>>199454
Haaah, I knew I wasn't being subtle, but it's nice to see someone else recognised it.

Anyway, votes close in about...

When the timer finishes.

If it works this time...

A fine, inviting grave like this... of course the owner will return. You will wait for them, and lay them to rest properly. It will be a lovely sending-off, the envy of many lonely spirits.

And you stand, and wait.

And wait. For a time, no thought at all rattles through your mind, and all is obscure. Even your vision becomes hazy, except for the neat pit in the ground, ever sharply defined in your eyes.

Time passes, though you cannot tell how much.

Finally, a thought comes to you.

What is a grave without a coffin? Who could rest peacefully simply buried in the dirt?

Yes. Yes. You should ease the poor soul's passing, and provide the coffin for them, too. Of course.

Your steps aren't quite as stiff, they aren't as jerky anymore, as you make your way into the forest, to collect wood.

---------------------------------------------

"Tch!" The man - no, monster, scowls, malicious power radiating from his twisted human form. "Fine! Fine!" He roars, trigrams glowing with profound truth forming in the air around him as he strained to his utmost. "If you won't let me be in peace...!" He grits his sharp teeth in frustration, "Then I'll...!" He chokes on his next words, as a barrage of needles and charms bulls through his defense.

"...What a pain." The girl mutters, floating towards him as he begins to sink through the air, arms limp at his sides, disabled by the needles embedded in his body. "You should have just stayed dead."

"D-damn...!" Her hand rises, holding one final needle.

-----------------------------------------

A fine coffin. You don't remember learning how to work with wood. You certainly don't believe you ever would have learned to do it with your bare hands.

And yet, a fine coffin indeed.

It is satisfying to create. But it's still incomplete.

It needs a corpse, after all. You shift it to the side, just enough, following some unnameable impulse, and something crashes through the canopies of the trees above, slamming to the ground - into the coffin.

You have the corpse. It has been heavily sealed, charms and needles still adhered to the man's body, and yet you can still sense his spirit's lingering hatred and resentment.

You shall have to send him off with care, and bring him peace.

It is only right, after all.

As you fit the lid of the coffin into place, a holy person - a woman - a shrine maiden descends from the sky. You glance at her.

The vestments stand out, clearly, and the charms she wields, but... her face is obscure. It doesn't matter.

"Please return in two days." You speak to a living human for the first time that you can recall. "There shall be need of your services."

She looks at you. You can't make out her features, but she does not reply.

"He must be laid to rest properly." You explain, helpfully. "And for the proper rites to be observed, he shall have need of you." You wait, meeting her gaze, hopefully.

She shifts to the side. You turn your head to follow her.

"....creepy." She mutters, but you don't see how it applies to what you have said. You wait. You will have to gather food for his spirit. There are offerings to be made. The proper rites need to be observed... "...Fine, yeah." She huffs a breath, and you observe with interest the thick holy power that her every act emits. She shivers, "I'll come back. Okay?" You nod.

"The graveyard is three hundred and fifty seven steps that way." You raise a hand and indicate the direction with a finger. "We will welcome you when the time comes." She turns her head in the direction you've pointed, and you lower your hand, satisfied that she understands.

Then, carefully, you lift the coffin, keeping it flat. You have no wish to disturb the poor corpse inside.

There is much to prepare.

You begin to walk.

"...ah, geez, this is probably something I should worry about." The shrine maiden behind you mutters. You do not hear her depart. She is flying, so that is expected.

There is much to prepare.


Pick one.
[ ] You shall need to provide this lonely spirit with mourners. Living ones - a spirit cannot mourn another's death, and you're not sure that you can mourn at all, anymore.
[ ] A room, in which to conduct the ceremonies, should be constructed.
[ ] Offerings will be needed. For the gods, for this poor spirit, for the shrine maiden... Food, liquor, and money.

-------------------------------------------------

Hopefully the next one gets out a bit sooner than this.

The temple seems like the best place to acquire what you need. Especially since you're on a deadline. With a stiff, lurching motion, you start moving again - after you've been moving a bit, it gets easier, but those first few steps are always the most difficult. In the end, you may not be dead, but you're not exactly alive either - it's no surprise that you have a bit of trouble.

