"No one else has to die," he tells the Tengu as he attacks. "Surrender!"
Both the oni and Razu are only slightly shaken by Yog'Moi's fear spell. Hotcha zips over to attack Razu, pummeling and stunning the tengu!
Esh dashes up to the shadow yai, dodging their glaive. The elf strikes twice, setting the oni ablaze, then steps back.
Xin dashes in to flank Razu with Hotcha. He drives his blade into the tengu's back, a critical hit! The acid corrodes the maestro's armor. Xin misses with his follow-up strike.
Razu shakes off his stun and casts a spell, reaching out to touch Hotcha and try to compel her to dance!
The shadow yai steps closer to Xin and attacks, trying to get the rogue off of Razu's back! They score one critical hit!
Razu bleeds and the oni burns!
Yog'Moi dives into the deep end after once again making an attempt to fill his opponents' heads with fear. Wildly, he windmills his blade at the Oni with little to no technique.
▶️Hotcha taps and bobs about!
“How dare you make a fairy dance, you creepy wiener!”
▶️Hotcha dances in place just so Xin has a flank partner, but she doesn’t like it.
“Aw, c’mon, happy feet! More like crappy feet ‘cause—cut the crap!”
This time, Yog's fear spell has more of an effect on the oni, though Razu remains only slightly shaken. He moves behind the oni and strikes them from behind.
Esh steps in and strikes the oni once before stepping away again. At Xin's call, Yog'Moi attacks and lands one more hit!
Meanwhile, Hotcha assaults Razu in between her dance moves. She lands one hit, which is enough to allow Xin to backstab the tengu! Xin attacks twice more, and while his first attack misses, his second one finds a weak spot in the tengu's armor. Razu lets out a pained squawk as he sinks to his knees and then sprawls out on the stage, dying!
The shadow yai tries to avenge Razu by attacking Xin! The oni scores a critical hit that lays the rogue low! They then turn to try to hit Esh, but the elf dodges! The flames continue to scorch the fiend.
“Gahh! What’d ya do to my friend, you blazing sadist?!”
Hotcha ▶️tappity-taps over to the oni and punches it in the ankle!
If the oni moves, Hotcha ▶️dances at its feet, providing a distraction (flank) for Esh.
Hotcha's mighty punch sends the shadow yai flying across the stage, knocking them in front of Esh! The blow also leaves them slowed as they struggle to recover.
My head feels strange, even though the fire fills it, everything seems sharper and clearer now that the spell’s worn off. Just in time for me to notice Xin take a hard hit and go down. Hotcha shoves the giant towards me and away from Xin, though ironically the creatures stumbling makes it harder to hit.
Esh cuts down the oni with his fiery blade!
With Razu defeated, an eerie silence suddenly settles over Goka. You rush out of the Opera House to see King Mogaru snapping out of the fugue caused by the tengu's intoxicating melody. After confusedly examining his burning surroundings for a moment, the enormous kaiju slowly turns and marches back into the ocean. Cheers rise up around the city!
Hotcha is crazily dancing as she does all in her power to keep Xin from dying.
She calms her happy-tappiness and after a few minutes, Xin comes to.
Hotcha does not ask for mercy for Razu. She won’t object to that, but she suspects her teammates will let him die and she’s fine with that.
I TOLD him to stop in the name of the dance. His choice to go two-on-four against the best team in Goku!
Xin winces as he sits up. He's disappointed that he missed Mogaru's departure, but his head hurts too much to really think about it. When he closes his eyes he can still hear Hotcha tap dancing and that makes his head hurt even more. He sighs and lies back down.
Hotcha stops dancing. “Oh… heh. Sorry, Xin. That weird spell wore off minutes ago, but I had a rhythm going, y’know?”
She hovers into the air with ease.
“So, let’s report back. We won the tournament, and repelled the kaiju, and…” She glances at the dead tengu and oni. “…we did that.”
She seems bothered. But it’s not the tengu’s death that bothers her.
“That jerk probably got a lot of innocent people killed. Too bad he can only die once.” Looking toward the chariot, Hotcha asks, “Can we go now?”
As the Final King slowly stomps back into Xu Hong Bay, Goka may seem a sorry sight, but the city has withstood disasters before, and the damage was undeniably mitigated by your valiant efforts. Evacuations were prompt and the damage well controlled. Casualties were limited.
