6 Rova, 4715 - 4 Lamashan, 4715
Koya's fortune teller's wagon was the only one that could be salvaged. The companions spent much of the following day laying their dead to rest, and retrieving what goods they could carry. Fortunately, the horses that Batsaikhar had given them had run off during the battle, and were easily retrieved. At least they would not be reduced to walking the rest of the way to Minkai. The mood was solemn as they set out once more, no one knowing nor willing to speculate about what lay ahead for them.
Ten days passed before they came to Hongal's only other permanent settlement, a town called Muliwan. They didn't stay long, not wanting to draw further attention to themselves. They only paused to sell what trade goods they had remaining, and to purchase supplies for their trek through the Forest of Spirits, which Miyaro informed them lay only a day's ride from the town. The following morning, they finally came within sight of the forest, a vast sub-arctic pine wood separating Minkai from mainland Tian Xia. The trees were massive and densely packed, with virtually no undergrowth, and almost continuously shrouded in snow. The Spirit Road ran along one side of the forest, following the coast, but Miyaro's plan was to take the companions right through the heart of the wood, where her mysterious masters were waiting.
When they reached the dark edge of the forest at mid-day, they saw a narrow dirt path that disappeared under its eaves. The boughs of the trees hung heavy with fallen snow, and an almost preternatural silence reigned over the area. Ahead, a small stone pillar engraved with strange symbols had fallen across the path, blocking the way forward.
"If I'm reading the words correctly, it's a waymarker," Zula said, "and a warning."
"Yes," Miyaro agreed. "Such markers often have guardian kami who watch over them. Are you familiar with the kami?"
The Scions looked knowingly at one another, smiling, well acquainted with the spirits that inhabited the unique items they had found at Brinewall. Even Zula had acquired one of the kami, much to her surprise, once Ameiko had officially recognized her as a Scion. Only Gnome-Brr Phive looked blank-faced.
"They are good spirits who watch over the natural world," Miyaro explained. "Perhaps if you were to set the waymarker right, and leave a small offering, you may gain the kami's favor."
Haroldo easily lifted the marker upright and set it back in its place. Then Phive took a handful of coins from his purse and laid them at its base. Immediately, a sense of satisfaction and well-being settled over the companions. A moment later, a two-foot tall, wizened little man wearing homespun robes stepped out from behind a tree. Miyaro bowed low before him.
"Shunkichi-san," she said. "These are my friends. They seek passage through the forest so that they may meet my masters and assist in the coming battle against the Five Storms."
The diminutive man nodded sagely, and then spoke in Tien.
"Blessings be upon your road," he said. "Be wary. The wood contains many dangerous spirits and creatures. Not all mean you harm, but some will. Mortals should not tread carelessly beneath the forest's boughs. I will inform my brethren of your coming. Safe journey."
With that, he moved to the waymarker, and then actually stepped into it, disappearing from view.
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It wasn't very long after the companions rode beneath the boughs of the forest trees when they began having a feeling of being watched. There were no signs of anything following them, though strange noises occasionally rang out in the distance. Soon after, the sound of tuneful humming seemed to be coming from somewhere nearby.
"What is that!?" Mazael bellowed, flailing Suishen around him.
"It may be a spirit of the forest," Miyaro said quietly. "These woods are rumored to be haunted, and I can assure you that the rumors are true. Some spirits are simply lost souls, who have not found their way to the other side yet. Others, however, are not so benign."
"Suishen!" Mazael snapped, holding the quillons of the swords haft up to his eyes, "Give me sight beyond sight!"
The sword pulsed, and the war-priest's eyes began to glow as well.
"There!" he shouted, pointing towards Koya. "A woman is standing right there! Watch out!"
A moment later, Koya gasped as a warm chill went through her entire body. She turned, and saw what looked to be a young Tien woman next to her, though the girl's body was completely translucent.
"We used ta see things like this down in the Underdark," Gnome-Brr Phive said. "Used ta call'em haints. They ain't partial ta holy power."
He gripped the medallion around his neck and channeled the power of Nethys through it. The spirit girl gasped in pain as the light washed over her.
"Hah! That did it!" Mazael laughed, and then grasped his own holy symbol.
"No, wait!" Miyaro called out, but it was too late.
Mazael channeled and the holy energy completely obliterated the spirit. Miyaro cast her eyes down and looked away.
"I sensed no ill intent from her," she said softly.
"Yeah, well," Mazael grumbled, "you'll excuse me if I don't trust spirits that try and possess you without asking."
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A few days later, as the group was following a line of high tors that reared above the forest, Zula cocked her head at the sound of a strange bird's cry on the wind. She listened intently, and when the call was repeated a few minutes later, her jaw clenched.
"We've got trouble," she warned her companions. "That's no bird I've ever heard."
A moment later, an odd whistling sound came from the trees, drawing closer rapidly. Then Haroldo grunted as a fist-sized chunk of rock struck him squarely in the chest, nearly knocking him from his saddle. The whistle came again, this time from behind them, and it was Miyaro that cried out as another rock glanced off the back of her head.
From out of the trees stepped four large figures, two in front of the companions and two behind. The easily stood twelve-feet tall, and had chiseled, muscular features with flat, forward-sloping heads, looking almost as if they were carved of stone. Shalelu turned in her saddle and, shooting backwards over her shoulder, put a pair of arrows into the nearest giant, though the shafts seemed to only penetrate its tough skin barely an inch. Sandru leaped from his horse and rushed towards the same giant, juking left and right, trying to stay out of its reach. He wasn't quite fast enough, however, as it grazed him with its massive club when he moved in. He caught himself from falling, and then swung his scimitar in a wide arc, slashing across the brute's belly. Though it felt as if he were slashing a stone wall, the caravan master was relieved to see that the giant could, in fact, bleed, and it began to do so heavily from the gaping wound. A moment later he found that it could burn as well when Koya summoned a column of holy fire down from the clouds to engulf it.
At the front of the group, one of the giants clipped Mazael with another thrown rock. Lucian returned fire, sending a volley of six arrows in rapid succession. As the giant reeled back on its heels, Haroldo charged forward bringing his great-sword down in an overhand chop that nearly cleaved the brute in two. Mazael was right behind his friend, and though the second giant struck him solidly with its club as he closed, the war-priest didn't waver. Suishen sank deep into its chest, and as the katana did so, the flame along its blade suddenly exploded into a fiery burst.
"What was that?" Mazael gaped incredulously.
'You proved yourself worthy once again in the battle against the Ruby Phoenix's oni,' Suishen replied into his thoughts. 'I felt it time to reveal more of my powers to you.'
Mazael grinned broadly.
Shalelu put down the burning giant with another well-placed arrow, then fired four more into its brother. Miyaro shot him twice more, and then, from out of nowhere, a cage made of glowing bars of light sprang up around the giant.
"That should hold him for a moment," Spivey smiled, "and if it doesn't, then he's in for a nasty surprise."
As if to prove her point, the giant looked warily at the light prison, and then simply stepped through it. When he did so, however, the bars flared, burning him, and he clawed at his eyes as the surge temporarily blinded him. Shalelu knew how to capitalize on an advantage, and she aimed carefully before sending two final shots into the giant, putting him out of his misery.
The last of the giants went down swinging, clubbing Mazael again before Lucian made a pincushion of arrows out of him. The companions were able to follow the tracks of the creatures back to the top of one of the tors, where they found a crudely built house made of wood and stone. Inside they discovered a large quantity of salted and cured meat, as well as a beautifully woven tapestry, a pair of white tiger pelts, two bolts of fine silk, and three barrels of excellent sake. It seemed the giants had been nothing more than raiders, preying on the unwary, but this day they had chosen their prey poorly.
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Over the next week of travel, the companions were besieged by several more restless spirits of the forest. None of them caused any real harm, but their manifestations, an angry samurai warrior cracking a whip; a pyromaniac wizard; and a homicidal woodsman, were nonetheless unnerving. Each time, the priests managed to drive them away with holy power. One encounter, however, proved to all too real.
They were at least two weeks into the forest when suddenly, some one-hundred yards in the distance, a massive white tiger emerged from the trees. It roared at them, shaking the leaves above them, and then began loping madly in their direction.
"Wait!" Shalelu called to her friends as they raised bows or lifted hands for spells. "Something is not right here. Its cries...they are almost like...words!"
The tiger abruptly halted its charge perhaps a dozen feet away, then began sniffing at the air.
"Calm," Shalelu whispered to the others.
She began moving slowly forward, her hands empty and outstretched. The tiger eyed her warily, its teeth bared. Gradually, however, it began to relax. Finally, when the ranger was mere inches away, it bowed its head. Shalelu reached out to stroke its thick neck, and a low rumble sounded deep in its chest...a purr. After several minutes, it raised its head again, turned, and disappeared into the forest once more.
"White tigers are sacred to the kami of the forest," Miyaro said softly as it departed. "It is good that you did not act in haste. Not all is as it appears in this land."
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After almost a month of travel through the forest, the trees parted to reveal a twilit clearing, the thick leaves blocking most of the sunlight from the sky above. A giant, wooden torii gate, unpainted and unvarnished, stood before the entrance to the clearing. As the companions approached the gate, an armored figure appeared beneath it, floating just a few inches above the ground.
"That is Noburo," Miyaro whispered. "He is a zuishin kami...a guardian of gates and doorways. He is not an enemy, but you must be respectful and ask his permission to pass through."
"Who are you and why have you come to this sacred place?" Noburo called in Tien.
"We are enemies of the Five Storms," Zula stepped forward, "and we have come seeking aid in our struggle against a common foe."
"Be welcome then," Noburo nodded, and moved aside for them to pass.
"Now what?" Mazael asked as they stood in the middle of the empty clearing.
"Now," Miyaro replied, "we wait."
The day passed quietly, but as darkness began to deepen, the companions became aware that something was gathering in the gloom...a family...an army...perhaps both. They could make out strange, vague shapes in the shadows, and a palpable sense of fear and curiosity permeated the forest twilight. Gradually, a few of the figures began to approach closer...a rabbit with unnatural intelligence in its eyes, a round stone rolling under its own power.
"Remain very still," Miyaro cautioned. "The spirits are easily frightened and may flee at any sudden movements."
More animals entered the clearing, but there were also walking shrubs, and even a small, isolated snow storm. At one point, Zula caught a glimpse of Shunkichi, the little waymarker warden they'd met at the edge of the forest. Then, something truly amazing happened. The kami-infused items each of the Scions had found at Brinewall began to glow and hum with life. A moment later, the spirits physically separated themselves from the objects and stood beside their wards. Then Miyaro rose to her feet and walked to the center of the clearing. As she moved, her body began to ripple and change, until where a young Tien woman once stood, there was now a vixen-headed female with shimmering red fur, and a luxurious brush tail. All around the companions, the kami began whispering strange words.
"The spirits welcome you," Miyaro spoke, translating. "Long ago, they swore an oath to guard the oni of the Five Storms, who were imprisoned in a pagoda called the House of Withered Blossoms. For centuries, the kami kept the Five Storms contained, but one night, 160 years ago, most of the oni somehow escaped their prison. The kami do not know how, but they do know that at least one oni still remains in the House of Withered Blossoms, for their oath forbids them from stepping over the threshold while even one oni remains inside, and the way is still barred to them. The kami would ask for you to enter the pagoda to learn what happened to the Five Storms and, if necessary, to defeat the last oni within. They know that you seek to depose the Jade Regent, and that he is allied with the Five Storms. An exploration of the onis' former prison might give you information and weapons that you can use against our enemies. Will you agree?"
The companions looked to one another, and finally, to Ameiko, who nodded once.
"We do," Zula said.
An audible sigh passed through the gathered kami. At length, a single kami approached, a tiny ancient warrior with a tree branch growing from the top of his head. He bowed before the heroes.
"I am Akumi," he introduced himself, speaking Tien. "I humbly ask you for one more favor. My ward, a bonsai tree, was recently stollen by hogboblins, who took it inside the House of Withered Blossoms. Bound by my oath, I was unable to follow, but I can feel that it is still alive somewhere within or beneath the pagoda. I have tended my ward for centuries, and should it die, I shall as well. While you are within the House, will you look for it for me?"
"Of course," Zula smiled.
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The following day it was decided that Ameiko should remain behind, under the watchful eyes of the kamis, for her own safety. Koya, Sandru, Shalelu and Spivey would stay with her. Miyaro volunteered to guide the others to the House of Withered Blossoms, promising that they should make it by nightfall. She proved to be as good as her word, and at dusk, they had reached their destination.
The animal calls softened to a whisper as the forest parted to reveal a vast bowl, the ground sinking from the forest tangle into descending rows of frozen terraces. At the center of the depression stood a towering porcelain pagoda, its walls and eaves smothered in thick, clinging vines and draped with heavy webs, soaring to a golden rooftop. Stylized representations of forgotten creatures and beasts danced upon the pagoda's walls, and a band of huge thorny spines jutted from its midsection. A decaying garden surrounded the pagoda, a frozen echo of past magnificence. Broken statues littered the garden, and icy clouds of violet blossoms drifted through the ruin. The overpowering scent of death and decay hung in the air.
"Boris see only one way in," the goblin said, his eyes sharper than most. "No windows...just one door."
"Might be sump'n up on the roof," Gnome-Brr Phive offered. "I'kin go up and take a look if ya'll want."
"How you get up on roof?" Boris asked skeptically. "Boris never see you fly."
"Picked me up this here beauty back in the city," the gnome grinned, pulling a perfectly ordinary looking broom stick from his pack.
"So?" Boris asked. "Big-nose dwarf going to sweep his way up to roof?"
"Watch'n learn, boy!" Phive laughed.
He dropped the broom to the ground, then shouted "Up!" holding out one hand. Instantly, the broom leaped into his grip, and he straddled it. Amazingly, it supported his weight, and lifted him easily into the air. Within seconds, he had flown all the way to the top of the pagoda, some two-hundred feet above. The companions saw him fly around for a few moments, then quickly return.
"Whelp, there's a hole up there," he said as he dismounted his broom, "but it's fulla cobwebs. Cain't see nothin' down there. Front door might be safer."
Cautiously, the group descended into the bowl until they reached the front of the pagoda. There, a huge bronze door was marked with stylized pictures of dueling dragons. Hundreds of open-mouthed dragon faces surrounded the doorframe, all leering out hungrily. Phive stepped up to the door, and placed his gloved hands against it, concentrating. After a moment he stepped away.
"Jest a hall. Full'a cobwebs too."
"Door trapped," Boris observed. "Not sure how, but Boris thinking something come out of dragon mouths. Boris also not sure how to undo. Very tricky."
Haroldo came up with a simple, if inelegant solution. He stepped to the wall beside the door, and proceeded to smash through it with his great-sword.
"Not the way I would have chosen," Zula shook her head, "but effective nonetheless."
"I will not go in," Miyaro announced. "Not into that accursed place. I shall await your return here."
Inside, a corridor ran along the perimeter of the pagoda, choked with spiderwebs, just as Phive had described. This proved to be no impediment, however, as Mazael took the lead and proceeded to burn the webs in front of them using Suishen's flaming blade. The sword muttered at such a mundane task. After circling perhaps three-quarters of the way around the pagoda, they finally came to an interior archway. The core of the building on this floor had been gutted. The few remaining walls in the area were crumbling, and only the presence of four huge stone pillars, carved with pictures of battling dragons, seemed to keep the building up. Thick webs filled the four corners of the room. The central section of the pagoda had suffered the most, with a great rip in the floor creating a steep-walled pit that sloped down to a dark shaft choked with webs. Suddenly, as the companions took in the strange scene, the forlorn sound of horns being winded came from the ceiling above. Haroldo and Mazael, who were in the fore of the group, looked up but saw nothing but more webs. Then, bursts of light began to appear in the webbing, and they were streaking towards the two warriors. Bolts of energy began to pepper them, and a net made of thick webbing dropped squarely on top of Haroldo, entangling him in its fibers. A half-dozen creatures appeared, clinging to the nest of webs above. They looked like bloated spiders with hunchbacked bodies and a gleam of intelligence in their multiple eyes.
Lucian was the first to react, knocking and firing his bow at one of the creatures. Zula was not far behind, sending a blast of her thundercall into another, causing it to lose its grip on the webs and fall twenty feet to the ground below, where it lay stunned and twitching. Haroldo, still trapped in the web net, managed to retrieve a flask from his belt and quaff it. Instantly, he grew to twice his size, shredding the webbing, and looking the spider-creatures directly in their multiple eyes. The arachnids continue to send barrages of magic missiles into the defenders, bleeding them by increments. The heroes dealt far worse. The Peacock Crown atop Lucian's head suddenly flared, informing him that the spider-things were some form of shape-shifter, though not oni. Still, the power of the Crown infused his bow, making his arrows even more deadly. The spiders shrieked awfully when the arrows pierced their flesh, burning their blood. Mazael used Suishen's power to take to the air and close with the fiends. Together, he and Haroldo were devastating, slay one creature after another, until only one remained, and then it too fell to Lucian's bow.
4 Lamashan, 4715 - The Open Web
"Don't really like the look of that," Gnome-Brr Phive said as he looked over the edge of the web-filled pit and spat down into it. "Reminds me too much of home."
"I agree," Zula said. "We passed a stairwell leading higher into the pagoda back in the hallway. I say we start there and see what's above us first."
They climbed the stairs single-file, and emerged into another hallway wrapping around the perimeter of the pagoda. Tall black-lacquered screens with prancing dragon designs turned the corridor into a twisting maze. Boris took the lead, his sharp eyes easily picking out several hidden pressure plates in the floor. He directed his companions around them to avoid triggering the traps they obviously controlled. They had just made it to the first turn of the hall when he held up a hand again.
"Boris hear something," he said, cocking his head.
"I hear it too," Zula nodded.
"Footsteps," Phive agree. "Comin' from ahead of us and behind. Sounds like somebody walkin' barefoot."
Boris quickly twisted a ring on his finger and disappeared from view. Just in time, as it turned out. Emerging from behind a screen just around the corner were two creatures, terrible to behold. A thick tangle of discolored entrails clung to the lurching skeletons' torsos and wound upward to loll from their jaws like clawed tongues. Boris took a step towards them, his blades in his hands. With his first strike, he reappeared, but he may as well have still been invisible, so fast were his movements. The creatures didn't have time to react. The twin wakizashis spun and sliced, striking vital areas with unnatural accuracy. When the little goblin finally spun away, both of the abominations lay in pools of their own gore. A shout from the back of the party caused Boris to spin in that direction. Another of the creatures had sneaked up behind Lucian, but the oracle had already put three arrows into it. A moment later, Haroldo and Mazael leaped between Lucian and the oncoming undead, and proceeded to hack it to pieces.
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Halfway through the screen maze, the companions came upon a single door set into the interior wall. After Boris pronounced it trap-free, Gnome-Brr Phive used his gloves to peer beyond it.
"Crap," he spat as he pulled his hands away.
"What you see?" Boris asked.
"More damn screens," Phive complained. "Only these ones are metal."
Boris opened the door, revealing a large chamber. As Phive had described, metal screens depicting writhing dragons in bas-relief devouring hidden prey filled the room. From somewhere in the distance, metal clinked, like a chain being dragged, followed by what may have been a muffled scream. Boris waited a moment for Zula to cast a more powerful spell of invisibility on him, then began moving cautiously into the labyrinth. He paused when he thought he heard a shuffling footstep, and turned in that direction. It was only then that he felt the floor beneath him give just a tiny bit.
"Oops...," he moaned.
From the ceiling above, a flurry of steel shurikens came flying out of concealed recesses. Boris tried to dodge, but there were too many of them. Several struck him, tearing through his clothing, and the wounds stung more than he felt they should have. He felt weak.
"Poison...," he groaned.
He looked up quickly as he heard the footstep again, and found himself staring up at another of the horrid, disemboweled mohrgs.
Haroldo had been moving towards another corner when Boris triggered the trap. He turned to look in that direction, and saw a pair of mohrgs looking back at him from behind another screen. Before he could move, the tongue of one of them struck out, snapping against his neck, and his muscles went rigid. He couldn't move! The second mohrg reached out and slashed at him with one clawed hand, and then wrapped its arms around him in a death grip.
The mohrg didn't see Boris, but he could see it sniffing and tasting the air, searching for him. Before it had a chance, the little goblin drove his swords into its belly, remaining invisible thanks to Zula's spell. Reflexively, the mohrg's tongue lashed out, and miraculously, struck exactly where Boris stood, paralyzing him.
Lucian rounded the corner and saw the mohrgs moving away with the rigid form of Haroldo. He rushed forward, a prayer on his lips as he moved. He reached the blood-rager just before he was pulled out of view, laying a hand upon his shoulder. Instantly, Haroldo felt the effects of the tongue drop away. Both mohrgs slashed at him, and then leaped away, but he swung at one before it was out of reach. Enraged, he charged forward, catching the second and running his great-sword completely through it.
Mazael grumbled to himself, complaining about the stupid goblin, and having to always babysit the little rat. That was when he literally stumbled over the invisible rogue. As he scrambled to keep his feet, he saw a blur of movement from behind a nearby screen. The mohrg's tongue lashed him, and he was struck still as a stone.
While Haroldo's attention was on his prey, the other mohrg darted past him, its tongue striking like a serpent at Lucian as he raised his bow. The oracle froze in place, and the undead horror moved in for the kill. Haroldo had no intention of letting that happen. As it raised its claws to tear out Lucian's throat, the big blood-rager cleaved its head from its shoulders.
Mazael's mind was still alert, though his body would not respond. He focused on the image of Desna, and asked for her blessing. A burst of her holy power sprang from the holy symbol around his neck, momentarily freeing his limbs again. Raising Suishen, he made quick work of the mohrg before the paralysis took him once more.
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Haroldo led Gnome-Brr Phive to Lucian, and the priest freed the oracle using the same magic that had freed Haroldo. In turn, Lucian released Mazael and Boris, though only after Zula's invisibility spell had worn off. When everyone was sufficiently recovered, they continued their trek through the metal-screen maze, until they finally came to a small chamber which lay in the middle of the larger room. Four great columns carved with depictions of dragons overlooked a gruesome scene: four gibbets hung from an iron column in the center of the room, next to a steep stone spiral stair that climbed to the ceiling. Two of the cages were occupied, one holding a Tian man, and the other a Tian woman. They looked terrified and half starved. When they were released from their prisons, they prostrated themselves at the feet of the Scions and began babbling their thanks.
"You are safe now," Zula said calmly. "What are your names, and how did you come to be here?"
"I am Junzo," the man introduced himself, "and this is my wife, Udtsetseg. We were foraging in the forest when we were set upon by the spider-creatures...aranea. They brought us here and left us in the maze outside this room. Then the dead creatures found us and dragged us in here to torture us. Who knows what they would have done if you had not come!"
"Have you seen any other parts of this place, or do you know of any of the other denizens?" Zula asked.
"We have overheard our captors talking many times," Junzo nodded. "The spider-things are led by someone named Akinosa, who lives somewhere above. They are apparently at war with hobgoblins who live below the pagoda."
"Interesting," Zula mused. "Well, we will see you safely from this place, and we thank you for your information."
Haroldo led the peasants back outside the pagoda to the garden. There, he left them with Miyaro, who agreed to watch over them until the companions returned. He then made his way back to his friends as they prepared to head higher into the pagoda to find this 'Akinosa.'
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When Zula and Boris emerged from the spiral staircase at the head of the group, they found themselves in a large, open chamber. Hundreds of stone needles and spikes jutted from the floor around them. A row of iron grilles ran around the perimeter of the room, providing views back down into the maze below. Thick webs swept upward from the jagged floor towards the roof some sixty feet above, ending in a dark and shadowy funnel that sloped upward into the farthest reaches of the pagoda. On each wall, a round window surrounded by iron barbs looked out over the garden surrounding the tower.
"More spider-people," Boris sighed as he looked up into the webs and saw the dark forms of the arachnid creatures...aranea Junzo had named them...scuttling around above them. As soon as he'd spoken, they began hurling sheets of webbing and raining magic missiles down on the companions. Zula quickly retaliated, stunning two of them with her thundercall and sending them tumbling down to the spiked floor. Piotr rushed up the stairs behind the shoanti woman and hurled a fireball into the mass of webs, immolating three more of the aranea and setting the webs ablaze.
"Everyone stay close!" Zula shouted.
She sang out a spell, and the familiar outline of a tiny hut formed around the companions, giving them a momentary reprieve from the aranea assault.
Just as the heroes were catching their breath, all of the remaining aranea abruptly disappeared. Mazael quickly raised Suishen in front of his eyes, and they began to glow.
"Their coming into the hut!" he cried.
On cue, the forms of the spiders began to appear all around the companions as they launched another barrage of magic missiles from point-blank range. Zula slew another pair with her thundercall, while Lucian picked off another two with his bow, the White Peacock Crown imbuing his weapon with lethal might against the shape-changers. Mazael and Haroldo lay about them with their swords, sending arachnid ichor flying in all directions, until the last of the aranea lay twitching on the floor.
4 Lamashan, 4715 - 5 Lamashan, 4715 - A Tangled Web
With no way to go but up, the companions all took flight thru various means and made for the web funnel near the roof of the large, open chamber. Haroldo and Mazael were the first to pass through the large hole at the top. The chamber that they found themselves in was filled with webs that appeared much older, more festooned with decay and withered husks. The floor again bristled with stone teeth, and while most of the ceiling had been destroyed, part of the level above remained in place where the dragon pillars rose. There, the sagging remnants of a floor hung over the rest of the web below, and a great ornamental palanquin stood upon that ledge next to a huge war drum. Above, another web funnel led upward, ancient skulls grinning down from it in their last, terrible resting places, with skeletal arms reaching out for succor.
Immediately, the two warriors saw movement all about them in the webs. Crouched among the strands were a dozen wolf-sized spiders with blue-and-white bodies and iridescent blue legs. Perched upon the seat of the palanquin was a corpulent aranea swathed in filthy silk robes, which looked as though they hadn't been changed in decades. Insects and spiders scuttled in and out of the folds of both the robes and his skin, and he occasionally plucked one up to chew as a crunchy snack. Flanking him were a pair of women dressed in black silk kimonos. Black porcelain masks covered their faces.
"Are you servants of that b++!~ Munasukaru?" the aranea bellowed down.
"Who's asking?" Mazael snarled back.
"I am Akinosa!" the creature thundered. "This is my domain, and you are trespassing!"
"We don't know any Monkey-sucker," the war-priest shrugged.
"Munasukaru!" Akinosa snapped. "If you are not her servants, they why have you attacked my people?"
"They attacked us first," Mazael replied simply. "We just defended ourselves...efficiently."
"Why are you here!?" roared the aranea.
"Looking for oni," Mazael said. "Seen any?"
"There are none in the pagoda!" Akinosa shouted. "This is my realm! Munasukaru and her oni filth are below, in the penance! If she is your enemy, then we share a common goal!"
"Why haven't you wiped her out already," Mazael asked. "Looks like you've been here awhile."
"Her forces are many!" Akinosa barked. "We are at a stale-mate! Perhaps you can help us resolve this situation. If not, then begone, or you shall incur my wrath!"
Mazael thought about it for a second.
"Nah," he shook his head. "We prefer to work alone. I think we'll just kill you all."
Akinosa snarled in rage.
"Gossamer!" he shouted. "To me!"
The two masked women fell into fighting crouches and from their hands came blue bolts of energy. Suddenly, from the hole near the ceiling, more energy bolts came pouring down on Mazael and Haroldo as another half-dozen of the women emerged from the thick webs there. Fortunately, both of the warriors had learned from their prior encounters with the aranea, and they had warded themselves against the magic missiles. The barrage deflected harmlessly away from both of them.
"That it?" Mazael quirked an eyebrow up at Akinosa. "'Cause we got something a little better."
Zula rose up from behind the war-priest, her jaw set. She thrust her hands out, one towards the ceiling, and one towards Akinosa's perch. Twin thunderclaps sounded, and the six women above all came tumbling down to the spiked floor, stunned and twitching. The two flanking Akinosa also went sprawling, though the fat spider himself kept his feet, albeit a bit shakily. Piotr was next through the hole, and he followed up Zula's performance with one of his own. A fireball exploded among the webs, setting them ablaze and scorching Akinosa and his two bodyguards. It also crisped several of the spiders, their charred bodies dropping to the floor.
"Fools!" Akinosa gasped, still shaking from Zula's assault, and his his robes still smoldering. "Do you think we have held off Munasukaru's forces so long by being unprepared!? Now you will see the folly of your misjudgment!"
As he spoke, eight shadows separated themselves from the deeper gloom of the webs, and began whirling around the companions. They appeared as dark, translucent figures clad in black robes, and when they reached out for the Scions, their bony fingers passed easily through both armor and clothing. Mazael felt the cold of the grave seize his muscles as a terrible weakness flooded through him. Reflexively, he grasped Desna's symbol around his neck and flung Her holy power all about him. The shadows recoiled in pain from the dazzling light. As they fell back, however, the hunting spiders swarmed in, their black mandibles clacking and dripping with poison.
"And now it is my turn!" Akinosa screamed.
Electricity crackled around his upraised hands, and he flung it towards the companions. It arced from one to another, chaining them together in a surge of lightning.
Zula managed to calm her jangling nerves sooner than the others, and another thundercall put an end to one of the gossamer still trying to get to her feet, as well as a pair of the shadows and a hunting spider. Lucian followed this up with a mass cure spell simultaneously assuaged some of his companions' worst wounds, while at the same time destroying five more of the shadows with the overwhelming positive energy. Gnome-Brr Phive took out the last of them, channeling Nethys' holy power. After that, things happened very quickly. Another of Piotr's fireballs killed the remaining spiders, while Haroldo flew quickly to Akinosa's perch. Back on the ground, the gossamer who had fallen all managed to regain their composure enough to use vanishing spells, only to reappear a moment later, focusing their attacks on Piotr. Mazael rushed to the aid of the sorcerer, and Lucian turned his bow on the women. It was a near thing, the vicious, poison-coated blades of the assassins doing their job on Piotr, but ultimately, Mazael and Lucian slew them all. On high, Akinosa tried his deadliest spells against Haroldo, but the blood-rager resisted them all in his frenzy. He cut through the aranea's last bodyguards, then gutted the grotesque wizard himself.
The remainder of the pagoda was hollowed out and contained very little, save from the loot accumulated by the aranea over the years. The companions gathered what they could, and then left to rejoin Miyaro. They were thoroughly spent from their exertions, and need the night to recuperate. The next day, they intended to journey into the bowels below the House of Withered Blossoms and see what new dangers awaited them there.
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The following day the companions returned to the House of Withered Blossoms, and the ground floor chamber which contained the dark throat boring down into the center of the earth. A warm breeze carrying the unpleasant smell of decay wafted upward from the web-filled shaft. Piotr tossed a fireball into the center of it, burning the webs away and revealing narrow, short stone steps carved into the wall and descending into the blackness.