The road is quiet. You walk alone to the equally-silent temple. But...it seems that the path leads through the temple's cemetery.

And you can't help but linger among the graves. Just for a short while.

The graves, you note approvingly, are well-tended, on the whole. But as you wander through the memorial stones, you come upon an area... it's no less clean, and neat, but it's clear that less care has been given to this area.

...In the midst of the temple yard, what possible reason-

That's about when a pair of hands seize you by the shoulders and a jaw clamps down on your neck. You're released quickly - presumably once your attacker actually gets a taste of your flesh, which is... well, you're not sure, exactly, but you assume well, well past any sell-by date.

"Oh." You turn to look at your attacker. She stares back at you, just as blankly. The two of you stand there for a while, before you reach up and check the bite on your neck. Dark, half-congealed blood oozes sluggishly from the wound. You aren't sure which one of you had just spoken, but neither of you are speaking now. Time passes.

"Ah?!" She suddenly jerks, shocked. "You're not a human!" There's a long silence.

"I'm not?!" You're shocked, for a moment. Then you remember. "I'm a zombie." She seems surprised.

"You're a zombie?!" She thinks about this, the tattered little paper on the front of her hat hanging across her face as she considers that. "But I'm a zombie?" It comes out as more of a question than a statement.

...Does it require a response? You consider.

"Yes." You decide, taking in her pallid skin, and the air of death about her. "We're zombies."

"Both zombies~" She hums. The two of you lapse into silence for a while, staring at each other. You note, for the first time, that she is sharply in focus in your eyes, making hers the first face you have seen since you first awakened. Reawakened. Whichever it may have been.

"I need money and liquor." You tell her. "For a funeral." She hums.

"Ah?!" She looks at you, seriously. "Don't die!" She commands you. "Live on! Life is precious!" You nod.

"Not mine." She relaxes a bit, inasmuch as she can, given the stiffness of her limbs - much more severe than your own, it appears. Perhaps it has to do with the differences in your animation...? You clockwork heart ticks away diligently.

She looks down at herself, and then twists - it seems her neck, at least, is fairly limber.

"I don't have any." She informs you. You reply with another nod.

"I'll ask at the temple." She bounces in place.

"They probably have money." She tells you. It's good to know.

"I'm going, then." You inform her, and begin walking with your customary lurch and stagger. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to borrow a needle and thread, either. It would be best to sew up your new wound before something nests in there or something. Lays eggs. Whatever.

You hear a scraping on the stone of the pathway, and turn to see her following along, drifting along close enough to the ground that her foot accidentally scraped against the stone. Did she... want something? You wait, expecting her to speak up, but... she drifts to a halt, staring at you.

The two of you stare at each other for a while longer.

It doesn't seem she's planning to speak. In fact, she appears to be perfectly content to just float there and stare- oh, no, she's set down. Still staring though. To be fair, of course, you're staring as well.

[ ] Companion Acquired! Other Zombie has joined the party?
[ ] ...Ask her what she's doing.
[ ] Shoo her off. She probably has her own duty she should be performing, right?

Well, you can't say you mind her accompanying you. That's fine. An extra pair of hands are always welcome. You nod to her, acknowledging her presence, and continue along. No more loitering, you head straight along to the front gates of the temple. The gate itself appears to be... entirely absent, but there's at least someone here.

While you can't make out their features, you can at least safely assume based on the storm of bullets that are coming your way that they have noticed you as well.

"Excuse me..." You begin, as your companion floats ahead of you. She blocks the incoming bullets splendidly with her body, and you follow in the safe space left in the wake of her passage. "But we need..." The incoming bullet patterns are getting more erratic and panicky as your new friend gets closer to the source. "Some money and liquor..."

"Hey! Too close, too close!" They're using their broom to hold the other zombie back, as she stubbornly attempts to float directly into them. "Miss Ichireeeen...!" She wails, and her volume is really quite remarkable, "There's TWO of theeeem!"

"...for a funeral." You explain, emerging from behind your shield now that the two are firmly locked together and no more bullets are coming your way.

