The Grandfrogger hops forward and also manages to avoid any mental disturbances that the remaining qlippoth's appearance might cause. In fact, he stares it down and tries to exert his own will over the creature's mind...and feels his power bounce right off its ugly, spiny shell.
Blue, not being especially bright, turns his attention to the snack-sized elf right there in front of him instead of beating feet. He bites down on Hepsubia's arm and grabs hold! He then tries to continue savaging the elf with his talons but thankfully doesn't seem to do a whole lot of damage.
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The Grandfrogger
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Blue
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Maria
Holan-Ji
Effie
Hepsubia
Zithembe
Active Conditions: Bless, Champion Spirit (+2 to non-spell damage within 30 ft. of Zith)
Environmental Conditions:
Everyone is UP!
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Willpower, logic, sense of responsability and sense of continuity aren't usually associated with Hepsubia.
But Dirty Harry finds her mind difficult to focus on, slippery as the last piece of soap in the jail's shower-and probably as dangerous for your integrity and personal well-being if you manage to catch it, so Dirty Harry should sigh in relief, maybe.
Soon, the creature from Outta Here learns that's its as difficult to catch her body than to grab her attention reading tomes of ancient laws (Zith tried, once)
Being as Totally Awesome as always, Hepsubia slashes at Harry and breaks her fall from its disgusting maw (yeah, it's not called "Dirty" Harry for nothing. Bad habits on personal hygiene, never seen a dentist in its life-probably because it's so ugly, and dentist run away! See, I can have a sense of continuity. But who are you, reading me? You could introduce yourself, at least! Maybe invite me for a tea, with sconsses, or these small crepes you do...) with her sword, plunging it in the beast body, and unleashing the primeval powers of positivity (just because it sounds greater than "electricity" or "lightning")
It will comes to you as a shock, but you could be galant with a girl, offer her some flowers before starting to munch on her! Read her body langage! Thought I admit it must be hard when you're not from the same species, even the same plane!
Mostly unfazed by her predicament Hepsubia ignores Blue's ugly mug and slips out of the creature's grasp like it's no big thing. It still takes enough effort though that she's not able to try and teach the qlippoth a lesson just yet. But soon...provided her allies don't rip it apart first.
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The Grandfrogger
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Blue
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Maria
Holan-Ji
Effie
Hepsubia
Zithembe
Active Conditions: Bless, Champion Spirit (+2 to non-spell damage within 30 ft. of Zith)
Environmental Conditions:
Maria, Holan-Ji, Effie, Zithembe and The Grandfrogger are UP!
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Murphy suddenly goes limp in Holan-Ji's grasp, so he tosses the body aside and turns to stare into Harry's ... face? butt? who can tell with these things?
He shakes it off again. "Not sure what the big deal is with these things. I've seen a lot worse in the onis' fighting pits."
But then it starts munching on his bestest friend. And without even giving her any flowers first! How rude!
He scoots in closer, rears up on his back legs and puts all his weight into his attacks with a resounding
"Keep yer hands ... or tentacles or whatevers ... off her!"
Deciding to show this punk how it's done, Holan-Ji rips into the creature with tooth and claw. And though his teeth glance off the qlippoth's shell his claws both find easy purchase as he latches on tightly!
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The Grandfrogger
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Blue
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Maria
Holan-Ji
Effie
Hepsubia
Zithembe
Active Conditions: Bless, Champion Spirit (+2 to non-spell damage within 30 ft. of Zith)
Environmental Conditions:
Mariai, Effie, Zithembe and The Grandfrogger are UP!
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Maria moves up, but not that far. There are beneficial ally abilities and she doesn't want to waste them.
Besides, that thing is UGLY and she has seen some pretty hideous things in her life!
The elf states matter of factly, "Finish it before more come through the rifts."
for
Her arrow zips well away from the target, but flies right through one of the rifts. She looks around, cheeks a bit flushed, "UH... Yeah. I'd like to say that was a warning shot against the next one coming through, but I'm a terrible liar."
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Zithembe continues to trudge forward, cold iron katana ready to strike, but he has not yet reached their foes. "Amusing, Holan-Ji," he says with a faint smile, ignoring the horrifying visage of the qlippoth. "Remember my speed when you charge ahead. But I shall not begrudge you destroying these cancerous demons before I engage. Or standing in the way of my charge."
Maria advances and totally fires a warning shot into the nearby rift to make anything else that might be planning to come through think twice on the matter. She also finds this second qlippoth much less disturbing in appearance than the first.
