't too difficult, combination of the current time, fact that so many beasts were lost and the rest were mourning, those made for good circumstances for the task ahead of him. After a bit of investigation, he found where the Idol was. Still under the cover Darragh put over it, still with the words of caution for any beast to bother. Superstitions were strong among sailors. That is what Kaii have observed quickly. That is why there wasn't anyone in the room right now possibly.

Kaii thus took out his tools, spread them over the floor around him and slowly sat down upon the worn planks. His wounds flared up, he hissed quietly at the sudden spike of pain he wasn't prepared for. After stilling it and making sure there was not a single beast around him, he reached out to remove the cover from the Idol.

And then he observed it. Sense based observation was the first part of empiric process of understanding the world around. Kaii started with sight, meticulously gauging each crook, curve and engraving. The Idol had artistic value, even if it was looking eerie. Probably on purpose though. After this part was done, yielding only few observations about what tools must've been used to chisel this chunk of metal, alongside its colour, texture and noticing what probably was rust, Kaii noted it all into his notebook.

And after a moment filled with naught but rustling of a pencil over the paper, Kaii finally turned his attention to the Idol. His gaze was filled with childlike wonder. He was also genuinely smiling, widely, accompanied with wagging of his tail. There was no greater joy for him than learning the unknown. After a moment of adoration for this piece of art. The time has come for the most important experiment of this whole process. He wiped his left paw clean, making absolute sure there was nothing on it that could soil the metal or leave any marks. Then he retracted his claws as much as he could. He would himself take upon his oath, were he to damage this Idol. And with very very slow movements, he started to reach towards the idol, aiming to feel it for himself.

@Darragh Harper

 

[Darragh Harper]

The past two (or was it three?) days had been a welcome exhaustion for Darragh. All the voices in his head had quietened to tired murmurs, as critical task after important duty crammed the stoat’s waking hours. The Hide’s steam engine was still on the blink after that trick they’d played on the shrews, and with both engineer’s mates nursing injuries, Darragh found himself fetching and carrying more belowdecks, in between Doctor Barrett collaring him as often as he could for Infirmary business. On top of which, Darragh was still earning his keep aloft in the rigging, and with fewer paws to each watch, the helmsbeast had even tested him out on steering. Apparently, you either had a knack for the helm or you didn’t, and though it would probably be a long time before Darragh could take such a position, there was no harm in finding out early on if he had a helmsbeast’s paw.

The urgency of his duties had dwindled however, as the Hide and her crew adjusted back to life underway at sea. Eventually, Darragh had time for some much-needed laundry, with a few bloodstained items in need of a good soak in lye, then a wash in soap, and a good beating with a wooden paddle to get the dirt out. The white shirts were starched stiff for the iron, and blued slightly with smalt, which, paradoxically to Darragh’s mind at least, made them whiter. Once they’d been hung up, dried, and de-wrinkled with a hot iron, Darragh could finally keep his promise to Kaii. He’d kept the noble fox’s beautiful silver waistcoat buttons safely wrapped in a rag and buried at the bottom of the little sea-chest he’d been assigned for his personal belongings. He never took them out to look, in case covetous eyes spotted their shine, but he’d reached a paw in and felt for the bundle before going to sleep each night, to make sure they hadn’t moved.

The buttons had gotten smudged, which Darragh easily fixed with some polish, which the ship had on hand for buttons, belt-buckles and weapons. Darragh had known how to sew a button before he’d joined the Navy, and it was a trivial matter to pick out the old torn threads, and sew in the new ones with a small needle. Kaii’s waistcoat was finer cloth than he was used to working with, but the Hide’s stores included material for the repair of officer’s clothes, and it was no trouble finding a thread to match the dark blue waistcoat. Darragh allowed himself a weary smile, holding up the garment to inspect it cleaned, ironed, with gleaming buttons restored. Fit for a handsome and dapper gentletod, he thought.

Folding the waistcoat neatly, Darragh spread out the clean rag he’d held the buttons in. He looked around surreptitiously, checking the coast was clear of any nosy beasts, before digging another item out of his sea-chest. It was a battered round tin, with no label. This had been costly on the under-decks black market. Though it was considered poor taste to talk about collecting souvenirs from the Urk expedition, given its bloody conclusion, the fact remained that as an unofficial Infirmary assistant often tasked with keeping Barrett’s little ward clean and tidy, Darragh had come into possession of more than a few shrew arrow and spear heads. Even though they appeared as little more than chipped stones, even an apprentice craftsbeast could see the skill needed to knap the stones into their deadly sharp teardrop shapes.