"So!" A new voice makes itself known, "You dare attack the Myouren Temple?!" But you don't really understand what she's talking about? "Taoist scum, tod-" She stops when she sees you. You get the impression that she's making some kind of face, but you can't make it out. "I don't know you. A new zombie...? Unforgivabl-!"

"M-miss Ichireeeen...!" The gatekeeper wails, pitifully. "Help...!" She and your companion are locked together on the ground, only a broom handle across the throat keeping the zombie's teeth from finding purchase.

The nun brandishes something, but you're faster, picking up the zombie girl by the collar of her shirt.

"...Enough of that." You instruct, and she obediently falls quiescent, with a soft 'grau?' of what is most likely confusion. The small girl scuttles off to hide behind the nun. "We have gotten off to a bad start." The two women stare at you, confused. Your friend stares off at nothing in particular, in what may very well be a state of perpetual confusion. Seeing as no-one else has anything to say, you decide to try again.

"An unfortunate soul has met a miserable end." You explain, in slightly more detail. "We come to ask that you provide the last things we need to ease his passage." The nun straightens.

"Well!" She seems on board with your proposal! Excellent! "Let it not be said that the Myouren Temple would turn away those in need! What is it that you need? Our funeral services only ask a token donation..." Glad to see that they're willing to help, you thrust out a hand.

"Money! And liquor." There's a long moment of silence, as she stares at you. Something about the way she's standing changes.

"Get out of heeeeere!" And then there is a very large and very pink fist heading directly for you.

Hm.

Not ideal.

[ ] Meet the blow!
[ ] If you're not strong, you can dodge!
[ ] ...Looks like team zombie's blasting off...!



--------------------------------------------------------------

I'm not sure if I'll be able to get an update out on Friday, either, but I'll at least try. Lot of driving to be done, these next few days.

Getting hit by something like that would not be good. Not at all.

You fling yourself violently to the side, and narrowly manage to avoid that first, huge fist.

Unfortunately, she followed up on that. The dozens of fists that followed behind the huge one, however, are advancing one after another in a staggered wall, almost impossible to avoid. Especially since you're not exactly the quickest zombie out there. Presumably, you only know the one other.

You make a good shot at it, but then the first one wings you, throwing you off balance, and then another follows up, catching you in the shoulder.

There's a faint crunch.

Worrying.

A few more strikes land, and you collapse as your leg takes a solid hit.

The fists disperse, however, as a wave of kunai-like bullets flood toward the attacking nun, your companion floating forward.

"Leave him aloooone!" She groans out, as the two take to the sky, floods of bullets, lasers, and giant pink fists creating an incredible spectacle that you have an excellent view of from your position on the ground.

A brief check of your body reveals that your arm is very, very broken. Your leg just needs a splint or something, simple, clean break from what you can see, but your arm is...

You're inclined to write it off as a total loss.

"...Uhm." The other girl, the one with the broom, is... well, facing towards you, at least. She leans a little closer. "...Are you going to fix that?"

You stare at her for a while.

"I cannot." You tell her. She doesn't move.

"Doesn't that... hurt?" There's a strange tone in her voice. You use your good arm to help you sit up, and shake your head.

"I do not feel pain." You reassure her. "I am already dead." To be safe, you probe at your skull with your working hand, making sure everything is still intact there. It would be bad if that was too badly damaged... She continues to face you.

"...Do you..." She hesitates. "Do you need help getting up?" You consider your broken leg.

"It would help if I could borrow your broom." You decide. "And if you have some rope...?" She jerks upright, clutching her broom a bit closer for a second, before approaching you slowly and holding it out. You accept the broom and lay it next to you for a moment as you straighten out the broken leg, adjusting the bone with a soft grinding noise. She takes a few steps back, considerately giving you some room to work. After a few more seconds, she runs off, remembering, presumably, that you needed some rope as well.

You're only borrowing the broom, so it would probably be frowned upon to break off the head, wouldn't it? Well, it's the femur that's broken, so if you just tie it head-down, you won't be able to bend sideways at the waist, but it should work...

"Here." She doesn't sound well, for some some reason. Your arm flops as you try to accept the ropes she's offering, and you switch to your good hand, slightly embarrassed. "...oh, that's..." She murmurs, probably not intending for you to hear, so you ignore it. She's got one hand resting on her stomach - perhaps she's hungry, or, based on her tone, something she ate isn't agreeing with her? Anyway, that's not really something you should worry about.