They followed the shaft for at least one-hundred feet before the steps broadened into large stone-flagged stairs that dropped sharply into a wide, smooth-walled chamber. The room broadened as it sloped upward, ending at a vast wall of huge stone blocks. Rusting double iron doors, bristling with bloody spikes, offered the only passage through the wall, and a pair of figures hung limply from them. The air was hot, and smelled of sweat and toil.
No sooner had the companions emerged from the shaft, than a hail of arrows flew at them from slits high up on the wall. They scattered, but not before Zula took a grazing blow across her ribs from one of the shafts. She grunted, but still had breath to cast a spell, rendering herself invisible to their attackers. Piotr and Gnome-Brr Phive followed her lead and vanished from sight as well. Haroldo and Mazael rushed for the wall, directly beneath the arrow slits and out of the line of fire. This left only Lucian out in the open, and the oracle drew his bowstring to his cheek, sighted carefully, and released. His arrow never wavered. It went straight through one of the slits, and he heard a satisfying grunt of pain from the other side.
"That fool is going to get himself killed," Zula growled to herself. "But not on my watch."
She spoke the words of another spell, and a thick mist began to rise out of the ground between Lucian and the wall. In a matter of seconds, a billowing fog roiled across the chamber, shielding him from the archers. In the mean time, Haroldo and Mazael had reached the wall, and began hacking at it, the tactic having worked well in the pagoda above. Unfortunately, this wall seemed made of sterner stuff, and after several strong blows, only a few stone chips were to show for their efforts. Suddenly, a grinding sound came from above them, and the two warriors looked up just in time to spot the murder holes opening. Then, a deluge of boiling, scalding liquid came cascading down upon them, sending them diving and rolling for cover.
"Hold on boys," the disembodied voice of Piotr came from behind them. "This location is decidedly unsafe."
Each of them felt one of the sorcerer's hands grab their shoulder, followed by a litany of arcane words. There was a brief flash of bright light, and when it cleared, they found themselves standing on the opposite side of the wall. They were in a broad stone-floored courtyard, and above them, a stone parapet ran behind the arrow slits on this side, connected by a wooden bridge that crossed above the door. Upon the parapet were a half-dozen humanoids dressed in strange, lacquered armor. Their features were bestial, with an orange cast to their skin...hobgoblins. They all held bows in their hands, but wickedly spiked morningstars hung from their belts. At that moment, they were all staring down in confusion at the new arrivals.
Lucian had heard Piotr casting in the mists, a spell he knew himself. Picturing the arrow slit he'd fired through in his mind, he spoke the same words and disappeared, reappearing a moment later atop the parapet....right between a pair of hobgoblins. This time they did not hesitate, dropping their bows and drawing their morningstars as they moved to flank him, and then the closest one swung low, catching the oracle in the groin, doubling him over.
Chaos broke loose. The hobgoblins who still held their bows began shooting at Haroldo and Mazael, surprising in their accuracy, and before long both warriors were bleeding profusely from multiple wounds. Haroldo's eyes blazed with rage as he flew to the parapet, his sword a whirling cyclone of death and mayhem. Lucian managed to dart away from his attackers, gaining himself enough distance to bring his own bow to bear again. Meanwhile, Mazael ran for the gates, where a stout iron bar held them shut. He lifted it free and shoved open the portals to admit Zula and Phive. As he did so, he heard groans of pain above him, and when he looked up, he saw that the two men impaled on the doors were still alive...though just barely.
The hobgoblins fought with a discipline and ferocity that the companions would not have expected from such creatures, but ultimately Haroldo's barely-caged fury, and Lucian's skill with a bow proved to be too much.
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Mazael and Haroldo lifted the two men off of the spikes and Phive tended to the worst of their wounds. The men were Tian, and they were grateful, though completely exhausted and terrified. They told a similar story to that of the prisoners the companions had rescued upstairs: they had been taken in the forest and enslaved. They had lost track of the time they had been held, but it had seemed like an eternity. The hobgoblins were cruel masters, serving an evil crueler mistress, Munasukaru. The slaves had never seen her, but the hobgoblins spoke of her like she was divine, even though she was supposedly the weakest of the Five Storms oni. The hobgoblins were loose-lipped around their chattel, and the men had overheard stories about how Munasukaru was left behind by the other oni when they fled the House of Withered Blossoms, to fool the kami of the Forest of Spirits into thinking they were still captive. The isolation had possibly driven her mad. When asked what they knew of what lay beyond the courtyard, the slaves described chambers and halls guarded by more of the Withered Blossom Warriors, as the hobgoblins were known, as well as giants. Then, beyond this, there was a vast natural cavern where the bulk of the hobgoblins dwelt, watched over by their shogun, Buto the Swine Lord, a foul creature who lived in a small keep within the cavern. The companions thanked the men for their information, then escorted them back to the surface and Miyaro before returning below ground the continue the hunt for Munasukaru.
5 Lamashan, 4715 - Deeper Into The Penance
"I think it's time I revealed something to all of you," Lucian announced as the group stood in the courtyard.
"I wish you wouldn't," Mazael grumbled.
Lucian shot him a look before continuing. "The depth of my understanding of the wood and the trees has grown tremendously since we entered the Forest of Spirits. It may be the nature of this realm, or that I was cut off from so much verdant life for so long when we were on the high ice. Whatever the reason, new secrets have been revealed to me."
He stepped back from the others and raised his hands above his head. As his companions stared with curiosity, and then amazement, he began to transform. A bark-like covering grew from his skin, encasing every inch of exposed flesh. His legs stretched and broadened, looking almost like split tree trunks, while his arms became thinner as they grew, more spindly, like branches. His fingers formed into delicate twigs. The change continued until what stood before them looked more like a tree given a man-shape.
"This is my true form now," Lucian's voice rumbled from deep within his trunk. "At times, I shall return to my former shape, but this is now my truth."
Mazael snorted, then sneered.
"That's nothing! Take a look at what I woke up with this morning!"
He whipped his cloak aside, revealing a pair of huge, white-feathered wings sprouting from his back.
"Seems like all those stories my great grandma used to tell about how she once met an angel might have been true after all!"
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Two of the doors that led from the courtyard gave only onto empty store rooms. The third, however, opened onto a long chamber. Grotesque carvings of sex, gluttony, violence, and oppression decorated the walls, seeming to leap from their surfaces. The broken bodies of a half-dozen humans, their flesh seared, hung among the vile imagery. Boris peered into the gloom, and his sharp eyes picked out arrow slits, four on each wall, concealed among the horrible carvings.
"Wait here," he said quietly, putting a finger to his lips.
He twisted his ring, disappearing from view, and set off down the length of the chamber. When he reached the far end, he found another door, though it would not budge when he tried to open it. He crept to the nearest arrow slit and peered in. On the other side, he saw a hobgoblin staring back, a half-drawn bow in its hands. Silently, Boris drew his own bow, and before the warrior knew what was happening, fired two arrows through the slit and into the its belly.
"Why do we ever listen to him?" Zula shook her head in exasperation as she saw the goblin reappear down the hall, running full speed towards them.
She began a spell, and mist appeared flowing down the center of the chamber, covering Boris's retreat.
"The fog is not real," Zula told the others, "but the hobgoblins will not know that. Stick to the center, and it should conceal you from their arrows."
Mazael had other ideas. He looked towards the nearest arrow slit, spoke a quick prayer, then popped out of existence in a flash of light, only to reappear on the other side of the hole. Though he managed to surprise the hobgoblin stationed there, the warrior recovered quickly, throwing his bow to the ground and drawing out a morningstar. He swung it low, and caught the war-priest in the mid-section. Mazael grunted, and retreated a step, but as he did so, her brought Suishen around in a wide arc, slashing the hobgoblin deeply across the chest.
Heeding Zula's advice, Haroldo hustled down the center of the room to the far door. There, he brought out his "universal key," smashing the barrier to splinters with his great-sword. On the other side, he found another hallway running perpendicular to the one he'd just crossed. More vile carvings decorated it, this time depicting acts of envy. Directly across from him, stone stairs climbed to a balcony lined with pillars, and atop that stood three burly figures, each easily over ten-feet tall...giants!
Seeing Haroldo rush past him, Boris reversed himself, and followed after the blood-rager, using his ring to become invisible once more. He reached the doors just in time to see the trio of giants closing on Haroldo, while two hobgoblin warriors approached from a side passage where they had been manning the arrow slits. Haroldo didn't wait for the giants to come to him. He lunged forward, screaming like a mad man, dodging and whirling among their legs as they reached for him or swung their tree-trunk sized clubs at him. From back in the main chamber, Lucian let loose with his bow, throwing the giants into further disarray. In short order, the brutes began to fall, one after another. Haroldo spun away from the last one, heading towards the onrushing hobgoblins. One of them never reached him, however, as it fell face-first with Boris's blade sunk into its back. The blood-rager cut down the second as it turned to see had happened to its companion.
Meanwhile, Mazael kept a trio of Withered Blossom warriors who'd converged on him busy as they tried to surround him. They were fast, and well-disciplined, but the war-priest was just plain meaner. He took their blows and shrugged them off, before striking back with such ferocity that they fell before him in a matter of moments.
With the way forward open, the companions regrouped and ascended the stairs to the balcony. Here, the columns were decorated with more revolting scenes of vice and violence. The portico gave onto a long hallway. Broken bodies, some of which seemed to have died where they were tormented, lined the walls of the arched corridor, amid carvings and figures of torture and anguish. So vile and horrifying was the scene, that Lucian became physically ill. Watching a tree projectile vomit was not a pretty sight. As the heroes pressed on, they became suddenly aware of the sounds of a cracking, snapping sound coming from somewhere nearby. It had the unnerving quality, not of twigs breaking, but more like bones. It became gradually more certain that the sound was coming from one particular broken body that hung mangled on the wall at the end of the corridor. At the time of its death, it seemed that every bone in it had been broken. Then, just as suddenly as the noise started, it stopped. Mazael looked around nervously.
"Let's get out of this place," he growled.
The others nodded their agreement, all save for Piotr. He stood staring at the corpse a moment longer, strange thoughts coming unbidden into his mind. Then, uncontrollably he began to sob.
"What wrong with fire-wizard?" Boris asked, staring at him as if he'd grown a third eye.
Piotr took a moment to compose himself.
"N...nothing," he sniffed. "Let's just go."
His mind, however, was filled with thoughts of vengeance. He would see Munasukaru dead by his own hand before he left this place.
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The long corridor ended at a stone shelf perched above a large cavern. A shaky-looking wooden ladder climbed down from the ledges to the floor of the cave below. The overwhelming roar of a waterfall to the left of the ledge echoed across the huge chamber. Some sixty-feet below, strange hovels constructed from assorted debris cluttered the floor of the cavern. The waterfall crashed down into a pool on one side, while a deep pit ran through the opposite side of the chamber, bridged by two stone arches. So large was the area, that a small stone keep had been constructed far away in the gloom beyond the bridges. Freshly fallen rocks littered the floor amid a profusion of animal droppings and fungi. Many hobgoblins could be seen among the shanties, as well as dozens of pigs roaming freely. As the companions stood on the ledge, a cry came from below as the hobgoblins spotted Suishen's flaming blade illuminating the darkness.
Immediately, the hobgoblins below brought out bows and began sending flight after flight of arrows up at the heroes. Piotr answered this by creating a massive ice storm out of thin air. Fist-sized chunks of hail pummeled the hobgoblins, while ice and snow filled the air and covered the ground with a slippery sheen. Using the momentary distraction, Haroldo, Mazael and Boris all leaped from the ledge and flew down towards the village while Lucian covered them from above with his bow.
Once the Scion warriors were actually on the ground, they saw that at least half of the hobgoblins present were little more than shield-bearers, leaving only a half-dozen or so actual Withered Blossom shock troops for them to deal with. And deal with them they did...harshly and decisively. The battle was over in moments. A handful of the lesser minions managed to make a run across the bridges, and towards the keep in the distance. The companions watched them go, knowing they would be accounted for in due time.
5 Lamashan, 4715 - The Mockery Pagoda
"I have an idea," Piotr said.
The companions stood before the stone keep which sat upon an outcrop of rock in the belly of the huge cavern. Several of its walls had seen better days...the structure sagged in places, and heaps of rubble lined its flanks. From the building's roof, which almost touched the ceiling of the cavern itself, a stone bridge arched across to a precarious rocky ledge high above the cavern floor. The only entrance to the keep seemed to be a pair of massive iron-bound wooden doors at its base, before which the Scions had gathered.
"I'm going to conjure a barrier of pure force to block off one of these doors," the sorcerer explained, "then, Mazael, you and Haroldo will open the other one. As soon as you do, I"m going to create a cloud of killing fog inside. The two of you keep anyone from escaping while the mist does its work. Any questions?"
"I'd just as soon kick in the door and mop the floor with them," the war-pries shrugged, "but whatever gets the job done is fine by me."
He pulled a flask from a belt pouch and upended it. Within a matter of seconds, his body grew to twice its size and bulk.
"Now I'm ready," he grumbled.
Piotr cast his first spell, and a transparent wall of shimmering force appeared in front of the left-hand door. He nodded, and Mazael pushed on the other door. Nothing happened.
"Huh," Piotr raised an eyebrow. "I hadn't counted on it being locked."
Haroldo shook his head, raised his sword and smashed through the door with one blow.
"That works too," Piotr nodded.
The room beyond the door was squalid and foul, little more than a sty. Three iron cages and a wooden stall filled most of the chamber, and the floor was covered in an unpleasant mix of filth and rolling pigs. A teetering spiral staircase climbed clumsily out of the muck in one corner. The three cages each held a snarling, hissing snow leopard, while a boar the size of a warhorse peered menacingly out of the stall. Standing in the center of the room where a trio of hill giants, looking at once enraged and confused. A moment later, the entire room was hidden from view by a cloud of sickly greenish yellow vapor. For several moments, the sounds of squealing, yowling, snorting and grunting came from within the cloud, and then...silence.
Before the heroes could investigate the results of Piotr's experiment, shouts of alarm and anger sounded from above them. There, on a balcony some fifty feet overhead, five Withered Blossom warriors stood poised with their bows pointed down towards the companions. Upon a shouted command, they loosed their arrows, sending the volley straight into the exposed enemies below. Lucian returned covering fire while Boris and Haroldo began to walk into the air via the magic Zula had temporarily gifted them with. Boris reached the balcony first, and two of the hobgoblins immediately rushed him, swinging their morningstars at his twin wakizashis, attempting to disarm him. The wily goblin deftly deflected both of their clumsy attempts, causing them to drop their own weapons instead.
"Who look stupid now?" Boris taunted.
By that time Haroldo had also reached the landing, and he and the rogue worked as a practiced team, flanking the hobgoblins. The Withered Blossom warriors fought back viciously, leveling several powerful blows at Haroldo that would have killed a lesser man. Yet one by one, they still fell.
"We go downstairs now, right?" Boris asked, turning to Haroldo.
"I think we should rejoin the others," the big warrior shook his head.
Boris shrugged, but when the blood-rager started descending back to the ground, the goblin twisted his ring, and then darted down the stairs from the balcony leading to the interior of the keep.
"Are you ready?" Piotr asked.
"Ready as I'm going to be," Mazael grumbled.
Piotr nodded, then flicked the wand in his hand. A rush of wind blasted past the war-priest and into the lower level of the keep, rapidly dissipating the noxious cloud there. When the mists cleared, the sorcerer got a look at his handiwork. The three leopards lay dead and stiff in their cages, as did the dire boar. One of the giants also slumped unmoving on the floor, but standing in a corner, apparently unharmed, was one of the others. Of the third, there was no sign. With a roar, the sole survivor raised a massive club and charged forward. He didn't make three steps before Lucian put five arrows into his chest. As he stumbled, Mazael met his charge head-on, and drove Suishen through his throat. He fell, gurgling and gasping into the thick sludge on the floor, amidst the herd of dead pigs that had also succumbed to the mists.
The floor of the open chamber that Boris found himself in at the bottom of the stairs ran with filth and refuse, and swam with scores of cockroaches and rats, as well as over a dozen pigs. A huge table rose crookedly from the waste, holding the putrid remains of a huge feast on a tarnished silver salver, including a half-devoured pig's head with a hand thrust into its mouth leering out from the center of the revolting meal. Numerous war trophies hung from the walls, while countless rusted weapons dangled on hooks from the ceiling above. Another stone stairwell descended in the opposite corner of the room. A giant stood in the middle of the room, facing the two stairwells expectantly. His skin was blistered and oozing in several places. Behind him stood a large hobgoblin with a great belly, wearing a cloak made from the sewn skins of piglets. A mighty great-axe was slung over his shoulder, and he held a struggling piglet under one arm.
"Beware! Snort!" he squealed in a piggy voice to the giant. "Squeee! They're coming!"
As if on cue, Mazael and Haroldo appeared at the top of the other stairwell. The giant swung his club at them as they ascended, clipping the blood-rager solidly on his right shoulder. The brute didn't get a second chance as Mazael ran him through with Suishen. Next came Lucian, already firing his bow as he cleared the stairs. His arrow struck the swine shogun just as the fat pig fired his own arrow into Haroldo, dropping his squirming piglet as he did so. Haroldo grunted from the impact of the shaft, but he charged forward. As he came, the hobgoblin dropped his bow and drew his great-axe in one smooth motion, bringing it up and catching Haroldo under the chin with the haft before reversing it and chopping down on the big man's thigh. Haroldo gritted his teeth against the pain, then drove the pommel of his sword into the hobgoblin's nose, shattering it. As the swine shogun stumbled back, the blood-rager drove the point of his blade towards his heart. The hobgoblin turned the blow aside at the last moment, preventing a fatal blow. It was then that Boris appeared behind the shogun, thrusting his blades into the fleshy back of the hobgoblin. He squealed and snorted, but managed to spin away from the goblin, hacking and slashing viciously at Haroldo to keep him at bay. His foot slipped in the effluvium on the floor, and he crashed down to one knee. Clutching the worst of his gushing wounds, he struggled to bring his axe up again, but Haroldo's sword came smashing down, cleaving through the haft of the weapon, the hobgoblin's helmet, and his skull.
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"Boris smell bacon," the goblin said, sniffing at the air as his companions ransacked the keep.
No one paid him any mind. He was always thinking with his stomach. Boris wouldn't deny that fact, but this was different. His hunger was...consuming. He looked at the pig's head on the table, considered it for all of a second, then leaped upon it, tearing at it and eating ravenously. After a few minutes, he sat back on his haunches and licked the remains of the disgusting meal from his fingers. He was still hungry...
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The bridge from the roof of the keep led precariously to a narrow ledge high above the cavern. Beyond this, a tunnel opened up until it ended at crude stone steps that descended some two-hundred feet further into the earth. At the bottom, it opened into a wide chamber filled with the thundering roar of another waterfall. The water came from a subterranean river ninety feet above, plunging into a cold, deep lake. On the far side of the lake stood a crooked pagoda, carved with the forms of twisted animals, as if in mockery of the pagoda in the daylight high above. A raised drawbridge hung from the front of the pagoda.
No sooner had the heroes entered the cavern, than a flight of arrows sailed towards them from the rooftop balcony of the pagoda.
"I'll put a stop to that!" Piotr shouted
He raised his hand and spoke an incantation. A moment later, a wall of fire twenty-feet tall sprang up on the roof, engulfing the hobgoblin archers.
"Clear," Piotr called to his companions.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Mazael muttered, his eyes widening.
Piotr turned to look at what had grabbed the war-priest's attention. The water of the lake appeared to be boiling at three distinct locations. As he watched, the frothing continued to grow, spiraling up into a trio of water spouts. A moment later, these resolved into massive humanoid forms composed entirely of water. Piotr stared in disbelief as one of them raised an arm towards the wall of fire and extinguished it with a great deluge.
"That was an expensive spell!" he snarled.
He could see the hobgoblins on the parapet scrambling around. They were singed, but still able. He spoke another spell, and hurled a ball of fire at them, only to see most of them leap and dodge out of the way of the detonation. His only satisfaction was that one of the elementals was caught in the blast, and steam began to boil off of it.
"We're sitting ducks out here!" Lucian shouted. "Everyone who wants a ride, gather around me!"
The others quickly moved towards him, each of them grabbling hold of a root or branch.
"Go ahead," Piotr waved them on. "I don't want to be caught in the middle of that."
Lucian nodded his hoary head and then murmured a brief prayer. He and the others vanished in a flash of light, and then Piotr watched them reappear on the rooftop of the pagoda. Six Withered Blossom hobgoblins were waiting on them when they arrived, and before they had a chance to compose themselves, another half-dozen rushed up a flight of stairs from the lower level of the pagoda.
A few random arrows still flew in Piotr's direction, but he could see that the bulk of the attack had been turned upon his friends. They were surrounded. He did what he could to assist, lobbing fireballs, one after another, into the fray. The problems was that most of the hobgoblins almost seemed to sense the explosions coming, and managed to evade them at the last possible second, while the elementals soaked up the explosions but didn't seem to be slowed at all.
On the rooftop balcony the battle was chaotic and frenzied. Boris darted invisibly among the hobgoblins, striking from behind while Haroldo waded right into the middle of them, cleaving through four or five at a time with broad swings of his great-sword. Lucian pinned down their archers as best he could, while Mazael took it upon himself to deal with the elementals. The huge beings rained watery fists down upon the roof, smashing into Haroldo and flinging him clear of the battle. At one point, when Boris had momentarily reappeared, he was caught by a glancing blow that nearly snapped his neck. Panicked and bleeding internally, he vanished again and darted down the stairs for cover. Haroldo, when he'd regained his feet, was even forced to break one of his remaining snapleafs and momentarily hide himself from view, as he felt one more hit like that would put him down. Fighting like a dervish, Suishen a flaming blur, Mazael finally managed to bring down one of the water elementals. A moment later a second one fell to Lucian's bow. That turned the tide of battle. The hobgoblins began to scatter, no longer fighting as an organized force. The companions were able to start picking them off one-by-one. Haroldo reappeared behind the last elemental, his blade shattering its watery form into fragments. After that it was just a matter of mopping up. Even Boris felt brave enough to creep back to the battle and finish off the last of the hobgoblins with a sword in the back.
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The companions descended the stairs from the balcony and found themselves in a bare room that contained only a revolting statue of a repulsive, strangely goblinoid creature. It stood on a bed of nails and had four demonic heads...one smiling, one angry, one eating and one screaming. It was depicted as obscenely pregnant, with multiple teats sagging over its swollen belly, and was shown giving birth to monstrous creatures, some humanoid with demonic goblinoid faces, others wormlike with human faces. Piotr was able to identify the former as a type of oni related to hobgoblins known as a ja-noi. The latter creatures, Piotr stated, were spirit nagas...evil, snake-like sorcerers.
Beyond the makeshift shrine was a chamber containing controls for the drawbridge, as well as a storeroom and a vile midden heap filled with repulsive fungi. Boris sampled several of them, and collected more in his pouch. The heroes then returned to the rooftop, where a pair of massive double doors blocked entrance deeper into the pagoda. Haroldo and Mazael took up point positions, and then the blood-rager threw open one of the doors, leaving the other closed as cover in case any nasty surprises waited on the other side. Beyond the doors, a steep staircase climbed upward. Bas-reliefs of faces distorted by pain covered the steps and walls. Standing at the base of the statue was a large terra-cotta statue of a Tien warrior. At the top of the stairs, six Withered Blossom warriors stood, their bows drawn. Something about them was different, however. Their skin was pale and pockmarked with oozing sores. It didn't seem to affect their aim, though. They opened fire as soon as the door was fully open.
Haroldo ducked, using the statue as cover from the archers. To his shock and utter surprise, however, the statue suddenly began to move. It swung one massive fist at him, connecting solidly with the side of his head, and driving him back towards the doors, his vision blurring in and out of focus. Behind him, Piotr gestured and a wide pit opened beneath the feet of the statue, but the thing was too big, and straddled the hole. Mazael rushed towards it, but it hammered him before he could get within reach. It then moved to step away from the pit, but Mazael leaped forward again, battering at it with Suishen, while Boris rolled between its legs, and came up jabbing his sword at various cracks and seams in its hide. As it put its foot back down, it abruptly crumbled to pieces.
Zula stepped into the breach and hurled her thundercall at the leprous hobgoblins at the top of the stairs. They lurched back from the blast, two of them reeling in a stupor. Haroldo charged up towards them before they could recover, cleaving with his great-sword into the whole pack. It was only when he raised his eyes that he saw what lay beyond the landing. A simple bare chamber with an arched doorway depicting tormented dragons opened into a much wider area. That chamber was filled with a large, open pit. Six thick iron bars crisscrossed it, and a greenish-gray bitter-smelling mist filled its depths. More arched openings sat in each of the walls around the pit. What immediately caught Haroldo's attention, however, were the individuals standing on the iron bars themselves: female hobgoblins, all heavily tattooed with scenes of greed, their flesh displaying numerous piercings set with minor gemstones. There had to be at least half a dozen of them.
Haroldo's attention was drawn back to his immediate vicinity by a gurgle of pain. Turning, he saw Boris removing his blades from the belly of one of the lepers, while another one was keeling over with one of Lucian's arrows stuck through his eye. Haroldo swung his sword at the last one, almost as an after thought, separating his head from his shoulders.
"Look!" Boris pointed towards the females balancing over the pit. "Pretty ladies! Wait for me, pretty ladies! Boris coming to meet you!"
"No! Wait!" Haroldo tried to grab for him, but the little goblin was already zipping over the pit.
No sooner had he reached its center, than the women began leaping nimbly from rail to rail until they had Boris surrounded in a matter of seconds. Before he could react, two of them reached for his wakizashis, knocking the swords from his hands and sending them tumbling down into the mist-filled pit.
"This not good," Boris frowned watching his weapons disappear.
Then, with a shrug, he threw up his hands, and then sank down into the pit after them, courtesy of the charm of air walking Mazael had given him. Within moments, he was lost from view.
By that time, Mazael had made it to the top of the stairs, and he just looked in disbelief at the spot where Boris had just been.
"What in the Hells has that little weasel gotten himself into this time?" he snarled.
Haroldo didn't have a chance to reply as the female hobgoblins began swarming towards them. Suddenly, from an archway on the other side of the pit, another figure appeared. It looked like a heavily armored hobgoblin male, but he was flying! He bore a weapon that consisted of a long wooden haft topped by a 3-foot long, wickedly curved blade. His eyes blazed crimson, and his bottom canine teeth protruded from his mouth like tusks. It only took a moment for Haroldo to realize where he'd seen him before...or something like him: the obscene statue in the lower level. It had been shown giving birth to something just like this. What had Piotr called it? A ja-noi oni. Was this, then, some sort of demonic spawn of the oni witch that ruled this place? Again, a question that would have to wait. The females were upon them, and as they rushed in, they drew knives from their belts, attempting to slash at the weapon cords that both Haroldo and Mazael had attached to their swords. Their tactic was clear: they were trying to disarm the warriors and toss their weapons wherever they'd sent Boris's. They failed miserably as the pair hacked and slashed viciously at them before they could even get close.
Lucian reached the top of the stairs, closely followed by Zula. The tree-like oracle quickly began loosing arrows at the pack of hobgoblins, but for every arrow that hit, another was knocked aside by the nimble creatures. Then Zula unleashed a blistering array of invectives in their direction that literally set several of them of fire! Lucian was duly impressed.
The hobgoblin sisters were losing ground. Haroldo cut one down, and Mazael another. Yet they still had the two big warriors surrounded, and when the ja-noi darted past them, though Mazael slashed at him and Suishen opened a vicious wound across his flank, the war-priest and Haroldo could not stop him. The oni-spawn went straight for Piotr, smashing his strange weapon down upon the sorcerer. Piotr blanched and fell back, bleeding profusely. He fumbled a snapleaf out of his pouch and crushed it, vanishing. Laughing, the ja-noi turned towards Lucian, only to find the oracle's bow aimed at him from less than a foot away. Lucian let loose, sending a pair of arrows through the oni's throat. He fell, choking on his own blood.
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Boris couldn't see anything. The mists enveloped him on all sides, and he felt like he'd been traveling downwards for hours. He could still hear the din of battle distantly from above, but nothing from below...until... He thought he heard a shuffling sound, and the air became thick with an animal musk. He heard snuffling, snorting, and then a deep inhalation, as if some massive thing just drew in a great breath. A moment later the mist around him roiled as a great wind blasted him. He felt his joints stiffen and tighten, and then his eyes and his mind went black...
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Mazael and Haroldo each took out another of the hobgoblins, but the the remaining two darted past them. One of them reached Lucian and grabbed his bow. Though the oracle was twice her size, she still managed to pivot and use her body weight and momentum to wrench the weapon from his hands. She held it aloft triumphantly, an evil grin on her face as she turned back toward the pit.
"Not so fast, b@*#$!" Zula hissed.
The thunder-caller threw out both hands, and her sonic boom struck the sisters, leaving them stunned and disoriented. The one who'd taken Lucian's bow dropped it to the floor from her numb fingers. Then Mazael and Haroldo were there to finish the job.
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Boris regained consciousness abruptly. His extremities still felt stiff, but sensation was returning quickly. He was lying on his back at the bottom of the pit. The mist was still thick around him, but he could see his swords nearby, just out of reach. Something else was nearby as well....some things! Their bulky forms loomed over him, each one easily the size of a warhorse. There were three of them, and they looked like bulls, except their hides seemed to be made of stone. They dropped their heads, hooves pawing the ground. One of them rushed towards Boris, one of its horns opening a long gash across his back, but not impaling him solely due to the quickness of his reflexes as he rolled to the side. The other two charged. Boris twisted the ring on his finger, disappearing, and the rolled again, narrowly avoiding being trampled to death. His hand closed on the hilt of one of his swords, and he leaped to his feet. Searching furiously, he saw his other blade, grabbed it, and then jumped into the air, walking as fast as his short legs would carry him back towards the top of the pit.
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"...and that why Boris think we no go back down into pit," the goblin explained several minutes later once he'd rejoined his friends and told his harrowing tale. "Herd of rock bulls just waiting down there to eat us!"
"I'm inclined to agree," Zula nodded. "That just sounds like a death trap, and if the hobgoblins wanted us down there, then that's the last place we need to be. I say we press on."
They made their way across the pit and through the archway on the far side, where they found themselves in a storage room crammed with objects related to combat. On the other side, a short flight of stairs led to a long corridor decorated with scenes of anger, illustrating humanoid figures suffering in scenes of shockingly brutal violence. After several hundred feet, the hallway ended at a solitary door. The companions arranged themselves before it, certain there would be more enemies beyond. They were not disappointed...