Effie is also unperturbed by the qlippoth's appearance and moves up, punctuating her words with two shots that strike the creature's shell and shatter it! The second qlippoth goes limp in Holan-Ji's grasp.
With the false priest defeated you see that the rifts here are beginning to slowly close, their unnatural fires dimming. But with some study it might be possible to learn more about the rifts and the blight that he apparently created...
Without the qlippoth to sustain it from the Material Plane, the rift has begun to collapse in on itself. At the current rate of decay, it should close within a few days at most. The ruined building to the south of the clearing appears to have served as a shrine and the engraved glyphs on the remaining walls and floor further indicate that it once served as an anchor point for a celestial ward of sorts. Repairing the shrine and restoring the glyphs may hasten the rift’s collapse and prevent future incursions.
While restoring the shrine would limit further Abyssal invasions in its immediate area, it is not a long-term solution. The shrine, probably along with similar shrines throughout the Kaimuko Wood, would require ongoing and constant maintenance. The lack of attention given to this shrine may explain how the qlippoth initially managed to slip through to the Material Plane.
Some qlippoth cults believe that, upon death, their most devout can break free from the normal cycle awaiting their souls. The souls of such cultists do not transform into outsiders, but instead form into quintessence that merges directly with the Abyss, denying souls for the demon horde while still strengthening the Abyss overall. The qlippoth mastermind behind the events at Yiangma and the North Winds Watch had been using that quintessence to strengthen the rift between the Abyss and the Material Plane. Without a steady flow of quintessence, the rift cannot sustain itself.
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Holan-Ji releases the slimy shelled thing to let it fall at Zithembe's feet.
"Boss, I am a little sorry I blocked yer line. But, to be honest, you do kinda need to get into the fights faster. Maybe some new armor? That hunk o' metal slowin' you down too much?" the tiger asks with a flick of his claw at Zithembe's breastplate.
He's being playful in his post-combat high, but he's also honestly hoping that his friend can improve his speed. He fondly recalls when they were shoulder-to-shoulder against that big earth elemental, and he'd like that to be the normal way they fight, rather then the exception.
Looking around at the blighted landscape and the weird pulsating portal, he worries that there might be other ... things nearby. "I'm gonna patrol around to make sure there's nothin' else waitin' ta' sneak up on us while yer' figurin' out how to close that," he says with a shake of his tail at the portal.
"Anyone want to ride along?" he asks hoping that either Hep or Zithembe will join him.
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Maria doesn’t mind being upstaged, it’s nice that someone actually knows something. She puts her weapons up and pulls out tools to begin the process of restoring the shrine.
”This will take a while, but will be worth it. And we should be able to make good notes for our allies here to keep these shrines working.”
Opting to leave the task of restoring the shrine and the glyphs to the eggheads of the group Holan-Ji and Hepsubia patrol around the area's perimeter, in case there are other nasty things lurking about.
Maria produces some tools as she considers how to best repair the shrine and its glyphs...
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The elf's tandem work together, as always, in a fluid (or not) unity, Hepsubia surprising Maria with pertinent information, using her Omni tools to take measurements, and combining their alchemical knowledge to quickly create some alchemical cement to fill the biggest holes (with, of course, plenty of innuendo jokes from TALH), a simple solution that escaped Maria ever-busy mind.
She must have been an architect, earlier in her long life, even if she can't remember why, where, how or when.
In fact, she says it
I must have been an architect, earlier in my long life, even if I can't remember why, where, how or when.
Then she turns to Effie, and simply says, casually
You know, at first I was disappointed when my healing potion didn't cured much of my wounds, when I nearly died. Now I'm happy, because without this minimal healing I would have died on the spot.
Maria rolls up her sleeves and gets to work, finding the task of repairing and mending the glyphs quite easy. She struggles a bit more when it comes to actually fortifying the shrine's structure but manages to do enough on her own that she's confident things will hold until a more thorough restoration can be done with all the proper tools and masonry.
Of course Hepsubia, ever the bouncing ball, can't stay away for long and wanders back from patrolling with Holan-Ji to give her fellow elf a hand. Their knowledge combined is more than enough to make the necessary repairs to the shrine. Once their work is done, the rifts close completely. And if any of you happen to look very closely, you can even see where the land itself is beginning to revive. It will still take some time, of course, for the wood to be fully restored but it should go much more quickly now.