Several of the Ruby Phoenix Tournament’s key figures went missing amid Mogaru’s rampage, though: Hao Jin teleported away with no fanfare whatsoever, and the Lightkeepers and Tino’s Toughest are nowhere to be found.
For now, Lady Nan Yai Fei bids you to rest and recover. She will meet you at the palace for a full debriefing tomorrow morning.
Hotcha curtsies to Yan Fei. “I’m glad you’re safe Ya… Your Majesty.”
Hotcha almost slips and calls the empress by name. But she does have a bad feeling.
“Can we stay with you? There are plenty of explanations as to why Hao Jin vanished—I don’t want to blurt assumptions, but… if anything were to happen to you, and I wasn’t there, I’d never forgive myself.
“I mean no offense to your guards, and I know you’re an accomplished martial arts master yourself. Still, I think we more than proved our worth winning that tournament and saving Goku… most of it.”
Hotcha doesn’t even mention the prizes her team was supposed to get. Lives were lost today, and she never cared about Hao Jin’s things. And besides, she already won the Empress’ heart. No material prize can top that.
While Hotcha dances, Yog'Moi unleashes the power of his greater staff of healing to mend everyone's wounds. Its inability to really undo the worst of their injuries reminds the hobgoblin of why he tends to keep the staff stored inside his magical glove. Maybe he ought to get it invested with more power.
The notion of political intrigue that follows only manage to give the hobgoblin a headache. Tino's, the Lightkeepers, Hao Jin: can any of them be trusted? Tino, yeah, but the others? Whatever their goals might be, they strike him as nothing but rotten self-serving individuals. "Someone once told me that the winds blow hardest when you're at the very top of the mountain as if the very world itself envies your position. Heh, I guess this is something like that, and like the wind, whoever is behind it has yet to materialize."
"Of course, Lady Fairy. I wish to bestow upon your team one of the crown jewels of Goka: the cape of the open sky," Yan Fei says. She presents the beautiful cape to you. "This item proves that youare true allies of the city and grants you the privileges of the city’s aristocrats. Yiu can ignore certain taxes and fees related to your personal ventures, and you can own property and operate businesses in the city under a special set of laws reserved for those deemed heroes of the city, which bypasses some rules and restrictions. You can now always count on quarters in the Gokan Palace whenever you wish them, including tonight."
"I suspect the Lightkeepers are up to no good," says Xin. "And Hao Jin will be doing something few of us can even understand. But Tino's people? They're our people. We don't leave them behind. I'm going looking for them. If they're dead, we'll bury them. If they're in trouble, we'll help."
And as soon as he's patched up, Xin heads out to do just that, looking for clues as to the fate of Tino's Toughest.
Hotcha touches the cape to see if it will magically resize. If it does, she asks, “Would you object to my having it magically restyled? Not the design—just the cut.” Hotcha flutters her colorful wings, which of course cannot flutter with a cape over them!
"Of course. It is yours to do with now as you see fit, Lady Fairy," Yan Fei says with a smile.
***
Xin spends the night scouring the city for clues as to Tino's Toughest's whereabouts. They were seen following after the Lightkeepers in the moments immediately following King Mogaru's arrival, but they have not been spotted since. Xin is unable to glean any clues as to their fate...
***
The day after the kaiju Mogaru’s rampage, smoke still lingers in the air around the grand arena. What was supposed to be a celebration of technique, ability, and strength has instead become a somber vigil of the destruction wrought in Goka. The other fighting teams show their distress in different ways: the rigid monks of the Arms of Balance stand at the ready, their faces expressionless, while the battle-dancers of the Steps of the Sun shift uneasily from foot to foot. Curiously, two teams have yet to report: the Lightkeepers and Tino’s Toughest. As ash falls from the sky, Empress Nai Yan Fei addresses the remaining contestants.
“Esteemed finalists, I know that today is not what we expected. Mogaru has laid waste to our city. Yet, it is due to your brave actions that we were able to repel the kaiju and defeat Razu, the traitorous bard who lured Mogaru here. On behalf of the people of Goka, I thank you for your selfless actions.