5 Lamashan, 4715 - "Hands Off My Sword!!"
Beyond the door was a large barracks, but all of the bedrolls scattered throughout the room were unoccupied. A short stair on one wall led to a smaller barracks, and that was anything but empty. No fewer than ten Withered Blossom Warriors were rushing for the stairs, bows in hand. As they massed together, Zula leveled a sonic boom into their midst, stunning half of them. This made it easy for Lucian to put one down with a volley from his own bow, and for Boris to deliver a coup de grace to another.
Suddenly, a massive warrior appeared out of nowhere, flying through the air. He was easily over 12-feet tall, clad in the full armor of a samurai. His skin was jet-black, and his hair fire-red. He clutched a massive katana in one hand, but the other was outstretched, and a blast of frigid cold spewed forth from it, enveloping all of the heroes. Fortunately, most of them still carried Suishen's protection from extreme cold, but Gnome-Brr Phive was not so lucky. The giant then pointed one finger at Mazael.
"You!" his voice boomed. "Face me!"
"No problem," the war-priest snarled.
He stepped forward and brought Suishen around in a horizontal slash, opening the giant's belly. The giant's eyes went wide in disbelief as he stumbled back. Then, a large, white-fletched arrow blossomed between his eyes and he fell over completely. As he did so, his form melted and shifted into a purple-skinned creature with two small horns in its forehead.
"Oni," Lucian says, tapping the White Peacock Crown on his head. "Never lies."
Boris, still in the middle of the barracks, found himself surrounded by the remaining hobgoblin warriors. They flanked him, and swung with their morningstars, beating him viciously. He managed to get in a few good pokes, but he knew he couldn't stand toe-to-toe against so many. As it turned out, he didn't have to for long. Mazael came to his aid, hacking down two of the soldiers. Lucian took out another four with well-placed shots, leaving the last two for Boris. He made quick work of them, then began looking around for Gnome-Brr Phive.
"Cleric!" he shrieked, clutching his bleeding wounds.
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Beyond the commander's quarters in the barracks, a wall opened into a broad natural cavern, through which could be heard the sound of roaring water. A stone walkway plunged into the heart of a large cave that was itself a roaring shaft of water, so that the steep and narrow stone pathway descended like a corkscrew along the edges, with a waterfall plunging through the center.
The companions were forced to walk single-file down the twisting shaft. Even flying, they had to stick to the stairs, as the force of the falls was too strong to move through. They had travelled down more than one-hundred feet when the ambush came. Before Mazael, at the front of the group, and behind Zula, at the rear, four of the tattooed and pierced hobgoblin females materialized, floating in mid-air. One near Mazael slashed out with a dagger and severed the leather cord holding Suishen secured to his wrist. Snarling, the war-priest thrust the flaming katana through her gut, then shoved her into the waterfall where she vanished, swept away by the deluge. Zula began a sing-song chant of discordant sounds and words that sent another of the sisters fleeing, retching violently from the cacophonous call. The third, however, darted forward and wrenched Suishen from Mazael's grip. Grinning, she turned and tossed the sword into the waterfall.
"B@@!!!" Mazael howled, and then he turned and leaped into the falls himself.
At the back of the group, Lucian tried to get a bead with his bow on one of the sisters in the narrow confines of the shaft. He managed to get off one shot, but she batted away the arrow, and then lunged for him and swatted the bow from his hands. Fortunately, it landed several feet away, still on the path, and he dove for it before it fell. When he turned back, he saw the sister coming for him again. He didn't have time to ready his bow, so he thrust out one gnarled hand and spoke a prayer. A searing blast of light sprang from his palm and struck the woman, driving her back into the wall of the shaft. She tried to rise again, but a barrage of arcane bolts from Piotr put her down permanently.
Zula turned towards the last of the sisters, just as the hobgoblin was moving her direction. Zula stomped her foot, sending a sonic shockwave into the woman, leaving her staggered and disoriented. Boris leaped gleefully towards her, his wakizashi's a blur in his hands. In the wake of his attack, she slumped bonelessly to the stairs, bleeding from several lethal wounds.
"Now that's done with," Gnome-Brr Phive said, "I think that war-priest fella's gonna be hurtin' when he hits the bottom of them falls. Looks like it's time fer work."
And with that, he too stepped into the falls.
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Mazael hit the surface of the lake at the bottom of the waterfall shaft with bone-breaking impact, plunging down into the icy darkness. He sank slowly, his armor and gear dragging him towards the bottom. As his eyes grew slowly accustomed to the gloom, he thought he saw a faint glow far below him. As he continued to sink, the light grew stronger, until he could make out the distinctive shape of a sword, fire dancing along the length of its blade. He was just about to allow himself a weary smile, when he heard a loud splash above him. Then, a flicker of movement caught his eye from somewhere off to the side...something big...
When Phive hit the lake, it was only slightly softer than Mazael's experience, mostly due to the gnome's small size. He didn't have much time to catch his breath, however. He could see Mazael several dozen yards below him, but he also saw three massive shapes bearing down on the war-priest. Not quite sea serpent nor dragon, the beasts were covered with shiny blue-green scales, and their arms seemed to serve as both wings and flippers. One of them looked up at the noise from Phive hitting the water, and began swimming towards him. All of them opened their jaws as they closed, and from within their maws crackled balls of electricity. They spat them at Phive and Mazael, and when the spheres of lightning hit the two companions they burned all the more due to the conductivity of the water.
The remaining Scions hurried down the stairs of the shaft as quickly as they could, emerging from a small opening in the side of the lake cavern. The surface of the lake was broken by jagged boulders that formed makeshift steppingstones to an arched doorway on the far side. Hundreds of screaming, leering faces covered the walls of the chamber. Lucian was first to emerge, just in time to see Gnome-Brr Phive erupt from the water astride his flying broom, his clothes steaming and smoking. A moment later, Mazael appeared in a flash of light hovering in mid-air over the lake, Suishen once more gripped in his hands. Below the surface, all of the companions could see the three drakes racing towards them.
"That's not the least of our problems," Zula said as she emerged from the passage, and pointed towards the far side of the lake.
The others followed her gaze and saw what she meant. Three more of the hobgoblin sisters had appeared in the far archway, and had begun leaping out onto the boulders, heading towards the companions.
Boris looked up just as one of the sisters touched down on a stepping stone. The moment she did so, the carved faces that covered every wall of the cavern began to scream. All of the companions grabbed their ears as the confusing cacophony filled their heads...all except for Boris. He just stood their, his head cocked to one side, babbling incoherently.
One of the sea drakes breached the surface, followed closely by another. Lucian, still trying to ignore the wailing that filled his ears, managed to fire off a shot at the first one. Mazael was waiting for the other. As it leaped into the air, he brought Suishen down upon its neck, cleaving through scale, sinew and bone with one mighty chop. The creature's head flew from its body, the two parts landing with loud splashes before sinking back beneath the water in a widening pool of red. The two remaining drakes once again spat balls of crackling electricity into the air. They struck Zula, and then arced to both Piotr and Lucian. Piotr, his hair still standing on end, hurled a fireball back at the nearest of the beasts, setting it ablaze and leaving its charred remains floating stiffly on the surface. The last of the drakes turned towards Lucian, lifting its bulk out of the water upon its stubby wings, but before it could clear the lake, the oracle fired five more arrows into its hide, and it crashed back down again.
Mazael rushed through the air to meet the oncoming sisters, determined that he would not lose Suishen again. As the closest of them leaped into the air to meet him, he brought the katana down in an overhand chop and severed her arm at the shoulder. Another jumped at him, but Lucian brought her down in mid-leap with a flurry of arrows. The last sister managed to get in close, and despite his best efforts, slapped Suishen from Mazael's hands. Snarling, but not missing a beat, the war-priest drew a second, mundane sword from his back and slashed it across the hobgoblin's windpipe. Her eyes bulged as she choked to death on her own blood. Sighing, Mazael sheathed the sword, then dove into the lake to retrieve Suishen once more.
5 Lamashan, 4715 - The Breaking of the Fellowship
"Are you the boss of this place!?" Mazael shouted. "Because if you're not, then you'd best get out of our way or join the rest of the catapult fodder we left behind us!"
The companions had made their way across the lake of broken stones after their battle with the sea drakes and the hobgoblin sisters. On the opposite side of the lake, a low stone shelf had formed a natural harbor. High stone ledges rose in tiers from the shelf, and a set of stone steps climbed from the middle to the topmost one. There, the chamber they found themselves in had worked stone walls rather than natural ones, and they were carved with figures being torn apart by beasts. The chamber was occupied.
"It will be a mercy given to you at the edge of my blade," a giant figure clad in full o-yori armor rumbled, "that you will never have to meet my mistress."
The giant sat astride an even larger stone bull, grey mist flaring from its nostrils. A lone Withered Blossom warrior stood to one side, glancing nervously from his captain to the intruders. Before Mazael could respond, the great bull lumbered forward, and exhaled a vast cloud of cloying mist that enveloped the companions. When it cleared a moment later, where Mazael and Haroldo had stood were two very life-like statues of the two warriors. The giant samurai drew a katana from his back and flew through the air. When he reached the statue of Mazael, he struck its leg with his sword, sending a spiderweb of cracks through it.
"Boris told you!" the goblin shrieked to his friends, hopping up and down and pointing at the statues. "Rock bulls no joke!"
"Let's see if stone burns!" Piotr growled.
The sorcerer flung out his hands, and chains of fire sprang from his fingertips, arcing from the giant, to the bull, and to the hobgoblin. The giant seemed to ignore the flames, but his allies shrieked and snorted in agony as the fire wreathed them. Lucian followed this with three arrows into the bull's exposed flank, knowing they had to put the beast down quickly before it could breathe again. Zula sealed its fate with her thundercall, and the creature fell heavily upon its side, heaving one last gasp before it expired.
The hobgoblin, its clothes still smoking, charged across the chamber, and when it reached the statue of Haroldo, swung its morningstar into the throat of the petrified blood-rager. A moment later, the stony facade fell away from both of the warriors, the effects of the gorgon's breath wearing off. Mazael immediately lurched to one side, off balance due to his broken leg, and Haroldo's hand went to his throat, horribly indented, his trachea crushed. Still, that didn't stop the war-priest from whipping Suishen around and disemboweling the Withered Blossom hobgoblin. And when Lucian finished off the giant with another salvo of arrows, revealing it to be another ogre-mage when it died, Haroldo grabbed his neck and squeezed, popping his airway back open and then shrugging his shoulders, as if nothing had happened. Lucian put away his bow and tended to Mazael's shattered femur. Within a few minutes, the companions were ready to proceed.
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Beyond the chamber, a short hall gave on to a magnificent stone bridge carved with enraged kirin devouring a bridal feast. Swift, dark waters flowed under the crossing. The bridge led to a stone ledge overlooking a cobbled stone plaza in a huge chamber. High above, a vaulted ceiling soared over the room, supported by great columns, some of which had collapsed. At one time, another stone bridge crossed the room from the ledge to the opposite wall, but the both the span and the enormous archway it led to had also collapsed, leaving a pile of shattered rubble on the floor below. Frescoes depicting blinded ettins pulling obscene creatures on vast golden wagons, surrounded by slaves averting their eyes, covered the walls in a riot of extravagant colors.
A quartet of Withered Blossom warriors stood along the ledge, gazing down into the plaza below where a pair of hill giants picked among the rubble. The companions wasted little time on the rabble. By this point, they had become quite adept at anticipating the tactics of the hobgoblins, and they made quick work of the warriors, with Lucian picking off the giants while staying clear of the chunks of rock they hurled back at him. Afterwards, they made their way down to the plaza, where they found, beneath the overhang of the ledge, a swollen wooden door, and nearby, an archway leading to another corridor. Haroldo had no problem forcing open the stuck door, revealing a bare chamber with water slowly dripping onto the damp floor. A small, withered tree in a simple pot sat in the middle of the room.
"That's it," Lucian said, walking over to gently pick up the little bonsai. "Akumi's spirit tree. It's still alive, but just barely. We need to get it to sunlight soon."
The oracle tucked the tree safely into his gear, melding it into his tree form.
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The corridor beneath the ledge led from the plaza to the remains of a broken bridge which lay shattered in the waters of an underground river. Across the torrent, an open archway beckoned. With all of the companions still flying by one means or another, crossing the water was no hindrance. Beyond the archway, innumerable columns depicting writhing oni feasting upon fleeing peasants supported a magnificent arched corridor, which vanished into darkness. Another small group of hobgoblins and giants stood staring down the corridor, as if watching for something. The companions caught them off guard, and quickly dispatched them, as they had done their predecessors.
The pillared corridor stretched for over six-hundred feet, its floor worn smooth with heavy traffic, its walls covered in carvings depicting dragons punishing humans for their frailty and mortality. It finally ended in a broad, stone platform that overlooked a series of crude stone steps that descended on the far side. The mangled, rotting corpses of hobgoblins littered the floor. As the companions approached, several large shadows detached themselves from area of the hole in the floor and advanced towards the corridor. As they stepped into the light, they resolved into a half-dozen hunched, reptilian beasts that loped on two clawed feet, their eyeless heads dominated by huge circular maws filled with jagged teeth.
As one, the creatures opened wide their mouths, and trumpeting blasts, akin to Zula's thundercall multiplied six times over, hammered into the heroes. The results were devastating. Piotr and Lucian were blown back, and lay motionless upon the floor, blood pouring from their ears and mouths. For Gnome-Brr Phive, it was even worse. The little svirfneblin was hurled bodily into one of the pillars, his neck snapping audibly. He was left limp and lifeless, his head twisted at an unnatural angle. The others remained on their feet, but just barely. Only Boris was unscathed, his lightning fast reflexes having allowed him to dive for cover behind the pillars. Haroldo, bruises visible all over his body from the punishing sonic impact, hurled a fireball into the mass of creatures, his blood magic boiling, but it only managed to buy his friends a brief moment of respite. Mazael, unsteady on his feet, seized the medallion of Desna around his neck and channelled her healing power. Piotr and Lucian opened their eyes groggily, looking around in a daze.
"Come on!" Zula cried.
The Shoanti thundercaller ran groggily towards Lucian, scooping up Gnome-Brr Phive's body as she went. When she reached the oracle, she tapped him on the shoulder, then tapped Haroldo in turn.
"We'll meet you back at the waterfall!" she cried to Mazael, Piotr and Boris.
Then the three of them vanished in a flash of white light.
Mazael nodded, though Zula was already gone, and then turned back to help Piotr to his feet. That was when the creatures unleashed their destructive harmonics again. Boris dove for cover once more, holding his ears. When he peered out from around the pillar a moment later, his face went white in horror. Mazael and Piotr both were on the ground, terribly still, Suishen unattended nearby. Shaking his head, the goblin turned the ring on his finger and vanished. He then crept out from his hiding place, heading towards his friends. He had gone no further than a few feet when the creatures all turned their eyeless heads in his direction.
"Uh-oh," Boris whimpered.
The monsters charged him, teeth and claws ripping and slashing. Boris dove forward, rolling out of the mass, bleeding from several wounds. He glanced down and saw the glazed, unseeing eyes of Piotr and Mazael. Brushing aside a tear, he grabbed Suishen.
'Run, little one,' the sword spoke into his mind. 'A warrior knows when the battle is lost.'
His face grim, Boris turned and ran.
Calling for an update!
5 Lamashan, 4715 - 6 Lamashan, 4715 - Heroes
"Something's happened," Zula said. "It's been too long."
She stood at the base of the spiral waterfall stair, looking out over the underground lake. Haroldo sat nearby, Lucian tending his wounds.
"Give them time," the big man said. "If there's one nice thing I can say about that sorcerer, it's that he's hard to kill."
"Not this time," a familiar voice spoke from behind them.
They turned and saw Boris appear, slipping his invisibility ring off his finger.
"What's wrong?" Zula asked. "Where are the others?"
"They dead," Boris shook his head. "Bad Yellers kill them. Boris check to see if they just sleeping, but pretty sure they dead. Boris able to grab magic sword before Yellers kill him too."
He held up Suishen for the others to see.
"Now what?" Haroldo asked into the tense silence that followed.
"We go back for them," Zula replied coldly.
"Yes!" Boris nodded vigorously. "Boris think that good idea! Kill all Bad Yellers!"
"What's going to stop them from killing us first?" the blood-rager asked. "It wasn't exactly our finest moment."
"They caught us off guard," Zula said. "We weren't prepared. That won't happen again. Will it Lucian?"
The oracle looked thoughtful for a moment, and then slowly smiled.
"I think I have just the thing," he nodded.
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The four companions appeared in the middle of the pillared hallway in a flash of white light, near the spot where they'd last seen Piotr and Mazael. Their hopes of simply grabbing their fallen companions and leaving were quickly dashed when they spotted the destrachans at the far end of the passage...feeding.
"Filthy bastards!" Lucian cried as he loosed an arrow, sending it flying into the flank of one of the creatures with its back turned.
That got their attention quickly, and they raised their heads, 'looking' right at the heroes with their eyeless faces.
"Here they come," Zula said tensely.
"I'll be ready," Haroldo nodded.
He reached in his belt pouch and retrieved a flask, then quickly drank from it. His body stretched and broadened until he stood twice his normal size. Beside him, Lucian sent three more arrows down the hall, bringing down the creature he'd already wounded. It stumbled in its tracks and fell to the floor. It's brethren didn't seem to notice. Haroldo moved forward, his massive sword slicing the air before him. Boris ran with him, darting between his legs until they reached the destrachans, then the little goblin rolled under the nearest of them, slashing at its Achilles tendons as he sprang to his feet on the far side. It screeched and reared back, trying to snap at the rogue with its large fangs, but it was then that Haroldo brought his blade down across its neck, sending its head tumbling one direction while its body fell another.
The remaining four destrachans bunched themselves together, opened their mouths wide, and then filled the corridor with their skull-shattering blasts. When silence returned, they cocked their heads, puzzled. All four of the companions stood completely unscathed, thanks to the protective spell Lucian had woven around them before they transported themselves back to the corridor, which shielded them from sonic energy.
"Our turn again!" Haroldo laughed.
He lunged forward as Zula unleashed a blistering invective of arcane words that literally set two of the destrachans on fire! Lucian's bow sang, while Boris tumbled about like a savage little dervish, slicing this way and that with his swords. Haroldo took down another pair of the creatures, and the remaining two backed slowly away, towards the far end of the corridor. The companions advanced on them, Haroldo and Boris in the lead. As they moved between a pair of pillars, the destrachans unleashed their sonic screams again.
"Not to bright, are you?" Haroldo smirked. "That trick won't work any more."
If the destrachans could have smiled, they would have, for their harmonics had not, in fact, been directed at the heroes, but rather at the cracked ceiling above them. Haroldo realized the danger a moment too late when he heard the stone groaning over his head. A moment later, a huge section of the ceiling collapsed, filling the passage with dust and noise. As the haze slowly cleared, Lucian and Zula saw the hallway all but blocked with thousands of pounds of debris. Of Haroldo, Boris and the detrachans, they were nowhere to be seen.
"Haroldo! Boris!" Zula called. "Can you hear me?"
For a moment, there was nothing but silence from beneath the rubble. Then, a dull rumble began to build. A moment later, the giant form of Haroldo burst from the debris, hurling hundreds of pounds of rock in all direction, his face a mask of rage.
"Boris is still buried!" Zula shouted.
The big blood-rager turned towards where he'd last seen the goblin, and began digging. In less than a minute, he'd excavated another hole in the wreckage, and lifted Boris out by one leg, like a mid-wife delivering a newborn.
"Pfffaugghhh!" Boris spat, sucking in a great whoop of air.
"What take you so long?" he shouted. "Boris nearly not-breath to death!"
"You're out now," Haroldo growled as he set the goblin down. "Those filthy creatures had best pray they are not so fortunate!"
The blood-rager stomped through the detritus and began digging again. Boris tagged along behind him, peering out from behind Haroldo's legs. In short order, the large head of one of the destrachans reared up from the hole, again trying to bring it's now-useless harmonics to bear on its foes. Haroldo quickly silenced it with a sweep of his blade. He unearthed the second one and repeated the process. Then it was time to find their comrades. After several more minutes of excavation, they found the bodies of Piotr and Mazael. They gathered them up, and took their leave of the Twisted Pagoda.
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"Their souls have moved on," Koya sighed as she opened her eyes.
She kneeled next to the bodies of Mazael, Piotr and Phive, where she'd sat praying for the past hour.
"They will not return to us."
The others were silent for several long moments.
"I'm coming with you," Ameiko broke the stillness.
"What?!" Zula and Haroldo both asked simultaneously.
"I'm tired of sitting around waiting while my friends continue to risk and lose their lives for me," the Tien woman snapped. "I brought you all here. I was an adventurer before I was an innkeeper, and I will be again. When you return to the pagoda this time, I'm going with you."
Her tone and body language brooked no argument, but Haroldo still tried.
"Ameiko," he began softly, "I know what Piotr meant to you, but this is not the answer."
"That has nothing to do with my decision!" she said sharply. "You are all important to me! I won't watch any more of you die!"
Tears sprang to her eyes.
"My Lady," Zula said, putting an arm around the younger woman's shoulders. "We knew what we were getting into. We have all sworn ourselves to you. It is our choice."
"Then it's mine as well," Ameiko sniffed. "I'm not going to be left behind again!"
"Well, then I guess I'm going as well," Sandru said. "There is no way I'm letting you out of my sight. Plus, I've only got one "brother" left," he looked sidelong at Boris.
"Boris love you too!" the goblin cried, hugging the caravan master around the legs.
"If you will have me, Lady Ameiko," Miyaro said softly as she stepped up on the conversation, "I would accompany you. The kami spirits are grateful for the efforts of you and your companions. Though they may not act directly on your behalf, through me they will offer what assistance they can."
"It's settled then," Ameiko nodded. "We will return to the pagoda in the morning."
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The following day, with Ameiko now carrying Suishen across her back, the companions made their way back through the Forest of Spirits to the Twisted Pagoda. They encountered no reinforcements as they journeyed back into the depths of the Penance below the pagoda, eventually returning to the scene of the cave-in that buried the destrachans. With some effort, they cleared a path through the rubble to a series of crude stone steps that descended further into the earth. Water cascaded from narrow openings in the walls down the steps, each of which some twenty-feet apart. One-hundred feet below, at the bottom of the steps, the swirling waters drained into a deep black hole.
The stair ultimately led to a flooded cavern devoted to anguish and madness. Rusted iron cages hung from stone pillars, and screams of pain and agony echoed throughout. Each of the cages held a Tien man or woman, pale from lack of sunlight, and horribly malnourished. They all wept or wailed or jabbered away incoherently, obviously driven insane by their torment. Haroldo and Sandru immediately moved to the nearest cages and began working on the locks. Before they could open them, however, a trio of burly, hideously scarred ja-noi oni came flying from around the far sides of the pillars. One of them was on Sandru before he could bring up his sword in defense, and it opened a deep gash across his chest with the pointed nodachi it clutched. When a second one rushed Haroldo, Miyaro put an arrow through its throat. As it clutched at the shaft and began choking on its own blood, the blood-rager drove his sword through its chest. The last one hung back, waiting for an opportunity. It never came. From out of the shadows behind it stepped Boris. The goblin's swords struck like vipers...once, twice, three...four times! The oni staggered and fell face-first into the water. The last of the ja-noi raised its sword above Sandru again, but this time the swashbuckler was ready. His sword danced in his hands, moving so quickly that his opponent could not keep track of it. With three quick thrusts, three vital areas had been punctured, and the oni joined its brothers in oblivion.
The prisoners were beyond the ability of the companions to help, but they could not just leave the people trapped in their barbaric cages. One-by-one, they freed the victims,and healed their wounds were they could. Finally, lacking other options, Boris brought out one of the fugitive grenades he'd taken from the ninja back in the Linnorm lands and cracked open the shell. Smoke billowed out of it, snaking upwards like an intangible rope. Haroldo then lifted each of the slaves into the air, where they vanished into the extra-dimensional space unseen at the top of the smoke rope.
"They should be safe there until we return," he said.
"If we return," Lucian added morosely.
"If we don't, then they are no worse off than they were," Zula replied.
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The contaminated waters that filled the Hall of Screams, drained though a hole in the floor which led to another cavern. The foul liquid lapped against the natural stone walls and pillars, every inch of which was covered with dreadful carvings and hung with burnt and mummified aranea, hobgoblin, and human corpses. Boris was the first to drop through the hole and land waist deep in the bog. His sharp eyes cast about quickly, wary of more guardians, and he was not disappointed. He caught faint movement from beneath the water off to his right, and again to his left, and then straight in front of him. For just a moment, he thought he saw a glimpse of lovely, naked flesh rippling just under the surface, and he grinned broadly. Then three women slowly rose from the water, each more enticing than the next. Boris didn't even notice the monstrous snake coils where their legs should have been. He kept right on grinning like a love-struck fool.
Miyaro cursed as she dropped through the ceiling and saw Boris entranced by the trio of bobbing, weaving snake-women. She called to the others, but not before the nagas caught sight of her. One of them pointed a finger at her, and an emerald beam of light flashed from it and struck her. She felt her arms and legs go weak. A moment later, another of the creatures hurled a tiny ball of flame in her direction, where it promptly exploded, enveloping her and the rest of her companions as they emerged from the hole in fire.
Most of the companions were able to leap clear of the blast, but some of them were still badly singed. They descended to the floor as quickly as possible, and spread out, so as not to form such tempting targets. This did not stop the nagas from trying, however, and more fireballs began erupting around the room, blasting water into the air in great geyser-like gouts. Miyaro and Lucian stayed aloft, firing their bows back at the snake-women, trying to keep them on the move and distracted. One of the nagas returned fire, sending a green-fletched arrow that materialized from thin air into Miyaro's thigh, where it burned like acid.
Finally, Haroldo and Sandru managed to get within striking distance of the nagas, and went to work with their blades. That, coupled with the continued barrage from the archers, made short work of the creatures, leaving them floating in spreading, crimson pools on the surface of the water. After a moment, Boris shook his head as if coming out of a dream.
"What happened to pretty ladies?" he asked.
Haroldo swatted him in the back of his head.
"Idiot!" he snapped.
Boris looked even more perplexed.
"They enthralled you," Zula explained gently. "They were more offspring of Munusakaru, like we saw on the statue in the shrine. These appear to have been her daughters. I suspect we are getting very close now."
6 Lamashan, 4715
Boris found another drain hole beneath the water of the nagas' lair, and once more it was he who led the way down. This time, when he emerged, he found himself in a chamber crisscrossed by thick chains. They were attached to the walls and hung from the ceiling, their links clinking in the fall of water from the shaft above. The floor of the room was dry, though heavily cracked, which served to drain the falling water away.
Meandering around the room were four strange creatures. Wickedly barbed chains adorned their lean figures, and gaps in the bindings revealed deathly pale flesh etched with jagged scars. Boris sensed something else in the room as well. He cocked his head, his overly large ears twitching. He caught just the faintest sound of metal on metal...like armored plates moving. It was coming from nearby, in the air as he was.
"Invisibles," he whispered to himself.
He then looked up towards the shaft where he saw his companions emerging.
"Invisibles!!!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.
Not bothering to wait for his friends, Boris flew through the air towards where he'd heard their unseen foe. His blades slashed at the air, but a shock went up his arms as they struck...something. Behind him, he heard the others enter the chamber. On the floor below, the chain-wrapped fiends looked up and howled unholy screams. They gestured towards the many hanging chains, and the links suddenly animated on their own, like steel serpents. Miyaro opened up with her bow on the demons, while Sandru flew directly at the creatures, his scimitar a flashing blur.
"Cease!" a booming voice suddenly called from above.
Instantly, the chain creatures went still. The air shimmered in front of Boris as a giant oni appeared. Obviously female, she was clad head to toe in lacquered armor.
"I am Ochiyo," she said, bowing slightly, "Chosen of Munasukaru. My mistress wishes you to know that you are most welcome in these lands, but what occurs in the House of Withered Blossoms is none of your concern. Should you continue to interfere, the living goddess Munasukaru will see to it that you die in a variety of particularly unpleasant ways. If, however, you were to turn your backs on what does not concern you and return to the Forest of Spirits, all of your earthly pleasures will be indulged when the storm breaks across Minkai and the rest of Tian Xia. The living goddess offers this as her word of honor, and will never betray that word."
Boris shrugged his shoulders, considering, but fortunately, Ameiko spoke before he could open his mouth.
"We are not interested in the offers of those who would oppress and subjugate my people," she said. "Unfortunately, you will not live to bring our refusal to your mistress, but you may die knowing that we will gladly tell her in person."
Ochiyo bowed once more.
"So be it," she growled, and then turned to her minions. "Kill them all!"
She extended one hand and sent a blast of ice and frigid air towards Sandru and Miyaro. Both of them leaped aside, avoiding the brunt of the spell. The hanging chains writhed to life again under the kytons' control. From a chamber adjoining the cavern, six leprous hobgoblin warriors rushed in, bows in hand. Haroldo flew to Boris's side before the massive Ochiyo, and the pair of them danced around her in constant motion, darting in and slashing, before moving back out of her reach. Blood flowed freely from her wounds, and her reaction times slowed. Finally, after anotherdeadly volley from Miyaro, she tumbled from the air.
Despite the wickedly dancing chains, and the constant arrows of the hobgoblins, the rest of the companions made quick work of the kytons and the lepers. It was only then that they were able to notice the room from which the hobgoblins had emerged, and the horror within.
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A double row of columns ran down the center of the broad chamber. Iron gibbets hung from chains along the walls, limp forms visible through the bars of the cages. As the companions moved through the horrific tableau, they found that some of the prisoners still lived. They quickly set about freeing them, tending their wounds as best they could. Then they gave those who were able-bodied enough weapons taken from the hobgoblins, instructing them to hide and await their return, but to defend themselves in necessary.
A door led from the chamber and into a hallway beyond. At one end of the hall, a large door stood open. The companions approached cautiously, peering in to find a simple room whose walls were decorated with detailed carvings and paintings of a powerful female oni. Standing about the chamber were a half-dozen Sisters of the Broken Path. A pair of double-doors stood open on the far side, and another trio of Sisters stood there as well. Beyond them, a pair of nagas bobbed and hissed before a tall, female ja-noi. She was dressed in do-maru armur, and held a wicked-looking naginata in her hands. This, then, was Munasukaru.
No words were wasted by either side. Both knew why they were there, and the battle was joined. The Sisters tried their best to harry and delay the heroes, but their efforts proved fruitless. Sandru and Haroldo cut through them, while Miyaro and Lucian sent volley after volley of arrows at them. Munasukaru's naga daughters were the next line of defense, and they used their magic to impressive effect, lobbing barrages of fireballs at the heroes. Still, it was not enough, and when Sandru, Boris and Haroldo reached them, the fell quickly beneath their blades. Munuasukaru herself fought like a dervish, wielding her pole-arm like an extension of herself. She fended off her attackers for a time, but she could not avoid the arrows of the archers, nor Zula's magic, and attrition took its toll. Ultimately, she fell, and the last oni had finally departed the House of Withered Blossoms.
