Matamah partially dodges the lightning and quickly taps himself with his wand to undo some of the damage. 42 also partially dodges the lightning, and with a quick incantation wreathes himself with a cloak of lightning to protect himself.
Rhon takes the full force of the bouncing bolt of lightning, but despite the pain presses on towards Rand and finally manages to activate the magic of his scroll. Rand feels a surge of energy as the powerful magic completely restores his strength. He dives past the water elemental and delivers a powerful punch to Yugureda's face.
Yugureda's head snaps back as Rand drives his fist into the stony skin.
Initiative
Yugureda - (Displacement, 5ft above ground, SS-69, 6 temp) -97hp
Drippy - -46hp, exhausted
Matamah - (freedom, echolocation, 6 images, exhausted) -55hp
42 - -3 STR (blinking, exhausted) -71hp
Alden /Naala - (-2 STR, daylight, exhausted, frightened) -2/ -2, exhausted
Rhon /Earl - (free, -7 STR), -62/ -7STR (talks to the hand, frightened many rounds)
Rand - () -74hp
Yugureda reels from the force of Rand's full-force punch, and is nearly stunned by the impact, but he manages to endure (just barely). He looks at tthe four of you lines up before him, wounded and spent, and then to his own many wounds, and laughs bitterly.
He takes a step before Rand, and extends a hand towards the monk's face. A torrent of ice and cold gushes forth, enveloping the water elemental along with all of you. You catch a glimpse of the water elemental turning back to face Yugureda, raise a watery fist towards him, and from the middle of that fist a single watery digit is extended towards the ceiling.
And then all is awash in white.
Initiative
Yugureda - (Displacement, 5ft above ground, SS-69, 6 temp) -97hp
Drippy - -46hp, exhausted
Matamah - (freedom, echolocation, 6 images, exhausted) -55hp
42 - -3 STR (blinking, exhausted) -56hp
Alden /Naala - (-2 STR, daylight, exhausted, frightened) -2/ -2, exhausted
Rhon /Earl - (free, -7 STR), -62/ -7STR (talks to the hand, frightened many rounds)
Rand - () -74hp
Rand completely avoids the cone of cold, and 42 partially avoids it, but Rhon catches it right in the face.
Initiative
Yugureda - (Displacement, 5ft above ground, SS-69, 6 temp) -97hp
Matamah - (freedom, echolocation, 6 images, exhausted) -55hp
42 - -3 STR (blinking, exhausted) -68hp
Alden /Naala - (-2 STR, daylight, exhausted, frightened) -2/ -2, exhausted
Rhon /Earl - (free, -7 STR), -112/ -7STR (talks to the hand, frightened many rounds)
Rand - () -74hp
Yugureda - (Displacement, 5ft above ground, SS-69, 6 temp) -97hp
Matamah - (freedom, echolocation, 6 images, exhausted) -75hp
42 - -3 STR (blinking, exhausted) -68hp
Alden /Naala - (-2 STR, daylight, exhausted, frightened) -2/ -2, exhausted
Rhon /Earl - (free, -7 STR), -112/ -7STR (talks to the hand, frightened many rounds)
Rand - () -74hp
Fuelled by his outrage at Yugureda's perversion and reinvigorated by Rhon's spell, Rand punches Yugureda in the face again, and again, and again. The wizard's stony skin crumbles beneath his heavy fists, and by the time Rand is done, the wizard is out cold on the floor.
Eventually, Earl and Alden recover their senses and return to the rest of you. Itamar's body is still lifeless, but with your business here nearing a conclusion, you will be able to bring his body back to the hidden fortress of Seinaru Heikiko where Exiel is awaiting your return.
potion of water breathing
scroll of resist energy
masterwork dagger,
cloak of resistance +4
dusty rose prism ioun stone
ring of protection +2
ring of swimming,
spellbook (animate dead, bull’s strength, cat’s grace, create undead, finger of death, gentle repose, mage’s private sanctum, permanency, programmed image, water breathing, alarm, color spray, mage armor, magic missile, command undead, darkness, false life, see invisibility, mirror image, acid arrow, dispel magic, displacement, lightning bolt, ray of exhaustion, vampiric touch, fear, phantasmal killer, shadow conjuration, shout, stoneskin, enervation, interposing hand, magic jar, shadow evocation, chain lightning, cone of cold, shadow walk, summon monster VI, greater shadow conjuration, waves of exhaustion)
Darkwood inro encrusted with tiny emeralds that form the stylized image of a dragon turtle. It contains diamond dust (worth 250 gp), a large white pearl and a large black pearl.
