Piella makes up for the mud-covered Lung and manages to latch the last few pieces in place.
Covered from head to toe in mud, the four of you now have the task of dragging this thing out of the caverns.
"Shiro...send for the captain. This job is beyond us. And you're the fastest and stealthiest," says Lung, gasping a bit, looking like the mud is compromising his breathing.
"Shiro...send for the captain. This job is beyond us. And you're the fastest and stealthiest," says Lung, gasping a bit, looking like the mud is compromising his breathing.
Shiro nodded. "Very well, I will fetch the crew."
The ninja made haste, vanishing into the dark of the cave with ease.
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Shiro easily manages to cloak himself and make his way back out of the sea cave without any issue.
He reaches the shore party, and quickly explains to them the situation. They strap on gear as they follow him back down into the fishy tunnels.
As they do, time passes. You can see Kuijia begin to slowly stir. Its eyes eventually open, but it is still stunned for...
more rounds.
Shiro and the crew reach the crab just as the stun begins to wear off (unless you do something in the meantime).
Lung stares at the crab eyes again.
"He will be unconscious for a little longer, but soon will wake up."
Just as the crew arrives she will blast him one last time for good measure. Before its eyes, odd shapes and strange patterns of luminescent lichen swirl in Kuijia's helpless mind .
"Someone good with bindings make sure he's secure. Let's get him back to the ship now."
With a surge of iron willpower, Kuijia breaks hold of the mental grip you've had on it.
Luckily, the bindings hold but clearly the monstrous creature is not pleased.
The crew hesitates for a moment before finally grabbing the ropes, double checking the bindings, and slowly but surely beginning the arduous task of dragging the creature out of the cave.
Qiaolian approaches you for a moment.
"What's the plan if it breaks free? The bindings look secure, but best be prepared."
"Keep a blade pointed at one eye, I suppose," says Lung.
"I don't want to kill it. That's not our goal right now. I've used the last of my spells that will affect it like that and it resisted it. If it breaks free, we will just have to fight it like normal. I think while it is unconscious right now, helpless and pinned, perhaps Lung should knock it out for good. That way we don't have to worry about it. It's a short trip back to the docks if we can get it on board the ship."
Lung pulls out his Iron Scroll, twirls it, then drops it. "Oh oops...I must have been thinking about twisted tea," he says.
Then he gives the giant crab a good thwack on the eye.
"I'm not skilled in the arts of subduing my opponents, let's hope the crab stays unconsicious." Shiro shook his head, monster hunting was much more involved than he'd thought, certainly not one of his talents. It was a new and unique challenge, but one he'd have to overcome. He could at least use his strength to help drag the crab to the surface.
Lung pulls out his Iron Scroll, twirls it, then drops it. "Oh oops...I must have been thinking about twisted tea," he says.
Then he gives the giant crab a good thwack on the eye.
[dice=Coup de Grace Nonlethal]1d6 + 2
[dice=extra damage]1d6 + 2
Slowly but surely, the lot of you pull the increasingly frustrated monster out of the cavern. Luckily, the other denizens of this spit of rock don't interfere.
As you reach the craggy shore, the remaining offshore crewmembers help you lash the creature between two rowboats, and if you give the signal, will begin (with your help of course), steering them back towards the ship.
It is easy to tell she is impressed by the Iron Scroll knocking out the crab. With the crew helping, and her pulling on a rope tied around the waist of the crab, they manage to pull it further from the cave.
"Thank goodness, sunlight."
She is relieved to find help. For a little bit, she will rub her sore leg and let them lash the creature between the two rowboats, but before they are done, she is helping as well.
"Alright, I think that's that. Hopefully, the Soejis are ready for us." She will then look to the Captain, "Thanks for helping with that creature and being there for us." She doesn't go overly mushy, understanding that the crew is there. Even her voice is a bit tougher than normal, as if to hype up the Captain in a small way.
The Captain smiles at you.
"It was truly a pleasure."
As you slowly and painstakingly row your way back to the ship, she ponders for a moment.
"Have you already planned where to keep this thing once we're back on shore? Hopefully Soeji's got something in mind."
"Wait...what about the thing we saw when we were in the Spirit Realm, in the ...whatever his name's cave was."
"Hah! Absolutely not! We just need to get Kuijia safe in the hands of Soeji. I think that is more important than wanting to see about some mystery. Once Kuijia is taken care of. I'm sure making trips in that area, even a small boat can take us to the island again. Unless the Captain wishes to take us...hmm?" she asks with a pleading cute face. "I know you also want to see what it was..."
"No need to twist my arm, I'm also quite curious as to what's down there."
Kuijia is finally lifted aboard the ship and gently lowered into the hold. Sighing with relief, the crew goes about finding a place to rest for a few hours.