5 Lamashan, 4715 - 3 Abadius, 4716 - Tide of Honor
Munasukaru's sanctum was a charnel house of death and decay, its glowering walls a vision of madness, sin and unsatisfied lusts. Countless figures were carved into the walls, glaring, pleading and screaming in silence, but on closer inspection, the carvings were revealed to be the rotting corpses of araneas, humans, hobgoblins, and more impaled on the walls, their anguished features frozen at the moment of death. On one side of the chamber, a wide, open pit gaped in the floor. At its bottom lay a twenty-foot wide circular stone doorway, surrounded by a dozen golden figurines depicting the Tian zodiac. Contorted humanoid faces and limbs lay frozen in stone within the doorway, and a faint, primal magic still danced around its edges.
Amidst the carnage of the chamber, the heroes discovered a vast library, its long shelves filled with books, scrolls, carved stone tablets, calligraphic writings on bone and tortoise shell, rice paper journals with bamboo covers, silk scrolls scores of yards long, and countless other tomes, some of huge size. The entirety of the collection would have filled multiple carts or wagons. Nevertheless, the heroes, having time and leisure to at least scan the writings, discovered several interesting pieces of information about the oni of the Five Storms. It seemed that, though powerful, the Five Storms were disorganized and easily distracted, and its members were constantly at odds with one another. Despite this, the leader of the Five Storms had always been the same...a powerful wind yai oni called Anamurumon, with control over storms and lightning. While trapped in their prison at the heart of the Forest of Spirits, the Five Storms had long lusted over the lands of Minkai, intending to remake the nation into an empire of excess and horror in which to indulge their twisted pleasures and appetites. However, they could not simply conquer Minkai, for just like with the kami, the gods had set in place strict laws preventing the oni from taking direct action to seize worldly power. In order to create their private empire, the oni needed subtlety to infiltrate society on all levels. The linchpin of their plan was the extinction of the five imperial families of Minkai. If no one could claim descent from the divine line of emperors, then no one could challenge the claim of the pretender the Five Storms placed on the throne.
Many different varieties of oni made up the Five Storms, but all of their best warriors escaped the House of Withered Blosssoms decades ago, taking most of their resources with them. Munasukaru was one of the weakest oni of the organization, known as the Least among her peers. To keep the kami in the forest outside from learning their plans, Anamurumon commanded her to stay in the palace while the other oni fled using something called the kimon, a magical demon gate powered by living souls.
The writings also said that Anamurumon commanded mortal agents, promising great rewards for their service, and well known to honor those promises. Beyond this, Anamurumon was also obsessed with siring half-human progeny. He needed the "perfect" grandchild...a tiefling who would not only be unquestioningly loyal to him, but could also pass as human. Such a child would be the perfect agent to infiltrate the imperial familes of Minkai. Alas, all of Anamurumon's descendants were deemed unsuitable and were in turn killed by the oni.
Lastly, despite his great power, the writings implied that Anamurumon had an unusual weakness to weapons imbued with royal honor, such as the ancestral weapons of the five imperial families of Minkai, including Suishen, Guardian of the Amatatsu clan.
_____________________________________________________________
When the companions exited the House of Withered Blossoms for the last time, they found the kami of the Forest of Spirits assembled and waiting for them, along with Koya, Spivey and Shalelu. The kami had sensed the death of the last oni in the fortress, and knew that they could now enter freely. They were eager to learn all that the heroes had discovered, though it saddened and dismayed them to learn how the Five Storms had freed themselves, and what harm they had wrought across Minkai since their liberation.
"If you would have me," Miyaro offered to Ameiko once the tales had been told, "I would continue to guide you through the rest of the forest and beyond. I believe that rebellion is coming to Minkai, though I fear that those opposed to the rule of the Jade Regent have no strong leadership, and may still squabble among themselves."
"Your assistance would be most welcome," Ameiko replied, "and it is my intention to try and bring these factions together, so that my people can reclaim our land."
Miyaro nodded.
"We will emerge from the forest in rural farm lands," she said. "I have heard tales that a large group of ronin are said to have retreated there. Rumors say that they are ready to fight against the Jade Regent, but cannot do so alone. Their leader is a man named Hirabashi Jiro. If we were to find him and tell him what we have learned here, we might gain a powerful ally."
"That sounds like as good a place to start as any," Ameiko agreed.
_________________________________________________________________
It took over a month for the companions to traverse the Forest of Spirits. With Miyaro's guidance, they were able to avoid any unpleasantries with the dangerous denizens of the woods. They emerged into Minkai's northernmost region, the Osogen Grasslands, a vast, sparsely inhabited plain disputed between northern barbarians and Minkai settlers. According to Miyaro, the camp of Hirabashi Jiro and his ronin was located some two-hundred miles south of the forest, in the southern reaches of Osogen known as the Borderlands.
After another week of travel, the group entered the Borderlands, distinguished by the humble farmsteads surrounded by ditches and palisades that began to dot the landscape. Ubiquitous watchtowers stood above the farmsteads, allowing local militia to keep an eye out for marauding bandits. A lattice of footpaths and irrigation canals fed by the waters of the Kosokunami River connected the scattered settlements. As the companions neared the great bend where the river turned to flow into Lake Tsukishizuku, the number of settlements increased. Ahead of them, a cluster of wooden huts with thatched roofs stood atop a hillock overlooking the northern riverbank. The area seemed somewhat inhospitable, with most of the surrounding millet fields overgrown with brambles. Barely visible in the distance west of the hillock, several figures were at work digging a ditch and demarcating the boundaries of a paddy. Closer by, a group of youths were training with shortbows before a line of straw targets. Next to them, a tall figure yelled orders in a husky voice. When they noticed the newcomers, the youths paused in their training. The tall figure turned to follow their gaze, then began striding purposefully in the direction of the companions.
"We don't get many travelers here," she said as she drew close, as she was obviously female on closer inspection. She carried a well-made shortbow across her back, and held a sharp-looking naginata comfortably, but non-threateningly in one hand.
"We are not here by chance," Zula replied, stepping forward. "We are searching for a man named Hirabashi Jiro."
"Hmm," the woman nodded slightly. "And what would you seek with such a man?"
"We have heard that he has no love for current occupant of the Emerald Throne," Zula answered. "Neither do we, and we be able to help one another solve that problem."
The woman smiled, and bowed.
"I am Habesuta Hatsue," she said. "Come with me."
She turned and strode back down the hill, yelling to the young trainees that the session was suspended, and ordering one of the young men to fetch Jiro.
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The camp's main hut was a spartan affair. Besides a clay fireplace and a low table, the interior was almost bare. The only item worthy of notice was a portable shogi-ban, a Minkai chessboard, currently laid open for a game in progress.
"I am a sohei," Hatsue said without preamble as she entered the hut behind the companions and set about pouring cups of green tea and putting out millet cookies. "Your people would call me a warrior-monk, I suppose. I am from the Sankyodai Mountains, but I have been here with Jiro for some time, defending the settlers in the Borderlands."
She glanced down at the shogi-ban board.
"Do any of you play?"
"Unfortunately not," Zula smiled. "But we do have similar games of skill and strategy in Avistan."
Hatsue returned the smile.
"My passion for shogi is the only thing preventing me from fully embracing the peace of Irori."
At that moment, the door flap of the hut opened, and a man stepped inside. He appeared to be in his early thirties, of average height, and with his head shaved except for a long topknot. He patted dirt and dust off his robe and leaned a staff against the wall. When he saw Hatsue discussing shogi with Zula, he rolled his eyes. As he sat to take a cup of tea, he murmured gruffly to himself,
"Hatsue was probably an angle mover in a previous life."
He glanced briefly at his guests, then spoke briskly.
"So, tell me why westerners crossed the Crown of the World to end up thousands of miles away from their home."
"It's a tale long in the telling," Zula sighed as she folded her legs and sat opposite the ronin, "one best told from the beginning."
For the better part of an hour she told their story, starting with the happenstance discovery of Ameiko's heritage while fighting a goblin tribe, the formation of their caravan and the journey to Brinewall, with the revelations revealed there. The narrative continued through the Land of the Linnorm Kings, and across the Crown of the World, then down into Tian Xia and the Forest of Spirits. Jiro listened to all it patiently, betraying no sign of what he thought of the tale. When it was done, he was silent a moment longer before speaking.
"A samurai and a peasant are brought before a ruthless daimyo," he said. "The daimyo wants to know whether a matched katana and wakizashi set are capable of killing a man with a single cut, so he commands the samurai to kill the peasant in order to test the swords. The samurai is faced with two dilemmas...first, he has two swords, but only one would-be-victim, and second, he loathes his duty. He does not want to kill an unarmed, innocent man, but his lord has commanded him to do so. What does the samurai do?"
For a few moments, the companions just stared at one another, perplexed by this sudden tangent away from the topic of conversation. It was Sandru who finally broke the silence, clearing his throat.
"In my opinion," he said, "since the daimyo is ruthless, and the samurai loathes his duty, the samurai should spare the peasant, keep the swords for himself, and leave the service of his dishonorable lord."
Silence filled the tent once more, but then Jiro smiled and nodded.
"Hmph," Hatsue snorted, "of course a ronin would approve of such a response. The samurai should kill the daimyo for giving such a contemptible order, then kill himself for the dishonor of slaying his lord. Then he has tested both swords as his lord commanded, but his honor is also satisfied, and the innocent peasant is spared."
"As you well know," Jiro chided his lieutenant, "there is no one correct response. We must all do as our hearts lead us."
"Regardless," Hatsue waved his comment away, and turned to the companions, "Jiro's little game illustrates a metaphor for the current political situation in Minkai. A ruthless ruler is manipulating the nobles and causing woe to the people."
"And for that reason," Jiro interrupted, "if it is truly your wish to overthrow the Jade Regent, then you shall have our support."
It was Ameiko's turn to smile now, but before she could reply, Jiro held up one finger.
"However," he said, "my ronin are ill-equipped and outnumbered, and currently live in a muddy camp in the middle of nowhere...hardly an army capable of effective resistance. We also have a rather...pressing problem."
Hatsue was stone-faced.
"Bandits have been plaguing this region for the past few months," Jiro continued. "The local daimyo have ignored the raiders, focusing on their own political maneuverings in the Jade Regent's court. Recently, the bandits discovered an abandoned fortress in the hills called Seinaru Heikiko, and began restoring it, turning it into a well protected hideout. Led by a chieftain of the Yumogu barbarians named Gangasum, they have been using the fortress as a base ever since. I believe they may even be negotiating with a local daimyo to become allies of the empire. If this were to happen, the bandits might attract many more of their kin and become a powerful tool for the Jade Regent to use to fight dissidents such as myself. Gangasum is aided by a powerful barbarian shaman, and I do not have the man-power to assault him. However, they are usually split in two groups. The first is always on the move, traveling the plains on horses to forage and pillage. The second group stays with Gangasum in the fortress. I fear that if one group is attacked and destroyed, the other might retaliate against the defenseless peasants. It is said that the winds magically inform the bandit shaman of everything that transpires in the Osogen Grasslands."
"Just tell us what you want us to do," Ameiko said.
"You seem powerful and well-equipped," Jiro nodded. "I would like for you to assault Seinaru Heikiko, while I and my warriors lure the riders into an ambush they next time they visit a settlement to trade goods or buy slaves."
"No problem," Ameiko replied.
"There is...one other thing," Jiro said. Ameiko's eyes narrowed. "I have been looking for an ancient treasure of my family: a legendary adamantine sword that once belonged to my revered ancestor Hirabashi Akikaza. It is rumored to be held within a secret cache of weapons inside Seinaru Heikiko. According to legend, the cache can only be opened by a true imperial scion of Minkai. Surely the heir to House Amatatsu should have no trouble securing such a cache."
He smiled wryly. Ameiko returned his smile, though it did not touch her eyes.
"Just tell us where to go," she snapped.
___________________________________________________________
Seinaru Heikiko lay some fifty miles away from the ronin camp in a large crack in the wall of a ravine along a small brook that flowed into the Kosokunami River. Built in a natural cavity in a forty-foot tall cliff face, the fortress was partially hidden by a grove of tall pine trees, and was directly visible from only a very short distance away. Behind the grove, a wooden wall obstructed the gap in the cliff face. Beyond it, two mighty chimneys, fashioned to resemble a giant warrior and a great square tower, rose over the roof of a large building erected against the bare rock.
"There is a large courtyard beyond the wall," Zula told her companions.
The Shoanti woman had just returned from a covert scouting mission, flying invisibly over the wall on the flying broom that had once belonged to Gnome-Brr Phive.
"The only bandits visible were the four atop the wall, though I could hear the shouting and revelry of a great many voices coming from one of the larger buildings."
"How do you recommend we approach?" Ameiko asked her advisor.
Zula shrugged.
"We are not know for stealth, my Lady," she smiled. "I say we go in the front door and see who comes to welcome us."
_____________________________________________________________
The guards on the wall were taken completely by surprise. One moment the courtyard was empty, and then the next, an opaque domed appeared in one corner, literally out of thin air. One of them had the presence of mind to quickly knock and loose a whistling arrow from his bow, sending up a signal to the fortress. An instant later, however, an oversized arrow launched from the dome and pierced his throat. He fell, gurgling, from the parapet. One of his comrades stared in stupefied disbelief for a moment before another arrow sprouted from the center of his chest. The remaining two guards fumbled to raise their bows, their eyes going wide when a heavily muscled warrior, easily over ten-feet tall, came rushing out of the dome and straight towards them.
Zula watched Haroldo lumber out of the tiny hut and towards the guards on the wall. She turned her own attention towards the building from where she'd heard the bulk of the noise on her scouting mission. Knowing that she only had a matter of moments before bandits came swarming out, she cast a spell on the ground before the doors to the building. Instantly, the rocks there sprouted dozens of tiny, sharp spikes, which would not be visible except upon close observation.
Haroldo reached the wall, and started sweeping across the parapet with his massive great-sword. Both of the remaining gate guards where quickly dispatched, and then he turned and began moving back towards the hut, just as the double doors to the main hall exploded open.
Over a dozen bandits came howling out of the hall, swords waving and blood-lust in their eyes. Their cries turned from battle fury to howls of pain a moment later as they reached Zula's spikes. The razor-sharp stones easily pierced the the thick soles of the raiders' boots and sank into the tender flesh of their feet. They drew up short, hopping about and stumbling, not knowing where it was safe to step. They were sitting ducks for Lucian, who began to ply his bow with impunity.
The celebration was short-lived, however, as the doors of another building across the courtyard burst open. This time, though, it was not more bandits who emerged. Instead, a hulking figure, easily equal to Haroldo's current height, stalked out into the daylight. Though clearly female, there was no trace of humanity about her. Her form was that of a savage, bipedal tigress, her claws easily six inches in length and wickedly curved. Behind her came something even more intimidating, if possible. Half again as tall as the tiger-woman, it was a being composed of living fire...an elemental. As it strode forward, it raised its arms over its head and its voice boomed in a magical incantation. A hot wind blew with gale force across the courtyard, focused on the opaque dome of the tiny hut. Within, the companions felt fatigue and pain wash over them as the wind blast hit, knocking several of them to the ground.
Haroldo stopped his advance towards the dome, and turned towards the new threat. Lowering his head like a bull, he charged towards the elemental. Before he made it half-way, however, the were-tiger pounced, slashing her claws across the blood-rager's mid-section. As Haroldo reeled and tried to continue his advance, he found his path blocked by the mass of the bandits, who had managed to extricate themselves from the bulk of the spiked stones. Enraged, the giant warrior began laying about with his massive sword, hewing down the nearest of his foes.
Inside the hut, Lucian had managed to regain his feet in time to see the tigress closing on Haroldo. He sighted, drew and loosed in one smooth movement. His arrow struck true, sinking into the meat of her thigh, but she barely slowed.
"Our friend is in trouble," Zula said to Sandru as she extended her hand to help the caravan master to his feet. "Should we go to his aid?"
"Immediately," Sandru nodded grimly.
Zula closed her eyes and concentrated. A nimbus of light surrounded her and Sandru, and they abruptly vanished. They reappeared a moment later, right next to the the tigress. Sandru was in motion as soon as his feet touched the ground. He sword was a blur as he struck , scoring several telling blows against the creature. She never even looked in his direction. Instead, she leaped for Haroldo, catching him behind the knee with one swipe of her paw, then sweeping his legs out from under him. As he crashed to the ground, she was on him, leaping onto his chest and pinning his arms to his side. The bandits closed in for the kill, but then quickly parted as another figure stepped forward. A burly man dressed in tightly banded armor and wielding a gleaming scimitar, he stopped and looked down at the blood-rager, then smiled broadly and raised his blade in both hands above his head, before bringing it down in a powerful overhand chop.
"No!" Sandru cried as he lost sight of his friend, but before he could react, the elemental began invoking again, and this time a twenty-foot wall of fire sprang up, bisecting the courtyard, cutting off the rest of the companions, and catching the caravan master in the middle of the conflagration.
Darkness swam at the corners of Haroldo's vision as he teetered on the edge of consciousness. His wounds were agonizing, and the weight of the were-tigress on his chest was suffocating. Still, his rage burned, and the thought of succumbing never entered his mind. He focused his blood-magic with what little ability he had left, and his right hand transformed into solid stone. Summoning all of his remaining strength, he slammed his fist into the lycanthrope's temple, and felt her skull crush beneath the blow. She sagged bonelessly and crumpled to the side, her body shifting as she fell into that of a simple Tian woman. Haroldo sucked in a great whoop of air, then gripped his sword with both hands again. Rolling to his side, he swung the blade in a low arc, hacking across the knees of the bandit chieftain. Then the bandits were upon him again, raining blows down on him like hail stones.
Sandru, his clothes aflame, somersaulted out of the wall of fire just as Ameiko and Lucian leaped through as well, their skin blistering from the heat, but determined to come to the aid of their companions. The three of them closed quickly to the bandits surrounding Haroldo, attacking them from behind. Then, in a blur of motion, Zula was there, appearing in the midst of the bandits, she reached down and touched the prone blood-rager, and the two of them vanished then reappeared a dozen yards away.
"Catch your breath, big boy," she smiled down at Haroldo. "You're going to need it."
Sandru twisted and turned among the bandits like a dervish, dodging blows while delivering his own until he finally reached Gangasum, the chieftain. The big raider was still reeling from Haroldo's assault when the caravan master drove his scimitar through his gut. It was a testament to his fortitude and savagery that the blow did not fell him immediately. He staggered backwards, clutching his insides to keep them from falling out as his men moved to cover his retreat.
The huge fire elemental towered over the fray as the combatants danced around its feet. It extended one hand, and a serpent of fire spewed from it, snaking among both enemies and allies alike, burning and scorching as it went. Lucian tried to leap aside, but the fire engulfed the wood of his tree-like body. Still, he managed to keep firing his bow, sending all of his arrows towards the elemental, hoping he was having some effect on the creature.
Ameiko moved gracefully among the bandits, Suishen alive in her hands as she carved a path through them. She finally reached Sandru's side just as he pushed past Gangasum's body guards. The two of them faced the bandit chieftain. His life's blood rapidly spilling on the ground, he still raised his blade in defiance. It didn't save him as the Amatasu heir and her dear friend cut him down.
Lucian stood between Haroldo and the bulk of the bandits, so it was he who first saw the threat, though there was nothing he could do to stop it. Several of the bandits had drawn javelins from their quivers, and as they raised them, the spears began to crackle with electricity.
"Watch out!" he cried.
As the bandits hurled the javelins, they transformed into bolts of lightning, sending multiple blasts of electricity coursing through the oracle and the blood-rager.
The remaining bandits, though their leader lay slain, did not give ground. Instead, as the elemental bellowed orders, they redoubled their efforts, charging en masse at their opponents. Simultaneously, the elemental hurled a handful of flaming seeds into the midst of the companions, where they exploded into fiery geysers. The force of the blasts threw Sandru from his feet, and he did not rise again, smoke rising from his deathly still form. Ameiko, Zula and Haroldo met the onslaught of the raiders, unable to reach Sandru. Behind them, Lucian fired volley after volley into the elemental, until at last, with a mighty groan, the creature toppled. When it hit the ground, however, an elderly, robed man lay in its place.
When the elemental fell, the bandits' resolve broke. The few of them left alive threw down their weapons in surrender at Zula's command. Lucian ran to Sandru's side, and breathed a sigh of relief to find that his friend still lived. He lay his hands upon the caravan master, and a moment later, his eyes fluttered open.
"Did we win?" he asked, smiling through bloody teeth.
4 Abadius, 4716 - 10 Calistril, 4716 - Of Ninjas and Geisha
The remaining bandits were taken into custody to await Jiro's arrival and justice. In the mean time, the companions explored the fortress, looking for any enemies that might be laying in wait. In the cellar, they came across a half-dozen peasant girls locked in bamboo cages. Ameiko freed them all, and they prostrated themselves before her. She bade them rise, and offered them gainful employment in her service since they were familiar with the layout and running of the fortress.
In another part of the building they found a forgotten shrine. Its walls were covered in faded, abstract decorations, and riddled with cavities and cracks. Stone display tables stood along two walls, bare but for rusty metal shards and blackened splinters of wood. A statue of a female samurai stood in a niche in the middle of another wall, her elaborate armor engraved with numerous cartouches filled with inscriptions. The statue once held a two-handed sword, but the stone blade had been sheared off, and many of the statue's features had been defaced or destroyed. Ameiko recognized the statue as a representation of Shizuru, the Tian goddess of ancestors, honor, swordplay and the sun. Tiny inscriptions inside the cartouches on the statue were in Minkaian, and seemed to be the names of Samurai, followed by expressions of thanks, and prayers for good luck. One of these names was Hirabashi Akikaza, Jiro's ancestor. Written nearby was a single inscription with no author's name: "Empress of Heaven, touch me with your grace!"
Instinctively, Ameiko reached out one hand and touched the cartouche. When she did, all of the cartouches on the statue flashed with light, and then a large, cylindrical pit opened in the center of the room, revealing a repository for many weapons, still sharp and shiny after half a millennium. Among them was a katana with the Tien characters for Hirabashi engraved along the blade.
_______________________________________________________
Jiro and his ronin arrived at Seinaru Heikiko two days later, having defeated the roaming bandits and killed their subchief. The samurai was pleased at the work the heroes had accomplished at the fortress in the mean time. When Ameiko presented him with his family sword, he immediately dropped to one knee and bowed before her.
"You are the rightful heir to the Jade Throne," he announced for all to hear, "and I pledge my service to you until the Jade Regent is defeated!"
One by one, his warriors came to kneel before the would-be empress, each pledging themselves to her.
"The fortress will make an excellent base of operations," Jiro explained after the procession had ended. "We will send for the settlers whose land we protected to repair the damage and expand the defenses. I believe that with some time and training, Hatsue and I should be able to organize them into a militia. Now, my Lady, come. We have much to discuss.
______________________________________________________________
"The Jade Regent is amassing troops," Jiro began without preamble as he seated himself at one of the tables in the great hall. With the emperor in hiding, and the governor of the capital accused of treason, Minkai has become alienated from the other nations of Tian Xia, creating a long-lasting trade crisis. The merchant clans in Akafuto, Enganoka and Sakakabe resent the economic decline more than anyone. Most of the daimyo are also unhappy, as they are obliged to pay surplus taxes for the upkeep of the Typhoon Guard, a mercenary force who now serve as the Jade Regent's private army. The nobles also see the officers of the Typhoon Guard as dangerous rivals for positions in the imperial bureaucracy. But it is the common people who suffer the most, for many nobles are squeezing their extra dues from their subjects. In this current climate, stirring a rebellion in the northwestern provinces of Enganoka and Sakakabe would not be impossible, but we will need much more support."
"You have some ideas, I suppose?" Zula asked, arching one eyebrow.
"Just so," Jiro nodded. "We will need to contact powerful representatives of Minkai's military, merchants and even criminal underground, either to sway them to our side, or at least to ensure their neutrality in the coming conflict."
"Criminals?" Ameiko asked dubiously.
"There are many ninja clans in Minkai," Jiro explained, "and while perhaps distasteful, their aid in the rebellion would be helpful. Even if you do not wish to hire them, you should at least make an attempt to convince them not to serve the Jade Regent."
"Where would we find their representatives?" Sandru asked.
"Start in Enganoka," Jiro replied. "There, you should visit the Kuroi Yane market. I have heard that three regular customers of a restaurant there are actually high-ranking ninja, sometimes referred to as nokizarusan, or the "three monkeys on the roof," or simply the "Three Monkeys." Every month, with the new moon, these three meet to discuss matters between the clans, and it is said that this is the only time one can speak with them for any reason other than hiring their services."
"Interesting," Sandru mused. "I've had dealings with the less savory elements of the trade market on several occasions. We'll have to tread very lightly here. What about the legitimate merchant clans?"
"That, too, will take some delicate handling," Jiro smirked. "The best way to gain the support of the merchants is through the geisha of Minkai, who know many secrets that can be used to manipulate the empire's merchants and nobility. I recommend visiting the Kiniro Kyomai teahouse in downtown Sakakabe. The owner is a very skilled and respected geisha named O-Kohaku, who happens to be a niece of the late governor of Kasai, and very likely hates the Jade Regent for killing her uncle. Many people discontent with the rule of the Jade Regent frequent the Kiniro Kyomai. Befriending the geisha would give you the chance to contact and persuade them to join our cause. If you decide to approach O-Kohaku, I suggest using flattery. She appreciates expensive gifts."
"So criminals and whores?" Zula said, shaking her head. "What's next? Cultists?"
Jiro just smiled.
"Do not be so quick to dismiss those who dwell in the shadow of greatness," he said. "For it is they who often see what those above them wish to keep hidden. Which brings me to my third suggestion for an alliance. One of the Jade Regent's most zealous supporters is the current governor of Enganoka, a man named Sikutsu Sennaka. He is cruel, efficient and powerful, and anyone who tries to give voice to dissent in the province has been ruthlessly persecuted. He also exerts a strong influence over Minkai's military, and the adjacent provinces through terror, espionage, and blackmail. No one in this area is likely to rise against the Jade Regent as long as Sennaka lives, but once he is removed from power, we will have a much better chance of gaining the support of Minkai's samurai. He is well-guarded, however, and an open attack is likely doomed to failure. You need to find a way to ambush him, or take him unawares and unguarded. My advice is to contact the ninja clans and the geisha first before taking on Sennaka."
Ameiko contemplated and processed all that Jiro had told them. Then, with a nod of her head, she looked up and addressed her companions.
"We shall go to Sakakabe first," she declared, "and meet with O-Kohaku. It may be that she can offer us insight on how to treat with the Three Monkeys as well."
Jiro nodded his approval.
"I caution you against attracting too much attention on your journeys," he said. "Keep as low of a profile as possible."
"We are in agreement," Ameiko replied. "Very well then, we leave on the morrow."
__________________________________________________________
Sakakabe was built on a series of steep terraces that extended from the port to the top of the hills, where the richest houses were built. The entertainment district, or hanamachi, was built on one of the highest terraces, centered on a large street called the Way of the Songbirds. Two gates stood at either end of the street, manned by armed guards who checked all visitors to ensure that no beggars entered. They were suspicious of the companions, as well they might be of heavily armed foreigners, but a few gold coins slipped to them by Sandru ensured entry to the avenue beyond. Inside the gates, the entertainment district was a pleasant area of niche shops, small gardens, a few shrines and upscale teahouses, including the famous Kiniro Kyomai, easily indentifiable by its ornate roof and brightly polished gutters.
When the companions approached the gate, they were met by a young and exceptionally polite geisha wearing a flowery, long-sleeved kimono, who introduced herself as O-Hakami.
"We have come to seek audience with O-Kohaku," Zula said, bowing slightly. "We are great admirers of the geisha, and we have brought her a gift."
O-Hakami smiled and bowed, then instructed the group to follow her. She led them to an inner garden, which was only semi-private, and was under constant surveillance by district guards. After several minutes, another geisha, older and more regal, though no less beautiful, entered the garden.
"I am O-Kohaku," she said in greeting, inclining her head. "Please, sit. O-Hakami," she turned to the younger geisha, "bring tea."
The younger woman hurried to comply, and returned moments later with the service. She then went and sat in a corner of the garden, occasionally strumming a samisen.
"Now," O-Kohaku said, "what brings such strangers so far from home to my humble establishment? Do you wish to hire my geisha?"
"Not exactly," Zula smiled. "Hirabashi Jiro sends his regards."
A slight smile quirked the geisha's lips.
"Ah, the samurai who served my late uncle," she said. "I had wondered what had become of him after he and his unruly swords-for-hire were kicked out of the district last year."
Zula cleared her throat, not sure what to make of that.
"Yes, well," she continued, "you may be interested to know that Jiro has joined our cause."
"And what cause would that be, dear?" O-Kohaku asked indulgently.
"To place the rightful heir, the last scion of House Amatatsu, upon the Jade Throne," the thundercaller replied, indicating Ameiko.
O-Kohaku's hand flew to her throat, and her eyes went wide in mock astonishment.
"Imperial politics are of little interest to provincial entertainers such as myself," she declared.
Zula sensed something beneath her words, however.
"Nevertheless," she said, "we could use your assistance. Jiro tells us that you have influence among the nobility and the merchant clans."
The geisha remained silent for a moment, and then sighed deeply.
"I am no friend of the Jade Regent," she said at length, "but my hopes of seeing Emperor Shigure back on the throne have faded. The Jade Regent will soon become the legitimate ruler of Minkai. Even here, far from the capital, everyone is too afraid of governor Sennaka to do anything that might disrupt the status quo."
"We have plans for him as well," Zula said, her eyes cold and uncompromising.
O-Kohaku weighed her words for a moment.
"You boast much," she said, "yet can you follow through with your words, I wonder? Still, I will allow you to prove the sincerity of your intentions."
"Here it comes," Sandru grumbled under his breath.
O-Kohaku pretended not to notice.
"One of my most talented and respected geisha has gone missing," she said. "O-Sayumi is adored by the local nobility, and has even received gifts from Sikutsu Sennaka's younger brother, Itsuru. She recently agreed to entertain a pearl merchant named Yugureda Shosaito, and traveled to his private island for a week-long stay, but has not returned."
"What does the merchant have to say?" Zula asked.
"He claims she never arrived," O-Kohaku replied.
"And what do you think?" Zula asked.