Ignorant of the ultimate value such items might have to whatever academics were studying cannibal shrews of all things, Darragh traded most of them away, except one decently large specimen he supposed he might show his family. He could do better than a nasty old reminder of the battle as a gift of apology for Kaii, though. Darragh still felt awfully guilty about his mishandling of the fox’s medical treatment during the battle. In the absence of any practical understanding of bedside manner, the little stoat had attempted to fill the boots of a certain big, gruff pine marten, with rather disastrously un-doctorly conduct resulting. Kaii, who had instantly been a friend to Darragh and encouraged him to stand up to a bully when he was being hazed. Kaii, who had shown them all the meaning of loyalty as he had fought for his friends and comrades. Darragh hated the idea that he had let Kaii down, even betrayed his trust as he’d tried and failed to care for him in his time of need. The poet was determined to make amends and right this wrong.

The Mysterious Tin safely wrapped in the rag, Darragh carried his gifts down to the Infirmary. It was sensible to go at this hour, the stoat preferred fewer beasts prying into his business, and this was quite a personal matter. Besides, he doubted Kaii could sleep in that awful cramped room, though thankfully it was not as wall-to-wall crowded as it had been in the first couple of days at sea. Some beasts were well enough to return to their own hammocks and light duties. Others, unfortunately, could only be made as comfortable as possible, until their time came. It had felt harsh and unfair that some of their mates had escaped the battle of Urk alive, only to finally lose the battle with their injuries before they could see home again.

It did not take long for Darragh to confirm that Kaii was missing from the Infirmary. He couldn’t blame the fox, this place was a den of misery, bad smells, and unpleasant moaning noises all through the day and night alike. Doctor Barrett had of course made his orders quite clear to both Kaii and Darragh. Kaii was to remain in bed, and Darragh was to make sure that certain stubborn foxes remained in bed where they belonged. Yet, if Darragh were to really think about these instructions, it was clear the spirit of them did not quite match the wording. Doctor Barrett wanted Kaii to feel better, and Kaii would definitely feel better after taking a stroll. Darragh ought to find him of course, just in case Kaii needed help evading an angry pine marten getting back if he got tired.

Though the ship’s foxes seemed to take an unusual interest in seeking solitude in the crow’s nest, Darragh decided he could rule out the ship’s rigging in his search for Kaii. The stoat sneaked about belowdecks instead, ruling out one room after another. He briefly wondered if Kaii had sought out the company of his fellow foxes - he had heard wild rumours that they all slept in a big bushy-tailed pile sometimes, but had never witnessed it as fact. Yet that seemed hardly credible right now, since he suspected from the candle-glow under the door to Silvertongue’s quarters that the poor overworked Aide-de-Camp was burdened with even more duties than before.

You know where he is.

Darragh felt a cold chill run up his spine, his paw frozen as it reached for the door to the galley.

You know he’s not in here. Sneaking into the galley to stuff his face is not a Kaii Nashirou thing. That is a you thing. He’s not eating, wistfully stargazing or writing melancholy poems, he is not like you. Imagine you are an engineer, lying awake at night with nothing but your thoughts to distract you from the pain inside you and the misery surrounding you. Where might your mind wander?

The room storing the Idol was nominally intended to be guarded. Yet there was hardly a marine left alive or able to stand to do said guarding, and it had become fairly obvious that the crew preferred to avoid what was supposed to be an artifact of pure evil, which had given whoever touched it a temporary bout of insanity. Of course, touching the Idol was exactly what Darragh found Kaii about to do, as he poked his head warily around the door. The marble fox’s tail was wagging, and he was smiling, smiling like he and the stone wolf were old friends.

“Don’t try it!” Darragh blurted out.

Darragh wasn’t sure who he was addressing - Kaii, or the Idol that seemed to have bewitched him? Perhaps both. The stoat checked over his shoulder, making certain he hadn't caught anybeast's attention, then surreptitiously slunk the rest of the way inside, and closed the door.

“Sorry to startle you, Mr. Nashirou,” Darragh quickly apologised in a hushed tone. “I just… erm. I was lookin’ for you.”

 

[Kaii Nashirou]

As soon as the first sound, not even full word, of Darragh's voice came to Kaii's ears, his expression instantly changed. By the end of the first blurt, there was no sign at all that the marble fox was ever smiling, his tail swaying so slowly now, it was impossible to say it was even moving. Truly, for a beast that was unable to control himself fully at times, Kaii was a master of controlling his emotional state. To the point where it almost seemed he could at demand turn them off or on. He, In fact, could do so. Such was the ability he got after years of suppressing his own feelings.

And the reason why he did so right now? Simply put, he needed to be quiet and not to worry with social endeavours for some time. His mind was already strained as it was. There was a lot he had to talk about with other foxes, with the Captain, with the Chirurgeon, even with the Minister once he awakes. Darr was... also someone he had things to explain with. And while he by no means wanted to escape such conversation, knowing it was needed, Kaii would rather have time to prepare for it. Now, he had to break the small joy of discovery that was one of the very few things left capable of setting his soul ablaze, as well as having to deal with the Stoat that assaulted him.

