“Do I get a spell too?” Kioko asked innocently.
“Ha ha ha ha!” Uncle Yunokawa laughed warmly – “No Kioko, I am sorry, but you are too young yet – and besides, it involves needles… Lots of needles – and I am sure you would find the process most unpleasant.”
“Needles?!? Oh! I don’t want any spells then, thank you Uncle!”
Then Yunikawa had the Samurai-ko set up some mystical incense, as he directed the Samurai to sit together in a circle in the center of the Tower of the Morning Sun. The morning rays glittered in through the strange tinkling crystals in the walls and bathed the room in thousands of small rainbow motes.
Then asking Yuki for her bow, he took it from her and waved his hand over it slowly, before literally disappearing from before her eyes – only to reappear a moment later about two inches farther back with his hands extending the bow back to her.
“There you go;” he said to Yuki, “may this arcane bow give you the strength to bring many generations of honor to your family.”
As Yuki took the magical artifact, she sensed that it could grant a Physical Boost twice a day and also be used to summon an Elemental once a day as well.
Then turning to the others, Yunikawa directed everyone to bare their arms and sit in the meditative position.
As they did so, the old Wu-Jen removed his shirt and sat in the center of the Samurai, as one of the Samurai-Ko brought out a flat wooden box and set it before Yunikawa. When Yunikawa opened the box, it revealed a collection of hundreds of long thin acupuncture needles, each made from black tarnished silver.
Then, for the next hour, Yunikawa chanted a ritual of meditation, while the lead Samurai-Ko laboriously applied every single acupuncture needle from the box to the Wu-Jen’s chest, neck, and face.
A visible miasma of energy could be seen around Yunikawa and it appeared as if it was slowly being drawn into the needles, which started to shudder slightly with each thump of his heart – sending visible ripples through the air as if the air itself around him was the surface of some disturbed pond.
Only a few moments after the last needle had been placed, the Samurai-Ko then began to withdraw each needle one at a time – transferring them to one after the other to the seated Samurais’ bared arms.
The Samurai felt only the slightest jab with each one, then a strange numbness. For the next thirty minutes the process went on, until the numbness of one needle had built into a raging fiery burning by the time the final needle was placed and each Samurai had a pincushion of needles sprouting up and down each arm.
“It is done.” Uncle Yunikawa stated simply, as the last needle was placed.
At that, all four Samurai-Ko began helping to remove the needles and place them back into the flat wooden box.
“Ew, that was so gross!” Kioko commented – having patiently waited through the entire ordeal. She had a sour look of disgust on her face and was immensely glad no one had to stick her with a needle.
The Samurai meanwhile, thought that they felt no different for the moment, except for being completely drained of energy and somewhat bloodied.
Then a spark of knowledge suddenly lit within their minds – and just like that, they knew how to cast the Shared Spell. It was as though they had always known how to cast the spell – and in fact, not one of them could remember a time that they had not known it. The whole perception of the Samurai had changed, as if the spell had always been a part of them – though deep down, they were aware that this was not true.
“You will be fatigued by the ritual for a day or so,” Yunikawa said, as he put his shirt back on, then opened a Gate into the air. On one side of the Gate was the Tower of the Morning Sun in Yunikawa’s mountain citadel – on the other side, was a broad corridor located somewhere within the Sendai Order of Arcanum.
“I suggest you take the day to recover your strength; then leave on your mission tomorrow.”
“As you wish Master Yunikawa,” the beautiful Samurai-Ko Jenna said, ready to head through the Gate as soon as Roka was ready…
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Topic: Mythic Nippon Adventure III (Read 361453 times)