"I fear that she may be being held against her will," the geisha said quietly. "He had made such offers in the past, but O-Sayumi had always refused. She felt that he was obsessed with her. Why she suddenly changed her mind, I cannot say, but I feel that both Yugureda's fascination with her, and her changer of heart, have their roots in their past."
"Where is this island?" Sandru interrupted.
"It lies perhaps seventy miles northwest of here," O-Kohaku said. "His home there is called Shinju-no-Ie. The island rises from a coral reef in Namidakame Lagoon, at the mouth of the Jikko River. Yugureda has a private barge that would deliver his pearl shipments to the docks here. It was upon that barge that O-Sayumi departed."
"You must find her!" O-Hakami suddenly interjected, leaping up from where she'd been seated. "She was my mentor! My friend!"
O-Kohaku gave the apprentice a stern look
"O-Sayumi's disappearance has been blow to our finances and reputation," she said. "If you find her and return her, I will arrange meetings for you with powerful individuals who can help you with your cause."
"We will do what we can," Ameiko promised.
______________________________________________________________
O-Hakami led the companions out of the teahouse, and as soon as they were out of sight and hearing of O-Kohaku, she turned and whispered to them, fear in her eyes.
"I fear for my mentor," she said. "Yugureda Shosaito is a dangerous man, so cold as to seem like he is dead!"
"What more can you tells about O-Sayumi?" Zula asked.
"She was such a gifted samisen player," the young geisha smiled. "She even owned a magical one! She would sometimes play for hours alone in her room. I once peeked at her as she played, and she seemed to be in some kind of trance. I was frightened, for as I watched, I thought I saw the shadow of a huge, prowling tiger on the shoji doors! Many believed that she was a seer. She seemed to know much of the past, present and future. It was not uncommon for nobles and merchants to come here and ask for her advice on matters that would not normally fall under the expertise of a geisha."
"Did she say anything to you about her trip?" Zula pressed.
"Not really," O-Hakami replied. "Before she left, however, she did give me a small package. She told me to give it to an honorable person who would look for her if she did not return. I now feel that she meant all of you."
She withdrew a paper packet from her sleeve and handed it to Ameiko, who unwrapped it, finding a folded sheet of rice paper inside, along with a small carrying case.
"That is her inro," O-Hakami said curiously, indicating the case.
Ameiko unfolded the paper and read aloud,
"I must discover what lies inside of myself to enter your place through dark and shadowed gates, but the reflection is not me."
"What does it mean?" Sandru asked.
Ameiko shrugged.
"Perhaps the inro holds some answer," O-Hakami answered. "I believe the geisha carving represents O-Sayumi, and the letter said to discover what lies inside."
The inro was a small ivory box with four segments, held closed with a silk cord, a sliding fastener, and a decorative toggle. The segments were engraved with a depiction of a geisha playing the samisen. The toggle was carved into the likeness of a strange turtle-like humanoid holding a vase in its webbed hands, and a six-petaled magnolia flower was carved on the bottom of it.
"I've heard of that kind of creature," Lucian offered. "It's called a kappa."
O-Hakami nodded.
"It may represent Numataro-sama," she said. "He was someone O-Sayumi often talked about and referred to as her uncle. She said he lived under a great magnolia tree."
The segments of the inro formed three small compartments, and there was a maker's mark stamped inside the lid.
"That is the mark of Saburo," O-Hakami said. "He is a local artisan oft sought after for his crafting skill."
Inside the compartments, the inro contained three odd items: an empty silkworm cocoon in the lower compartment; two interlocking stone rings, one of yellow calcite and one of blue lapis lazuli, in the middle compartment; and three camphorwood beads on a cord ring in the upper compartment. O-Hakami had no explanation for the significance of these items.
"Well, I guess we have our work cut out for us," Zula sighed. "Perhaps we should start with this Saburo fellow."
_______________________________________________________
Saburo's workshop was not far from the entertainment district, and displayed vases of all shapes and sizes in a small window on the street. He recognized the inro immediately, and expressed his concern for the missing geisha.
"Are you going to find her?" he asked.
When Ameiko answered in the affirmative, he told the companions to wait a moment, for he had another object he'd crafted for her. He went into a back room, and when he emerged again, he carried a bulbous, long-necked vase with an unusually deep recess in the bottom. The shape of the vase matched that of the inro's toggle, and was painted in the likeness of a smiling kappa. Inside, it contained a pound of cucumber-scented bath salts.
"The kappa again," Zula said. "Have you heard of such a creature?" she asked Saburo.
"The local fisherman often speak of an ancient kappa that is said to live beneath a great magnolia tree at the mouth of the Jikko River, near the Namidakame Lagoon," the artisan replied.
"Seems like we have our next clue," Zula nodded.
__________________________________________________________
The companions made their way to the port, seeking to hire a ship traveling up the coast. The harbormaster was able to make arrangements, though he seemed a bit dubious about their stated destination.
"Do you know the pearl merchant who lives on the island?" Ameiko asked.
"Of course!" the man replied. "But his barge has not been seen here for over a month. Strange. It used to come every two weeks to transport supplies."
"Did you notice anything different the last time it was here?" Zula asked.
When the man hesitated in his response, Sandru slipped a few coins into his palm.
"Now that you mention it," he grinned, "I saw a young woman wearing a white veil and carrying a black samisen case board the barge."
"Thank you," Ameiko said. "You have been most helpful.
_____________________________________________________________
The voyage up the coast was peaceful and uneventful, but when their ship finally reached Namikadame Lagoon, the companions found the air strangely heavy, and a stifling cloak of silence seemed to hang oppressively over the land and water. Half-shrouded by mist, a dark island rose from the water and coral reefs. The colors of the landscape seemed washed out around the island, their hues drained by an unnatural gloominess. On the mainland, clearly visible on the bank above where the mouth of the river emptied into the lagoon, was a great magnolia tree.
"There," Ameiko indicated to the captain. "We need to put ashore there."
When the companions reached the shore beneath the tree, they were momentarily perplexed. There was no obvious lair or dwelling visible where an intelligent creature would live. It was not until Lucian recalled that kappa were supposedly fond of foods such as cucumber or horse meat, that they thought to use the bath salts within the vase Saburo had given them. Ameiko took the vase to the edge of the water and upended it, dumping the salts in. A few minutes later, the water stirred as a very strange-looking creature emerged. It resembled a humanoid turtle with a wrinkled, ape-like face, and an ashen ring of hair surrounding its bowl-shaped head, which was filled with water. It's shell was decorated with the symbol of the goddess Irori, a blue hand in a circle, and although the creature leaned on a gnarled wooden staff, there was something youthful and energetic about his movements.
"Hello," Zula said, stepping forward. "Are you Numataro-sama?"
"Indeed I am," the kappa smiled. "Who are you that asks?"
The thunder-caller made introductions.
"We are searching for a woman named O-Sayumi," she finished. "We have heard that you know her."
"Indeed I do," the old kappa smiled again, "but let us speak in more comfortable surroundings."
He led them down the bank to where a tangle of tree roots obscured a half-submerged cave.
"When O-Sayumi was just an infant," he began, "her mother was killed by a monstrous tiger sent by an evil wizard. Desperate to save her child, O-Sayumi's mother left her in a basket on the bank of a stream under a blooming honeysuckle bush, and then fled away from her. Fortunately, I found the baby before the tiger did, and took her to safety. She lived with me for several years, and I took it upon myself to teach her many of the ancient stories and tales of Minkai. I grew to love my Momo-chan, or as you would say, little butterfly, but I realized that a child needed more than I could give her. If nothing else, human companionship. So I took her to an orphanage in a monastery of Irori. The monks adopted her and taught her how to play the samisen, for which she showed exceptional talent. When she was older, she left the monks and traveled to Sakakabe, where she took the name O-Sayumi, and became a respected geisha."
"Can you think of any reason that she would have agree to travel with this pearl merchant?" Ameiko asked.
"No," Numataro replied, "but I do know that Yugureda Shosaito is more than just a merchant. He is a powerful wizard, whom I suspect may be the same one responsible for the death of O-Sayumi's mother."
"I see," Ameiko said quietly. "Our way forward seems clear. We thank you, Numataro-sama, and promise that we will do everything in our power to return O-Sayumi safely."
"Thank you," the kappa bowed, "and tell her to come visit her old uncle."
_____________________________________________________________
The ship's captain was reluctant to approach the island any further, as local rumor held that it was haunted. The companions decided that Lucian would fly across to the island and scout ahead, then return to the others after he'd found a suitable place where he could teleport them to. The entire island was about two miles long and a mile wide. In the exact center stood what might have once been a beautiful villa with a colorful tile roof, surrounded by pleasant gardens. However, it seemed that a cold shadow had crept over the place, leaving it a dull, gloomy husk of its former splendor. Two paths led from the villa towards the beach, one to a dock at which was moored a large barge, and the second towards a small village, which appeared abandoned to Lucian.
He returned to his companions and informed them of his findings. They elected to have him teleport them to an isolated spot out of view of the villa and the village. Once there, they began making their way towards the village. Zula, Ameiko and Boris went ahead of the others, moving quietly and stealthily across the barren landscape. The village itself consisted of a small cluster of mud-walled huts. Though there were no inhabitants, it quickly became obvious that it was not abandoned. Each of the huts contained simple implements for living, many of which appeared recently used. As they moved among the huts, Zula spotted a figure swimming and then diving out in the surf.
"Pearl divers," she said. "They must be out collecting."
It was then that Boris emerged from one of the huts, bouncing around excitedly.
"Come see what Boris find!" he giggled.
Inside, beneath a reed mat, was a trapdoor. It opened into a tunnel that appeared to run in the general direction of the villa. Zula smiled and patted the goblin on the head.
"Well done," she said. "It appears we have found our way inside."
__________________________________________________________
The tunnel led some five-hundred feet before opening into what appeared to be a cellar hewn in the rock. Stairs led up on one side, while a passageway on the other side led into darkness. The room was cool and moist, and smelled faintly of alcohol. Shelves stood in the corners, containing scores of ceramic bottles, glass vials, and small barrels of various sizes and shapes. Ameiko decided that she and Boris would scout ahead upstairs before the rest of the noisier crew followed.
Up the stairs, the pair found themselves in a hallway that wound between wooden walls broken at intervals by rice-paper sliding shoji doors. From behind several of these doors, they could hear the sounds of sweeping and low conversation. They bypassed these rooms until they came to a large, tatami-floored room whose walls were formed entirely of shoji screens. A lantern hung from the center of the ceiling, filling the room with yellow light. Under the lantern stood a traditional, four-legged shogi-ban table, with two pillows for players to sit upon and two small side tables for captured pieces. It was obvious from looking at the board that a game was in progress, with the black side winning. Before Ameiko could stop him, Boris moved to the board and began rearranging the pieces until the white side was victorious. A moment later, they both heard the sound of a shoji panel sliding open, and then the figure of a dark-clad, middle-aged man with a long moustache and beard, and wearing a tall courtier's hat emerged from the shadows of the corridor. He bowed politely, then indicated the shogi table with one long-nailed hand.
"As you can see," he said, "one side was winning the game. But was it the King or the Jade General?"
He threw back his head and laughed diabolically, then simply vanished.
An instant later, walls began emerging from the floor on all sides, until Ameiko and Boris each found themselves alone in a five-by-five cell made of translucent, mother-of-pearl barriers.
"Ameiko!" Boris called.
"I'm here!" he heard her answer, though her voice came from a distance.
Then the goblin caught a flicker of movement, as an incorporeal black-robed arm reached through one of the walls towards him. He ducked beneath it and shrieked.
"Ghost arms!" he screamed. "Trying to get Boris!"
Ameiko looked around her in panic, but couldn't see anything besides the walls of her cell. She gripped Suishen tightly in her hands.
"Do you have any ideas?" she asked the blade.
She sensed a mental shrug. 'I am a sword,' Suishen replied. 'Everything that I perceive needs to be cut.'
Ameiko almost sighed in exasperation, but then the simplicity of the idea struck her. She lifted the sword above her head, and then brought its flaming blade down, slashing at one of the walls. It shattered easily, producing a sound somewhere between broken glass and torn canvas. Beyond the wall, she saw an identical cell to the one she stood in. She stepped quickly into it, just as the wall she'd destroyed reformed behind her. A moment later, a shadowy hand reached through another wall and seized her arm. When it did, she felt a bone-numbing cold shoot through her, followed by a soul-deep weakness. She wrenched away from the arm, and slashed through another wall, leaping through to the room beyond.
Boris could hear the sound of walls shattering as Ameiko drew closer to his location. He drew his swords and slashed at one of his own walls, destroying it easily. As he did so, however, another of the arms came through the wall behind him and grabbed him by the shoulder. He went so weak, and so numb that he could not move. He stood there, wobbling on his feet, helpless.
Ameiko continued smashing through walls, dodging more of the incorporeal arms as she went. Finally, she broke another barrier and saw Boris, barely on his feet, in the room beyond. She jumped for him and grabbed him under one arm. Then she wheeled and hacked through another wall, and another after that. Beyond the last one, instead of another bare cell, she saw the original room they had been in. She jumped through, tumbling to the floor with Boris. When she looked behind her, the strange maze was gone. Instead, only the shogi board stood as it had before.
"I think it's time we rejoin the others," she said wearily.
Boris could only nod his head in agreement.
NO WAY!
JollyDoc posts a Campaign Journal and I find it (after only a year) - fantastic!
Copy...paste...save to telephone...blimey, 171 pages :-)
I am very much looking forward to this after several years of nappies and very little RPG-ing :)
How are you guys doing?
Awesome!! Glad you found it. I'm also posting the same SH over on ENWorld. The group is still going strong, with most of our same players. Let me know how you like this story hour.
10 Calistril, 4716 - The Master of Shadows
The rest of the companions rushed up the stairs from the cellar when they heard sounds of shouting coming from above. When they reached the reception room, they found Ameiko and a prostrate Boris surrounded by a quartet of broom-wielding housekeepers, shouting and pointing at them.
"That's enough!" Zula shouted, silencing the cacophony instantly. "Now, if you ladies do not tell me, immediately, where to find the master of this house, I will instruct this large gentleman," she gestured towards Haroldo, "to remove your arms from their sockets. Do I make myself clear?"
The women stared wide-eyed and agape at her, but hastily nodded.
"The Master is downstairs," one of them babbled, "but he is never to be disturbed there."
"Is there a young woman with him?" Zula asked. "A geisha?"
The woman nodded.
"Good, then you will take us to him," Zula instructed.
"Oh no!" the woman shook her head violently. "We are not allowed, and he is in a secret place! We do not know the way!"
Zula studied her and the other women intently for a moment, but she did not sense that they were lying to her.
"Very well," she said. "Then I suggest you make yourselves scarce. There may be much violence here soon."
_______________________________________________________________
Lucian tended to Boris and Ameiko, restoring their strength with his prayers while they described what had transpired.
"It's a safe bet that the wizard knows we're coming," Sandru said.
"Since when has that ever deterred us?" Haroldo laughed.
Once the goblin and the empress were back on their feet, the group retraced their steps to the cellar, and started down the second passage they had seen there.
The walls of the dark corridor were engraved with dense patterns of arcane graffiti. A fine dust covered the stone floor, diffusing into the air when stirred by their footsteps. Everything looked a little blurry, as if a shadowy duplicate of the corridor had been superimposed onto the passage. The companions' light sources seemed muted, illuminating only a fraction of what they had just a few steps away in the cellar. The passage twisted and turned, and then began to branch at regular intervals. At the first such juncture, after another sharp turn, the hallway passed through a perfectly round archway composed of orange agate.
"Wait," Zula said as Boris moved to examine the gate.
"Why?" the gnome asked. "Boris no think it trapped."
"There's something...," Zula's voice trailed off and she looked thoughtful for a moment. Then she snapped her fingers and drew out the inro O-Hakami had given them. She opened the middle compartment and stared at the interlocked rings of yellow calcite and blue lapis lazuli.
"Don't touch it," she told Boris, indicating the gate. "I think it's the wrong color."
They moved on, and when they turned down another side passage they came upon another gate, this one framed in violet jasper. Again, Zula had them backtrack the way they had come. The next gate they found was not stone, but wood, with a curtain of wooden beads hanging from it.
"What kind of wood is that?" Zula asked Lucian.
The oracle peered at them.
"Mulberry, I believe," he replied. "Why do you ask?"
Zula opened the upper compartment of the inro and drew out the bracelet of wooden beads.
"And what are these again?" she asked.
"Camphorwood," Lucian said.
They continued through the maze of corridors, Zula directing them away from more gates they came across, until finally they found one that held a curtain made of silk strands.
"This is the right way," Zula said, taking the silkworm cocoon from the bottom compartment of the inro. "O-Sayumi was leaving us a clue to follow after all."
They passed through the gate, with no obvious effect or change. After several more dead ends, including some that contained fogged mirrors that Boris did not feel comfortable peering into, they found another stone-framed gate, this one of green jade.
"This one," Zula nodded.
"Why this one?" Boris asked. "It green. We no have green things from shiny box."
"No," Zula answered patiently, "but we do have a yellow ring and a blue ring."
"So?" Boris asked.
"So," Zula went on in a long-suffering tone, "when yellow dye is combined with blue, it makes green."
Boris looked perplexed, and then his eyes widened in utter amazement.
"You very smart lady!" he exclaimed.
Zula just smiled and led the way through the gate. Again, nothing happened. Finally, they came to one last gate, again hung with wooden beads. These Lucian identified as camphorwood, matching those in the inro. At Zula's behest, the companions passed through.
__________________________________________________________
The maze ended shortly after the final gate. The corridor led to a simple wooden door. Boris stepped towards it, slipping on his gloves. He pressed his palms to the portal and bowed his head in concentration, the magic of the gloves allowing him to look through the barrier. On the opposite side, he saw a large room, illuminated by a lantern, and furnished with carpets, tapestries and cushions. A life-sized statue of an eight-armed female humanoid sat in the lotus position on a platform in one corner. It held a strange string instrument and several sets of hand cymbals. Near the middle of the room, two women knelt on the floor facing each other, as immobile as the statue. One of them looked mature and elegant, wearing a rich, multi-layered kimono that spread on the floor, as did her very long hair. The younger woman was equally graceful and very beautiful, dressed like a geisha. A strange mist covered the floor.
"Boris see painted lady," Boris said. "And her mom."
"Her mom?" Sandru asked. "I thought her mother was dead."
Boris shrugged. "Boris not know about mothers. Boris's mother tried to eat him when Boris born. Boris only know that there two ladies in room. One painted. One look older. Not painted."
"What are they doing?" Haroldo asked. "Are they guarded?"
Boris shrugged again. "They just staring at each other. Boris not see guard."
"What are we waiting for then?" the blood-rager asked.
They opened the door and found the scene just as Boris had described...with one exception. As the door swung completely open, the mist on the floor began to move, rapidly coalescing into something...massive. Materializing out of the noxious black cloud was a beast with the head of a fanged monkey and the body of a tiger with a viper as a tail. To their credit, the companions didn't let their surprise slow their reactions. Sandru, Boris and Ameiko moved quickly into the room, splitting to surround the creature on three sides, and then striking in unison. The beast roared, rearing up on its back legs. It rushed forward, straight at Sandru, sinking its teeth into his leg as its claws raked at his chest. Sandru felt the burn and sting as the pain washed over him, but he also felt something else...a lessening of himself, as if a little piece of his soul had spilled out with his blood. He braced himself for another blow, but then the creature looked up abruptly as a great-sword suddenly sprouted from its mouth. Haroldo gave the blade a twist as he withdrew it, and the beast fell heavily to the floor.
___________________________________________________________
Throughout the short but violent fight, the two women had never moved. As a matter of fact, they had never even opened their eyes. Ameiko approached the pair and looked them over, snapping her fingers in front of their faces, and even shaking them roughly by the shoulders. There was no response. She studied them carefully for several long moments, and then straightened and turned to her companions.
"Their souls are gone," she said.
The others just blinked at her, uncomprehending.
"Their spirits have been removed from their bodies," she explained. "These are just empty shells."
"Where are their souls now?" Zula asked.
"I do not know," Ameiko replied, her eyes wandering about the room. "However...,"
She walked to one corner, where a beautifully carved samisen stood propped.
"Didn't O-Hakami say that O-Sayumi's instrument was enchanted, and could help her see the future?"
She began strumming the samisen's strings, plucking out a mournful tune. As she did, her eyes glazed over, staring somewhere beyond. In her mind's eyes, an image appeared. It was the same wizard she and Boris had met upstairs, and he stood holding a single, flawless black pearl in his hand. A moment later, the vision faded.
"I think I know where they are," she said.
__________________________________________________________
There was no obvious exit from the lounge, but it didn't take Boris long to find a hidden one. Beyond it was a small study, and beyond that another corridor which ended at another door. Boris approached that one quietly and pressed his gloved hands to it. The colors of the large room beyond had completely faded. Panels of gray wood lined the walls, imitating the lattice of rice paper shoji walls, and the floor was paved in marble. An ornate archway stood in the middle of the north wall, opening onto a short tunnel that ended in a stain of inky darkness. Four braziers burned in the corners, dimly illuminating the room with shadowy light. The wizard Boris had seen upstairs stood at the far side of the room, sipping a cup of tea.
"Bad wizard inside!" he hissed quietly to his companions behind him.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Haroldo asked again as he kicked in the door.
Yugureda Shosaito regarded the heroes calmly from across the room. As Haroldo prepared to rush towards him, he calmly lowered his teacup.
"I wouldn't be so hasty if I were you," he said in a whispering voice. "You want to save the girl, don't you?"
He smiled and reached into a vase full to the brim with pearls, letting a handful fall back in from between his long-nailed fingers.
"Of all the pearls in the world," he said, "she is the most beautiful. But I'm afraid my wife is gone for good, and without her soul, O-Sayumi's body is just an empty shell. You see, something went wrong with the ritual when I tried to transfer my wife's soul from her aging body into the more youthful and desirable one of my daughter. She looks so much like her poor mother. O-Sayumi can still be saved. Her soul is inside a pearl...you just have to find her."
At that point, Yugureda toppled the pearl-filled vase, and scores of pearls spread out across the floor, bouncing and rattling on the marble. At the same time, three black-cloaked, translucent shadowy figures stepped out of the walls.
The shadows moved quickly towards the companions. One of them reached out and touched Haroldo, and the big warrior felt his limbs grow weak. Another one reached its hand into Miyaro's chest, and the kitsune nearly collapsed as her strength was pulled from her body. Behind them, Lucian was nothing if not prepared. The oracle drew several arrows from his quiver, salted with a special alchemical mixture that would affect the ghostly apparitions as if they were flesh and blood. He fired off a volley of four of the arrows in rapid succession, each one striking true, causing one of the shadows to dissipate with an unearthly wail. Sandru, Ameiko and Haroldo moved forward to engage the other two. Their strikes were spot on, but their blades met little resistance as they passed through the wispy bodies of the undead.
Yugureda watched the battle with a quirk of amusement on his lips. He raised one hand, and waves of dark power poured from him, washing over the companions, leaving them physically exhausted and panting. He then pointed one slim finger at Lucian, and a bolt of black lighting arced into the oracle. His smile faltered a moment later, however, when Zula stepped forward and centered a blast of her thundercall upon him, leaving him momentarily stunned and gaping.
Seeing their master's plight, the two remaining shadows changed targets, heading straight for Zula and Lucian. Lucian quickly loosed another barrage of his ghost-salted arrows at one, destroying it instantly. Haroldo, Ameiko and Boris converged on the last one before it could reach Zula, and though their blows were not nearly as telling as they would have been against a corporeal foe, they added up, and the creature quickly succumbed.
Haroldo, with the way clear, hefted his blade and charged across the room towards Yugureda, just as the mage shook off the effects of Zula's assault. At the last possible moment, he raised his hands and spoke a spell, and in that instant, Haroldo simply vanished. Sandru stepped into the void which the blood-rager had just occupied, and slashed with his scimitar, opening Shosaito's abdomen. Lucian's bow sang from behind the swashbuckler, and a pair of arrows sank into the wizard's throat. Gurgling, his eyes wide in disbelief, Yugureda Shosaito sank to his knees, then to the ground.
__________________________________________________________
A few moments later, Haroldo reappeared. He looked around in confusion.
"Where you go?" Boris asked him.
"Not sure," Haroldo said. "It was like I was in some sort of labyrinth. Everywhere I turned I found a dead end until finally there was an exit, and here I am again."
"A maze spell," Zula said. "Very effective against...," she trailed off.
"Against what?" Haroldo asked.
"Never mind," she said.
"The weak-willed," Lucian muttered under his breath.
Across the room, Ameiko stood from where she'd been searching through Shosaito's robes. She held in her hand a single black pearl.
"Let us return to O-Sayumi," she said.
They found the two women just as they'd left them in the lounge. Ameiko approached them, then placed the pearl on the floor and stomped her boot upon it. As it crumbled, a faint, glowing mist rose from it and rapidly flowed into the geisha's mouth. A moment later her eyes fluttered open, and she drew in a deep, gasping breath. She looked around in bewilderment, and the broke down into wrenching sobs.
10 Calistril, 4716 - 24 Calistril 4716 - In The Line of Duty
Yugureda Shosaito's wife was dead, her soul gone forever. It took several minutes for Zula and Ameiko to calm O-Sayumi enough for her to explain exactly what had happened. She said that some months past, Yugureda had come to the Kiniro Kyomai, and had immediately taken an almost obsessive interest in her. She became suspicious, and began to make inquiries about him, even going so far as to use her oracular samisen. She learned that, years ago, the wizard had used alchemy and magic to increase the production of pearls, and had already become very wealthy by the time the Sikutsu clan gained influence in Sakakabe Province. When the Sikutsu family offered him the opportunity to become their business partner and begin the large-scale export of pearls to other Tian nations, Yugureda began using dark magic to further increase the pearl production, summoning sea monsters and conducting experiments on the human body. His wife Kaori, a lady of modest origins, was shocked and tried to dissuade her husband from violating the laws of nature for profit. Yugureda's marriage was already an unhappy one, and when he was offered the hand of a noble lady to cement his pact with the Sikutsu clan, he decided to get rid of Kaori. Kaori sensed the danger, however, and fled into the swamps bordering the Namidakame Lagoon with their infant child. Yugureda sent his nue cohort after her, and Kaori was slain by the beast. Just before the nue reached her, however, Kaori abandoned the baby in a basket near a stream, where she was later found by the kappa Numataro-sama. This child was O-Sayumi, and when Yugureda first saw her at the tea house working as a geisha, he noticed her resemblance to her mother. When O-Sayumi declined his advances and invitation to visit his villa, the wizard threatened to kill the monks and orphans at the monastery where she was raised. Hoping to stir compassion in her father's dark heart, O-Sayumi decided to accept. She expected treachery, however, and used the scrying power of her samisen to track the nue as it traversed the shadow maze Yugureda had created in his cellar, to learn the proper route. Afraid that Yugureda would find out if she left more explicit instructions, she created an inro to guide her rescuers. When she arrived at Yugureda's house, the wizard enacted a ritual to exchange O-Sayumi's soul with that of his wife, Tarukimi, but the spell went awry, resulting in O-Sayumi's soul being trapped in the black pearl.
__________________________________________________________
The Scions decided to stay the night in Yugureda's villa, and make the most of their "hosts" hospitality. Ameiko informed the housekeepers that they were now free of their evil master, for which they bowed and scraped before her, offering her any comforts she and her companions might need. At Zula's behest, however, the others decided to pass the evening in the basement lounge where they'd found O-Sayumi and Tarukimi. It was a more defensible position should Yugureda have any final traps or contingencies in the event of his demise.
It was past midnight, and Zula, Sandru, and Haroldo stood watch while the others slept. A soft knock came at the door.
"Masters?" the voice of the head housekeeper came from the other side. "Is there anything else you will be needing? We were all about to retire for the night."
"No," Zula answered. "We have all that we require."
"Good, good," the woman's voice said cheerfully, then, "Oh, there is just one more thing we needed to show you...,"
Her voice trailed off, and then, abruptly, the door smashed inwards. The housekeeper was there...but not all of her. The lower half of her body was missing, while the upper half floated in mid-air, her entrails trailing below. In the hallway behind her, the other three housekeepers were equally incomplete, while beyond them, a ravening horde surged out of the corridor and into the room. Half of them were clad in simple loin cloths, painfully thin, with filthy, curved claws instead of fingers, and mouths filled with needle-like teeth. The other half were dressed in studded leathers, and were very obviously ja-noi oni, much like those the companions had encountered in the House of Withered Blossoms.
As the ghoulish pearl divers and ja-noi swarmed into the room and surrounded the companions, Haroldo laid about him with his great-sword, hacking and slashing, yet not seeming to make a dent in their numbers. At the same time, however, their claws and swords ripped and cut at him and at Sandru as well, as the caravan master moved back-to-back with him. Zula found herself encircled and battered, and a pair of ja-noi stood over Boris, who had been sleeping, and leveled crushing blows down on him. Behind the horde, the hovering housekeepers raised their hands and sent emerald beams of light at the companions, and where they touched, the heroes felt instantly weakened.
"To me!" Zula cried, and her comrades instantly reacted.
Once they had all gathered around her, she spoke a spell, and in a flash of white light, they vanished.
__________________________________________________________
Once more safely aboard their hired cog, Ameiko commanded the captain to weigh anchor with all haste while the rest of the companions regrouped and tended their wounds.
"Who's idea was it again to spend the night in the evil wizard's creepy mansion?" Haroldo asked.
Boris shrugged. "Cleaning ladies seemed nice to Boris. Who knew they fly without legs when dark?"
"We never learn," Haroldo sighed.
The return cruise to Sakakabe was blessedly uneventful. Upon arrival, O-Sayumi was safely returned to the Kiniro Kyomai teahouse, where she was greeted with joy and relief by all of her sisters, especially O-Hakami. O-Kohaku was grateful, and offered to arrange meetings for Ameiko and her friends with several nobles and merchants opposed to the Jade Regent. Such individuals would be able to lend substantial support from both Sakakabe and Enganoka to Hirabashi Jiro should he lead a rebel army south towards the capital to overthrow the despot.
O-Sayumi showed her gratitude to her saviors by first presenting Ameiko with her samisen of oracular vision.
"I have seen a vision of the future," she said, bowing. "You will become a great empress."
Ameiko accepted the gift, sensing instinctively that it would prove useful in the coming days. O-Sayumi went even further by offering to arrange a private meeting with Sikutsu Itsuru, the younger brother of Enganoka's daimyo, Sikutsu Sennaka. She told them that Itsuru dreamed of putting an end to his brother's tyranny, and would be a powerful ally for the rebellion.
_____________________________________________________________
The following evening, in a private meeting room in the teahouse, Ameiko and the scions were introduced to Sikutsu Itsuru by O-Sayumi. She began the negotiations by identifying the companions as heirs of the Amatatsu line. Itsuru seemed dubious at first, but when Ameiko presented the Amatatsu Seal, he quickly got down to business.