Kaii didn't speak, nor made any sound at all. He didn't feel too willing to converse. Not because he was mad at Darr. He did the reasonable thing for the most part. It was right to save someone else's life, no matter how much they are against it. Kaii just didn't value his own life as much as others. Not enough to justify being saved against his own will. Still, he was in a way proud of Stoat's action. The one thing that drew his ire was the fact that Kaii hadn't said a word about not wanting to take the tonic. To him, Darr, after hearing that Kaii asked for writing untensils, instantly decided it wasn't worth talking and just jumped his weakened body. That was the illogical and irresposible thing that Kaii was upset about with Darr. After all, even if the circumstances were less then ideal, Kaii just came back after fighting the horde, helping to take own the giant shrew and taking wounds for others. There was no need for making his situation worse, espesially as altruism and kindness were logically sound, as per evolutionary theorems Kaii was familiar with. Overall, that he got such treatment after helping the stoat? It painted Darr as not someone worth of his effort. Yet Kaii was too sensible to fall into pit of hatred based on just that one mishap.

After a moment of heavy silence. Kaii took a deep breath in and out. It hurt his chest, but it was but a mild inconvienence. He very slowly turned to Darr, his gaze empty, his muzzle emotionless. Said movement, while quiet, due to the silence, filled the room as if two grindstones were turning against one another. Finally Kaii was looking at Darr, albeit he looked like a statue more than a living being. There was no hatred, no dissapointment, no real negative emotions in his act. But it was that because there were no emotions at all. Kaii wished to return back to his experiment as soon as it was possible, dealing with Darragh was just a task to be fulfilled before he could return to his work.

"And you have found me." Kaii finally cut through the quiet with his regular, deep tone. "My apologies but I was busy with taking measurements. What is it, that you have the need for me?" Kaii asked while picking up a compass, opening it widely and delicately moving his paw, taking out his claws to move the screw between its legs that let him set it to precise width that he wanted. He did so while still looking at Darr, expecting to learn why he was here. Kaii of course had ideas why he would be here, but still he needed to be sure before saying a word more.

With primed device, Kaii turned to the idol again, delicately putting it around the head, then using the screw to tighten it. As soon as he felt the resistance, he stopped and pulled his paws with the tool back and setting it on paper, marking the width and measuring it with a ruler. His ears were still turned to Darr, awating his words while he worked quickly and precisely. His movements were almost mechanical and with them, a small wag returned to his tail as once more Kaii was happily working on what he truly enjoyed.

 

[Darragh Harper]

Darragh felt his hackles prickling up, as Kaii turned to stare at him. Coming from a large family with many siblings, Darragh naturally had the one brother that was Into Bugs. The look that Kaii was giving him reminded Darragh very much of the way his brother looked when pinning a bug to a corkboard. It wasn’t disgust, nor fiendish glee, nor hatred of the creature that had, until that moment, been nothing but a nuisance as far as Darragh was concerned. It was a sort of careful disinterest, in which there was some subtle satisfaction only in the classification and categorisation, and the macabre presentation of the dead bug. The bug itself though was nothing more than a vehicle to those other joys. In itself… it was just a dead bug.

Kaii picked up a spindly device, and started twisting its knob. With a start, Darragh realised the tool had needle-point ends. An image flashed in his mind, of a little stoat pinned on a cork-board, while a giant marble fox peered down at him, blue abyssal eyes staring in detached curiosity. Darragh shivered.

“I, um…” Darragh got as far as mumbling, before his dry throat forced him to swallow. Kaii was poking around the idol with his needle-thing, scribbling notations, and drawing lines on paper. What was all this? Kaii said he was 'taking measurements', but Darragh's mind had trouble taking that at a literal, face value, especially when it didn't look like any kind of measurement-taking he was accustomed to. All the shiny, unfamiliar tools and Kaii's precise ruler-markings looked so mysterious and geometrical… was it some kind of occult practice? He and a few other kits had had an ‘Evil Wizards’ phase one summer, drawing silly magic circles and made-up spooky symbols to summon spirits to do their bidding. It had all devolved into the kits casting curses on each other, but also layering themselves in ‘spirit shields’ and counter-curse wards. Then the adults had caught on and introduced the Rod of Discipline as the ultimate spell to make the budding magicians’ paws sting.

Darragh could not help it, he had to see what was going on. He crept forward for a peek at Kaii’s annotated measurements. Was this a bigger secret than Darragh had ever suspected? Kaii had joined the Hide’s crew the very same day Darragh had, he remembered passing the marble fox in Captain Ryalor’s quarters. If he had been a minute earlier, might Darragh have overheard the true reason such an intellectual gentlebeast was being brought on board? Was Kaii’s rank and role as an Engineer’s Mate actually a cover to avert suspicion? When in fact… Kaii was an occult researcher all along, here to uncover the secrets of the Idol, for the sinister purposes of the Ministry of Innovation!