“However. Our grand judge, the lady Hao Jin, has not been seen since yesterday. While we originally suspected she had gone to drive off the Final King, it seems she may have had a different aim, and Razu’s personal journals also indicate as much. My ministers noted a significant glow along the southern horizon last night. We originally suspected it was something to do with Mogaru, but further inquiries suggest it was in fact a massive display of spellcasting by Hao Jin.
“Without our grand judge, we cannot conclude the Ruby Phoenix Tournament. Moreover, as long as Hao Jin is missing, many questions remain and the safety of Goka is uncertain. Though the tournament has yet to conclude, all of you have demonstrated exceptional skill and dedication over the last several days. Therefore, I beg of you all, seek out and bring back the Ruby Phoenix!”
The barest of smiles crosses the empress’s composed face. “Of course, that may be easier said than done. She’s an immortal sorcerer who walks between worlds the way you or I walk between rooms. Luckily, we’ve found a way to track her down.” At this, several attendants bring out eight identical glass wind chimes, each tied with a red string. Lady Nai Yan Fei picks one up and holds it aloft, and the ringer moves to the southeast, knocking slightly against the chime, which lets out a silvery trill.
“These plover chimes were created by Hao Jin herself, using axiomite dust smelted with phoenix flames. We had expected to give them to each of the finalists as mementos of participation at the awards ceremony. The chimes yet resonate with lingering traces of her magic, allowing my court scholars to modify them into a tracking device of sorts. They should guide you to her location."
Yan Fei turns to your team. "As you are still one of two finalists of the tournament, you remain entitled to several of the finalists’ regalia—some of the treasures from Hao Jin’s vault—until such time as the tournament formally ends. One item in particular might be especially useful in navigating the Flying Mountains to the south. I’ve sent for it, and its pilot, to meet you back at your residence tonight.”
Hotcha is still 11,000g short of affording the anklet she’s had her eye on.
She decides to save up. She definitely will not sell Yan Fei’s gift, even if she did say ‘do as you please with it.’ Instead, she heads to the potion shop and learns of a potion that lasts even longer than Greater Shrinking. Knowing Lady Qiu should be the one to approve of any consumables, Hotcha asks if she would permit the making of another gift.
Hotcha first looks for Raq and the boy-sprites. Well… she really only wants Raq. “I need you to chop off my topknot. I love my hair like this, but I love the Empress more.”
Hotcha flies, leading Raq to Lady Qiu’s meeting room. (Hotcha is faster than sprites born with wings, but doesn’t boast. She speeds up even more using the cloak that she had restyled at the temple of Shelyn (in exchange for a service—performance, odd job or both).)
Once at Lady Qiu’s, she explains her intent:
“Yan Fei could become a sprite for hours, or possibly an entire day! She doesn’t need to become a sprite for me… I just wonder if, now that I have wings, would a potion made from my hair give her wings too? And would Yan Fei enjoy that?
“If so, I will leave you with 100 gold and a lock of my hair. Ummm… you might want to keep the hair in a jar or something.”
Not at all shy about her relationship, at least in present company, Hotcha says, “I saw the way you grinned when I had the shrinking potion prepared. That gift went over well—far better than I expected.
“This gift is to celebrate when I come back, and to make sure Yan Fei knows I’ll be thinking of her while I’m away.”
Lady Qiu smiles approvingly. "I believe the potion will give the empress wings, and Her Majesty would greatly enjoy the experience. I will convey your gift and message to Her Majesty. I am certain she will be thinking fondly of you, as well."
I pace back and forth, thinking, pipe clutched firmly between my teeth. I've had to refill it twice already, but my mind is still unsettled.
My main quandary is twofold. First, what happened to Hao-Jin, and secondly, who would have the power to do... whatever it is they did to her?
It is important to know one's abilities and limitations, and while I know that I am very very dangerous (if there were more than a hundred or so people on the entire continent that could best me in fair combat I'd... I don't know. Train harder I guess), I have no illusions as to how I stack up to the Ruby Phoenix.
Which puts me in a predicament. If we're no match for her, and she was bested by whatever force she confronted, what chance do we realistically stand? My only real hopeful thought is that whatever happened, she fell into a prepared trap, which while still concerning, means that we might be up against something that can't directly overpower her, and thus we might stand a chance.