Itsuru was in his mid-thirties, but appeared to be ten years younger, something that no doubt contributed to his brother's low opinion of him, he said. His duties involved managing the Sikutsu family castle, and in that capacity he had a number of loyal samurai under his command. He made it clear that he was no friend of the Jade Regent, and chafed under the heavy hand of his brother's rule as well. Tired of years of horror and abuse, Itsuru had finally decided that his brother's injustices must be put to and end. He explained that honor prevented him from killing his brother and lawful lord on his own, but if Sennaka were somehow removed from power, Itsuru would inherit his position. Most of the samurai under Sennaka's command were honorable warriors, Itsuru said, but that same honor trapped them. They followed Sennaka's cruel orders because duty required them to. If Itsuru were to become the new governor of Enganoka, those same samurai would follow him, and he could begin repairing the damage of his brother's rule. The armies of the north formed a not-insignificant proportion of Minkai's military might, and if those armies swore themselves to the Amatatsu heir, the Jade Regent would lose much of the military strength he currently commanded. Itsuru even believed that the army of Kasai, which guarded the imperial capital, might turn against the Jade Regent if faced with a rising tide of honorable samurai sworn to Ameiko rather than the Jade Regent.
Itsuru told Ameiko and the others that his brother would soon be journeying to Shuryo Onsen, a secluded hunting lodge on the border between the provinces of Enganoka and Sakakabe. The daimyo employed many peasants from nearby villages as laborers for renovations he was currently doing on the lodge, housing them in a small camp just east of the compound. Itsuru said that Sennaka normally left most of his retinue in the camp to guard the company's baggage and mounts, keeping only a small personal escort with him at the lodge. Itsuru suggested that Ameiko and her companions would have a much better chance of defeating Sennaka if they could ambush him at the lodge, while at the same time preventing the soldiers in the workers' camp from coming to his aid. When Ameiko asked how they might accomplish such a twin-pronged assault, Itsuru offered a possible solution. Recently, a handful of samurai were dismissed from Sennaka's service. They had been ordered to burn a village for not paying its taxes, but the samurai somehow managed to raise enough money to pay the taxes themselves, and so decided not to destroy the village. The samurai disobeyed a direct order, but Sennaka still got his tax revenue, so he simply dismissed them in a rare moment of mercy. The samurai became ronin, calling themselves the Nine Pawns, and they still had a score to settle with Sennaka. Itsuru recommended arranging a meeting with them. If they agreed to help the scions with their ambush, then he could restore them to their former status as samurai. The Nine Pawns had already infiltrated the laborers work camp, and had supposedly prepared a stratagem to isolate Sennaka from the bulk of his forces.
_____________________________________________________
The companions took their leave of Sikutsu Itsuru, promising to contact him as soon as they were ready to implement the plan. First, however, Ameiko thought it important to travel to Enganoka and seek out the mysterious Three Monkeys. The longer the ninja were an unknown quantity, the greater their potential to jeopardize the rebels' plans to overthrow the Jade Regent.
The trip overland to Enganoka took a little over ten days. It was a port city, Minkai's third largest, on the western coast, famous for its trade in silk, pottery, semi-precious stones, and rock alum from the coastal hills. Although the port and the marketplace were relatively busy, it was clear that Enganoka was suffering from economic depression. The Kuroi Yane market itself was a large, two-story hall with a black roof, surrounded by a maze of outdoor huts, tents and market stalls. The entrance was guarded by a group of police officers, but Ameiko and the others had little trouble paying the three silvers per head entrance fee, a price that would have been exorbitant for a commoner, thus ensuring that only nobles dealt with the wealthier merchants inside.
As the companions wandered the hall looking for the restaurant where the Three Monkeys were purported to meet, they noticed a well-to-do commoner haggling with a shopkeeper. Suddenly, a half-dozen police officers surrounded him. The shopkeeper retreated to the back of her booth, and the commoner looked very frightened. One of the police stepped forward.
"Are you a trader from the village of Kokumgi?" he asked sternly.
The man bowed deeply. "Yes!" he answered, breaking into a servile grin.
"You are a liar!" the officer barked. "That village doesn't exist!"
The man's eyes grew wide in horror. Immediately, the police officers grabbed the poor t trader and forced him to his knees. The crowd moved away, and formed a wide circle around the scene as one of the officers unsheathed her sword.
"You are a smuggler and a spy!" the officer cried.
Ameiko tensed and took a step forward, but Zula grabbed her arm and subtly shook her head. With a swift stroke, and a collective scream of the crowd, the man's severed head rolled across the floor. No one said nor did anything, and the officers swaggered away through the market as people scurried away from them, avoiding looking at them or at the dead man on the floor.
"Why did you stop me?" Ameiko hissed as she wheeled on Zula.
"My Lady," Zula said quietly, "engaging those officers would have served no purpose other than to get us killed or captured."
"But the village that man is from does exist!" Ameiko said, raising her voice. "Don't you see what that means?"
Zula just stared at her blankly.
Ameiko threw up her hands. "Those officers were daikan tetsuku," she said. "Rural police. They normally patrol the countryside. If they are claiming that the village of Kokomugi no longer exists, then that means they have razed and plundered it, and are hunting down and killing all of its former inhabitants!"
"I understand, Mistress," Zula said, "but this is not the time nor place to address the problem. If the officers destroyed the village, then they did so on the governor's orders. That is our mission."
Ameiko stayed silent and digested that for a moment. Then, grudgingly, she nodded and turned away.
_______________________________________________________________
"What do we know of these ninja clans?" Ameiko asked as the companions approached the restaurant where the Three Monkeys were supposed to be meeting.
"Well," Sandru replied, "the three clans represented here are the most powerful of the ninja. The Emerald Branch are most concerned with fighting tyranny and supporting the cause of freedom. The Black Lotus are less interested in politics and more mercenary, willing to take on any job for a profit. The Dragonshadow are rumored to serve a powerful imperial dragon, and follow their own inscrutable goals, only accepting jobs that further the mysterious aims of their patron."
"Boris want to be dragon ninja!" the little goblin piped up.
They entered the restaurant, and were seated at a table readily enough. When the waitress asked what they were having, it was Boris who answered first.
"We hear that monkey is very good here," he said, winking one eye with exaggeration.
The waitress stared at him for a moment, then nodded and walked away.
"What are you doing?" Sandru snapped at the goblin.
"Boris know about sneaky things," the rogue replied. "You see."
A few minutes later, a male waiter approached the table.
"So you are interested in the house special?" he asked.
"Yes!" Boris grinned.
"An excellent choice," the waiter said. "The price is one-hundred gold coins per plate...payable up front."
"Sold!" Boris said before any of the others could answer.
Reluctantly, all of the companions drew out their coin purses and paid the required fee.
"Follow me," the waiter said, sweeping up the coins.
The companions were led to a private room. There, three individuals dressed in nondescript gray kimonos sat quietly in the half-light of the full moon outside. One was a balding, middle-aged man, the second a younger man with a half-smile on his face, and the last a plain peasant woman with a thick neck and hard eyes. None of them said a word as the scions stood before them. Finally, Zula cleared her throat.
"We are here to seek your services, or perhaps, your advice," she said. "We represent certain individuals who are dissatisfied with the current status quo in Minkai."
"We have already heard of the return to Minkai of the last Amatasu heir," the woman said, taking Zula by surprise. "We can well imagine her aims and your role in them."
The older man spoke next.
"We do not make a habit of interfering in politics," he said, "however the current state of affairs is damaging our business concerns. Fear of the Jade Regent and his forces have dampened enthusiasm for extra-legal activities, and the Regent himself shuns the services of our clans...with one exception."
"Which brings us to the matter at hand," the younger man took up the narrative. "The Jade Regent has hired a very powerful ninja to kill the Amatatsu heir and her companions. He is called Kaibuninsho, and he belongs to the Oni's Mask clan. He is said to have superhuman abilities that exceed even the traditional training of our clans, and for the past few years he has worked exclusively on behalf of the Jade Regent. So, unfortunately, since a contract already exists on your heads, we may not accept another contract with you until this matter is resolved."
"And by resolved," Sandru said, "you mean until we kill him or he kills us?"
The ninja shrugged and smiled.
"Feel free to come to us again when....if...you are able."
"Do you have any information where we might find Kaibuninsho?" Zula asked.
"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that," the woman replied. "I'm sure he will find you first."
___________________________________________________________
"Well," Ameiko sighed as the companions left the restaurant, "I suppose our only option at this point is to carry out Sikutsu Itsuru's plan for his brother."
"Yes," Zula agreed. "Sandru can put out some feelers among his black market contacts in the mean time, to see we can come up with more information about this ninja. Then,..."
Her voice trailed off as cold chill ran up her spine. She turned, time seeming to slow around her. The market crowd moved around them, and at first she saw nothing untoward. Then her eyes fell upon a nondescript woman moving towards Ameiko from a nearby stall, one hand held out to show several lengths of silk scarves to the Amatatsu heir. It was her other hand, however, that caught Zula's gaze. It was tucked inside her kimono as if to retrieve something. Ameiko turned towards the woman, her eyes falling upon the beautiful scarves. She never saw the nunchaku, intricately carved in the shape of twin dragon heads, that the woman pulled from the folds of her robe. Zula rushed forward, seeming to move in slow motion as the nunchaku swung towards Ameiko's head.
"Nooooo!" Zula cried as she leaped between Ameiko and the merchant.
The swinging end of the nunchaku connected solidly with her temple with an audible crack and snap. Zula dropped to the ground like a stone, still and unmoving. Sandru and Boris, alerted by Zula's cry, turned around, drawing their weapons reflexively. They saw the merchant woman snarl in frustration as she tucked her weapon back up her sleeve. She reached down and grabbed Zula's collar.
"Stop her!" Sandru shouted as he rushed towards the woman.
He was a step too slow. As the woman's hand closed around Zula's tunic, the air shimmered around them both, and then they vanished in a swirl of smoke and darkness.
24 Calistril, 4716 - 27 Calistril, 4716 - Coup de Tat
Boris stood alone in the hours before dawn inside the temple of Gozreh. He had lit a single candle and placed it on the altar.
"That for you, Zula, thunder-voice lady," he said, sniffing. "You always good to Boris, and Boris hope that, wherever you are, someone there to cook you good food like Boris."
The little goblin had already visited a local orphanage in Enganoka earlier that night and made an anonymous donation in his friend's name. He turned away from the altar and made his way back through the sanctuary. Tomorrow, he and his friends were departing for Shuryo Onsen, the daimyo's hunting lodge. They were going to assassinate the governor, and Boris had no problem with that. He held anyone who served the Jade Regent responsible for Zula's death, and had made a vow to himself and before her patron, Gozreh, that he would kill every one of them.
___________________________________________________
The companions made their final preparations in silence, saddling their horses and strapping on their gear. The shock of the loss of Zula was still a raw nerve to all of them, and they tensed at every odd noise and stray shadow, wary that the assassin could be anywhere. So it was, that when a middle-aged, bald Tien man wearing a blue robe belted with a wide girdle approached them, all of their hands went immediately to their weapons.
"Please," the man said, showing empty hands, "I mean no harm. My name is Akiro Higashiyama, and I was sent to you by a vision from my goddess, Shizuru. I know that you," he nodded towards Ameiko, "are the last scion of House Amatatsu. Long ago, I too was descended from royalty, though I assure you, I lay no claim to the Emerald Throne. I only wish to see the Jade Regent deposed, and the rightful ruler take her place."
"Why should we trust you?" Haroldo hissed, his sword already half out of its scabbard.
Akiro pointed towards the samisen slung across Ameiko's back.
"Your instrument, my Lady," he said. "Use it. Find the truth in my words."
Ameiko eyed him for several moments, then drew out the samisen. She strummed several chords, and her eyes clouded over. A moment later, she snapped back to reality.
"The Eternal Scion," she said. "That is what you are called
"I have been called this," Akiro nodded, "among many other things."
"You are samsaren," Ameiko continued, "one of the reincarnated. But yout skin...?"
"Not blue," Akiro smiled, "or at least not that you can see. I have found it beneficial to disguise some of my features. There are some who do not trust people who have lived many lifetimes."
"Including me!" Haroldo growled.
"Easy, my friend," Ameiko laid a hand on the big warrior's shoulder. "We can trust this one. The samisen does not lie. You have arrived at a sad and perilous time, Akiro. You may regret the onus placed upon you by your goddess."
"Perhaps," Akiro shrugged, "but if I do not survive, there is always another life to be lived."
______________________________________________________________
Shuryo Onsen lay in the wooded hills east of Sakakabe. The laborers working on it were housed in a camp connected to the lodge by a narrow, sloping footpath, which served as the only way to traverse the rugged terrain without considerable difficulty. It was in those deep woods that the companions found the 9 Pawns. The ronin had placed a large stack of logs on top of a slope overlooking the footpath so that it could be toppled to form a roadblock. It was their plan to take out a few of the guards along the path, and then cut the logs loose to create a roadblock, by which point Ameiko and her friends should have reached the lodge and could begin their assault. The leader of the ronin explained that he and his men could exploit the favorable terrain to keep at bay the soldiers in the camp, who otherwise would rush to help their lord once the alarm was raised. He also advised approaching the lodge from the rear entrance. It would be the least heavily guarded.
Lucian led the Scions to a low hill overlooking the lodge itself. It was a sizable wooden building surrounded by a stout wooden palisade. A single gate in the south wall of the palisade connected to the footpath, while a double gate in the north wall gave access to the hunting trails of the forest. Lucian could see over the wall from their vantage point, and spotted a small rear door in the lodge.
"There," he pointed. "Everyone gather around me."
His companions did so, and the oracle mentally measured the distance between them and the door, then added an additional twenty-feet or so to his calculation. He spoke a prayer, and the group vanished in a flash of light. When they reappeared, they found themselves in an interior corridor inside the lodge. The door Lucian had seen was now behind them. Lining the corridor were rice-paper shoji doors on both sides. From behind the nearest of these, voices could be heard. More voices came from further down the hall. Sandru crept stealthily to the near door.
"Did you hear that?" a low, rumbling voice asked from the other side.
"No, I didn't hear anything," another voice replied, distracted. "I asked not to be disturbed."
"Probably nothing," the first voice said. "One of the men coming to report progress on the latrine, or some such. I'll get rid of him."
"Bound to find out sooner or later," Haroldo whispered from behind Sandru as he reached out to slide the shoji panel open.
A few low tables and comfortable chairs were scattered throughout the large room beyond the door. Martial banners decorated the walls, and paper lanterns hung from the rafters, softly illuminating the chamber. A huge, blue-skinned hulk of a creature stood on the opposite side of the door, a large tetsubo resting on one shoulder. Behind him a figure dressed in head-to-toe, green o-yoroi armor leaned over a table with several parchments unfurled on its surface. The giant blinked in confusion for a moment as he saw Haroldo and the other companions gathered in the hall beyond him. Then he grinned broadly, small tusks protruding from his undershot jaw.
"This might require your attention after all, Lord Sikutsu," he said.
The giant raised his massive club, but before he could even think about trying to swing it, he cried out in pain, and his left knee buckled beneath him. Behind him, Boris, who had crept into the room under cover of his invisibility ring, tumbled away, his wakizashi blade dripping blood from where he'd thrust it into the soft space behind the oni's kneecap. As the giant fell hard onto that one knee, Haroldo's sword met him, stabbing deep into his chest. From behind the blood-rager, Lucian's bow twanged as a single arrow sank into the oni's throat.
At that moment, the air in chamber began to hum with power. An instant later, a dozen figures suddenly appeared throughout the room. They were humanoid, but their heads were those of large ravens, and they bore black feathers instead of skin. They were armed with katanas and wakizashis, and they quickly began to fan out and surround the companions.
"Oh frak!" Haroldo cried out. "Fall back!"
As his allies did so, the blood-rager called up his limited magic to release an explosive ball of flame into the room. It instantly incinerated the shoji walls, but the raven-headed guards all leaped nimbly clear of the bulk of the blast. Sikutsu and the oni were not so evasive, and the fire scorched them thoroughly.
"Nicely done," Akiro said from beside Haroldo. "I never expected one with your...skills...to be capable of such feats. Allow me to demonstrate a few of my own abilities."
The wizard shook back his sleeves, spoke a few arcane words, and hurled a green-tinged ball into the midst of the chamber. It exploded into a great conflagration of liquid acid, but where any of the companions stood, the energy seemed to flow around them, excluding them from the blast. Most of the guards still managed to avoid it, but a few bore smoking burns upon their skin. More importantly, once the blast had cleared, the big oni lay dead on the floor.
The battle boiled out of the chamber and into the corridor and another adjoining room, revealed once its paper walls had been burned out of existence. The tengu guards were fast and accurate with their weapons, and they had the companions outnumbered two-to-one. Still, these were no ordinary assassins they were dealing with, and the Scions began steadily whittling away at their numbers, while at the same time keeping Sikutsu from the thick of the battle by forcing him to seek cover from both Miyaro's and Lucian's arrows. Suddenly, a door on the opposite side of the room opened, and a number of human samurai rushed through, quickly surrounding Sikutsu in a protective ring. Akiro threw another acid ball into the melee, but this time, he also excluded the samurai from the blast, as well as his companions. When the smoke cleared again, Sikutsu lay unmoving on the ground.
"Your daimyo is dead!" Ameiko called out to the samurai. "You are free of his tyranny! Pledge your loyalty to me, the rightful heir to House Amatatsu, and you will be honored warriors in my army!"
The samurai looked at one another dubiously, and then down at their fallen lord. As one, they turned the blades of their katanas towards their own bellies.
"No!" Ameiko screamed, but it was too late.
The samurai, in unison, thrust their blades into their bodies, disemboweling themselves in ritual sepuku.
The remaining tengu did not give up so easily, and the battle pitched back and forth for several more minutes before the last of them finally died.
"Listen," Haroldo said, cocking his head as the din of the melee faded.
In the distance, they all heard it. A hunting horn sounding.
"We need to go," he said. "We have done what we came for."
Ameiko looked, grief-stricken, upon the fallen samurai, then shook her head once.
"Yes," she said. "We have done enough."
And I've caught up! Back to the old habit of looking out for JD story hour :)
I hadn't realized that Jade Regent was quite so... lethal!
It gets worse. We are about 4 sessions ahead of the story hour, about half-way through the final adventure, and it's getting crazy!
27 Calistril, 4716 - Assault on Seinaru Heikiko
When the companions arrived back at Seinaru Heikiko, they found a bustling hive of activity. They were welcomed by Jiro and Hatsue, who informed them that, thanks to the efforts of the Scions, many more people had come to the fort to join Jiro's banner, such that he had the makings of an actual army. The samurai was saddened to hear about Zula's death, and troubled by the news of the ninja assassin targeting Ameiko and her cohorts. Ameiko immediately retired to her chambers and spent the next hour playing on her samisen. When she emerged at nightfall, she told the others that she had experienced another vision.
" 'When your enemies surround you, and your mind is distracted, you will be at your most vulnerable,' " she said. "That is the message I received. We must be vigilant at all times now."
That night, Boris prepared a special feast for the fort, celebrating the fall of Sikutsu Sennaka. The folk were delighted at the exotic flavors produced by the goblin's unique culinary skills, and the mood was festive. It was then that the first explosion rocked the keep. Shortly after, the alarm bells from the wall began to sound, and a bellow of inhuman laughter came from somewhere above. A second impact sounded, and the bells went silent. The soldiers began scrambling for their weapons and heading for the doors. Jiro and Hatsue leaped from their seats and quickly followed, Miyaro and Haroldo on their heels.
Outside, the fortress's main gate had been knocked down. Several guards lay motionless on the ground, and Jiro's banner had fallen down in the dirt. Hovering in mid-air above the walls of the fortress was a three-eyed, red-skinned giant, an enormous testubo clutched in its fists. Upon the crags overlooking the fort clung a quartet of two-headed giants. Each of them had one head that was bestial and brutish, while the other had three eyes and looked slightly more civilized. All were armed with elaborate, double-edged pole-arms.
"Come out little mice, hiding in your hole," the red-skinned giant boomed, "or I'll take down this fortress stone by stone! Show me this Amatatsu heir I've heard so much about! I want to crunch her little bones between my teeth and drink her royal blood! Bring her to me, and I promise you all quick deaths. Keep her for yourselves, and I'll tear every one of you limb from limb and make sweet music from your screams!"
With that, the creature hurled a ball of fire at the doorway where Miyaro and Haroldo stood. The kitsune leaped nimbly aside, and Haroldo managed to dodge the brunt of the blast, but he still suffered numerous burns on his exposed flesh.
Sandru emerged from the hall just as the flames cleared. He saw Miyaro standing to one side, her bow singing as she fired up at one of the two-headed oni on the cliffs.
"Watch out!" he shouted at her, just as the third eye on the larger oni opened and fired a scorching bolt of flame.
Miyaro shrieked as the flames seared her, back peddling towards the doors. Then, an enormous explosion rocked the court yard as a roiling cloud of smoke and fire erupted in its center. The three scions found themselves in pitch darkness as the soot and debris blotted out any light, and the burning air around them scorched their lungs as they struggled to breath. Haroldo called upon his blood magic to wreath himself in a blue fire, cool to the touch, which kept most of the heat from him. It was then, however, that the smoke parted briefly, and he saw movement within the mist. His eyes grew wide as enormous, rubbery black tentacles sprouted from the ground all around him and reached hungrily towards him and his companions.
____________________________________________________
Inside the main hall, it was chaos. Servants and men-at-arms ran in all directions, not certain of what exactly they should be doing. Several of the ronin began heading for the main doors, but at that moment, a wall of flames sprang up across the opening, sealing them all inside. One of them turned back towards where Ameiko stood with Lucian and Akiro.
"My Lady!" he shouted, walking towards the group. "What is your command?"
Ameiko looked non-plussed, taken aback that people were looking to her for leadership. Lucian and Akiro turned to look at her as well, and it was then, when the oracle put his back to the ronin, that Ameiko saw the man draw a familiar pair of dragon-emblazoned nunchaku from his tunic.
"Lucian, no!" she cried.
The oracle looked puzzled right up until the moment when the nunchaku struck him in the back of the head.
________________________________________________________
Back in the courtyard, Haroldo flew out of the forest of grasping tentacles, closely followed by Miyaro. Once free, the kitsune sighted with her bow, and loosed an arrow at one of the two-headed oni, putting the shaft through one of its throats. She looked around for the other ones, only to discover that two of them had simply vanished.
________________________________________________________
Lucian fell heavily to the ground, but he still lived, shaking his head in disorientation.
"Stop him!" Ameiko snarled, whirling and pointing at the ronin-disguised ninja.
Akiro responded immediately, weaving a net of green energy around the assassin, preventing him from teleporting or otherwise dimensionally traveling.
"He's not going anywhere," the wizard grinned.
"Too bad for you," the ninja replied, just as a pair of two-headed giants appeared out of thin air behind him.
________________________________________________________
The remaining two-headed oni flew from the ramparts at Haroldo, and Miyaro. One of them struck the blood-rager savagely with its monk's spade, while the second one swatted Miyaro across the courtyard. Miyaro fired a volley of arrows at the first one, the one she'd already wounded, and this time it dropped, its heads and chest pin-cushioned by her shafts.
"Got him!" the kitusune shouted in triumph.
That was when the large, crimson-skinned oni appeared behind her and swung mightily with his tetsubo. It caught her solidly at the base of her skull, and she went limp, dropping slowly out of the sky as her fly spell ended, dropping her straight into the wall of flames that covered the main entrance.
_______________________________________________________
Lucian climbed painfully to his feet, his face a mask of rage an agony.
"Now it's my turn!" He hissed at the ninja as he knocked two arrows simultaneously and loosed.
The shafts struck true, but the assassin spun just as they impacted and flung a handful of dust into the air. As it settled over him, he vanished from sight. Nearby, Akiro spoke a spell, and began making a series of odd clicking noises, turning his head this way and that.
"He's right there!" The wizard shouted, pointing to a spot just behind Lucian.
Too late. The oracle screamed as a fresh burst of pain washed over him, blood flying from his nose and his mouth from the impact of an unseen nunchaku.
Across the hall, Boris and Ameiko had managed to flank one of the two-headed oni. The pair of them took turns darting in and making precision strikes against the giant as it pivoted trying to smash them both. At one point, the goblin was a fraction of a second too slow, and the oni swatted him with its spade, sending a jolt of electricity through the weapon as it struck. While its attention was momentarily diverted, however, Ameiko scored a killing blow, slashing Suishen across both of its necks.
Suddenly, at the far side of the hall, Sandru appeared, sprinting down a flight of stairs that led to a tower above. He had flown there hoping to take one of the two-headed giants unaware, only to have it vanish before he could reach it. He saw Lucian on his knees, bleeding profusely from his wounds. Beyond the oracle, Akiro was casting a spell, and when he'd finished, the air glittered with sparkling motes of light. As they settled to the floor, they outlined a figure crouching behind Lucian.
"Kill him!" Akiro shouted to Sandru.
The swashbuckler needed no further prompting. He rushed the figure, his sword slashing and whirling. The assassin grunted and darted to one side...right to where Ameiko waited.
"There is no escape from my justice!" She shouted as she drove Suishen through the ninja's gut.
Boris somehow found himself face-to-face with the last of the two-headed oni. He feinted to one side, and then leaped to the other, but while one of the giant's heads fell for his bluff, the other did not. It swung at him as he tumbled, smashing him into a wall...hard. The goblin lay there, his eyes blinking, staring at nothing.
Sandru and Ameiko rushed towards the oni before it could deliver a killing blow against Boris. They struck in unison, and the creature fell into a wide pool of its own blood. Abruptly, Ameiko was lifted from her feet and sent flying across the hall, where she struck a large support beam. Materializing in the middle of the room was the monstrous three-eyed fire yai oni, its tetsubo dripping blood. He turned on Sandru, his third eye opening wide and firing a bolt of flame at the caravan master. As Sandru backed away, the oni swung his club in a mighty arc and drove him back a dozen feet or more. Grimacing, the swashbuckler regained his balance and rushed forward, slashing at the oni viciously. As he struck, however, a fiery nimbus that surrounded the giant exploded outwards, engulfing him in flames. Sandru slumped to the ground unconscious.
Akiro did not like the way things were going. All of his allies were down, or nearly so. Thinking fast, he quickly wove another spell, and a glimmering cage composed of solid force sprang up around the oni. Lucian, still conscious, but only just barely, stumbled over to where Sandru lay and placed his hands upon the dying man. A surge of energy pulsed from his palms into Sandru's chest, momentarily lifting him from the ground. A moment later, Sandru opened his eyes, and then sprang nimbly to his feet in one smooth movement.
The fire yai glared balefully from within his cage.
"You think that your petty magics can hold me?" He bellowed. "You know nothing of the Five Storms!"
He raised one hand above his head, and as he did so, a wall of flames erupted from the floor where Lucian and Akiro stood. The oracle leaped to one side of the wall, and the wizard to the other. As Akiro rolled to his feet, he hurled a ball of sizzling electricity into the cage, where it exploded into blue lightning. The fire yai bellowed in pain, but then conjured a second wall of fire, bisecting the first, catching Akiro in the conflagration once again. The wizard stumbled to one knee, but still managed to toss a second lightning ball into the cage. As the oni writhed in its tendrils, he hefted his tetsubo and smashed it into the bars of the cage. When it struck, there was a tremendous BOOM like a thunderbolt, and one whole side of the force cage collapsed. The oni charged out, smashing Lucian with one end of his mighty club, and then Sandru with the other. Just then, another form leaped through one of the walls of fire...Haroldo! The blood-rager charged at the oni, his great sword whipping down in a bone-crushing arc. The fire yai careened backwards, but when Haroldo moved after him, the oni thrust the head of his tetsubo into the man's chest, crushing his sternum and the heart beneath it. Haroldo fell in a heap. Sandru leaped over the body of his friend, knowing he was probably soon to meet his own end, but as his sword slashed, Akiro hurled a final orb of electricity, and that time, the oni did not rise again.
Good gravy! The Amatetsu wagon of resurrection will need to shift to 1/day by the sounds of things!
I don't suppose you'll be playing Way of the Wicked next? We're about a third of the way through and loving it. I'm so curious as to how your guys would handle it.
It's amazing that you just asked this!! We just started WotW last night! I'm already working on the first post, and will be creating a new story hour shortly!!
RPG Superstar 2010 Top 32
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Fantastic! (And freaky!)
I can't wait to hear how it's going - you'll catch us up and overtake in no time, I reckon. We only play for a few hours every fortnight. I recommend the threads for the books here on the Paizo site - though the first one has well over 1000 posts now. Plenty of ideas there, to be sure. Also kevinvideo's tumblr (link) has some great stuff!
Awesome! Thanks for the advice!
3 Pharast, 4716 - 16 Desnus, 4716: The Empty Throne
In the aftermath of the siege, Ameiko used the Amatatsu Seal to return Haroldo to life, while Koya called upon her magic to restore Miyaro. Fortunately, thanks to the heroic efforts of the Scions, there were no other casualties among the inhabitants of the fortress. Jiro was furious about the attack on his people.
"Perhaps it is time for you to travel to the capital, Kasai, and deal with this so-called Jade Regent once and for all," he stormed to Ameiko.
"Perhaps," she agreed, "but first we have business with the Three Monkeys."
The ninja assassin turned out to be a nondescript Tien man. However, among his possessions he wore an ancient-looking bronze coin around his neck on a leather thong. It had a square central hole and bore six ideograms on its two faces, four on one side and two on the other, with two spaces apparently left blank. Akiro held the coin up and eyed the ideograms.
"These are symbols for various...skills," he said.
"What you mean, 'skills'?" Boris asked. "Like cooking?"
Akiro shook his head. "No. Roughly translated they represent acrobatics, climbing, disguise, escape, perception and stealth."
Boris's ears pricked up.
"Boris want that!"
"Not so fast, my friend," Ameiko said, taking the coin from Akiro. "If the assassin prized this, then we must be wary of it. At the very least, I want to use my samisen to see if I can divine any further information about it."
It took Ameiko over an hour as she held the coin and strummed the instrument given to her by the geisha, seemingly in a trance. Finally, she lifted her head, her eyes clear once more.
"It is called the Shinobi Fuhonsen," she said. "It is said to have been the first payment ever made to a ninja in the history of Minkai. The ideograms apparently relate to powers that the coin imparts upon its possessor, each one corresponding to a specific skill. Supposedly, it will only function for a 'worthy' owner, and when a new owner takes possession, another power will be revealed. However, legend has it that when the eighth and final power is unlocked, a major disaster will strike the world."
"Boris want that!," the goblin repeated.