A vast conspiracy, with occult magic and a spooky barbaric idol from the furthest corner of the world! It’s just like all the pulps! Incredibly dangerous, we’ll probably accidentally summon a horrid giant squid monster to devour us all as an ironic punishment for our ambition. It would be a shame to be left out of the adventure though…

Kaii’s question forgotten, Darragh squinted closer at the Definitely-Occult-Research. He knelt outside the circle of tools that Kaii had spread around himself, which only helped enhance the impression the poet had of some mysterious ritual being carried out in secret.

“What does it mean?” Darragh asked, nodding towards Kaii’s work. He tried to keep his voice steady. Nonchalant, even. Black magic? Tch. As if Darragh was scared of that. He had poetry on his side, and also his fists. He was just curious, that’s all. Just detached, academic curiosity.

Like he was studying a dead bug.

 

[Kaii Nashirou]

Kaii couldn't help but slightly raise a brow hearing the stoat's question. Rationally, he expected an apology, a lashout, maybe just a conversation that Darr sought to soothe his anxiety. The marble fox would comprehend those actions in a regular beast. The question broke that line of thought. It wasn't the first time Darr surprised Kaii. But he knew that no matter how many social interactions he will study, there will always be an exception. RIght now, there was one.

In another world, Kaii at this time of his life would most likely take pride in tutoring younger family members and partaking in scientific pursuits with his kin. Reality made sure it was impossible, but Kaii had that spark still. After all, to pass down knowledge is the ultimate goal of all life, at least per the treaties of some philosophers he read in the past. It did however feel like a noble goal, one that Kaii wished to pursue, not because anyone expected it of him, nor because he expected it of him. Just because he enjoyed it.

As such, his eyes softened, his stern, empty gaze replaced with embers of joy. No matter his opinion of Darr, both the fact he could continue his scientific exploration and an audience to share his observations with, put him into a good mood again. Once more, as if controlled by a switch, his expression brightened, his ears perked up, his tail was wagging again. Corners of his maw perked up just enough to be on the verge of stoicism and smiling.

"It isn't much so far. I am measly taking dimensions of this idol to approximate its volume. I have no idea if it is made of one material and I can see some rust, but without ability to put it into water to have more precise measurement of volume through Ourámedes law, I am stuck with having to measure dimensions, using integrals and hoping my estimations are correct. Tedious, but important process. One that will allow me to then weight the idol, find the density and compare to other known metals and alloys. I have suspition this is may be just a metal that is not yet properly described. And if so..."

Kaii finally broke his explanations, they were all done with meticulous and precise gestures of his pencil over his writings so for, with a small tap of the tip on the exact elements he was mentioning. But as soon as he took a small pause in his elaborations, he moved to touch the Idol, putting his pawpad on the nose of the statuette.

It was in fact warm. Tingly just a small bit. But it was warm.

Kaii words have died in his throat. Just for a moment. His pupils expanded as he took upon this wonder. He was in no way as talented as his sister, but he had learnt enough about her field of interests to know that heat meant energy.

That statue, this metal... They were letting out energy.

Suddenly the room had filled with thuds of Kaii's tail over the floor. This was monumental discovery. If the process were to be understood... even if only confined to this metal. It was a natural source of energy confined and yet strong enough to generate heat. Kaii's mind instantly saw the possibilities. Why burn coal when you can heat up water with this? Could it be used to generate the current? It was a form of energy too.

He took back his paw after just a few seconds, yet to Kaii, understanding of the world just changed by at least a century. Even his most brazen ideas like making a flying wheel powered with electricity, ones that were absolutely impossible dreams, were nothing to the potential this metal had.

"..If so." The marble fox finally spoke again, remembering the stoat by his side, while taking notes rapidly. "We might have the future on our paws. Just as coal now powers the engines we make, this... this may power the world of tomorrow."

 

[Darragh Harper]

Whatever it was that Kaii was doing, Darragh at least was sure it had been the right question to ask. The words tumbled over the poet, precisely articulated, but with an underlying excitement that buoyed Darragh’s mood and banished his apprehension. He had no idea what integrals were, of course, but it sounded good and intelligent, if a bit difficult to rhyme. Unthinkable, unprintable, unsinkable integrals of a hunk of minerals? He really ought to ask Kaii what integrals were, or dimensions, or alloys or… really what Kaii had meant at all. At least Darragh was now sure there was something a bit mystical going on. He’d never heard a name so clearly belonging to a magician as ‘Ourámedes’.