Having done everything you can here, it seems that it's now time to return to the North Winds Watch and report all that has transpired.
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"Grim. I would rather burn it, but you are right that it may help those whose minds have not been driven toward madness," Zithembe says. "For those who have gone mad, I can try to help those who wish to be helped and--in a different way--help those who do not desire to change once we return."
He kneels down and removes the mirrored shield and his pack. "My tent should be enough to hold the mastermind's corpse. We should keep it covered. Now we need lengths of wood."
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Holan-Ji is Happy.
He's still on a bit of post-combat high as he pads about the temple grounds. His bestest friend, the Avatar Princess of Chaotic Awesomeness is riding his back, her slim fingers firmly gripping the roll of skin at his nape. All he needs is a great meal and a roll in the hay (though he's still a bit conflicted about whether that should or shouldn't be with She Who Defines Awesomeness.)
He stops to sniff a broken bush in case some blight-thing left a scent, when suddenly Hep jumps off and runs across the field saying something about having been an architect in a future-past life. Or something like that. He's not sure he heard her correctly, much less even understood it. Eh, that's her nature, for sure.
His nature is to hunt: for fights, for good food, for fun ... "friends." So he finishes his hunt for any stray qlippies(?), qlippos(?). But not finding any he returns to where his friends are gathered.
"I've still got about half a day o' Tiger form left. I can pull it," he offers. "But no horse jokes. Or I'll eat you like I would a horse, right about now." It's a little hard to tell if he's joking, what with the steady stare of his cat's eyes and the difficulty of interpreting cross-species body language. Leaving it at that, he lays down next to where Zithembe is working, and takes a nap while the Boss finishes rigging up a harness.
It takes some additional time but Zithembe and Maria and anyone else who cares to help have no trouble constructing a crude litter to return the Shepherd's 'real' body back to the outpost. After one last sweep of the area to confirm that you've not missed anything, you set out on the return trip.
The journey back to the North Winds Watch is, thankfully, uneventful and along the way you can see signs that the corruption and blight are fading. As you draw near to the fort's entrance you see a familiar figure waiting on the road, surrounded by some of the Twenty Four Masks - the archon, Zepha. He waves as you approach and you see that many of the tengu are gazing upon him with an awed reverence.
"Ah, my friends, you've returned," Zepha calls. "And...oh ho! Certainly not empty-handed," he adds upon seeing the still form of the utukku qlippoth on the litter. Though the creature is still as difficult to look upon in death as it was in life, at least its unnatural powers seem to have died with it. "Please, tell me everything that has transpired since we parted ways in Hisuikarasu."
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Effie watches the elves work on the shrine. What a pair! So different, yet they work together so well. There's a lesson there, Effie. They're good people. They might be deluded about some things, but you're no font of wisdom yourself. None of us have all the answers.
"We've been too close to losing people, this mission Hep" Effie agrees, her tone solemn. "We weren't ready for Riku's tricks, and we underestimated the skill of her soldiers. I feel like I've learned a lot from my failings of late."
Effie's mood lifts when she sees the archon. She bows to Zepha and the Masks. "It's good to see you again. We were successful in thwarting the Blight. This unholy creature we've brought back with us is the 'priest' who persuaded the garrison to abandon their posts. It's a qlippoth - quite dead now. It somehow disguised itself as a tengu. We think it's important that the deserters who surrendered see this creature. It might help them to realise that they were deceived."
Effie looks to the elves. "Maria will have a much more complete report for you" she smiles.
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Maria raises an eyebrow.
Oh really? Now she wants me to record and report things?
She sighs, "An official report will have to wait until we are finished, but I can fill in some holes. We discovered the Tengu 'priest' preparing a ritual around several open rifts in an area of an old temple, or at least some sort of set of warding stones. The ritual, as best I can guess, was to open up the rifts further. We attempted to stop the priest. They turned into the creature you see there and tried to kill us. A second creature was also pulled through the portal and attacked. We destroyed it as well."
She consults her notes and continues, "After that, we were able to disrupt the rifts and close them, reinforcing the wards in the area. I'd suggest regular visits and cleanup to prevent them from failing again. There should be multiple other shrines that you all might want to check on too."
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"This is what is left of the corruptor and impostor who has been causing trouble since Yiangma," Zithembe explains to Zepha. "I believe he was trying to stabilize Abyssal rifts in the Wood, which would have led to another qlippoth invasion. While we closed the rift, and without this master qlippoth to direct the quintessence the rift should remain unstable, there is a shrine that needs regular maintenance in order to keep the boundary between the Material Plane and the lower planes firm."