Soeji is beside himself with excitement.
"Now that's what I call a crab. I couldn't have asked for better. You three never fail to amaze me. Look at the size of that thing. And you even managed to bring it back alive!"
"With our powers combined, we are quite dangerous," says Lung with a deadly serious face, then crumples into a tired smile. "I think we all smell a bit like fish guts, though."
"Old Soeji, did you ever figure out the mystery of that rotted fish? Something happened out of the ordinary--it's as if magic was used to putrefy it, or switch it, or something."
Soeji glances around.
"I just might have. I sent some friends asking around Tao Wei's and it seems the same happened to him. Stolen supplies, rotten vittles, and a sunken fishing ship. Seems whoever's messing with us is also messing with him. I haven't been able to figure out if it's another of our rivals, or if there's something else at work, though."
At Lung's indication, she will cast some spells to clean the mud from their clothing once the job is done. Some good soap will be needed for their skin, however.
------
"I kind of wish we all got along, but there may just be sabotage. Hopefully, it is not of the spiritual kind."
As they unload their prisoner other than the giant crab, she gestures to him.
"We also found this guy within a gate to the spirit realm, waiting to ambush us. We bound him and knocked him out. He's a slippery one. Should we hand him off to you? He might give you some clues as to what has been going on. We are going back out with the Captain for a quick trip to the caves to further explore. There were some things of interest there that won't take too long to view, we hope."
Soeji looks oddly at the strange creature.
"I can haul him off and question him for you, if you'd like. Though I'm not quite sure what I'd do with the thing afterwards."
The creature struggles against its bindings and mouth gag, courtesy of the ship's crew.
"Well, do be careful out there and get back as soon as possible. In the meantime, I'll see what I can get out of this wretch. Bao's looking forward to being back on the road with the three of you, by the way. He hasn't stopped talking about it all day."
"We appreciate your resources. Ah, I suppose you'll need a guard for Kuijia, and a...tank of water. And fish food. Maybe the crab will eat the rotten fish?"
Soeji waves off your concerns.
"I'll have some of the Soejis take care of that. If you think something in that cave warrants a further check, you focus on that. I'll make sure this beast is kept secured and especially fresh for you."
With a hearty wave, Soeji and some other clan members get the crab safely, and discreetly, hauled away.
The captain motions she is ready to head out as soon as you give the word.
"Of course he will!" she laughs at Lung's idea. Most of the fish it was relishing in in that cave were rotten. "I bet he'd love them."
At Soeji saying that he would take care of things, she volunteers, "I don't know what we'd do without you. I hope we aren't being too burdensome. We've had to request aid to keep the eggs taken care of, and now this big monster. Hopefully, whatever we find in that cave, if anything will be less of a burden on you."
When they begin to head off, she will wave from the ship and call out, "Tell Bao we miss him! We'll see him soon!"
Shiro flips through a small boooklet. "So what's our next move? Do we chase down this poet or look into the these sabotages?" The young man muses aloud. Things were progressing well, but the masked man always had an eye out for trouble.
The masked man chuckles lightly. "Perhaps we simply celebrate a job well done? Rest is an important part of any journey."
Soeji dismisses Piella's praise with a wave of his hand.
"Don't be silly, you're the ones doing me the favor. After all, without you, our chances of winning this would be next to nothing. I don't think my tired old bones could have held up to this beast. I'll be honest, I'm still not sure how you even subdued the thing. There's barely a scratch on it."
"I want to find that poet," says Lung.
"I mean...after we go look at that bauble," he says, grinning at the ocean.
"They don't talk about this sort of thing in the epics...'and then the heroes had to go back and get something else,' that sort of thing."
"Awww!" she squeals happily at Old Soeji's praise and hides behind Shiro and Lung's legs. "We wanted the best for you and all of the Soejis. You have to make it in this year. We did what we could."
To Shiro, she comments:
"I want to get into that cave and figure out what that guy who attacked us was either after or keeping us from finding. Then I want to follow up with Soeji to see what he's found out regarding the sabotages. I think that should be our primary goal. After all, what good are our discoveries if they are getting spoiled along the way?"
"We have to make it," replies Soeji.
===
The sea is calm, and you easily return to the sea grotto. When ready, you make your way back to the entrance to the strange cave without running into any more trouble.
Qiaolian leans on her sword hilt.
"So what's the plan? Do we just walk in again? That didn't seem to work all too well last time."
"With the big threats, hopefully gone...we might not have as much trouble. Still, we could bring some more of your trusted crew if you want. They could watch our backs while we go into some areas."
As they do enter, Piella would ask the Captain, "How did you get your crew to follow you? With Old Soeji gone, assuming we win, I'm sure someone will have to step up and lead the Soejis. I would like that person to be Bao. If I could raise him in ways of effective leadership, that would be a good thing."