Everybeast that touched the Idol seemed to have a different reaction to it. In Swifttail it had produced panic, in Silvertongue it had sparked a flare of anger. When Kaii touched the Idol, Darragh tensed, expecting the fox to leap up or shout out like the others had. At first, it seemed like Kaii was frozen, his deep blue eyes almost staring through the black wolf’s pitiless carved ones. Then…

Darragh really did startle, as Kaii’s tail began to beat the deck! Excited fox!! In his surprise, Darragh almost dropped his bundle, but caught it just as quick. This was about as thrilled as Darragh had ever seen Kaii, and it made the stoat want to jump and let off energy himself, if he wasn't trying to keep quiet and secret. Clasping the folded waistcoat and rag-wrapped tin in his small white paws, Darragh stared in bewilderment as the spell over Kaii seemed at once to break, and the fox resumed his sentence where he’d left off.

The poet had a lively imagination, to put it mildly, but even he had to frown at the mental picture that this scientist and visionary was painting. This Idol, this grim black stony icon of a wicked spirit, was the future? Darragh pictured every home in the Imperium with a miniature little black wolf sitting in the stove, or glowering at a wealthy beast’s guests from atop a mantelpiece. Wolf Idols ever present, from the bedrooms of the young to the halls of power, constantly watching, baring their teeth and grinning maliciously at their unsuspecting owners. Or perhaps this would be the only Idol, and the Ministry of Innovation would build a huge menacing black temple with ominous spiky towers and a monstrous domed roof to house it. They would criss-cross the city with a vast network of steam pipes, spreading like a thousand tentacles from the temple, and nobody would be allowed to cook with coal or firewood ever again. They would have to eat everything steamed. It sounded like the beginning of some hideous, false religion. Would they become the Lupine Imperium instead, its citizens chained to dependence on black magic for heating and cooking?

“Mr. Nashirou, I would guess it’s no mistake that the Idol is shaped like a wolf. The symbolic power of such a beast parallels its actual power in this world o’ the material,” Darragh observed. His choice of vocabulary shifted as he tried to match Kaii in sounding erudite and learned. “How do we account for the shrews bein’ capable of creatin’ such a thing? They didn’t seem like the integral estimatin’ types. Unless… they weren’t the ones that made it? I heard rumours… I mean… we both saw what had happened to Captain Ryalor…”

Darragh hesitated to say more. There had been a lot of talk about what had killed most of Captain Ryalor’s expedition and virtually torn the old fox, himself a formidable and celebrated warrior, nearly to shreds. Given Darragh’s inclusion into the cloistered world of the Infirmary, he himself was almost sick to death of being asked the same question in hushed tones.

Had they found any wolf’s teeth buried in Captain Ryalor’s flesh?

 

[Kaii Nashirou]

Kaii noted the observation. He wasn't as much aware about any rumours though. So far he had only heard that the Duke was mauled. That of course didn't take much brainpower to figure out. Not after he saw his mangled body at the boat before he passed out. As such, he was somewhat aware about what could have possibly happened to them. Even if they were (as he had heard) an amazing fighter, the Duke was bested and damaged beyond what was normal or seen among any other crew member. If anything it looked as if that giant shrew from before hit him multiple times and bit or clawed. Still, Duke should've been more powerful than that.

But, the assumption that that Darr had made was very much correct. There was obvious symbolism there. One that was unmistakable considering the strength of the wolfs. The shrews, being even smaller and less developed civilisation-wise than average fox of the Imperium, definitely could've seen those beasts as godly. Superstitions were always more common and far stronger among uneducated. It wasn't their fault, as without introduction to scientific method, there was no way for them to actually know how to avoid them and potentially. That is why education, especially public one, was important in his mind.

Anyways, for now there were two questions at paw to consider. Firstly, he had to check for hardness of this material without damaging it. That way, he could at least make an educated assumption about what the shrews could've possibly used. Secondly, he would have to catch up on what those Shrews were capable of technologically. Only then he could consider the thesis about someone else making them.

"Valid observations and questions Darr. Yet I have to say, aside from the fact that indeed it was made as a parallel, one that may speak of shrews perceptions of power, have no ways of defining if they were capable or not in making it. At least not without damaging it slightly. And I would not come to early assumptions that there was something or someone else behind it. Unless it is a leftover from some ancient civilisation that has been long gone? My limited, yet adequate knowledge about the world's history and present does not give me an idea who would posess such material and work on it in such way. Still, very good questions to ask!"

The marble fox spoke while gesturing generously, accenting his each word with at least a tiny sway of his paws. He seemed elated and in fact he was. Not only he was concluding science, he also did find someone to share the process, not just results, with. Kaii decided now that it would be for the best to also consider more social and historical matters that come along with this idol. They too, were important for a proper researching process. And while he himself was in no way good at those, a poet, someone with large family and possibly good understanding of relations, would be much more suited...

Continuing taking some more measurements, and finally moving to to scribbling ungodly equations and math that bordered on insanity, solving them with only slight slowdown, Kaii was now more focused, his tail was still wagging but instead of excited he was just engulfed in his task. He still found some mental capacity to speak, albeit, quite mechanically. "Darragh, since you are here, and are yet to tell me why you came here, would you be so kind and lend me a paw in thinking? I believe you may know way more than I do about the art and potential value of it. I do believe you can figure out what symbolisms and meanings to the locals this idol had far sooner than me."