Zepha listens eagerly to your reports and then nods, satisfied by what he's heard. "You have done Tianjing, and perhaps all of Golarion, a great service this day; one that this world may not be able to repay. But do not forget that my reach extends a bit beyond this world," he remarks with a wink. "Given your report about the shrine I believe I would do well to see it for myself. I will keep vigil over this region for now - but not alone, of course. I have my contacts with the Way of the Kirin as well as the Pathfinder Society via Venture-Captain Amara Li; likely I will call upon their aid again in the future."
The archon gestures back to the fort behind him. "I will not keep you any longer - Tai Dan and Noro will certainly be happy to see you again, as will Commander Xiang. Perhaps there might even be a feast..." he glances at Holan-Ji with a smile.
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After giving your report to Zepha the archon bids you farewell and heads off into the blighted woods to survey the damage - and the changes you've wrought by repairing the rifts. As he predicted, the occupants of the North Winds Watch give you a hero's welcome after you report in with Commander Xiang and morale is high once again. Only one wrinkle remains - the fate of the captured deserters. Later on, after a hearty meal, Commander Xiang holds a small council with the group as well as Tai Dan and Scout Noro.
<"I did not want to dampen the mood by discussing this earlier, but there is still the matter of the deserters to address,"> Xiang sighs. <"Under normal circumstances, the standard punishment for desertion to the forces of evil is execution. Yet with the revelation of the false priest and his true nature, I...admit that I find myself at a loss. What's more, it seems that some of the mutations brought on by the blight are beginning to reverse themselves.">
<"Desertion cannot go unpunished and we are taught early on that the enemy can and will employ magic and other charms that cloud the mind. Their actions could have cost Tianjing dearly if the watch had come under enemy attack! But given all that you have done for us, I would value your input on the matter - perhaps you see something I do not.">
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Maria adds her thoughts, ”I am not one to use flowery rhetoric or make an emotional appeal. I’m also not that concerned about morality considering what we have to do in this line of business. Plus, following the law to the letter is a fine way of keeping order.”
You think she might be done and just not care, ”But then again, execution is such a final outcome. And a waste of resources too. If even half of the traitors could be rehabilitated to productive members of society, it would help your staffing issues greatly. So, in summation, killing them all would probably be unwise.”
Her hand shakes a bit and she sits back down, putting her pen away.
Please don’t kill them. They will be judged soon enough.
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Zithembe nods as the commander explains his predicament. "I understand the need to enforce consequences. The soldier's loyalty should have been to the defense of this region no matter how noble the deceptive qlippoth's false crusade sounded to them," he begins. "One mitigating factor to weigh is that the soldiers did not willingly desert to the cause of evil. They believed that they were deserting for a greater good. Once they were within the qlippoth's greater influence, their minds were warped and clouded with Abyssal corruption. So, at the very least, they do not deserve execution as they believed they were deserting for the cause of the greater good. Dereliction of duty, perhaps. They should not be punished any worse than a soldier who deserted the army in order to see their mother on her deathbed.
"Furthermore, those who have been driven mad should be cared for rather than punished. Tsukiyo instructs compassion for those who have been afflicted rather than punishment for their differences. Some may be able to be rehabilitated in time.
"For those who realized their mistake too late to escape the clutches of the qlippoth mastermind, I recommend penance. There is still a great deal of work left to restore the protective shrines and wards. Set them to this task with an appropriate penalty to pay or rank."
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Holan-Ji leans against the wall only really half-listening as he waits to get back to the party. He agrees with the others, but knows he's not eloquent enough to help them make their case. When Zithembe finishes, he nods and steps away from his wall.
"What they said. Make 'em pay, but treat 'em fair."
Having given his simple input, he returns to the fray of the celebration searching for Rya, the aasimar woman from the last party. Some time later, Holan-Ji, Rya, and another couple head out together. The tengu male and another local aasimar female laugh at something Holan-Ji says as they all make their way back into the woods.
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Days later at the Tianjing port city of Zetang, the Pathfinders prepare to board their ship for the return to Avistan and the Inner Sea. Holan-Ji regales them with the story of his last few days getting the tour of the city from Rya and his other new friends and finding all the best places to eat.
Though to be fair, he didn't really know the city that well, so in the end he just got a couple free meals out of the group.