There's also the problem of what happened with the Lightkeepers and Tino's Toughest. My first instinct was obviously to assume that the Lightkeepers were pawns in whatever scheme is unfolding, and Tino’s Toughest followed them in an attempt to thwart their efforts or at least bring them to justice. This would be unfortunate though. As much as I respect and admire Tino and his companions, and as objectively skilled as they are, the Lightkeepers are also objectively more so. The chaos of a living battlefield should even their odds over facing them directly in a tournament, but I doubt by enough to keep them safe. And there would be no clerics on-hand to heal them afterwards.
This causes me to circle back around to my first thought though. Whoever is orchestrating all this is using incredibly high-level combatants as mere minions and proxies. Using a kaiju as a distraction is certainly a power move.
I sigh and rub my eyes. One thing that I keep coming back to is when Hao Jin said "Mogaru is not here by chance. I will deal with the one who sent him here.”
That implies that she already knew who was behind all this. But she’s been back in the public eye only shortly after a three hundred year disappearance. There’s not many that could realistically hold a grudge for so long, and little way for her to meet someone, piss them off, and them plan and execute this situation so quickly after her return. So who could it be?
Unfortunately, Esh is unable to think of anybody powerful enough to vex Hao Jin so. More than likely, the one behind all of this is a being the Ruby Phoenix encountered during her three hundred year absence.
Hotcha is blushing a… well, a lot thanks to her luminous skin.
She turns to Raq. “If you would be so kind…”
Hotcha sits, one leg crossed over the other. She undoes her topknot, letting her red hair cascade to her breasts. She takes her time carefully braiding pigtails. (—accepting help from Raq if offered… Hotcha hasn’t done this in a while!)
“…please cut them both.”
She thanks Raq, and gives both braids to Lady Qiu.
“One is to make the potion of disguise. The other is for Yan Fei.”
* * *
Later that day, Hotcha joins the men. Her hair no longer resembles an orange pineapple. It is barely shoulder length.
“Hey, Xin… I’m sorry you didn’t find Tino and his team, but we did get them those masks. I hope that’s enough to keep ‘em safe.
“To be honest, I never did trust Hao Jin, and the Lightkeepers always seemed obvious badguys, but… who knows? I’m keeping an open mind.
“Like Hao Jin’s against us and the Lightkeepers are trying to stop her. Or they are ‘cause they’re the badguys. Or—OR!—both Hao Jin and the Lightkeepers are in cahoots, and Team Tino went after them…”
And psychopomp masks would not save Tino’s Toughest from that alliance.
“Or, y’know, Hao Jin and the Lightkeepers and Tino’s Toughest are all up against some evil jerk whose name we don’t know. My… point is, we don’t know what we’re heading into.
“But we’re Goka’s best fighters, so we’ll figure it out!”
“To be honest, I never did trust Hao Jin, and the Lightkeepers always seemed obvious badguys, but… who knows? I’m keeping an open mind.
“Like Hao Jin’s against us and the Lightkeepers are trying to stop her. Or they are ‘cause they’re the badguys. Or—OR!—both Hao Jin and the Lightkeepers are in cahoots, and Team Tino went after them…”
“Or, y’know, Hao Jin and the Lightkeepers and Tino’s Toughest are all up against some evil jerk whose name we don’t know. My… point is, we don’t know what we’re heading into.
“But we’re Goku’s best fighters, so we’ll figure it out!”
"I may be biased, but I highly doubt Hao Jin is behind this. Nothing that she's done recently or in the past indicates that she wants to destroy Goka. I am curious what was in the tengu's journals though. Do you think that you could ask the empress to allow us to read it? It might provide some insight into what's going on."
Hotcha nods. “I think I can do that!”
She was hoping for an excuse to see Yan Fei. If she’s trying to conceal her enthusiasm, she’s doing a terrible job of it.
Unless anyone wants her to stick around a bit to discuss more, she’s off! —like a pretty vermilion braid.
***
Hao Jin doesn't have any known enemies in the city, so Hotcha isn't sure who might benefit from turning against her. Likewise with Empress Yan Fei. Though criminal elements like the Golden League might gain advantage should they gain the upper hand on the empress, they lack the resources and magical talent to be involved in such epic machinations as these!
