You settle into a trance easily despite the significant events looming before you. The visions of your normal mystic trance remain elusive, however. You find yourself sailing though heavy mists, passing through a succession of five torii gates. As you cross under the fifth gate, the mists part, if but for a second. Before you lies a great sinkhole, drawing the surrounding water into it like a huge drain. From its inky depths come cries of agony, howls of demonic laughter, and an overwhelming presence of evil.
Then, the mists close in and you awaken.
You head out from Isao's manor in the pre-dawn twilight. Following Isao's directions and Kiyomi's familiarity with Kasai (although it has been a few years since she was last here), you cross the city south and west. There are few people out this early. The route takes you past a couple of Kasai's major landmarks. You see the first after you cross a major canal bridge. It is a stark looking edifice, all straight lines and iron. 'The Temple of Woe', Kiyomi identifies it, dedicated to Yaezhing, god of harsh justice, punishment and murder.
You turn west and cross another canal, entering an island district entirely devoted to Minkai's patron Shizuru, goddess of ancestors, honor swordplay and the sun. The district includes the homes of priests and support staff, all surrounding the massive temple at its center. You wend through the narrow streets and turn south again, crossing a third bridge to enter a dockside district. Even a world away, the sights, sounds and smells of the docks match those you might find in Sandpoint, Kalsgard, or any seaside Avistani city.
At the appointed mooring, you find Kadei Ejigoro, Isao's fisherman contact. The crusty boat captain is perhaps more ancient than Isao, looking like he might fall down from a stiff wind. Despite his years, he moves around the boat and docks with the easy confidence decades of experience grants. He silently nods, waving you on board. His boat is a long, narrow-bodied skiff. Several empty lobster traps are lashed to the sides.
Once you are all onboard, Ejogoro rows you out with a single stern oar, and opens sail when you are clear of the docks. As the sun's glow starts to illuminate the bay, you see your destination about a mile in the distance. As you near the small island, you can see it is covered in boulders and moss, with a few short trees like stubble across the surface. Sea birds flock around the rocky shores, the only apparent inhabitants.
Before you, a large torii gate comprised of twin vermillion posts rises from the shallow water a hundred or so feet from the shore. The gate is about twenty feet wide and fifteen feet high, joined together by an upper lintel painted black. To the east and west, a hundred yards distant, you spot a couple of similar torii gates set off the shore.
Eligoro nods sagely, but then places his hand over his mouth and shakes his head. He points at the torii gate before you, then at the other two you can see. He opens his left palm and makes a circling gesture around it with his right hand, stopping and pointing at five different spots on the way. He points again at the torii gate and holds up his hand, indicating 'five'.
"Ok, so each torii leads us to a shrine."
Malnival frowns at his friends words and looks off into the distance at the torii.
"5th gate....sea drains into a pit of evil....lovely."
"Five torii gates, five royal families... I'm sure there's some significance there," Ameiko muses. "The books said nothing about this. They describe the Imperial Shrine as an island mausoleum, covered with shrines and graves. This island is barren."
"Perhaps the gates are true gates? Openings to another world where the dead may lie unmolested? Perhaps we must sail through the gate for the Amatasu family?" Kiyomi stares at the torii, trying to see if they differ from each other.
Ameiko shrugs, "Might as well try. They are gates, so it makes sense to pass through them, I guess."
Ameiko gestures Eligoro forward, and the old fisherman guides the boat through the first gate. As soon as you pass beneath the lintel, Ameiko jumps and holds up her bag. "The Amatatsu Seal... its humming!"
Before you, the view of the island wavers. You catch glimpse of a similar island, but covered in statues and edifices. When you blink, the island is back to its original state.
"Go to the next one, please," Ameiko asks the fisherman. He nods mutely and orders his sails. A few minutes later, you pass beneath the second torii gate. Kiyomi cannot see any differences -- there are no specific markings on either gate.