"If it's that powerful," Sandru interjected, "perhaps we can use it as a bargaining chip with the Three Monkeys."
"What??," Boris shrieked. "That stupid! Why we give big magic coin to killers? Boris say we keep it and use to kill big green bad man!"
"While ineloquent," Ameiko said, "Boris does have a point. During my divination, I did receive a...feeling...that, of all of us, Boris would be the only one considered 'worthy.'"
Boris crossed his arms and nodded triumphantly.
"I don't think it would do any harm," Ameiko continued, "to at least allow him to carry it until we see what the Three Monkeys have to offer."
______________________________________________________________
Boris sat in his room staring at the Shinobi Fuhonsen...listening to it. From the moment he'd first laid hands on it, he had heard the whispering, but could not make out the words. Now, however, since the seventh sigil had appeared on the coin, the whispers were getting louder. Already they had told him secrets to getting into locked places and bypassing traps that he had never even considered. They also told him about the other abilities that were his to command: anything from scaling a wall like a spider, vanishing from sight while leaving an illusory image of himself behind, mentally misleading those who sought to magically detect his motives, scrying on distant people and places, to temporarily stepping between dimensions, and even traveling through the plane of shadows if he so desired. It was magnificent, and Boris had no intention of ever parting with it. It had chosen him, and he was starting to resent his so-called friends for suggesting anyone else should possess it.
________________________________________________________________
Even though it was only a day later, thanks to Akiro's ability to teleport, when the companions once more sat before the Three Monkeys in the in the Kuroi Yane restaurant in Enganoka, the ninja elders already knew of the death of Kaibuninsho.
"We are also aware of your involvement in the assassination of Sikutsu Sennaka," the Emerald Branch representative said, nodding approvingly, "and for that, my organization is willing to offer our services at half the usual cost of 20,000 gold coins. Barring that, all three of our groups will agree to not interfere in the coming rebellion for 5,000 gold coins...each."
"Allow me to offer an alternative," the Black Lotus ambassador said silkily. "It has come to my attention that you retrieved a certain...item...from Kaibuninsho. Do not try to deny it. If you were willing to part with it, my clan would waive our fees entirely."
"Ours would be willing to do so as well," the Dragonshadow ninja interjected, "but if you give it to one of my colleagues, we would take that as a sign of disrespect and our services would cost you double."
"As would ours," the Black Lotus rep said cooly.
"Ours too," the Emerald Branch woman said, "though we have no interest in purchasing the coin from you."
Ameiko looked at Boris, who was staring at the ninjas with naked hatred.
"I think," she said after several moments, "that we will procure your active assistance," she addressed the Emerald Branch elder, "while meeting your fee to insure that you will not act against us," she said to the other two.
The Three Monkeys all nodded their assent, and the bargain was sealed.
_______________________________________________________
"Once your reach Kasai," Hirabashi Jiro said as he sat at the conference table with Ameiko and her companions, "you should make contact with a man named Asachi Isao. He is the leader of a group of sympathizers to your cause, and can provide you with a safe base of operations in the city, as well as intelligence on the current situation in the capital."
"And what will you do in the mean time?" Ameiko asked.
"We will follow with our army," Jiro replied. "I hope to draw the majority of the Jade Regent's forces away from the city so that you can strike the final blow against the usurper."
___________________________________________________________
Since they could not travel via magical means while transporting the Amatatsu Seal, which Jiro assured them they would need in Minkai, the companions ventured overland on horseback, a journey that took the better part of a month to complete. During that time, Boris spent increasingly more time by himself, telling the others that it was taking more of his time to learn the secrets of the Shinobi Fuhonsen so that he might use it more effectively against the forces of the Jade Regent. In reality, the goblin was caring less and less each day about the companionship of the others. The only friend he needed was the coin, and secretly, he knew that the others coveted it. They wanted it for themselves, and he would see them all dead before he would allow such a thing.
__________________________________________________________
A long line of peasants, pilgrim monks, and arriving merchants extended from the guarded gates of Kasai, the capital city of Minkai. Above the din of the noisy crowd, guards questioned, and in some cases aggressively interrogated, each visitor before allowing him or her into the city. Some had their goods confiscated, and were led away in tears under the harsh glare of suspicious eyes. Others seemingly satisfied their examiners with honeyed words or surreptitious bribes as they passed inside.
It had been agreed ahead of time that some of the companions would attempt to enter the city by conventional means, while the others would try a more discreet route. Akiro had outfitted himself as a visiting scholar seeking to access the archives of the Imperial Jade Eye Academy, while Miyaro, in her human form, posed as his wife. The guards took a special interest in questioning her, as they did with all of the other females who passed through the gate, inquiring as to where she was born, how old she was, where she was from, who her parents were, and what her business was in the city. A full coin purse offered by Akiro cut the interrogation short, and they were allowed to pass. Behind them, Sandru presented himself as a caravan master from Avistan who lost his train on the Crown of the World, and was seeking to rebuild it. Lucian acted as his guard and man-servant. Sandru also offered a bribe, and their questioning was perfunctory. Once safely within the city walls, the four of them split up, agreeing to meet later at the address of Asachi Isao. As for the other companions...
__________________________________________________________
Midnight. Aided by magic, Ameiko, accompanied by Haroldo and Boris, flew invisibly over the outer walls of the city. They had just cleared the barrier when an unseen voice shouted from somewhere above them.
"Halt! You are all under arrest for trespassing!"
A moment later, Haroldo was struck across the back, and a figure materialized, hovering in the air behind him. It was a guard commander, a katana gripped in both of his hands. Instinctively, the blood-rager whirled, his great sword slashing viciously across the other man's midsection. As soon as he attacked, Haroldo's invisibility spell dissipated, and he was fully revealed and exposed. Immediately, three more of the Typhoon Guard appeared around him, hacking and stabbing at him viciously. He swung his sword in a mighty arc, cleaving across all three of them. They fell back momentarily, but then gathered themselves and rushed him again.
Boris watched the conflict from the shadows of a nearby rooftop, where he'd flown as soon as the attack had come. Many thoughts went through his mind as he considered his next course of action. For a moment, he seriously considered simply leaving the blood-rager to his fate, but something, some flicker of emotion, held him back. Instead, he flew from his hiding place to Haroldo's side, grabbed the big man's arm with one hand and clutched the coin around his neck in the other. Instantly, they both vanished in a swirl of shadows.
Ameiko watched the events unfold as well. She had just been preparing to rush to Haroldo's aid when he'd suddenly disappeared. She could only assume that Boris had somehow managed to get both of them to safety. She flew quickly down to street level before the guards could spot her, and then blended into the shadows there.
_____________________________________________________________
Some time later, all of the companions found themselves at a large home in one of the wealthier districts of the city, where they were greeted by a frail, almost ancient-looking man.
"Come in! Come in!" he said, ushering them quickly inside, then looking around to make sure they were not followed before closing the door behind them.
"My Empress," he bowed low before Ameiko. "I am Asachi Isao, and I am humbled to have you in my home."
"We are grateful for your assistance," Ameiko smiled at the old man. "Jiro spoke very highly of you."
"I knew your great grandfather," Isao replied. "In fact, when he and his family were forced to flee Minkai, he left much of his wealth to me, which in turn allowed me to elevate my own family in status. In all the years since, I have seen myself as the caretaker of those funds, holding them in trust for the day when the true Amatatsu heir would return. All that I have is at your disposal."
"Thank you," Ameiko bowed to him. "For the moment, what we need most from you is information."
Isao had his servants procure food and refreshments for his guests, as well as bandages and salves for their wounds. Once he was assured of their comfort, he sat with them in a large study.
"There is much that I must tell you of the Jade Regent and the current situation in Kasai," he began. "First, the man who currently holds that title is named Soto Takahiro. He was a lifelong friend and former bodyguard of Emperor Higashiyama Shigure. They grew up together as children. Since taking the throne, however, he has changed. His hand falls heavily upon Minkai. His regency is not at all what the people expected."
"How did he come to claim the throne?" Ameiko asked.
"Emperor Shigure must have granted him the right of regency," Isao replied. "The Jade Throne would accept no other. Without the emperor's blessing, Takahiro would have no mandate to rule, but because the throne accepts him, so too do the people. For now."
"But if things are so bad," Ameiko asked, "why don't the people rise up against him?"
"They have much greater problems worrying them," Isao sighed. "I suspect the Jade Regent's chief magistrate, Anamurumon, has devised many of these to keep the people occupied and ensure their complacency."
"What sort of problems?" Ameiko inquired.
"Starvation, for one," Isao said. "The Typhoon Guard collect a heavy rice tax, taking food from farmers and storing it in a large granary in the city. The soldiers gorge themselves on what others have labored to produce, leaving too little to feed the people. They claim this keeps the army well fed and ready to defend Minkai, but it also weakens those who might take up arms against him."
"The Jade Regent also holds many of our daughters captive . His guards accost women at the city gates and in the market places. Surely you've seen them?"
Ameiko nodded.
"That's because the Regent's seer," Isao continued, "an oracle and diviner named Renshii Meida, foresaw your coming. They know that a daughter of the Amatatsu family holds the last of the Imperial Seals. That is why they search for you in the city and across Minkai, to deny you your birthright, for it would end the Jade Regent's reign. My own daughter, Harumi, is held somewhere in the palace, along with daughters from many other prominent families. Officially, they are 'wards' of the Jade Regent, but they no doubt face nightly interrogations at the hands of their captors."
"Lastly, the people are afraid. The Jade Regent's inquisitors are everywhere. They know our thoughts when we conspire against him, and they drag off any who might stir rebellion, torturing them for information before staging public executions in the marketplace. He'd have us believe that you are an imposter, that the Amatatsu family died out long ago. But I know the Amatatsus. I know the truth. Your return is the will of the gods. Your destiny is to make things right again."
"You honor me," Ameiko smiled. "Tell me, where is the Jade Regent now?"
"Since learning of your arrival in Minkai," Isao said, "he's hidden himself in the Imperial Palace, under the protection of his Typhoon Guard, and surrounded by his closest, most trusted allies: Anamurumon; Renshii Meida; and his chief assassin, knows as the Raven Prince. For now, he issues all of his edicts through Anamurumon."
"Thank you for all of this," Ameiko bowed again. "Now we must decide how to proceed from here."
"There is one more thing you should know," Isao said slowly. "You know Habesuta Hatsue?"
"Yes...?" Ameiko narrowed her eyes.
"She arrived her a few days before you," Isao said. "She thought to secretly rally the citizens into opposing the Jade Regent, but her efforts did not go unnoticed. She was captured by the Typhoon Guard. Now, they plan to publicly execute her tomorrow morning."
__________________________________________________________
The following morning, Isao provided the companions with documents allowing them to move freely about the city. Still, Ameiko took the precaution of disguising herself as a male to the best of her ability, while Boris concealed his features beneath beggar's rags. Then the group made their way to the Imperial Market just outside the Imperial Palace, where a large crowd had already gathered to witness the execution.
Hatsue stood upon the gallows, her hands bound behind her, while four Typhoon Guard surrounded her. A commander stood at the front of the platform and unfurled a parchment. He read aloud a list of charges against the accused, which included treason, espionage and conspiracy to foment rebellion. He also derided the existence of a supposed Amatatsu heir, and implored the crowd to turn in any such imposter.
TheTyphoon commander then stepped down from the platform and strolled through the crowd, his eyes roaming over those assembled. Boris watched the man carefully, studying him. Though he appeared nonchalant, Boris saw his eyes settle briefly on Miyaro, Sandru, Ameiko and himself. Then the commander turned and gave a subtle gesture to the guards on the gallows. Two of them stepped down into the crowd. Boris knew that it was time to move. He pulled a small pouch from his pocket and sifted out a handful of dust. Casually, he tossed it into the air, and as it settled over him, he disappeared. Quickly, he darted through the press of people and climbed nimbly up onto the platform. He stepped up behind Hatsue, and whispered.
"It Boris," he said. "Here to rescue you."
Hatsue grinned.
"I dreamed you'd come," she whispered back.
He touched her hand, then touched the coin, and shadows gathered around them.
"Stop them!" the Typhoon commander screamed when he saw Hatsue disappear.
He pointed towards the other companions, and the guards began pushing through the panicked crowd towards them. Akiro reached out for Miyaro's hand and spoke the words to a spell. They vanished in a nimbus of fire. Nearby, Ameiko twisted a ring on her hand and turned invisible. Then she simply melted into the crowd.
___________________________________________________________________
Interlude:
Hatsue looked around, incredulous. She still stood upon the gallows with Boris, but her surroundings had been drained of color and texture, and the people she saw moving around her looked like insubstantial shades.
"Boris know you are thankful for being rescued," the goblin said,"and he think you need to show respect for this act of kindness."
The sword mistress stared down at him, mouth agape. What was he talking about? "Boris has spent many resources getting you to safety," the goblin continued, counting off on his stubby little fingers. "A potion of fly, and a pouch of disappearing dust, and Boris' time and energy spent."
Looking pointedly at their shadowy surroundings, his eyes narrowed slyly.
"It would be a shame to leave you here if you could not pay Boris back for all his 'kindness.' Boris will expect these items to be returned along with 2,000 gold coins within a week. Boris have the ninja clans on his side, so do not try to rat on him and tell of deal. Boris will always have people watching you. What you say? Return Boris' kindness or stay in this beautiful place where you will never have to worry about suntan?"
Hatsue started to laugh, thinking this some joke the silly goblin was playing, but then she saw the look in his eyes and knew that he was deadly serious. He would not hesitate to strand her here. Slowly, she nodded.
"Good," Boris smiled without humor. "Now Boris take you home."
16 Desnus, 4716 - 17 Desnus, 4716 - The Imperial Shrine
It was near dusk by the time the Scions regrouped at the home of Asachi Isao.
"When I heard about the disruption of the execution, I was worried about you, Empress," he bowed low before Ameiko.
She smiled at him and patted his hand.
"I am safe so long as I have my friends close by," she said. "Hatsue is now safely back with Jiro."
"I am happy to hear it," Isao returned her smile. "What will you do now?"
"I've been thinking about that," Ameiko turned towards the others. "You mentioned something about the Typhoon Guard hoarding food from the people."
"Yes," Isao nodded emphatically. "They keep all of the stolen rice in the city's main granary."
"If we were to...liberate it...," Ameiko asked, "how would we get it back to those in need?"
Isao thought for a moment, then snapped his fingers.
"Once the granary is safe," he said, "I can have people waiting with carts to load the rice and then see that it is distributed discreetly. I would, however, recommend that such an endeavor take place under cover of darkness."
"I agree," Ameiko nodded, "which is why I think we should go tonight."
_________________________________________________________
Midnight found the companions gathered in the mouth of a darkened alley across the street from the massive, warehouse-like granary. No guards were visible anywhere, which itself was cause for concern. They made their way quickly to the shadows of the main doors and paused. Lucian stepped forward, and morphed into his tree-like form. He pressed one gnarled hand against the wooden doors and bowed his head, his affinity with the wood allowing him to peer through them as if they were glass.
"No one," he said at length. "Just lots of containers of rice, various art objects, and some large statues of tigers."
Boris made quick work of the large padlock on the doors, and the group slipped stealthily inside the building. The crates, barrels and pallets were piled so high, that they turned the floor of the warehouse into a virtual maze. The companions began winding their way cautiously through, looking for any signs of security.
"What that?" Boris said after they'd reached the middle of the granary.
"What?" Haroldo asked. " I don't hear any...,"
At that moment, a crate toppled from a tall stack behind them and crashed to the floor, spilling rice in all directions. There, crouched atop the stack was what appeared to be a large tiger carved entirely from marble, its body and face covered in decorative carvings and etchings. It moved like a feline, however, and leaped at the Scions, paws spread wide. Sandru dodged nimbly to one side as it landed, back-swinging with his blade as he whirled. He struck the creature across the face, shearing off half of its jaw. As it turned to snap at him with what was left of its teeth, he slashed twice more with blinding speed, cutting away more of its marble hide. Though she wasn't sure exactly how much good it would do, Miyaro snapped off a shot from her bow. The arrow, much to her surprise, sank into the thing's eye socket and it abruptly stopped moving altogether.
"Watch out!" Boris cried as three more of the great marble cats came barreling through containers on all sides.
The little goblin rolled deftly underneath one as it charged, raising one sword to scour a deep gash down its belly as it passed over him. Haroldo met another head on, his greatsword cleaving pieces off of it as it reared up on its back feet. Lucian put an arrow through the back of its neck, and it shattered into fragments. The third one bore down on Sandru, but the nimble caravan master danced to one side and scythed his blade in a flamboyant back swing, taking off one of the golem's feet. Haroldo and Ameiko joined their friend in fending off the thing, and the three of them brought it down in short order. Behind them, Boris rolled back to his feet and then leaped onto the back of the last of the tiger guardians. He held on like a bull rider, stabbing his twin swords into its stoney hide repeatedly until it finally stopped moving.
The Scions paused for a moment to catch their breath, listening to see if the noise of their battle had attracted the attention of anyone else. The warehouse remained silent. After they had searched every corner and discovered no other guards, Ameiko stepped to the exterior doors and whistled a soft bird call. It was answered a moment later by a similar call, and then men started moving out of the alleys pulling carts behind them. They made quick work of loading all of the grain and rice before disappearing back into the shadows of the night. Ameiko smiled. Her people would not go hungry again.
__________________________________________________________
Isao was relieved and overjoyed at their success, and assured Ameiko that the people would know who exactly it was that had delivered them.
"What's next?" she asked the old man
"I think it is time for you to seek the blessings of the emperors of the past," he said gravely. "Everything else that you do will mean nothing if you do not do this. There is an island in the harbor known as the Imperial Shrine. Only those if imperial blood, or their sworn guardians, may set foot on the island where they can commune with their ancestors. Some even say that Emperor Shigure fled there. If so, you must convince him to return, or ask his blessing for your ascension. Only then can you claim the Jade Throne."
"So, we could theoretically just fly over to this island?" Sandru asked.
Isao shook his head.
"You must not," he said. "The Imperial Shrine is warded by ancient magics that make it impossible to find unless you observe the proper ceremonies and travel there by boat. You must first pass through five torii gates that surround the island before its true nature will be revealed. I know a man who will take you there."
____________________________________________________________
The boat was called the Weeping Willow, and it was captained by an ancient lobsterman named Kadei Ejigoro. He was expecting his passengers, and cast off as soon as they were all aboard. The island they were bound for was less than a mile off shore, and looked remarkably unremarkable. It was heavily wooded, and certainly showed no signs of housing a royal cemetery. Positioned around the island were five torrii gates, their twin vermilion posts rising from the shallow water about twenty feet apart and fifteen high, joined together by an upper lintel painted black. One after the other, Kadei maneuvered his vessel through them. Each time he did so, Ameiko felt the Amatatsu Seal pulse where she kept it in her hip pouch. As they passed through the fifth gate, the island underwent a remarkable transformation before the eyes of the Scions. It was now covered by lush gardens, ornate mausoleums and shrines, as well as scores upon scores of headstones. A single stone dock jutted into the water from the nearby shore, and a rectangular wooden building stood just beyond it.
"I will await your return here," the old man said as he moored his boat to the pilings.
"We thank you," Ameiko bowed low. "Your loyalty and service will not be forgotten."
The Scions disembarked and made their way to a pair of double doors set into the front of the building. They were unlocked and gave onto a wide room. Two small shrines sat on either side of another set of double doors on the opposite side, and artistic tapestries of the celestial realm adorned the rest of the walls.
"These are shrines to Pharasma, and to Tsukiyo, the Tian god of spirits and the moon," Akiro explained.
They passed through the second set of doors and found themselves in a short hallway. On either side were four small sitting rooms, furnished with low wooden tables, seating cushions and sleeping pallets, all resting upon tatami mats covering the floors. A third set of double doors stood at the end of the hall, and beyond that was another, larger shrine. A huge statue of a golden-scaled dragon dominated the far wall, towering almost to the high ceiling above. Smaller shrines sat on opposite walls, and in the corners flanking the entrance, two large braziers scented the air with the tang of sandalwood incense. A robed and hooded figure knelt before the dragon. As they entered the room, Akiro bowed before the statue.
"My patron, Shizuru, goddess of ancestors, honor and the sun," he murmured. "She is also the patron of Minkai, and creator of the Imperial Seals."
Ameiko bowed briefly as well before turning her attention to the kneeling figure.
"Greetings," she called out. "We are sorry to intrude, but we are in need of assistance."
The figure half-turned towards them, and a woman's face peered out of the deep recesses of the cowl.
"You are welcome here," she said in a husky voice. "I am Kiyomi, caretaker of the Imperial Shrine. How can I be of service?"
She rose to her feet and turned fully towards them.
"We have come here to commune with the Imperial ancestors," Ameiko explained.
"Then it is the Imperial Mausoleum on the Shrine of Heavenly Sovereigns that you seek," Kiyomi smiled. "I would be most honored to show you the way."
___________________________________________________________
They followed Kiyomi back out of the temple and onto a paved path that led through the vast cemetery. Head stones spread out in all directions.
"While the former emperors of Minkai are laid to rest in the Shrine of the Heavenly Sovereigns," the monk explained, "the cremated remains of their trusted guardians and advisors, as well as the lesser scions of the imperial lines, are interred here."
"Are any of the Amatatsu line nearby?" Ameiko asked.
"Of course!" Kiyomi exclaimed. "Come. I will show you."
Kiyomi turned down a small side path which ended abruptly before a cluster of obelisk-shaped tombstones.
"Many years ago," she said, "two samurai named Akio and Yua fell in love while serving Empress Amatatsu Maemi. Rumor has it that another among their order grew jealous of their relationship and, wanting Yua for himself, arranged Akio's death. When the murderer tried to woo Yua, she slew him him in turn. Taking pity on her, the empress had Akio buried in a place of honor here on the Imperial Shrine. One day soon after, when Yua came here to grieve, she committed ritual suicide with her own sword."
"That stupid," Boris frowned. "Why she no take new mate? Or more? That how goblins do."
Ameiko gave him a dirty look.
"I think it's very romantic," she said.
Boris shrugged and muttered under his breath, "Boris still say female stupid. Why no...?"
His voice trailed off as a sudden rush of sadness, loneliness and regret washed over him. Without a sound, his eyes blank, he abruptly drew one of his wakizashis from its sheath, and stabbed it through his own belly.
"Boris!!" Ameiko screamed as the goblin dropped to his knees, and then collapsed into a widening pool of his own blood.
"Something's...wrong...," Miyaro said, her voice quavering. "I feel...such grief...,"
"Yes...," Sandru echoed, one hand dropping to the hilt of his own blade. "So...lonely...,"
"It's a haunt!" Haroldo shouted. "Like the ones we encountered in the Forest of Spirits! We have to get away from here! Now!"
Ameiko bent down to pick up the limp form of Boris and began running back down the path. Haroldo seized Sandru's arm and led him away, while Lucian ushered Miyaro. When they reached the main path again, they paused.
"I'm...so sorry!" Kiyomi explained. "I've never felt anything like that before near those graves! It must have been the proximity of your royal blood."
Ameiko nodded. "Perhaps. I think it's best if we reach our destination as quickly as possible."
So shaken was she but what had transpired, that it never even occurred to her that she had not told Kiyomi of her ancestry.
____________________________________________________________
A soft wind blew through the gathered leaves covering an intersection of paths where Kiyomi paused again.
"Something is not right," she said, looking around anxiously. "I have never felt this amount of...unrest in the shrine."
Ameiko, still cradling Boris's lifeless form glanced in all directions.
"Which way?" she asked.
Kiyomi raised on hand to point, but as she did so, the wind suddenly died, and silence fell like a shroud. A cloud fell across the sun, draping the intersection in shadow.
"Beware!" Kiyomi cried out.
All around them, dark shapes rose from several of the graves. They appeared as nobles clad in ancient garb, but their bodies were translucent, and their eyes glowed a hellish crimson.
Miyaro was first to shake off the initial horror of seeing the dead crawling from their resting places. She reached for several arrows in her quiver that she had specially prepared for just such an eventuality. They had been dusted with ghost salt, an alchemical substance that would allow them to affect the dead as they would the living. As one of the shadows advanced, she loosed a volley of arrows into it, causing it to vanish, shrieking, back to the afterlife. Akiro hurled a fireball at a knot of four before they could close to his companions. Though the magical flames did not have their full effect on the incorporeal creatures, they still writhed in pain from the blast. Lucian had also brought along several ghost-salted arrows, and in short order, he took down two of the shades caught in Akiro's explosion. Then the shadows were among them, reaching with their clawed fingers, and whomever they touched felt the cold of the grave seep into their bones, sapping the very life force from them. The weapons of Harodlo and Sandru were limited against them, but far from ineffective. It was only a matter of time before two more of the shadows were destroyed. Akiro encased the last one in a resilient sphere of force that even its insubstantial form could not pass through.
"That won't last long," he said. "Let's keep moving."
______________________________________________________
A strange dust hung in the air among the gravestones in the part of the cemetery where the Scions next found themselves, swirling in small eddies amid the light. Suddenly, the headstones and ground beneath them began to shake violently as something rose from the midst of them. A massive figure, composed seemingly of gravestones, earth, and burial urns soon stood towering above the companions.
"A gravebound guardian!" Kiyomi screamed.
Lucian and Miyaro let fly with an impressive barrage of arrows, not knowing if they would have any effect on such a composite creature. To their immense relief, their efforts were not in vain. The golem reeled and stumbled to one knee beneath the bombardment. Sandru rushed forward, his blade blurring as he slashed into the behemoth. With a groan of despair, it collapsed back into its individual components.
"We need to stop," Ameiko said decisively as she stooped and laid Boris on the ground.
The others gathered around her, keeping watch in all directions for new threats. Ameiko withdrew the Amatatsu Seal from her pouch and set it upon Boris's chest, where it began to glow warmly. After a few moments, the horrible, gaping wound in his belly closed, and a moment later, he drew a deep, gasping breath as he opened his eyes.
"What?" he coughed, looking around wide-eyed in fear. "Where Boris? He have...bad dream."
"You're safe," Ameiko soothed, "but we can't tarry. Can you walk?"
Boris nodded, climbing shakily to his feet.
"Boris run if it mean leaving dead place."
____________________________________________________________
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Kiyomi led the Scions out of the cemetery. Ahead, past an archway inscribed with Minkaian characters, a bridge of luminescent light stretched across the silver waters of a moat. The bridge led from the graveyard to a long, tombstone-shaped island. A large torii gate stood at the opposite end of the bridge, opening into a courtyard surrounded by several stone structures that peeked above the trees.
"Only those close to death my seek the spirits of the ancestors," Miyaro translated as she read the inscription.
"It is not a literal interpretation," Kiyomi explained. "It is more symbolic, meaning that to commune with the dead, one's soul must be at peace. Here, I must leave you. I am not of royal blood, so I am forbidden from crossing the bridge."
"I understand," Ameiko bowed to the caretaker. "Thank you for your assistance."
"I am sorry for our misfortunes along the way," Kiyomi returned the bow, "but perhaps now you will be able to set things to right."
As the companions started towards the bridge, Kiyomi turned back in the direction of the cemetery. She paused some distance away, looking back as the others passed beneath the archway. No sooner had Haroldo, who'd been leading the way, set foot upon the bridge, than a concussive blast of dark energy exploded out from the arch, bowling all of the Scions off their feet.
"Fools!" Kiyomi cackled from a safe distance. "Did you really think it would be so easy? My master would never allow you to leave this place alive!"
She drew back her hood, and from her shoulders sprouted a grotesquely long neck that coiled about like a snake, and razor-sharp teeth filled her gaping maw. She thrust one hand out towards them, spitting arcane words like a curse. As the spell washed over the companions, Boris began babbling incoherently like a simpleton, while Miyaro stared about, blinking in uncomprehending confusion.
"Why you traitorous trull!" Sandru snarled, climbing to his feet and charging Kiyomi.
She tried to get away, but he was too fast, and slashed her across the back as she retreated. She shrieked, and spun back towards him, preparing to strike with her vicious fangs, but suddenly, shimmering bars of pure force sprang up around her, encasing her in a glowing cage.
"That should hold her," Akiro said, climbing unsteadily to his feet. "At least until the two of you can deal with her."
He gestured towards Haroldo and Sandru, and both of them promptly vanished, only to reappear a moment later inside the cage with Kiyomi. She shrieked in panic and began casting another spell, but Haroldo drove the point of his sword into her belly, ripping the words from her lips. He struck again, nearly severing Kiyomi's sinuous neck, and as she gurgled on her own bilious blood, Sandru finished the job.
Boris, still not entirely recovered from his recent suicide, moaned in agony on the ground. Lucian rushed to his side to lend what aid he could, but as he did so, a volley of arrows whizzed past his head, narrowly missing him. He turned and saw Miyaro, no recognition in her eyes, pulling her bow string back again for another salvo. The oracle brought up his own bow and returned fire, using blunt-tipped arrows from his quiver. Each shot was well-placed and true, and the kitsune reeled and fell, unconscious.
18 Desnus, 4716 - The Well of Demons
Lucian finally managed to get Boris back on his feet, and then turned his attention to Miyaro. She was not seriously wounded, but after he'd tended to her wounds she was still somewhat addled and dazed once she'd regained consciousness.
"Sorry about that," the oracle explained. "Turns out Kiyomi was some sort of monstrous servant of the oni. She cast a confusion charm on you. I had to make sure you didn't hurt anyone."
"I...thank you," the kitsune said sheepishly as he helped her to her feet.
"No need," Lucian smiled. "Good thing you're not so great a shot."
Miyaro looked momentarily affronted, but when she saw the grin on the oracle's face, she returned it.
"When we are done here," she said slyly, "we'll shall have a true bowman's contest."
"Challenge accepted," Lucian laughed, clapping her on the shoulder.
On the far side of the light bridge was a tombstone-shaped islet, the Shrine of Heavenly Sovereigns. It was much more expansive than the narrow confines of the neighboring Mikado Cemetery, dotted by quiet groves and peaceful gardens, as well as a small pond surrounded by several shrines and tombs. Directly in front of the scions was a covered stage, raised a few feet off the ground, its roof held up by four cedar columns. Low-lying hedges and flowering shrubs decorated its base with several trails connecting it to the structures and gardens on either side. Past that was the koi pond, a small footpath following a zigzag pattern along wooden planks to a small gazebo on the far side. As the companions passed over it, they noticed dozens of orange and gold fish floating lifeless on the surface, some half-covered by lily pads, water grass and cattails.
"This does not bode well," Ameiko remarked. "This whole place lies uneasy. There is...wrongness to it."
Beyond the pond was a sandy garden, two cherry trees and the life-sized jade likeness of a grieving maiden occupying its center. Alternating rocks of pink and white granite marked its boundaries, where a smooth path circled to a stone structure flanked by twin golden statues of kirin...the Imperial Mausoleum.