Unfortunately, Yan Fei is far too busy dealing with the aftermath of Mogaru's attack to spare much time for Hotcha. But she does give the sprite a warm smile and agrees to share Razu's journals with her.
The young man played a stolen erhu, his only possession, to scrape by as a traveling performer until he by chance impressed a Lingsheni general who saw the tactical application of what she called “a voice like thunder.” She took Razu on as a signaler in her army, and under her guidance the vocalist used his talents to coordinate the movements and configurations of some of Lingshen’s greatest military troops. Razu left this post as soon as he had saved enough money to do so, but he kept in touch with his old comrades and sold Lingshen any secrets he gathered while he established his career as a heartbreaking opera star in Kwanlai. His work earned him connections to some of the most powerful warlords and arms brokers in Tian Xia.
Recently, Razu returned home with a vengeful debt to settle: his voice would bring the city that killed his parents to its knees. Although Razu had long harbored a violent disposition, his recent avowal can be traced directly to the influence of the Lightkeepers! Syu Tak-nwa and her cronies contacted the virtuoso and made him an offer he could scarcely refuse—the opportunity to destroy Goka. They spoke of their mysterious patron, and while they did not name them, they explained that their patron had stolen an egg from the devastating kaiju King Mogaru and used it to lure him into Xu Hong Bay. But to ensure Mogaru didn’t simply just wander away from the city without first destroying it, they would need to rely on the reptile king’s well-known weakness for music. To create the booming songs that could lead the kaiju throughout the entire city, they would need a powerful performer.
Driven by his vengeful grief, Razu quickly agreed to lend his talents to ensuring Goka's destruction.
Hotcha invites the men to share in the reading…
“Okay, so no surprise about the Lightkeepers. If Hao Jin is the mystery patron, her name isn’t mentioned. So there’s that… and I know you have a history with her, Esh. But…
“This is a woman who learned to cheat death, yet permitted us to kill opponents in her tournament, despite having magic that easily prevents death. That bothered me from the moment I stepped off the boat.
“So… maybe I have a bias of my own,” Hotcha admits, “but if it turns out that all that spellcasting to the south was Hao Jin creating some weird island that changes upon her whim, or a thousand-foot-tall construct, or a personal moon… I would strongly suspect no one forced her hand.”
Hotcha looks somewhat apologetic as she says this to Esh. She knows how much he respects Hao Jin, and wonders how she would take it if Master Spiegel were involved, or if her friends questioned Yan Fei’s place in this conflict.
And Hao Jin is more powerful than anyone, not necessarily excluding King Mogaru. Life would be so much easier (and likely longer) if Hao Jin were friend, not foe.
While he won't ever utter the words, Yog'Moi can't help but hope that wherever Razu is now, he's drinking the finest of wine with Hei Feng. If anything, he sure followed his passions and definitely tried to make those who wronged him pay for their misdeeds.
The nuances of the how and what has no place inside the raging sea of Yog'Moi's current emotional state.
"Hao Jin is whatever. She's clearly living in another world, and I assume her thoughts are otherworldly as well. Whatever drives her is probably beyond us. But if she turns out to be another traitor, I'm in for dragging her to the bottom of the ocean and leaving her there."
I run my hands through my hair as I think.
"It has been three hundred years..." I say slowly. "Though I can say with confidence that she would not have done such a thing before... she was devoted to Abadar, and held civilization and knowledge as sacrosanct... that is a long time in which to change, immortality notwithstanding. It is... possible, that something may have happened to change her..."
I sigh.
"Even so, it still doesn't fully make sense. While the city may have an easier time repelling her as opposed to Mogaru, we clearly showed that that plan had several flaws. If her goal was truly to destroy the city, I can't help but feel that she would have just done it herself, rather than rely on such an uncontrollable actor as a kaiju."
"If she can transport entire cities and mountains to her demiplane, it hardly seems unthinkable that she could just as easily destroy one."
I pause and pace a bit, puffing on my pipe with more air than was really necessary.
"The way I see it, there's just a handful of options. The first is that Hao Jin is indeed the actor behind this, and is either mentally unwell or has esoteric motivations that we can't possibly guess based on such limited information as we currently have."
"Or both," I shrug after a brief pause.