Passing through the second gate has a similar effect to the first: the Amatatsu Seal hums and the Imperial Shrine shifts in-and-out momentarily. As you circle the island, you also spot the fourth, and later, fifth torii gates. Slowly but steadily, Eligoro guides the boat through each of the five gates. As you pass through the fifth gate, the seal ceases buzzing and the Imperial Shrine comes fully into phase.
Eligoro nods, slightly impressed.
The waters between you and the island's dock are calm.
In fact, the city behind you now appears abnormally quiet, as if in stasis. Only when you look closely do you see subtle movements.
"That not creepy or weird. Heng, I get the feeling we are going to land on your pit of evil."
Parity casts airwalk, resist cold, see invisibility, stoneskin and keen edge before they depart the boat.
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Harlan shivers.
"Yeah, I have to agree with Parity, this place is giving off a creepy feeling."
Malnival cast fly on himself and shield.
Eligoro rows the boat forward, moving it skillfully up to the small dock. The boat comes to a stop, barely bumping against the pilings. He stands, creaking as much as the planks, and ties down a mooring line. He then nods to you and sits, casually taking out a small bag of edamame to have a snack.
From the dock, a stone-paved path climbs up the steep shoreline. At the summit stands a massive, ornate torii gate leading into the cemetery. The path forward winds through a crowded mass of mausoleums, obelisk-shaped gravestones, small shrines and formal-looking garden plots. Trees and flowers decorate the path, arranged in specific positions, but they are untended and run wild.
To the left of the torii gate is a rectangular wooden building constructed around four stone pillars. Above the front doors is the katana and sun marking of Shizuru, and a brazier burning incense.
There are no signs of life.
Suishen tells Parity it senses the same thing.
|
Heng looks with concern at his companions preparations. He makes sure his defensive potions are close at hand. "There is something wrong about this place. I mean other than its sudden appearance. There is an imbalance here." He steps onto the dock and bows to Eligoro encouraging the boatman to be wary.
Heng stands with the others before the shrine. "I will lead the way. For some reason I do not expect that this place remains dedicated to the Noble Goddess." He sends the ioun stone orbitting his head as he approaches the doors.
"Suishen agrees. Let's find what we need and be quit of this place."
-Posted with Wayfinder
Malnival frowns and follows the others.
Kiyomi looks unsure about trespassing on the holy island, but nods and follows.
Harlan follows along, crossbow of blasting at the ready.
Heng leads the group up to the temple doors. They are of heavy oak, carved with images of dragons along the edges. They push open with a deep creaking. The temple is divided into three sections. The entrance chamber holds two shrines -- dedicated to Pharasma and Tsukiyo -- that flank the inner doors, and artistic tapestries of the celestial realm adorn the rest of the walls.
The middle section is a long hallway that branches into four small sitting rooms. The rooms are orderly and clean, holding low wooden tables, seating cushions and sleeping pallets, with tatami mats covering the floors. They are all unoccupied.
The final area is a meditative shrine. A huge statue of a golden-scaled dragon dominates the west wall, towering almost to the top of the twenty-foot-high ceiling. Small shrines sit to the north and south, in the corners flanking the room's entrance. Two large braziers scent the air with the tang of sandalwood incense.
Kneeling before the dragon statue is a middle-aged woman dressed in the long, hooded robe of a monk. As you enter, she stands and bows deeply before the statue. She turns and does the same to you, keeping her hands folded in her sleeves in supplicant fashion. With a smile, she greets you. "This one is named Shiori. Welcome to the Imperial Shrine. We have not had any visitors for quite a long time. Have you come to pay respects to your ancestors?"
Kiyomi bows to the woman and then to each of the statues, starting with Shizuru, then with the imperial lines. "Thank you, honored Shiori. I am Kiyomi. We are honored to see that the ancestors still have such a dedicated caretaker."
Harlan looks at the statue curiously before turning his attention to the woman.
"I don't have any ancestors here. But we have brought one who does and she would honor them."
Shiori smiles, sketching a smaller bow. "This one was assigned to be the shrine's caretaker, and has been here for several years. It seems longer recently, since none come to visit anymore. The last was Emperor Higashiyama, and that was already four years gone."