You readjust the broom, and prompting her to lend a hand, manage to get it tied into place with a bare minimum of fumbling.

"Thank you." You express your gratitude, and she waves you off. Hm. Perhaps that should only be expected of a temple disciple? Even if she is only a layperson. You watch her for a while, as she begins to shift. Perhaps she's naturally energetic? She turns her head, but you don't see anything in that direction. Then she glances up, and you remember that your companion and the nun are fighting overhead. The patterns, you note, have only grown more and more complex with time, and you have no idea what's going on up there at this point.

"...Uhm." She begins, and she sounds a little shy. "You said you needed... money and liquor? For a funeral...?" You watch the battle in the sky for a moment longer as you think about her question.

"...Yes." You confirm. There's silence between you for a while.

"W-well!" She sounds a little uncomfortable for some reason? "What for? I mean, I guess, money I can understand..." You nod. Perhaps she isn't familiar with other traditions. It is understandable.

"The officiant of the burial will be Shinto." You tell her. "As such, proper rites must be performed. Liquor is part of that. The gods should be properly honored." She nods, slowly.

"Ooooh." She pauses. "Wait, did you get that Hakurei girl to do it, or was it the green one?" You don't know who either of those people are. You do know one thing.

"She was not green." She pats your shoulder, and recoils when it jiggles.

"G-good luck with that." She tells you. There's a pause. "...uhm, I have a little money, I guess." She decides, audibly warming up to the idea. "Yeah! A good Buddhist shouldn't have attachment to things like that anyway, right?" You wouldn't know. "Okay! I'll be right back." She scurries off, and you go back to watching the fight in the sky.

It's clear that the other zombie isn't all that good at this - she takes hit after hit, and they're not minor ones, either. However, even though she's taking much stronger hits than the nun, the nun is the one who's flagging - the damage won't stick. She seems to have some kind of trick, in addition to her natural - unnatural? - undead stamina. Is stamina even the right term? You're not sure, but it doesn't really matter, in the end. Finally, the danmaku fades, and the two of them land.

"Tch. You've won, but your master won't get..." The nun looks at the two of you. Then she glances around. "...Where's Kyouko?" She turns toward you, "What did you do?"

[ ] "Nothing." You didn't do anything.
[ ] "Do?" What does she mean?
[ ] "We only talked." That counts.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Tomorrow is going to be rough.

I'll try, but I don't know.

You stare at her, considering the question for a time.

"We only talked." It's true, after all. She doesn't really reply, squaring up on you.

"That's her broom, isn't it?" She demands. This is getting a bit confrontational, you think.

"Yes?" You're not sure what the problem is? "She lent it to me." Your comapnion glances between you and the nun - did the girl say her name was Ichirin? - and opens her mouth. Then she closes it. You're not sure what she's thinking, but the nun puts her hands on her hips, and you don't think she really believes you. Which might not be good. She seems unreasonably violent for a Buddhist.

"She lent you her broom." ...The tone of her voice... Yes, you'd say it's safe to say that she doubts you. "I don't know what you're up to, but...!" This is when the smaller girl returns. The nun called her Kyouko?

"I'm back!" She announces. Your friend echoes her statement with a cheery hum.

"Back~" Ichirin turns to look, finally turning away from you.

"I ran into Murasa, and she said," Kyouko's voice changes, "'Be a shame to send someone off without at least a drink.'" You certainly don't recognise the somber girl she's mimicking, but she quickly continues, "So she gave me this bottle? Will this do?" A glance at the bottle only tells you that it's glass. It's probably valuable - the glass is very clear, enough to show the colourless liquid inside. You'll accept it, regardless of the contents - it is, after all, an offering to the deceased.

"K-Kyouko?!" The nun appears none-too-happy. "What do you think you're-" She takes a step towards the small girl, one hand coming up, but Kyouko dodges around her nimbly and quickly attempts to hand off the bottle to you - which is thwarted by her also attempting to pass you what seems to be a wad of cash. With only one functioning hand, you're forced to recruit the other zombie in attendance to assist you. You pass off the donations from the little girl in pink to your friend, and dip your head towards the giver gratefully.