As they board, he suddenly calls out to a samsaran boarding the same ship. "Hey, Doc! Whatcha' doing here?" After chatting with the blue-skinned man for a few minutes, he introduces him to the team.
"This here's Doc. Doc, this is Zithembe, Maria, Effie, Jobu, and the Totally Awesome Lil' Hep (just Hep for short)," he says in order. "Doc was out here visitin' them samsarans up in Zi Ha, and Zetang's the closest safe port to sail outta'. Him an' Hogo are gonna sail with us at least as far as Jalmeray."
The samsaran bows to the team and expresses his pleasure at meeting everyone while the animated thorny vine on his shoulder also rises up and imitates a bow. Holan-Ji takes the samsaran by the shoulder and leads him towards the kitchen and mess hall chatting in Tien and catching up with his old friend.
Having heard you speak your mind on the matter Noro gives an approving nod. <"I couldn't have said it any better myself,"> he agrees. <"Please, Commander...give them a chance to make things right.">
<"Normally I would not consider it my place to speak on such matters, but I find myself in agreement with Maria. You must think of not only this place but the region as whole and all who call it home - and for now, you still need all the able bodies you can get,"> Tai Dan adds. <"The archon Zepha said he would personally keep vigil in the area for the time being, so why not put the deserters to work with him, as Zithembe suggests?">
Commander Xiang is silent, her expression momentarily unreadable...and then she nods as well. <"So be it. The deserters will seek penance by working in service to the land and its healing and perhaps, in time, each one will prove themselves worthy of their former rank. Every action has a consequence but you've convinced me that in this case it would serve better in the long run to bend, lest we break entirely.">
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And so, having resolved the qlippoth crises in Tianjing, you part ways with the aasimars of the North Winds Watch and the tengu of the Twenty Four Masks; the Masks return to Hisuikarasu while you set out for Zetang to catch a ship back to Absalom...
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Effie was unusually quiet during the debriefing with the Commander. She listened to her friends and nodded at Zithembe's suggested solution, not needing to add any words of her own.
She smiled softly at the Commander's judgement, and followed her friends out of the fort in silence.
But Effie did not go to Zetang.
"Friends" she said, a serious tone in her voice, "I am going to stay here a while. I'll work with Zepha and help the people of Tianjing to heal the land. I have a lot of thinking to do."
Effie hugged each of her friends in turn. When it came to Maria, she told the elf "I am your friend, Maria. I'm certain we'll have more disagreements in the future, but I shall always be your friend."
"Farewell, my dearest companions. We'll see each other again."
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Maria accepts the hug, "Well, friends are willing to say honest things. And you spoke your mind to me. Perhaps I made a mistake, though legally speaking I'm not admitting any fault in any way. That said, thank you for being my teammate and friend. We will meet again soon. Stay safe."
She glances down at her journal, "I'll have a draft of my report completed before we leave for you to look over, if you would like."
The Commerce District of Niswan is packed with storefronts and stands populated with busy merchants and skilled artisans. The scents of spicy marinades and exotic fruits mix with the smell of the sea, and the cacophony of shouts from vendors is almost overwhelming. The crowded streets wind away from the water, eventually leading to a quiet road with a view of Niswan’s famous terraced gardens. The Pathfinder Lodge sits at the end of this road. Inside the lodge, Venture-Captain Rashmivati Melipdra, a heavyset, middle-aged Vudrani woman, stacks books onto a shelf in her new office. Open boxes filled with books, weapons, unusual stones and crystals, and other knickknacks lay strewn throughout the room, and a brightly colored bird sits on a perch in one corner. Sitting upon the desk is a tray of crunchy tea biscuits and a pot of masala chai.
"It was so good of you to make a detour here, especially on such short notice," she remarks over her shoulder as she continues her task of filing books on the shelves. "Please, help yourselves to the refreshments and we'll begin shortly."
You recall that hospitality is quite an important facet of Jalmeri culture. To refuse the refreshments without a good reason would likely be seen as an insult.
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The Grandfrogger inhales deeply. A contented sigh escapes from beneath his woolen hood - though the sound is a bit… wetter than usual. Carefully he holds the teapot in one hand and pours himself a cup. “Cherry Blossom Tender. Rude to not leave any food for our colleagues, it is.” He finds a seat and clambers up onto it with more grace than his knobbled hands would suggest - as well as a moist squelch.