 

[Darragh Harper]

Darragh’s own tail began to swish as he nodded along to Kaii’s musings. A lost, ancient civilisation. Exactly what a young poet, raised on legends, tall-tales and morality fables would expect. Far from a scientific education, Darragh was more familiar with myths of seafarers encountering hideous monsters while trying to sail home, or the often-sneered-upon genre of weird fiction, the kind that featured engraved monoliths revealing the existence of some primordial civilisation that worshiped a god that would drive beasts to gibbering insanity merely to think about too hard, let alone lay eyes upon! The Wolf Idol fit all the signs - it was a sinister black, made of a metal hitherto unknown to modern science, it radiated mysterious power, and slowly drove everybeast around it mad. It must have been the work of the deepest of ancient civilisations, who of course had destroyed themselves through their own hubris.

Kaii’s mathematical equations were certainly starting to look like an onset of madness. Darragh was not sure he could really apply the lessons from the stories to his own situation, though. Typically there was always a morally upstanding hero that had the favor of a benevolent god, or a handy trick up his sleeve to send the Elder Beast back to its eternal slumber. While he thought he had a knack for aesthetics, Darragh hardly viewed himself as a hero. It was harder still to imagine Kaii as a villainous mad scientist - if anything, it was the marble fox that seemed like a hero. A super-intelligent hero perhaps, who could deduce entire murder plots from a few strands of fur and a drop of blood, while Darragh felt more like the kind-but-slow-witted lackey that tagged along to ask obvious questions on the reader’s behalf.

Just as that thought had crossed Darragh’s mind, Kaii paid him a compliment that banished his fears of inadequacies in an instant. Kaii wanted his thoughts! Darragh Harper, Art Critic! Now that was a Darragh he much preferred to Doctor Darragh Harper, M.D.

Oh, corks. The doctoring fiasco. You forgot to apologise.

The momentary thrill of Feeling Important quickly crashed down like a load of bricks made of anxiety, straight to the pit of Darragh’s stomach. He winced, glancing at the items in his paws.

At least you’ve established rapport with him. Being on speaking terms probably means that he isn’t that mad at you. Don’t make a ceremony of it. Kaii might be a classy dresser, but he’s never stood on formal rank and decorum. Another good heroic trait, really.

“Ah, I don’t mean to pull your attention away now, Mr. Nashirou,” Darragh said, patting the waistcoat. “I’d just come to return your waistcoat. Good as I promised, cleaned, ironed, buttons stitched and polished. Erm, and I’d brought along a little somethin’ to cheer you up while you were laid up sick. My way of… well, sayin’ sorry for my daft behaviour back on Urk and… and just makin’ up to you.”

Darragh unwrapped the rag around the tin, and showed it to Kaii. “Thought you might like a proper cup of coffee, sir. Must be the driest and purest coffee on board, excludin’ the captain’s. I swear the usual stuff around the mess is mixed with sawdust! Anyway, you can’t deny it’s a practical gift, bein’ how your best research is done in the middle o’ the night with no Doctor suspectin’ nought!”

Darragh grinned. Despite his misgivings about the Idol, it was starting to be a bit fun, being part of a kind of occult detective case. He was sure Kaii would be pleased at the gift anyway - coffee was fashionable back home, with coffee-houses popping up all over Bully Harbor to cater to gentlebeasts, artists, writers, and yes, poets. They were exactly the kind of place Darragh wanted to socialise, once he was rich and published enough. At the moment though, being a grimy little Navy deckswab excluded him from such refined company. Ah, but that would change once he was on shore leave, scrubbed and perfumed, his pay packet going to an open-chested frilly shirt and a feather for his cap. Until then, a poet could dream.

“As to possible symbolic meanings, let me have a think…” Darragh pondered. “I suppose every beast has a dual symbolism, the light and the dark. The fox o’ course is the hero of many myths symbolising cleverness triumphin’ over strength. When he’s a villain though, his quick thinking turns him into a wily trickster… heh, beggin’ your pardon, sir. Us stoats can symbolise bravery, dashin’ about and derrin’-do, first into the fight and last to leave, so we can. The flip side o’ that are stories of stoats fightin’ with no good cause, bein’ wild hooligans that bring ruin around us in a blaze of ignoble self-destruction!”