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Alden returns to the group, looking incredibly ashamed. "I am sorry, my friends. I cannot believe I ran from such a creature. You should report this to the Pathfinder Society and have me severely reprimanded for my dereliction of duty." He looks as glum as can be.
"Stand tall and proudly my friend. There is no shame in fleeing that which your mind perceived as so great a threat; especially when it is that your mind was effected by magic cast by a powerful foe. Why without your aid we surely would never have been able to best our adversary this day." Rhon gestures in a wide sweeping arc towards his fellow Seekers as he speaks to Alden.
As Rand crushes the pearl, a burst of energy rushes out from it. It pushes each of you back, but not so forcefully that it physically moves you or does you harm. The bodies of both the unconscious women are pushed to the ground, and then for a moment, all is silent.
A short while later, the younger woman's body stirs.
"What? NO! Wait... you... you are not my father..."
She sees Yugureda's bloodied body in the nearby passageway, and sighs.
"I see. This is what it had come to. Usually a lost child yearns to find the parents who brought her into this world... but it would also appear that sometimes the truth is far from what the child hopes."
"But I believe I have you to thank for my rescue. But you are not of Tian Xia. Who are you and how did you come by O-Hakami? Was she the one who asked you to find me?"
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Rhon "sheathes" his axe and sets his shield aside for one moment.
Rhon cautiously approaches the now life filled women "I know this may seem an odd question but I at least wish to be sure. Are you O-Sayumi?"
"Ah, very well then. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Rhon of the Delver Clan. It is as Matamah has said. We were requested to rescue you and see your safe return to the Geisha community in Minkai."
"Pathfinders? In Minkai? I have heard something of your order, and I suppose it should not surprise me that foreigners in Tian Xia would be from the Pathfinder Consortium. But I thank you for the rescue, and I must give my thanks to O-Hakami when I see her again, for her faithfulness and reliability."
With O-Sayumi revived, you take your leave (finally) of the wretched Shinju-no-Ie. Having carved a bloody swathe through his undead minions, there is no one to stop you, and your journey back to Seinaru Heikiko is mercifully uneventful.
Back at the hidden fort, Exiel, Hirabashi Jiro (the commander) and Habesuta Hatsue (the lieutenant) receive your report with mixed feelings. Exiel is the first to speak.
"You have done well, my friends, though the loss of Itamar grieves me. I feel I must take some of the responsibility for this - our intel had not revealed that Yugureda was a wizard of that much power. I will ensure that our intelligence will be more thorough next time. Nevertheless, your efforts will prove invaluable to our efforts here. I will send word to the ninjas..."
"We are already here," a voice whispers from the shadows of the room as a masked man emerges from hiding and bows to the small gathering. "We will escort O-Sayumi back to Sakakabe and keep watch over her, though it sounds like you have already taken care of the main threat to her safety. Know that you have earned the respect of the ninja clans of Minkai, and will have our full cooperation in that other matter. We will return in a week to discuss our further plans."
"Then we have much to discuss," Hirabashi says to Exiel and Habesuta.
Exiel nods in reply. "Pathfinders, the cooperation of the ninja opens up many new strategic options for us, and perhaps will even enable us to move against Sikutsu Sennaka himself. I have already asked much of you, but I fear I may have to ask for your assistance in one more mission to conclude the matter. Until then, the facilities of this fort are at your disposal, such as they are, and you should find yourself quite welcome in Sakakabe should you require the services of a major city. The week is your's, to rest, recover and prepare."
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As we near the end of the week Rhon holds a funeral service for Itamar.
Itamar is dressed in the holy vestments of a priest of Torag. As befits a deity so closely associated with the anvil and bellows, the vestments of Torag's clergy are a long, well-used smithing apron, and hammer. Rings of various sorts (worn on the hands, in the ear, and woven into the hair) symbolize friendship, debt, or allegiance.