"I hope this is not the case. I don't have the faintest clue what fighting her would be like, or what her true capabilities are, but I can't imagine it would go well for us. We would have to approach it very cautiously."
I roll my neck and shoulders around, eliciting small pops from my joints.
"Second, is that Hao Jin is not the actor behind this, and the Lightkeeper's patron is someone else. It's honestly hard to say whether this would be a preferable outcome from a purely strategic level. At the worst, it means that whoever is behind this is even more powerful than Hao Jin, and was able to overwhelm her."
"Alternatively, however, is that rather than being directly overwhelmed, all of this was a trap for her. Unfortunately, this is hard to rationalize. If the trap was to force her to face Mogaru, which admittedly is one of the few foes that could be reasonably expected to defeat her, then it was poorly laid out. She could certainly have done the exact same thing we did and just removed the tengu... Razu?"
"If the trap was wherever Hao Jin left to go to, then what exactly was the point of luring Mogaru here? She could just as easily have stayed here to deal with Mogaru and... not left. There must be some context we're missing."
I grumble for a bit.
"Either way though, the outcomes cannot be divined, only investigated. Whether this was some elaborate, but apparently successful trap, or Hao Jin is the true culprit, we have to find her. If it turns out she's responsible for this..." I growl, "I assure you that I will not hold us back from seeing justice done."
I hope it doesn't come to that though, I truly hope.
“Esh, don’t forget even the powerful can be overwhelmed… like that oni on the bridge. I mean… your thought that Hao Jin was trapped is a possibility. It’s even possible she’s south for Goka’s sake.
“Let’s try to take the Lightkeepers alive. The dead can only say so much when their journals don’t mention names. Or pronouns. Razu coulda saved us some guesswork if he at least told us the mystery patron’s a guy.”
Hotcha crosses her arms in mock annoyance.
"Why don't we start by finding Razu's home and seeing if we can find out more?"
Yog'Moi rubs his bald head and considers their options before nodding, and going along with Xin's plan. "Sure, why not. We should exhaust all our options here in Goka before we set sail and go out to find Hao Jin."
Hotcha likes that idea. “I’ll ask for directions.”
She does so, under the assumption ‘Razu’s house’ would be his childhood home and not where he stayed during his visit. Thus, Hotcha asks about both, just to be thorough.
Finding Razu's childhood home proves to be an impossible task, as nobody you speak knows about the tengu maestro's humble beginnings. Based on his journals, the home would have been located in one of the parts of town destroyed during Mogaru's rampage, anyway. The lodgings at the opera house where he had been staying the past few weeks have already been thoroughly scoured by the empress's investigators, and no further clues await you there.
You head into the Neverending Marketplace to purchase equipment in preparation of your journey south. The sounds of a morin khurr played by Halspin the Stung drift from a wide plaza, where a large crowd has gathered around a massive, steel-gray roc. The bird is clearly entranced by Halspin’s notes and chirps along while bobbing her head to the music. The sisters Amihan and Maalya, as well as Joon-Seo, are leading a chant as the crowd helps them pass bundles of supplies in a bucket line towards a saddle on the roc's back. The members of the Steps of the Sun wave to you as they finish their own preparations for the hunt for Hao Jin.
As evening approaches, you return to your residence in the Ruby Village. A massive vessel with two wings—held aloft by an impossibly massive balloon of finest canvas—hovers a foot off the tiles in the courtyard of the Ruby Village. A middle-aged Minkaian man bustles around the ship, checking valves and securing straps, then snaps to attention and gives a tight smile. But his officialdom is broken a second later by effusive, bubbling energy. “Yoh Souran, at your service! I caught you in the finals, and I have to say, what a match! The way your weapons moved! And the spellwork! I haven’t seen such spellwork since Harrah the Painted’s bout in seventy-two-eleven!” He manages to compose himself. “Ahem. I’ll be your pilot for as long as you have need of this ship, so wherever you need to go, just say the word.”
The priest's eyes grow wide as he takes in the sight of this monstrosity of a ship. It's bigger than any vessel he'd ever set foot on. And those wings! In his mind, the air ship was more modestly sized, and he'd imagined it could be operated by just the four of them.