Darragh tapped his chin, his mind racing through its mental file-cabinets and bookshelves. “Wolves though… hmm. They come from the harsh snowy wildernesses o’ the North, so can symbolise endurance, adaptability, determination, even the nobility of bein’ wild, independent and free. They have a fickle side too like the rest of us, though - the wolf’s darker symbolism can be that o’ brutality, ruthlessness, unforgivin’ cruelty, even the cold rage of a blizzard. Does the wolf howl to find his friends, or terrorise his enemies? Both, likely as not! I suppose if’n I were to put one word to ‘em, sir, it’d be untamed. Which makes ‘em hard to predict, I imagine as much in real life as in the myths and stories. I’ve never met a wolf m’self, so I couldn’t say for sure. Untamed… seems fittin' to the Idol a bit, doesn’t it?”

 

[Kaii Nashirou]

Finally came a statement Kaii was expecting to hear far sooner than before. An apology, one heartfelt because of the promise kept to the letter. Including even a sweetener in form of a tin filled with the black gold that Kaii sadly could only see as a luxury. Maybe to the surprise of the others, he wasn't fond of coffee for the energy boost it gave. It was coming at the cost of clouding his line of thought and after a while, causing a backlash. Kaii simply enjoyed the taste of it. Deep, bitter or sour depending on the blend, slightly nutty or spicy even. He remembered preferring it over the tea that most of his family traditionally enjoyed. Kaii still liked tea but coffee was just... more palatable to him.

There was a small moment of silence, finally broken with a sigh before the marble fox took the items from Darr's paws. After appraising his waistcoat for a moment, spotting if it looked perfect, he put it on. Wincing with pain as he had to move his arms back to get himself presentable. Slowing down, he carefully buttoned it, running his pawpads over the pin with engraved coat of arms of his dynasty. His paws stopped for a moment, his tail too fell limp as Kaii thought about his duty again. To honour all the ancestors and those who died while he survived by making sure their legacy were again as grand and worth talking about as they've used to be. Exegi monumentum, legacy was more important than any metal known to beasts. Kaii just had to build the damn thing again.

Banishing his worries, he turned to Darr, managing to stone his emotions again. After a moment he spoke softly. "Darr, firstly, I am no sir to you. My title means nothing, especially not to those who I see as friends. Secondly, I never hold what you did against you. You’ve acted upon your convictions and went with them for the sake of saving lives. The one thing I was upset with was lack of attempt at communication. I would fully understand your act should I’ve denied your request to get medication… But in the end. You’ve seen your err, said to fix upon it and kept your word. Honourable deed, which speaks of you more than your mishap.”

Kaii opened the tin and took a long, if gentle whiff. Indeed it was a decent blend. Far from both the best and the worst he had to subside on. Closing it again he put it between the two. "And this was unneeded, if welcome gift. I hope I will be able to share this drink with you once we are back at the harbour. For your forethought, you too should experience it." With that, the Marble fox pat Darragh's shoulder with his paw and looked into his eyes. "And of course, you are right. Nighttime is the best time for work, for you one is untroubled by those who guard the old order. It is always unpleasant to act when being policed by someone from behind... Especially pine marten shaped someone." Kaii offered a grin too. His mood was now decent enough to stop controlling it, making him seem relaxed and joyous. At least, as much as his ever-measured and calculated movements and gesticulation allowed to.

With that Kaii had settled to work again, after few minutes, during which Darragh was thinking, Kaii had managed to get a rough estimate on the volume of this idol. Standing up with a groan as pain again surged through him, this time without his restraint, he searched the room for anything that was standardised in weight. Finally finding bottles... Each of them was empty and he could use drinking water from a nearby barrel to manipulate the weight of each of them. Granted, he was now introducing even more of measurement uncertainty as he had to also calculate volume of glass and assume the density of glass he remembered was correct. Also he had to assume density of this water, which also could be in fact a bit more enriched and thus heavier.

Sitting down again, he started scribbling equations as soon as his tail had touched the floor. And while he was busy doing his work, Darr spoke again. This time explaining what he had figured about symbolism. That wasn't exactly what Kaii wished to hear but it was very insightful nonetheless. He was glad to listen to his revelations. And after considering them for a moment he stopped writing and turned his attention to Darr again. "Again, you need not to call me sir... But as for your insights. I would suspect you are correct. All beasts have some traits we instinctively apply to them. Such is just how nature made us. Yet still, Wolves being seen, per your words, as independent and untamed? I've heard they were living in packs or groups of great bonds at least. Granted, my social studies were very academical and flawed, yet still, I am a bit perplexed with your words. I will trust you though and follow on to the next point. Untamed does fit this idol, but also defiant. Powerful. Do you believe shrews could've worshipped it? It would sound like the traits the once we had seen would follow, would it not?" Kaii finished with a raised eyebrow and a half-smile, before turning again to his calculations while waiting for his answer.

 

[Darragh Harper]

Darragh felt his face blush, and he fidgeted with his paws. He was beyond happy that Kaii had accepted his apology, but something the gentletod had said stuck with him more than anything else. Kaii saw Darragh as a friend. Usually, the word ‘friend’ had a more transactional definition among the rougher creatures that Darragh shared a mess with. It often meant something more akin to ‘ally of convenience’, or was used to manipulate and swindle slower-minded beasts. Kaii really seemed to mean it though. Darragh's tail was near-enough sweeping the deck clean, he was so pleased!