"Our thanks." You tell her. "We will remember your kindness." The nun is staring. You ignore her. "If you wish to be in attendance, the funeral will be in..." You pause, considering. Then you glance around, looking for the sun. It hasn't risen, judging by the sky full of stars, so... "A day and a half. You will be welcomed." You share directions to the burial ground, and turn to leave.

The nun doesn't attempt to stop you, but you can hear her speaking to the kind girl behind you. She sounds unhappy. You don't particularly care.

"Success~" Your companion cheers, happily. You share a look with her, and she's smiling widely, the bottle and money clasped firmly in each hand. You share a smile as well.

"Yes. We have everything now." You briefly frown. "I will need to deal with this, though." You wobble your smashed limb. The leg will be an easier task, you're sure you can find something to affix the bones to later, but the arm is definitely going to be a difficult fix. Ah, and the bite. You need to seal that up, too. Don't want too leak too much of your blood out, whatever its condition might be. "Thank you." It is only right that you express your gratitude to her. After all, she was willing to defend you. She fought the nun for you. And she's still assisting you, as she carries the offerings. The words, however, seem to confuse her. She twists, looks around for... perhaps someone else you might be speaking to? She makes a quietly confused 'hrau?' noise, when she realises it's just the two of you. "Yes. You. Thank you." She blinks at you, for a time, confused. You look back at her, sincere.

Time passes.

Finally, her dull eyes, grown cloudy with death, focus on you, and something about her expression changes.

"...I'm Yoshika." She informs you, seriously. And then, almost as suddenly as the change began, it ends, as her eyes lose their focus again. Yoshika.

You will remember.

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The next update will have a vote.

Hopefully tomorrow, tomorrow shouldn't be too soul-crushing.

Together, you and Yoshika return to the graveyard. You take a little while to reassure the wandering spirits that everything's okay, and you're back, before introducing her.

You're not sure they really believe you.

You're not sure that you blame them. You are kind of damaged.

Regardless, you show your new friend around, introducing her to the ghosts and spirits of the graveyard, showing her the coffin, which is full, and the grave, which is not.

Once you've finished introducing her to the features that were here when you left, all that's left are the ones that were not.

Whether it would be more proper to refer to the structure as a 'hut' or a 'shed', you're not sure. Either way, it wasn't here when you left. Although if you hadn't known that already, looking at the dilapidated structure you'd have never guess it hadn't been here as long as the stones. Leaning against the wall, next to the door, is a shovel that's also seen better days - though it looks usable, it also looks a bit beat up, with rust on the blade.

A gravedigger's shovel, you think. Something about it seems to tell you that.

The ghosts, of course, are completely useless. None of them even knew the build was there, until you asked them about it. Then they were absolutely certain that it had been there all along. But that's probably just spirits being spirits. They don't really understand too much, without access to a body. If it were something immaterial, they might be a bit more help, but for something like this, useless. All you can be sure of, from them, is that it's not haunted.

You approach the 'new' building, Yoshika just behind you, and as you cautiously swing the door open, she's floating just high enough to peer over your head and see inside. There's a small wooden box inside, next to a low table - just, you would estimate, long enough for you to lie down upon. There are some tools, up on a wall. You see saws, both for wood and bone, woodworker's tools, and... yes. You can see the clamps and pliers and precision tools of a clockmaker, as well.

You aren't sure how you feel about this hut. Shed. Whatever it may be.

You certainly aren't thrilled for it to just appear like this when you need it. It's...

It's convenient. You don't like that. You can't pin it down any further than that simple impression.

However you feel about it, though, you can't deny that the tools and equipment inside would be extremely helpful for maintaining your body and doing work around the graveyard.

And there's a great deal of work to be done.

You lay out an offering of food for the deceased, and the ghosts cluster around.

[ ] A room, in which to conduct the ceremonies, should be constructed. The time of the burial is drawing near.
[ ] That poor soul deserves mourners. How can he rest without knowing that he is missed?
[ ] ...You need to take care of yourself. Your body needs fixing up.
-[ ] Use the Workshop.
-[ ] Reject the Workshop.