The bubbly Minkaian's energy manages to infect Yog'Moi, who returns the greetings energetically. "Ha! We'll have plenty of time to talk about the tournament once we get going, don't you worry, Yoh. In return, you can tell us all about how this beast of a ship manages to stay afloat! Magic, sure, but there must be more to it than that!"
"Pride and joy of the Souran family, the Solar Jian II!" Yoh says with a grand gesture. "Apparently my great-great-something-grandmother built it as a wedding gift for my great-great-something-grandfather. Or so I hear, wasn’t there myself, but Hao Jin herself returned it to the family when I was younger. We lend it to the tournament’s victory parade each decade, but seems like Lady Yan Fei says it’s needed a bit longer this time around!
"Grandmother was quite the crafter. Don't know exactly how it floats, but I know how to pilot it! The ship’s fast and will protect you from the elements, but it’s a pleasure yacht—no cannons or anything like that. You'll have to provide the pyrotechnics!
"Oh, and Lady Yan Fei left some more gifts for you, too!"
“Wha… WOW!”
Hotcha flutters high and low, zipping around, and eventually using her ‘cape’ to fly back extra fast!
“Pleasure to meet you, Cap’n Yoh! Your great-great-so-many-greats-grandma was an amazing craftswoman! A balloon with rooftops!
“I even love the color!”
When Hotcha does some quick math, she says to Xin, “Awww, so close to affording that anklet I’ve been saving up for!
“Any chance we’re selling stuff we don’t need. If not, I’ll sell one of my earrings to make up the difference.”
Xin is careful not to display the Anklets of Alacrity he just purchased.
"I have 139 gold coins left," he says. "You can have those. And I can put back these Greater Bravo's Brews if an extra 1400 gold will get you there."
Once you are ready to embark, Yoh and his crew make the Solar Jian II ready for lift-off! The ship's wings articulate to catch unseen solar winds as you rise up out of Ruby Village. Ruby and sapphire trails illuminate the air in the ship’s wake as it makes for the southeastern horizon.
The airspace immediately surrounding the exposed deck is protected by a magical endure elements effect that also purifies the air, protects from sunburn, and diverts wind around the ship, allowing passengers to enjoy the view from the deck unprotected even in high-altitude conditions.
Following the trills of the plover chime is simple—the general direction is known and the chime trills more incessantly the closer the Solar Jian II travels toward Hao Jin’s magic. Traveling by airship, the crew takes about 3 days to reach Iron Mountain.
The peak of Iron Mountain pierces the clouds that enshroud the rest of the Flying Mountains. A massive island floats upside down in the sky above the peak’s summit, the ocean that surrounds it blending into the stratosphere. Though the air up here is freezing, the air around the island ripples like shimmering heat wafting off summer stone. "Now, that's something you don't see every day!" Yoh says in wonder.
“So… maybe I have a bias of my own, but if it turns out that all that spellcasting to the south was Hao Jin creating some weird island that changes upon her whim, or a thousand-foot-tall construct, or a personal moon… I would strongly suspect no one forced her hand.”[/b]
I curse at Hotcha's distressingly accurate foresight.
It's... difficult to not just wrap myself automatically in my flames, to let the fire burn away my stress and anxiety. Where the world is reduced to enemy and not-enemy, and fear doesn't enter into the equation. But I resist. For the moment at least. I try and analyze the situation.
As you fly closer to the island, it becomes apparent that something is amiss as you get within a mile of it. The Solar Jian II sails through the air as fast as always, but makes no progress. Space seems to expand the closer the you draw to the island, the ship traveling only half the distance each second that it did previously.
Patiently studying the phenomenon, Esh deduces that the planar fabric here has become horribly warped here and that the island resides in another dimension altogether—the visible image is just its reflection into the Material Plane. There is no way to reach it via traditional means.
A few moments later, the plover chime lets out a final cry before going silent, releasing a ruby beam of magic, thin as a single thread—the chime is close enough to Hao Jin’s magical signature to attempt to reach her directly. The string splits, one thread trying (and failing) to reach the floating island, the other thread beaming directly down at the peak of Iron Mountain, where it illuminates some kind of shrine by an alpine lake.
"Looks like there's a plateau near a set of stairs by the lake!" Yoh says. "Should I set her down?"