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The small(er) figure freezes, except for one hand reaching above her head onto the tabletop grasping at anything that might possibly feel edible. “Iwasn’tdoinganythinglikethatnuhuhnowaywaitisthatabitdit’sthemostbeautifulb irdI’veeverseenohmygoshhellobirdiewhatisyournameareyouhungrydoyouwantacooki ehereI’vegotacookieforyou…”
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There is a song-guaranteed with no squirrels- coming from the outside. Really you should listen to it..
And then The Totally Awesome Lil"Hep comes into view, singing the last verses, as quickly as elfically possible
Ho-ro, the rattlin’ bog, the bog down in the valley-o
Ho-ro, the rattlin’ bog, the bog down in the valley-o
There was a hair; a rare hair a great hair; and a rattlin hair comment
There was hair on the mite; mite on the feather; feather on the bird; bird on the egg; egg on the nest; nest on the twig; twig on the branch; branch on the limb; limb on the tree; tree in the hole; hole in the bog and the bog down in the valley-o
Then she falls face down , gasping for air
.. Huh.. Huh.. Hello!
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In struts a broad-shouldered, squat tengu. He wears a coat of mail that glimmers blue as the deepest ocean. A whalebone wayfinder hangs on a fine chain from his breast, and a salt-stained tricorne sits upon his head. On his shoulder is a bird every bit as bright as the one in the venture captain's office, although the tengu's bird has a more predatory aspect about her.
Were it not for the scraps of seaweed and other miscellaneous aquatic flora festooned about his person, the tengu would be a splendid and imposing figure.
"Eh, Trade Prince Captain Malachi Malarkey, at your service, yes!" The tengu doffs his tricorne and bows extravagantly, such that the bird on his pauldron must take to her wings to avoid a fall. "My good friend Trade Prince Aaqir al'Hakam asked me to attend, so how could I refuse? We are very close, yes. We dine together often."
"Eh, and this is Polly. She is a very rare parrot-hawk, yes."
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The samsaran man that you've come to know as Doctor O'Mayga and his familiar Hogo stand at the ship's railing as Holan-Ji flies off to "check out the grub" in the storied island nation of Iblydos off the southern coast of Casmaron. He's glad that he got to see the big Oni-tiger-demon-dragonfly-man again, but he's even happier that his sojourn to Xi Ha is finally over. It was nice to meet the samsaran elders, but he now realizes that his path and quest are not in line with most of samsaran philosophy.
The central question of his lifelong journey of discovery has always been, "Why does Pharasma permit the samsarans to exist?" Though not undead, their reincarnation defies the natural order of the universe and denies their souls to the River and Judgement. Yes, eventually they pass on, but only after they've had every chance over the course of a dozen, or a hundred, or perhaps even a thousand lifetimes to become perfected. Normal beings are denied this opportunity. So why are the samsarans special? Why does Pharasma allow it?
And so, he has spent his life since awakening in this form studying life, death, reincarnation, and undeath, and the intersection and transition between them all. When a being dies, if he can, he helps them make the transition from the mortal coil to the River of Souls, gaining a bit of power that Pharasma has granted him to continue his study. He and Hogo often joke that being a Pathfinder is great for his research, as it gives him so many opportunities to study the deaths of those they murder must kill.
His familiar Hogo, perhaps sensing the good Doctor's mode, crawls up into the unusually tall man's long black hair and makes themselves a nest. They rub their thorns together to chitter a message of encouragement and happiness that they're getting to do some Pathfinder-ing again before falling asleep.
Doc retires from the railing, and joins Maria to continue their discussion of the differences in Draconic language dialects. While interested, even she gets tired of his slow and halting speech pattern. It's not entirely his fault, though. Having lived so many lives across so many places, his thoughts flit between the multiple languages he's known, and he has to translate them into Common as he speaks with each phrase having begun or ended in one or more tongues. Each time that he pauses, the next word is slightly emphasized, as if he had been searching for just the right word and was pleased to have found it.
"But surely ... you must ... agree, Maria, that ... the aggressive and ... martial themes in the ... epic poetry of the Blacks ... must have some ... influence on their thoughts and ... decisions. As opposed to the ... emphasis the Golds put on ... justice and ... beauty and how their language ... follows suit." The discussion goes well into the night, and eventually the Doctor excuses himself to join Hogo in sleep.