After a wistful pause, she continues, eagerly. "Who have you come to visit? The cemetery is large and confusing to navigate, but this one knows the paths well. Do you require a guide?"
"Indeed, His Imperial Majesty is here still. He keeps to the Shrine of the Heavenly Sovereigns mostly. Shall I take you to him?"
To Heng's second question, she adds, "This one was honored by Emperor Higashiyama, the grandfather of our current Imperial Majesty."
Malnival's eyes widen as he turns and looks at Heng.
"I agree, let's go see Emperor Higashiyama first."
Ameiko nods, turning to Shiori, "Please lead the way."
Shiori bows low to Ameiko. "As you wish, honored scion." She leads out out of the temple and left into the cemetery. The path is wide in places, narrow in others, with no clear plan as the cemetery expanded through the years. You pass a lonely kiosk for incense, but none burns. The grounds are orderly, but overgrown with weeds, and even the flowers and trees have been left to run riot. A soft wind blows through, rustling leaves gathered into sharp corners.
"This is Mikado Cemetery," Shiori explains. "While Minkai's former emperors are laid to rest at the Shrine of Heavenly Sovereigns, the cremated remains of their most trusted guardians and advisors, and the lesser scions of the imperial lines are interred here." You pass by several cross-paths and branches that lead around corners or into cul-de-sacs. The shadows lean in heavily, and from all sides you sense you are being watched, though there are no visible watchers. "Perhaps you will be honored to be interred here, when your times come?" she muses.
Eventually, you emerge from the north end of the cemetery and find yourselves before a canal. Through an archway inscribed with Minkaian characters, a bridge of luminescent light stretches across the silver waters of the canal moat. The bridge leads from the cemetery to a long, tombstone-shaped island. A large torii gate stands at the opposite end of the bridge, opening into a courtyard surrounded by several stone structures peeking above the trees.
Shiori guides you across the magnificent bridge and across the small isle. "This is the Shrine of Heavenly Sovereigns, and this bridge is the only way in or out. An antilife ward blocks all other crossings -- this one suggests you do not attempt such." You wind through the structures, passing a covered performer's stage, and a number of standing tombs marked with symbols of the five families, sealed with bronze doors.
You cross a koi pond on a zig-zag of wooden planks. Dozens of golden and orange fish float lifeless at the surface, some half-covered by lily pads, water grass and cattails. You pass through a gazebo and a roji garden of cherry trees and the jade likeness of a grieving maiden.
At last, Shiori stops before a massive mausoleum, fronted by two bronze-paneled doors. Golden statues of kirin flank the entrance. "Emperor Higashiyama resides within," she explains, bowing and stepping back.
Malnival glances at the dead fish as they pass and slowmly preps his scimitar as he looks at the others.
Shiori's eyes widen in surprise and she reacts with a very low bow. "This one humbly serves all the imperial families, as best she is able. There were times when the shrine was staffed with several priests, and we could keep things in better order. This one begs forgiveness for her failings."
You suspect she is lying.
Ameiko shrugs.
"Not like you get a lot of visitors, but you were waiting for us."
Parity mouths some words to Heng.
Pit of evil
"So what gave us away. Don't think we knocked."
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Kiyomi watches the muscles of the neck, noting which ones tense when a truth is spoken versus a lie. She slides close to Heng and murmurs too low for anyone else to hear, "She is lying."
Shiori tenses as Kiyomi whispers to Heng and he reacts. Kiyomi and Malnival are expecting trouble...
Malnival prepaires himself but will not engage at the moment.
Hold action.
Kiyomi begins to sing, inspiring courage to her allies! +3!
Malnival watches and waits, and Kiyomi starts to sing. Shiori emits a hiss and flies up and away, landing atop the jade statue. As she flies, her neck elongates, becoming grotesquely long and coiling like a snake. She finally unfolds her hands from her robe, and you see they are clawed and reptilian like a crocodile's.
"Soto Takahiro sends his regards. You will die here, like all the rest!" she screams, cackling. The laughter abruptly ends, along with all light and sound, as she projects a nightfall aura of pure darkness and silence.
*
... delaying
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