"I'd be fine with that."
The captain gets a few more of her crewmembers to join you below, ready for orders.
"My crew? I think you're mistaken, I didn't get them to follow me. They got me to lead them. Most of us worked together on the same ship during the Summer of Seven Storms. Took on some real nasty sea monsters. When it all ended, crew said they wanted me to take command after the previous captain retired."
Lung nods approvingly. "That's the best kind of promotion."
"And I think walking in is about all we can do, honestly. The smaller crabs will be ready--but so will we."
As if to punctuate his point, he holds the Iron Scroll ready.
"Ohh! That does sound so much better. I'm impressed."
She holds the Captain in higher regard now, which also makes her curious why Old Soeji was warning them? Perhaps he was toying with them?
As they set out again, she will rest and clear her mind. She did not like going in there with less spells onhand, but time is of the essence. She will be ready to board the launch boat to head to shore when they get there, but until then, she will try to find a comfortable spot to clear her mind.
The sea is calm, and you easily return to the sea grotto. When ready, you make your way back to the entrance to the strange cave without running into any more trouble.
As requested, Qiaolian and her crew accompany you into the depths. The torches help shoo away the smaller crabs, and you see no sign of the two larger specimens deeper in.
This time around, you carefully look over the open cave, spotting the gate carved into the stone passage of the entrance. It bears a surprising similarity to the one you crossed on your road up Blue Crane Mountain when you visited the Spirit World.
"I'm going back inside to see if I can see another way into that room. Another tunnel perhaps?"
She will look to Lung, but not say anything before she dips into the gate and into the spirit realm. Once inside, she will begin to roam (out of the water if possible) along the edges to see if there would be another path coming and going beside the one with the gateway. Even if it is a small hole she could fit in.
Though it takes a painstakingly long time, Piella spots a small opening in the southern rock face, a crooked crevasse leading off to who knows where. It's a tight fit, but someone of Piella's size could slip through if they were careful.
There aren't indications that heading in that direction would take one out of the spirit world, however.
Shiro is doubtful of the small entrance. "Lung and I would be unable to follow, Piella. Perhaps it's better you don't risk getting trapped by yourself?" The ninja was uncertain what they were looking for in this remote cave, but trusted the other's instincts.
"It takes a bit of bravery, I suppose sometimes. I'm going in. Lung, please cast light on my boot."
Without hesitation, she climbs into the hole carefully. Her intent it to find out where this hole ends up and in doing so, can crawl down it and into the room in the physical realm to retrieve the item or whatever it is. She will use her low-light vision to see further into the tunnel.
She proceeds very carefully.
Lung casts the spell on Piella's boot, frowning slightly.
"Piella, come back before you go too far in, just to let us know what you find."
He crosses his arms, sliding his eyes at Shiro in a clear 'this is dangerous' sort of look.
Without so much as a whisper, Piella slips into the stone crevasse and is gone from sight. It takes you a few minutes of winding and weaving, but the crevasse eventually opens up into a larger passageway deeper down. Concealed from the approach, it would have been exceedingly difficult to spot without knowing where it is.
You recognize where you are, having been down this way as you headed towards Kiuijia, and reckon you could likely retrace your steps through this larger tunnel back to the cave's carved entrance if needed.
The mists swirling around you indicate you have not left the spirit realm yet however.
Upon finding where the crevasse opens up, she heads back to where her friends are and comes back out of the hole.
"I think I found where it empties out. I can come back through from the other end...but I'm worried. What if there is something in this room in the physical realm?"
Taking a deep breath, Piella will move out of the room, through the gate, and back into the physical realm. With a little shiver to rid her of the different feeling between the two places, she will now commit to locating where she crawled out before, and will begin descending into the hole.
Lung has no good answer for Piella. "You back out swiftly, Piella. We have the crab. Don't risk too much," he says, trying to reassure.
Lung tries to remain relaxed, ready for the sound of something coming from the crevice.
Finally, Piella makes her way back into the chamber without crossing into the spirit realm. Approaching unseen, she makes her way to the shining spot.
A sliver of gold peeks out from the cavern rock. Brushing aside the dirt and flecks of stone, you notice the gold is beaten and worked. It is not embedded into the earth, but most likely only buried.
With careful observance of the room, she will look at the room for any dangers or movement; from floor to roof. She will not be caught off-guard alone here to die. In her mind, all she can think about is failing Soeji, her family, herself, Shiro and Lung.
"I have done so many great and powerful things with your aid...be with me now..."
Once the room is seen as clear, she will move to the gold and will brush it away without touching the object itself. Once mostly clear, she will take her scarf, usually wrapped about her waist (unless windy or cold), and will pick it up inside of the cloth. If able, she will return up top.