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Doc follows everyone else into the Pathfinder lodge in Jalmeray and takes a seat atop a box. He politely takes a biscuit, managing to grab one just before Cherry Blossom Tender can get her hands on it, and holds out his cup for the Grandfrogger to pour masala chai. If anyone seems to avoid partaking, he gives a subtle but slow encouragement to try some, lest their host take offense.
Hogo descends from their hair-nest and dips a thorn into the chai, though they find it rather thin and unlike their preferred drink - blood. Doc looks down as his little friend speaks to him. "Ah, yes, Hogo, you are ... wise, as always." He shifts his gaze to the Vudrani woman. "Captain, ... er ... Venture Captain ..." he corrects himself so as to avoid confusion with the Trade Prince Captain, "What is it ... that you ... require of us?"
After taking a few minutes to make sure that everyone has a chance to enjoy the refreshments (and to finish filling out one of her shelves), Venture-Captain Melipdra finally gets down to business. She rustles through one of the open boxes and reveals a polished, pale gray stone sphere covered in faint ancient writing and runes.
"I bought this in the market about a month ago, from fishers who dragged it up in their nets," she explains. "This is most unusual writing: a combination of ancient Vudrani and Aquan. Not all of the writing makes sense to me, but it does clearly spell out the name “Monastery of Unbreaking Waves.” When I was a student at the Monastery of Unblinking Flame, I always thought it was odd that there were schools for air, earth, and fire, but not water. And now it turns out that there once was! Finding any information about the Monastery of Unbreaking Waves was extremely difficult. I had to call in favors to get access to the private archives of the Monastery of Unblinking Flame, but I finally found mention of the Unbreaking Waves. It seems that over a thousand years ago, the school was destroyed by a magically induced tsunami that swept the buildings into the sea and killed most of the monks. The other schools determined that the Monastery of Unbreaking Waves caused its own downfall and buried most records of it to prevent a future disaster."
"With all due respect to the Houses of centuries past, something about that story isn’t sitting right with me. What could any of the Houses of Perfection have done that was so terrible as to cause such a fate? I contacted Ashasar of the Concordance of the Elements to see if perhaps the marids knew anything about what happened to the school. He learned that a few marids remembered the event, and they agreed it was unlikely that the school brought the tsunami down upon itself. They believe that it was caused by someone else, perhaps someone jealous of the monastery’s power."
Melipdra examines the stone sphere in her hand once more before continuing. "I also spent some time studying the object itself, and I believe that it is a key. More than that, I believe that it is also trying to *go somewhere*. Watch." She places the sphere on her uncluttered desk, and after a moment, it slowly but indisputably moves on its own. It very gradually picks up speed until it rolls completely off the desk, but Venture-Captain Melipdra easily catches it. "I’d like you to take this key and find out where it is trying to go, and what it opens. See what became of the Monastery of Unbreaking Waves. I’ve carried it as far as the coast, so you’ll need to take a ship to go further. I’ve arranged for one that leaves tomorrow morning to carry you from Niswan. I suspect the key’s final destination lies beneath the water, so prepare yourselves accordingly."
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While the island of Jalmeray has dozens of monastic orders, the three most famous ones are the Monastery of Unblinking Flame, the Monastery of Untwisting Iron, and the Monastery of Unfolding Wind. Aristocrats, leaders, and wealthy merchants the world over send their children to seek education at these schools, together called the Houses of Perfection.
The Houses of Perfection are quite hard to get into and require succeeding at a difficult challenge, such as racing a djinni, wrestling a shaitan, or outwitting an efreeti.
Once every 10 years, the Houses hold a tournament, competing with each other in both unarmed and weapon fighting, archery, magic demonstrations, and historical knowledge. The tournament culminates in the Challenge of Sky and Heaven. The Monastery of Untwisting Iron has won the last two challenges.
While these tournaments are friendly, they were much more competitive in centuries past, with higher stakes. Duels between monks were also more common in years past, and sometimes turned deadly.
Jalmeray sits in the Obari Ocean, known as the Deadly Ocean Passage thanks to volatile weather, pirates, and dangerous creatures.
Some of the dangers in the ocean are dragon turtles, sea hags, sharks, and a brine dragon named Hyntheragha, who rules over a group of merfolk. Marids - water genies - are also common here, leading to a large population of undines, offspring of humans and marids.