“Thank you, s-… mister-… Thank you, Kaii.” Darragh murmured, breaking eye contact for a moment, before finding his courage to meet the fox’s gaze once more. Cultural expectations and harsh Navy discipline made it hard to eradicate the sir from tripping over his tongue every time he spoke, and chances are it would slip out of him again. However, if Darragh could work to master anything, it would be his own words. Seeing the warmth behind Kaii’s grin, past the marble fox’s composed behaviour, brought Darragh’s ear-to-ear smile back to his face.

He watched as Kaii busied himself with more occult practices. Now the ritual, or whatever was happening, involved filling glass bottles with water. The poet felt a little left out, but at the same time, he wasn’t sure he wanted to add ‘Magician’s Apprentice’ to his growing list of side-jobs. He had his own area of expertise, and thankfully, it was one that was useful to Kaii. His friend Kaii. Darragh could still feel the warm glow from that word.

“Ah well, symbols aren’t rules o’ course,” Darragh corrected himself. “They’re a kind of language, in a way. A given fox might be as daft as they come, but a symbol of the fox, among many, speaks o’ cleverness. And o’ course we know nothin’ of how the shrews would see wolves. Gods that bless, or punish? Or perhaps they imagined the Idol would keep away wolves from their villages, if they appeased it. Perhaps even control wolves, an’ set them upon their enemies! The possibilities are, well…”

Darragh shifted, for a moment feeling uncomfortable. Kaii’s questions had fueled a furnace of curiosity in the stoat, which only served to highlight how little they had really learned about Urk, the shrews, or wolves. Negotiations had broken down too quickly, the language barrier keeping either party from being able to establish even the smallest level of trust.

“Kaii… there’s too many unanswered questions to know for sure. We would have needed to capture a shrew and wring out a better idea of their language, and with Captain Ryalor’s injuries, our losses and all… well. We had our orders, and we fulfilled them,” Darragh said. A thought struck him. “Although… it might give us a clue if we knew how Captain Ryalor heard about the Idol in the first place. Perhaps some er… shrew-ologist or missionary has written a book or report on Urk before?”

Darragh lowered his voice, and looked over his shoulder furtively, as though what he was about to say next constituted the highest of heresies. “When we get back home, and nobeast’s watching, we could… you know. Visit a Library.”

Truly, tonight both fox and stoat were indulging in the forbidden delight of seeking knowledge.

 

[Kaii Nashirou]

Kaii listened carefully, all while realising his idea wasn't too optimal. dropping uncertainties was paramount and glass added too many of them. Instead, he used the inner volume of the bottles and decided to put one empty bottle with the idol for each bottle with water. Thus getting weight of Idol in water. Simpler and more sophisticated idea, but one that required an extra pair of paws... ones he right now, per chance, had nearby.

Before that however, he had to consider Stoat's words. Darr was right, symbols were not rules because various species perceived them differently. Back in his late teens, Kaii remember having heated debate with a mouse who wasn't too keen on considering that this marble fox could be honest. Clinging to hard to symbols brought prejudice, that is why Kaii wasn't too fond of considering others by them, even if, undeniably, they were just a part of social experience.

He wished to speak up, but Darr started first, talking about the unanswered questions and lack of clues. In part, that was what Kaii expected as a conclusion to this whole endevour. It is hard to build an image of society based on one passing contact and one idol. And then his ears have perked at the mention of searching deeper. Going to the library, asking around, seeking reports... this was getting Kaii excited. Possibly to the same level Darr was as there were now two tails sweeping the dust from the floor.

So when Darr was done, Kaii spoke, a bit faster than his usual speech. "Yes, we should. Luckily, If there is one thing my title is good for now, it is for the sake of entering such places legally. It would be much appreciated to get your help in exchange for getting you there." Kaii then took a second and stood up again, wincing with pain once more as his muscles strained under bandages.

"For now however, since we are inadequatly prepared to deal with the more social and cultural matters, even if they bind to the more scientific ones, I do suppose we have to drop them and focus on what I have on paw. Darr, I am sorry, for I am wounded. Will you be able to hold the scale while I put on it rougly three times of Idol's weight?" Kaii did offer him the scales he had. They were small, but Kaii had found two planks that were the same dimensions and upon putting them on the scales, they were close enough to be considered equal. For sure it was smaller error than what he would've gotten by trying to guesstimate weight of glass bottles. With a nod, he leaned in with a small whimper of pain and tried to lift the idol to put it on one of the planks on one side of the scales... He was however still wounded and overestimated himself as he instead fell onto his back with a sharp whiff, crashing onto the planks making the floor.