"Fellow Pathfinders, mourners, and faithful of Torag. Today we return our brother in faith, Itamar, to the stone from which Torag formed him."
"O Torag, whose property is always to have mercy and to spare, we humbly beseech Thee for the soul of thy servant Itamar, which Thou hast this day called out of the world, that Thou wouldst not deliver him up into the hands of the enemy, nor forget him unto the end; but command him to be received by Thy holy Smiths, and to be carried to your eternal workshop, his true home; that as in Thee he had faith and hope, so he may not suffer the pains of hell, but may take possession of everlasting joys. In your name we pray."
Rhon crafts a holy symbol of Torag and places it with Itamar.
"As you were carved from the living rock and brought unto this world so you are returned to stone. May you continue to create great works with the Father of Creation forever and ever."
Keep your fire hot and may your anvil ever sing. Go forth and continue to do good works, protect the innocent, and vanquish those who seek to destroy that which Torag has made."
You spend the week recovering from your ordeal at Shinju-no-Ie and laying your fallen comrade to rest. During that week, the fort Seinaru Heikio is abuzz with activity as supplies begin to pour in. Fresh-faced youngsters arrive almost daily to join the rebellion, more than a few of whom were inspired by tales of your heroics at Shinju-no-Ie. Grizzled veterans busy themselves getting organised to train the new troops, and the courtyard is frequently filled with the sights and sounds of troops being drilled.
The lieutenant, Habesuta Hatsue, is a common sight during the week. She confides to you that she used to experience nightmares every night, dreams of a shadowy plane of endless shoji screens where dark creatures pursued her relentlessly. However, since your return from Shinju-no-Ie, she has not experienced these terrors, and she wonders if there is a connection . But whatever the reason, the relief from the nocturnal terrors have reinvigorated her, and she oversees the day-to-day running of the fort with great zeal and attentiveness.
Exiel and Hirabashi Jiro are curiously absent for most of the week, and you are beginning to wonder if something has happened when you are summoned one morning to Hirabashi's quarters. He nods as you enter and leads you through a secret door to a disused shrine that now serves at the commander's secret war room. Habesuta Hatsue are Exiel already inside, waiting. Exiel is the first to speak.
"I am sorry to have missed Itamar's funeral, my friends, but time was of the essence. With O-Sayumi's influence, we have been able to make contact with a man who mught be able to help us break free Enganoka and Sakakabe from the influence of the Jade Regent once and for all. The man is..."
Exiel finds himself suddenly cut off by Hirabashi.
"Just a moment, Exiel. We agreed, did we not?"
Exiel pauses, then nods as Hirabashi turns to address you.
"You have already proven your valour, but from here, it is not just valour, but honour, that you must be able to exhibit. Honour has a large role to play in the next phase of our plan, and I wish to first ascertain your understanding of this most noble of our moral precepts."
He takes a moment to look each of you straight in the eye before posing to you the following scenario.
“A samurai and a peasant are brought before a ruthless daimyo. The daimyo wants to know whether a matched katana and wakizashi set are capable of killing a man with a single cut, so he commands the samurai to kill the peasant in order to test the swords. The samurai is faced with two dilemmas—first, he has two swords, but only one would-be victim, and second, he loathes his duty. He does not want to kill an unarmed, innocent man, but his lord has commanded him to do so. What does the samurai do?”
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"This question is meant to confuse, as there is never a fully correct answer. However, the good of a man is measured in his actions, and killing an innocent peasant simply to test swords is unthinkable to a good man. If the samurai values his loyalty as well as the well-being of his fellow man, he should cut down the ruthless daimyo with one sword to save the people from his tyranny, and then slice his own throat with the other, for failing in his duty. Only by this set of actions should he expect salvation and happiness in the afterlife."
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42 thinks about this. The. Says. "The samurai orders the peasant gather two bundles of bamboo trees. Each the night of a man. Once the bundles are gathered he tests out the swords on each bundle. He would point out that a bundle of bamboo is slightly tougher than that of a man's neck and if they can cut through the bamboo on a single strike, they should be able to do the same to a man's neck."