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Maria counters the argument, "Ah, the classic 'basilisk or the egg' question. Which came first, the poetry pushing those feelings or the feelings being indicated by the poetry. My general thought is that the attitudes are reflected by poetry, and then the poetry helps encourage the same attitudes in future generations. They become hand in hand over time. That said, it most definitely was the egg first. There have been egg laying creatures since the dawn of time, but basilisks have only been around a fraction of that."
Maria accepts a cookie and a cup of tea before sitting down to write in her journal. She greets each member and confirms that everyone is willing to allow her to include their names and use minimally identifying details in her report.
"I am happy to help record details of our mission as well as aid with the investigation and any trouble we run across."
She taps herself with a wand, explaining that it helps her concentration. Then listens quietly, taking a few notes here or there.
She sums up her researched knowledge as succinctly as possible, "While the island of Jalmeray has dozens of monastic orders, the three most famous ones are the Monastery of Unblinking Flame, the Monastery of Untwisting Iron, and the Monastery of Unfolding Wind. Aristocrats, leaders, and wealthy merchants the world over send their children to seek education at these schools, together called the Houses of Perfection. The Houses of Perfection are quite hard to get into and require succeeding at a difficult challenge, such as racing a djinni, wrestling a shaitan, or outwitting an efreeti. Once every 10 years, the Houses hold a tournament, competing with each other in both unarmed and weapon fighting, archery, magic demonstrations, and historical knowledge. The tournament culminates in the Challenge of Sky and Heaven. The Monastery of Untwisting Iron has won the last two challenges."
Then pulls out a map and shows everyone her thoughts on that topic, "Jalmeray sits in the Obari Ocean, known as the Deadly Ocean Passage thanks to volatile weather, pirates, and dangerous creatures. Some of the dangers in the ocean are dragon turtles, sea hags, sharks, and a brine dragon named Hyntheragha, who rules over a group of merfolk. Marids - water genies - are also common here, leading to a large population of undines, offspring of humans and marids."
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Dr. O'Mayga finishes his tea and returns his cup to the table, declining with a shake of his head any offer of a refill.
"These Houses are ... ancient, even by our ... measure," he says with a nod to Zithembe. "Powerful, ... both famous and infamous, ... and with extraordinarily difficult ... ordeals for entry."
"The Monastery of ... Untwisting Iron has won the last two ... Challenges of Sky and Heaven, tournaments only held each ... century ... no, my mistake, each ... decade."
Gah. No one but the Jistkans has ever used a base 100 numbering system. No wonder we couldn't compete with the Osirians.
So flustered is he by his simple error, he doesn't even notice the Venture Captain's demonstration with the stone ball and continues talking.
"These tournaments were more ... competitive in dec... no, centuries ... past, and duels among ... monks in the streets ... sometimes turned ... deadly."
What he knows of the Obari Ocean he certainly would have shared with the original team members as they sailed those very seas on their way from Tian-Xia. He takes it for granted that their new Pirate Trade Prince Captain knows of its deadly reputation and dangers better then anyone.
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The Trade Prince nods sagely at the exposition of his new Pathfinder companions. "Eh, I know it's hard to believe, yes, but I was once a pirate myself" says the tengu with the tricorne and the 'parrot' on his shoulder. "And I have much experience with the taking of ships, yes." Malachi taps the side of his beak conspiratorially. "Polly and I have had many sea battles, against pirates and monsters alike, yes. Sahuagin are the worst, Besmara take them, yes!"
Turning to the Venture-Captain, Malachi adds "You have anything to help these fine ship-mates underwater, yes? Breathing and fighting are difficult for those unable to turn themselves into sharks or octopi, yes!"
Turning to the Venture-Captain, Malachi adds "You have anything to help these fine ship-mates underwater, yes? Breathing and fighting are difficult for those unable to turn themselves into sharks or octopi, yes!"
"Why yes, I have *do* potions of Water Breathing for you, along with potion sponges! But if you don't need those, I also have potions of Cure Serious Wounds that I can offer instead."
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"My title was ... earned for my ... research. I am not a ... medical Doctor. Though Pharasma does ... grant me some ... healing magics. The water ... breathing potions would be the most ... useful, I think."
The Doctor of Quietus Studies looks to his wrist where Hogo has wrapped themselves like a bracelet.
"Ah, yes, of course. ... Do you have enough ... of those potions ... for our companions, too?"
Assuming so, he needs nothing else. And he defers from carrying the magical ball. In a previous mission, it was he that was made responsible for holding the leash of the retired Pathfinder Kalkamedes. He'd rather not be responsible for things that wander off on their own again.