Behind the immense double doors of the mausoleum lay five chambers, four at each point of the compass and one smaller square chamber joining them. Each chamber held a small shrine decorated with Minkai heraldry, bowls of incense, and dried flowers, and contained carefully stacked urns of gold, silver and bronze. No sooner had the companions entered the central chamber than Ameiko felt a presence.
"Someone...or something...watches us," she warned.
Just as the words left her lips a figure materialized, floating in the air above them. It was dressed in royal robes, which fluttered around it even though there was no breeze. Its form was transparent and ethereal, and its head floated slightly above the stump of its neck.
"You stand before Emperor Higashiyama Shigure!" the ghost bellowed. "I am the rightful emperor of Minkai! Who are you? Why do you have an Imperial Seal in your possession? What are you doing here!?"
He spoke in Tian, and it was Ameiko who answered him in kind, bowing low before him.
"Your Majesty," she said, keeping her eyes averted. "I am Ameiko, last scion of House Amatatsu. My companions and I have come here to seek the blessings of the emperors who have gone before so that I might reclaim the Jade Throne from the usurper who calls himself the Jade Regent."
"Hah!" Shigure laughed. "Is that what the traitorous murderer is calling himself now?"
"You knew him?" Ameiko asked, confusion on her face.
"He was once like a brother to me," the ghost said forlornly. "My childhood friend and bodyguard, Soto Takahiro. He, along with my closest advisor, Renshii Meida, told me that I would be safe if I came here, away from the assassins who killed so many of my family. But they lied! The only threat to my life came from their honeyed words!"
"Then will you give me your blessing so that I might avenge your death?" Ameiko asked.
"I will give my blessing to no one while my body lies disgraced and dishonored!" Shigure screamed. "I have only curses now for those who survive me! I cannot rest! I cannot find peace! And I will not give peace to anyone else while I am denied it!"
"Where can we find your body?" Ameiko asked placatingly. "Tell us so that we may honor you."
"The traitors cast it into the Well of Demons," Shigure wailed, "a great chasm in the hills of this island! The holy waters of Shizuru pour down into the well to drown the sins of my wicked predecessors. But after the treachery and dishonor enacted here upon a living emperor of Minkai, not even the Empress of Heaven can contain their evil, which extends farther beyond the well with each passing day. Soon the spirits of the evil emperors will broaden their reach into Kasai and beyond, into my stolen empire. And I may as well join them if it means I can face my murderer again. But I fear that outcome, for I know I'll lose myself to it, becoming as much a monster as the ones who took my life."
"That will not happen," Ameiko vowed. "If we retrieve your remains, will you give us your blessing?"
"Yes," Shigure sighed. "If you recover my remains from the Well of Demons and properly inter them by cremating them and placing the ashes in one of the urns here, I will grant you the blessing of the Higashiyama family. But my blessing alone will not be enough. You must obtain blessings from the ancestors of all five of the imperial families."
"How can we receive those?" Ameiko asked.
"In normal times, you could commune with the spirits here, in the Imperial Mausoleum," Shigure explained, "but Takahiro's crime has severed the connection and driven most of the goodly spirits away. You will have the Higashiyama blessing if you recover my murdered remains. It's been a long time since an Amatatsu held the throne, but the tomb of Empress Amatatsu Onoko lies just west of here in one of the standing tombs...perhaps you can commune with her or one of your other ancestors there to request their assent. But you must still gain the blessings of the Shojinawa, Sugimatu and Teikoku families, and I fear your only choice is to seek them inside the Well of Demons. Those within represent the most evil and depraved of Minkai's emperors, but the Jade Throne will still honor their blessings, provided you can bargain for them. Otherwise, you must set things right by recovering my body and destroying those inside the Well. Once the sanctity of the Imperial Shrine is restored, you can properly commune with the ancestors to receive their blessings."
Ameiko nodded her understanding.
"One final question, your Highness," she asked. "How did the Jade Regent ascend to the Jade Throne?"
Shigure's eyes flashed with rage, and the urns upon the stone shelves began to tremble.
"ENOUGH!!" he howled, malevolence flowing off of him in waves.
Boris's face blanched and he turned and fled as fast as his small legs could carry him out of the mausoleum.
"Well that sure went south quickly!" Sandru shouted as he leaped towards the rampaging ghost.
He spun and slashed in rapid succession, and though he felt no resistance as his sword passed through the spirit's incorporeal form, he could see on Shigure's face that he felt pain.
"Stand clear!" Akiro shouted.
Sandru quickly leaped aside, and the wizard unleashed a barrage of force missiles that thundered when they struck the shade. Shigure reeled from the impact, then stretched his mouth wide and voiced an inhuman, bone-chilling moan. This time it was Lucian whose nerve faltered. The oracle dropped his bow and ran screaming in panic from the building. Miyaro hissed in anger and frustration as her fingers danced across her bowstring, firing arrow after arrow. Sandru darted back in and continued his assault, distracting Shigure. Finally, with another salvo from Akiro, the ghost wailed one last time and vanished.
"What are we going to do now?" Ameiko snapped in frustration. "How are we going to get his blessing?"
"Do not worry, my Empress," Akiro reassured her. "Spirits such as the Emperor's are tied to a location until certain conditions are met. In this case, I suspect it is the recovery and interment of his body. Until then, he will manifest again in a day's time. Perhaps by then he will be more reasonable."
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They found Boris and Lucian standing shame-faced among the tombs on the far side of the koi pond. Miyaro handed Lucian his dropped bow, which he accepted with downcast eyes. Sandru likewise returned Boris's wakizashis.
"Boris thank you," the goblin muttered.
"Look there," Ameiko broke the tension, pointing towards one of the standing tombs. "Was that like that before when we passed through here?"
The others followed her gaze to a low mausoleum nearby. It's door stood open.
"No," Sandru said tensely. "It wasn't. We'd best be on our guard."
Cautiously, the scions approached the tomb. Inside, the ceiling only reached eight feet high. Its anteroom was dry and dusty, while an ornate bronze door on far side also stood open, revealing an adjoining sepulcher. Standing in that door was a marble-skinned Tian-Min woman with white feathered wings, wearing a beautiful cloth-of-gold kimono and carrying a traditional Minkai conch shell horn.
"I see you met Emperor Shigure," she said, smiling.
"Who are you?" Ameiko demanded.
An array of swords, bows and casting hands came up in threatening gestures, all aimed at the newcomer.
"I am Empress Amatatsu Onoko," the woman said regally, "your ancestor."
Ameiko's eyes grew wide and her mouth gaped.
"Yes," Onoko nodded. "My ashes lay within this tomb, but I have transcended and now I serve Shizuru as one of Her archons."
Akiro gasped and immediately prostrated himself before her.
"Rise," she said smiling. "We are all here for the same purpose...to see the Jade Throne returned to a rightful scion."
As Akiro climbed to his feet, Ameiko approached her ancestor.
"Please, can you help us?" she asked.
"Unfortunately I cannot intervene directly," Onoko sighed. "I can assist you most by providing you with information. You have spoken with Shigure, so you know about his betrayal by his bodyguard and advisor. Unfortunately, he who would become the Jade Regent convinced Shigure to invest him with the regency before slaying his lord. When Shizuru first created the Imperial Seals, she also created a conduit to the Great Beyond, allowing those in possession of a Seal to make contact with the ancestral spirits of those laid to rest on this island who were once ordained by the seals as well. This allowed Minkai's former emperors to guide their ancestors with lifetimes of knowledge and wisdom, even beyond death. With Shigure's death, and the treachery of the Jade Regent, the island has been left in disarray. Many of its guardians have activated and the wards that once protected the shrine against the influence of Minkai's evil emperors have failed. These malevolent spirits now hunger to extend their reach beyond the island's shores."
"Are these the spirits trapped within the Well of Demons?" Ameiko asked.
Onoko nodded. "When Shizuru opened the conduit, she could not limit the access to just the celestial realms. Instead, anyone interred in the Imperial Shrine would have the means to connect with the island, including those who had passed on to Abaddon, the Abyss, Hell or beyond. To minimize the influence these creatures might exert over sitting emperors, she created a massive chasm that opened into natural caverns beneath the island's northern reaches, which soon became known as the Well of Demons, and she used the sacred waters of the Eternal Spring to contain the spirits of those evil emperors and cleanse their sins from the island. It was into that maelstrom of iniquity that the Jade Regent and Renshii Meida cast Shigure's body. It is there that you must journey to begin to set things right."
"We understand," Ameiko bowed, "and we thank you. If I may ask, may we receive the blessing of House Amatatsu from you?"
Onoko smiled. "It would be my honor, but I am forbidden from doing so until the empress Amatatsu Maemi is defeated. You will find her in the Well. I shall remain here and await you're return. I will offer you what assistance I may."
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The Scions left the islet of the Shrine of Heavenly Sovereigns, crossing the light bridge back to the Imperial Shrine. They followed a path around a small body of water that Akiro identified as the Lake of Tears. Beyond that, a stream from the lake passed through high hills that stood above a gaping chasm in the ground. A narrow muddy path descended into the abyss, winding in a spiral as it passed multiple times under a cascading waterfall formed by the stream rushing down the cliffs.
"The Well of Demons, I presume," Sandru said sourly as they stood peering over the edge.
"Boris not feel so good," the little goblin muttered as he leaned dangerously out over the ravine."
"Boris, be careful!" Ameiko shouted as she reached for him.
As she turned, however, she saw Haroldo swaying and tottering as well.
"What's happening?" Sandru shouted.
"On my word," Akiro snapped, "everybody jump!"
Haroldo and Boris did not wait for his word. They simply kept leaning forward until they toppled over the edge. Sandru cursed and leaped after them, quickly followed by Ameiko, Lucian and Miiyaro. Akiro came last, but as he jumped, he spoke the words to a spell, and in an instant all of the companions ceased their lethal plummet and began to drift like feathers down and down into the darkness.
Eventually, after more than a hundred feet, the roaring waterfall emptied into a massive cavern, echoing off the stone walls. The water flooded the cave before falling into a second chasm on the far side of the chamber. Several passageways exited the cavern, leading to higher ground. As the scions drifted towards the pool, Boris pointed a finger below them.
"Something moving in water!" he cried
No sooner had he spoken than the air in the cavern became filled with noxious green and yellow clouds of vapor that simultaneously burned the skin of the scions trapped within them and made their stomachs heave and convulse violently. Boris immediately gripped the coin around his neck and willed himself out of the trap. A moment later he was standing on a sandy beach inside one of the side passages looking out over the water-filled cave.
When Miyaro struck the water, she inhaled a great gasp of the nauseating gas and immediately began flailing in panic. Her head ducked under water, and she swallowed a large mouthful before she'd had a chance to draw another breath. As she thrashed and kicked beneath the surface, she saw that she was not alone in the pool. Something that resembled a mound of animate ooze that had about its shifting countenance the hideous shape of a half-melted man, swam quickly towards her. Before she could react, it slammed two club-like arms into her, and then grabbed her in crushing bear-hug. She felt what little air she had left being squeezed from her lungs. Just as her vision started going dark and she felt consciousness leaving her, she found herself standing on solid ground. Better yet, she could breathe again! She opened her eyes and saw that she was surrounded by her companions, all save Boris. They were gathered just inside a large tunnel that opened onto the main cavern.
"You looked like you were in trouble," Akiro said, smiling tightly. "And I was getting sick of breathing rotten eggs, so I took the liberty of whisking us all to safety."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Sandru said.
More stinking, acidic clouds abruptly appeared around the scions, just as the creature that had attacked Miyaro, or else one just like it, materialized in the tunnel behind them. Sandru and Haroldo turned and rushed the thing, while Lucian tried to maneuver past it. It slammed the oracle broadside with one arm before the caravan master and the blood-rager managed to drive it away with a flurry of slashes from their blades.
"Look out!" Lucian shouted.
A second creature had appeared out of the mist and was charging at Haroldo's back. The oracle managed to put an arrow into it as it came, but it didn't slow the thing in the slightest. It bowled into the blood-rager, forcing him away from Sandru and its companion. Miyaro, seeing that Sandru was on his own against one of the fiends, turned her bow on the monster. It shrieked in rage and pain and ran towards her. She brought her bow up in a vain attempt to ward it off, but its mistake was in turning its back on the caravan master. Sandru leaped after it, hewing at it relentlessly while Miyaro backed away to a safe distance and continued to pepper it with arrows. Finally, the beast swayed and fell, collapsing into a rancid pile of goo.
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On the far side of the cavern, Boris could hear the sounds of battle, but he could not see his friends due to the roiling clouds of fog that filled the air on that side. Truthfully, he wouldn't have cared much even if he could have seen them. They were capable of defending themselves. No, Boris had something else on his mind. He looked up, craning his head back to see the top of the high wall that rose behind him. There was a ledge and an opening there, and something...something seemed to call to him from there...
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A third fiend erupted from the water just as Sandru, having rejoined Haroldo against the second creature, had managed to end its miserable life. The latest arrival thus had the unfortunate luck to be surrounded by the six scions, and its last remaining moments in the world were brief, violent and pain-filled. As it fell, and Akiro cleared away the cloying mists with a simple gust of wind spell, Ameiko looked around, taking stock.
"Where's Boris?" she asked.
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Boris reached the top of the high cliff wall, scaling it like a spider thanks to the ninja coin that hung from a thong around his neck. Directly before him was a large opening. He stepped through and found himself in an opulent throne room paved with golden tiles joined together by fist-sized rubies. A magnificent bower of silk cushions sat atop a dais at the far end. The goblin just stood there, blinking in amazement and disbelief. It took him several long moments before he realized he was not alone in the room. Seated upon the bower was an imposing Tian-Min man, his hair worn in the traditional samurai style.
"Welcome my little friend," he said in flawless Common. "It seems that you and your allies ran afoul of my jailors."
"You no look like prisnoner," Boris said, narrowing his eyes.
"Appearances can be deceiving," the man replied. "For instance, to look at you, one would not suspect you to be the clever individual that I sense you to be."
Boris shrugged and nodded.
"That true," he agreed. "Me Boris. Who you?"
"I am Shogun Teikoku Sokai," the man replied, rising to his feet. "Once, long ago, it was I who forged Minkai from a collection of petty, warring settlements into what would become a mighty shogunate, paving the way for the nation that you see today. And yet, here I languish."
"Why you here?" Boris asked.
"The whim of the fates," the shogun waved his hands. "Some thought my methods...extreme, yet who is to judge such things? If the outcome serves the greater good, should that not be the main consideration?"
Boris shrugged again, noncommittal.
"Still, as I said before, you seem like a clever fellow. Perhaps I could persuade you to do me a simple favor."
Boris's eyes narrowed again. "Boris know there always a catch."
"Not so hasty," Sokai said. "Listen to my offer, and if you don't care for it, well then, you are free to go about your business."
"Boris listening," the goblin said, flicking one of his large ears.
"There is a torii gate north of the Lake of Tears," Sokai explained. "It's magic is what holds me and my servants captive in this place. If it were destroyed, we could leave the Well and go to the lake above, but no further. We would still not be able to leave the island, but we would be free of the endless conflict down here in these crowded conditions. If you did this for me, not only would I give your new empress the blessing of my house, which I know she seeks, but I would also be willing to give you vital information about my rivals, which you could use to defeat them, or strike a bargain. What say you?"
"Boris say fine," the goblin nodded, "but Boris friends not. Boris know this. They no like evil peoples. They no bargain. Besides, Boris not care about information or blessings. Boris want something that help Boris."
"Very well," Sokai grinned malevolently. "I see that I read you correctly. Know this then: if the torii gate is destroyed, then I will be able to redirect the waters of the Eternal Spring to spill into the bay of Kasai. This would expand my influence enough to create a direct portal to Golarion from my home in the Abyss, thus paving the way for the rise of my new shogunate! The so-called Jade Regent would be as nothing before my armies! And you, my little friend, would hold a place of honor and prestige in my court. All that you wish would be yours for the taking. Now, we just have to convince your friends...,"
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Ameiko's question was answered a moment later when they heard Boris's voice shouting to them from somewhere above. Looking up, they spotted the goblin perched on a ledge some seventy feet above the water, waving and gesturing for them to come to him. A short time later, they joined him.
"Boris glad to see friends safe," he smiled. "Boris meet new friend. Come, you meet him too!"
He led the way back to the throne room where Teikoku Sokai waited.
"This friend," Boris introduced the others. "He old emperor, trapped here by bad oni. He say he mighty general. Help lead Ameiko's army if we help him free."
"What is your name?" Akiro asked, suspicion in his voice.
"Teikoku Sokai," the shogun bowed.
"I thought so," Akiro snapped. "I recognize you from paintings." He turned to Ameiko. "This one is not to be trusted, my Lady. During his reign, he ushered in an age of unparalleled eugenics in Minkai, attempting to elevate certain bloodlines above all others, especially his own. He subjugated lesser noble lines by seizing their property and enslaving their scions to enrich themselves and his cronies. He lost his life in a violent uprising against his decadent rule."
"I see," Ameiko nodded. "Boris. Step aside."
18 Desnus, 4716 - All Good Things
"So it's to be war, then," Teikoku Sokai snarled as the scions advanced on him.
"No!" Boris protested. "Wait dead shogun-man! Boris talk to friends! Everything be ok!"
"I think it's too late for that," Sokai replied. "Your so-called friends seem to have already made up their mind about me. Pity. We could have done great things together."
As Boris stared in disbelief, the shogun's form began to shift and change. He grew taller, broader and more...porcine? Where a handsome man had stood just moments before, there now loomed a towering, corpulent beast with the hideous head of a boar, and arms ending in fatty, four-fingered hands.
"Come my minions!" Sokai bellowed. "The time is now!"
From an archway on the far side of the chamber, a sour-smelling mist began to flow. It pooled around the edges of the room, and then started to rise along the walls, coalescing into vaguely humanoid shapes. A moment later they solidified, revealing a trio of demons whose armored flesh was scaly and moist, with large, toothy mouths gaping beneath hungry, reptilian eyes.
Sandru had seen enough. He lunged towards the demonic shogun, who was now surrounded by a dark nimbus of light. He struck the brute with three quick, wicked slashes, but when he did so, the black light flared out at him, and he felt himself grow weak, his muscles struggling to hold up his sword. From behind him, Lucian fired his bow, putting three arrows into the shogun's chest. Sokai barely seemed to acknowledge the pain. Instead, he drew the dark nimbus in tight around him, and then unleashed it in an ebony explosion. It struck Haroldo, Boris and Sandru, filling their minds with visions of madness, leaving them momentarily dazed and confused. At that moment, the shogun's demonic, frog-like minions began an obscene croaking. As it built to a crescendo, a miasma of greasy, black energy enveloped the scions, leaving their exposed flesh numbed and frozen, and causing Sandru to double over and vomit in revulsion.
Lucian drew his bow string back to his ear and prepared to fire, even though he was no more than a few feet away from Sokai. The shogun raised one mighty fist to hammer him, but as the blow descended, it struck some unseen obstacle in mid-air.
"You're welcome!" Akiro grinned at the oracle
Lucian shook his head, not sure whether to be grateful for the force wall, or annoyed. Instead, he turned and put his arrows to use on the nearest frog-demon.
"Clever," Sokai growled from the other side of wall, but then he abruptly vanished only to reappear among his servants. "But not clever enough."
The demons began croaking again, but then Akiro lobbed a fireball into their midst. It detonated with ferocious force, ripping all three of the demons to shreds. Sokai reeled from the blast, and that's when Lucian put an arrow right through his throat. Gurgling and sputtering, he toppled to the floor. No sooner had he fallen than the throne room transformed. Gone were all the trappings of royalty, leaving nothing behind save bare stone.
As the others regained their composure, Boris scrabbled quickly across the floor to Sokai's side. His small hands moved deftly through the dead shogun's pockets and closed on something smooth and hard. When he drew it out, Boris saw that it was a small statuette of a horse, seemingly carved from obsidian. He quietly tucked it into his own pocket.
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"Boris still not know why you not listen to shogun-man," the goblin grumbled as the scions made their way up the tunnel that led off the small beach in the flooded cavern. "He say make deal. He help us fight Jade Regent and tell us about other bad rulers."
"He was a demon," Ameiko sighed. "Can't you see that he was just trying to use us to get free of this place?"
Boris shrugged. "So? He help us fight enemies."
"Just so he can rule Minkai in the Jade Regent's place," Ameiko explained. "Trust me, Boris, we don't need his kind of help."
Boris shrugged again, but kept silent.
High rock shelves lined the narrow passageway they found themselves in, marred by a forest of stalactites and stalagmites that resembled nothing less than the narrow bars of a cage in the ebbing glow of the luminescent lichen growing upon them. Abruptly, Akiro halted, holding up one hand.
"What is it?" Ameiko asked quietly.
"I've magically enhanced my senses like those of a bat," the mage whispered back. "I can 'see' sounds as they bounce off of objects. Up ahead, there is something...humanoid...near the ceiling. Make ready."
He began a spell, conjuring a small orb of fire between his hands. When the spell was complete, he hurled the fireball towards the spot where he'd sensed the lurker. It exploded, and in its aftermath, a figure became visible, floating gently to the floor. It appeared female, though a featureless porcelain mask concealed her features. Long, twisting horns grew from her head, and a hairless rat's tail poked out from beneath the skirts of the blood-stained kimono she wore. In one hand she held a wickedly curved naginata. As her robe touched the floor, she suddenly erupted in a nimbus of fire, burning but obviously unharmed by the flames. She extended her free hand and cast her own spell, sending waves of power washing over the scions, leaving them fatigued in their wake. Haroldo rushed towards her sluggishly, but as he drew near, she lashed out with her polearm, stopping him in his tracks.
Piercing shrieks filled the air of the tunnel. In the air behind the fiendish woman, a flock of a half-dozen black-winged females appeared, fiery bows gripped in their hands. As one, they unleashed six blasts of unholy magic. The blight struck Haroldo, Sandru and Boris like a shock wave. The battle-rager and the caravan master were rocked back on their heels, but Boris looked unscathed. Akiro quickly hurled a ferocious salvo of magic force missiles towards the immolated woman. She recoiled, but then gripped her naginata in both hands and rammed it straight through Haroldo's belly. The magic of the winged fiends struck again, catching Lucian in its effect as well. This time, however, in the wake of the bombardment, both Sandru and Haroldo were left unmoving on the floor. Boris, again, seemed untouched.
"We have to go!" Lucian cried shakily.
He reached down and seized his fallen companions, then cast a teleportation spell. The three of them vanished.
"I agree, my Lady," Akiro said as he took Ameiko by the arm. "This is not a fight we can win this day."
With Boris and Miyaro gathered near, the mage cast his own spell and whisked the four of them to safety...
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"That sounds like Shiori Heikkaki," Amatatsu Onoko said, "Amatatsu Maemi's handmaiden."
"Handmaiden??" Lucian gasped. "That wasn't the empress herself?"
"I'm afraid not," the archon shook her head sadly.
She gazed down upon the bodies of Haroldo and Lucian where they lay on the floor of her mausoleum.
"I am sorry for your loss, but when you return to the Well of Demons there is an enchantment I can give you that will protect you from the unholy blight of Heikkaki's erinyes servants."
"Go back??" Boris snapped. "Why go back? No one want to listen to Boris when he say shogun-man want to help, and now two friends dead! Boris no go back!"
Lucian whirled on the goblin, anger and suspicion burning in his eyes.
"You were in the middle of the blight just like the rest of us," the oracle accused, "yet you were not so much as sickened by it. Why is that?"
Boris glared back at him.
"Boris not know about devil magic," he said. "Not know why stoopid elves and humans get dead and him not. Maybe because he goblin, and goblins strong!"
"Or maybe," Lucian said, his eyes narrowing, "it has something to do with that coin around your neck."
Boris reached up and gripped the coin reflexively.
"You give coin to Boris fair and square!" he barked. "You no have it back!"
"Onoko," Lucian turned back to the angel, "as an archon, can you not detect the presence of evil?"
"I can," she nodded.
"Then I ask you to assess our friend here," Lucian pointed at Boris. "Ever since he came into possession of that coin, a coin taken from the body of an assassin I might add, he has not been acting himself."
"You no look at Boris, bird-lady!" Boris said, standing defiantly before the archon.
Onoko focused her gaze upon him, studying him intently. Her brow furrowed, and her expression darkened.
"There is great evil here!" she hissed. "Why have you brought this to my holy place??"
"We did not know," Ameiko protested. "It's the coin. It has done something to Boris."
"Which is why it is past time we got rid of it!" Lucian said.
Boris's eyes went black as coal, and he bared his pointed teeth in a wicked snarl.
"Never!" he spat. "You never have it!"
He gripped the coin more tightly, and before anyone could react, he simply faded away, like a shadow in the sunlight.
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Boris saw the truth now. He could not trust anyone, nor anything other than himself. Even those he was closest to, his so-called friends, wanted to take what was his. Well, that time was past. From now on, he would do whatever it took to make sure no one ever underestimated him again.
He moved through the shadow plane like a wraith, descending back into the Well of Demons. It was too bad about the shogun-man. Boris could have used his help, but he knew there were others. The shogun-man had told him. He went down the tunnel where his former companions had been defeated by the bird women, and he saw the horned lady in the mask standing silent watch there again. She cocked her head as he passed, almost as if she sensed him. Beyond her was a mammoth courtyard. Huge, basalt columns held up its ceiling, while a balcony and two elevated platforms looked down upon its ivory-tiled floor. Imperial tapestries of green and gold hung from their edges, and on the far side of the chamber, a decorative overlook provided a breathtaking view of a waterfall as it poured into the misty depths. Perched on the various platforms were the bird women. Boris ignored them. He was in search of someone more important.
Past the courtyard, Boris found a small cavern. Delicate silk curtains hung from a forest of stalactites on the ceiling, and plush carpets covered the floor. A huge bed draped in satin sheets and a multitude of pillows occupied the rear of the chamber, behind a regal throne carved of jade. Seated upon the throne was a beautiful, ageless Tian-Min woman dressed in Minkai imperial regalia, though the two tentacles that sprouted from her head, writhing about her elaborate coiffure somewhat spoiled the image. Beside her, two more of the winged woman stood, attentive to her every need. Boris braced himself, and then pulled out the small statuette he'd taken from Sokai, spoke a word then returned from the shadow plane to the real world.
Amatatsu Maemi's eyes went wide when the black stallion with eyes and hooves of flame suddenly materialized out of thin air, though what truly caught her off guard was the large-eared goblin perched on its back.
"Empress tentacle-lady," Boris sketched a bow from his seat. "Me Boris, and Boris have important things to tell you."
The erinyes devils beside the throne tensed, drawing back the strings of their fiery bows.
"You may tell me why I should not slay you immediately," Maemi hissed.
"Because Boris and friends sent her to kill you by pretty lady with horn in cemetery," the goblin replied, "and friends come back soon to kill you big time!"
Maemi's mouth gaped for half a second.
"Amatatsu Onoko," she whispered. "Is that who you speak of? That heretical b&~$~??"
"Yeah, that her name," Boris nodded. "She tell us kill you so Ameiko can get blessing to become big chief of this land."
"Ameiko?" Maemi asked. "That is a woman's name. Could it be? Is there truly a surviving female scion?"
"Yep," Boris nodded again. "She come long way to take throne from Jade Regent. She have fancy seal and everything. But she have problem. She too worried about what right and what wrong. She not able to do what she need to take what hers. She get bad advice from friends."
"I see," Maemi narrowed her eyes. "So what is it that you ask of me?"
"Boris think Ameiko need advice from ancestors. Tell her right way to kill Jade Regent and take what hers. Boris want to help you help Ameiko, but her friends won't let Boris."
"Then they should be removed from the equation," Maemi smiled.
"Boris think so too," the goblin said, "but friends very powerful, and they have lady with horn helping now. Boris think need more powerful friends to beat them. Boris hear there other ancestors trapped in well. Maybe they help too."
Maemi was silent for a long moment.
"Perhaps," she said finally, "for the right price, they will."
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Amatatsu Maemi and her retinue of erinyes, plus her handmaiden Shiori Heikkaki, left her domain for the first time in decades. She took Boris deeper into the Well of Demons, into the dominions of her sworn enemies under a flag of truce. She introduced him first to Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru, a horned skeletal figure who wore a dark kimono and carried an ornate staff. He was accompanied by a creature that resembled a cross between a lobster, an octopus and a human. Nobinoru at first had no interest in deposing the Jade Regent. He had no yearnings for his former life, as Maemi did. However, when he learned that Boris had actually been invested as a scion by the Amatatsu Seal, he was intrigued. He agreed to lend his assistance in exchange for a small fee...a piece of Boris's soul.
Next, Maemi brought Boris before Emperor Shojinawa Ito, a once powerful necromancer who had transformed himself into a lich, but now only existed as dread ghost, bound for all eternity to the Imperial Shrine. It was he who stood guard over the remains of Emperor Shigure, hoping to find a way to possess the corpse so that he might walk the world of the living again. He was more than willing to assist Boris in his endeavors, but the only way he would be able to lend his aid was if he could possess an imperial scion. He gave his vow that it would only be temporary, just long enough for him to escape the island. Boris offered up Ameiko as a host.
________________________________________________________________
When they emerged from the Well of Demons, they were a truly horrifying sight to behold. Empress Amatatsu Maemi was accompanied by her handmaiden and her aerie of erinyes, while Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru brought with him a half-dozen hydrodaemons, as well as his piscodaemon major domo, Ikku. Last was Emperor Shojinawa Ito, who rode atop a monstrous nightwing, followed by his loyal vassal, a graveknight named Akatsuka Katsumoto.
Amatatsu Onoko sensed them first and warned the scions. There was no question that they were overmatched and could not stand against the united Imperials, but there was another problem: Ameiko could not teleport nor dimensionally travel with the Amatatsu Seal. She had left it in Onoko's care while she was in the Well of Demons, but now it was in her possession once more. Akiro volunteered to stay with her, and Onoko vowed to stand by her, but Ameiko commanded Lucian to leave with Miyaro. When he protested, she told him that he must warn their allies. He had to reach Koya, Shalelu and Spivey again. Hirabashi Jiro had to know that they had failed so that he might not throw his mens' lives away needlessly. Lucian could not argue her logic, but when he spoke the words to his teleportation spell and whisked himself and Miyaro away, it ripped out his heart to do so.
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Akiro and Onoko were fearless and truly a sight to behold as they fought to drive back the devils and daemons. Ultimately, however, the outcome was inevitable, and when Emperor Ito forcibly took possession of Ameiko, Akiro lost heart. He fell, leaving only the archon to fight on. She new she could not win, and Ameiko was beyond her ability to save. Before she could be overwhelmed, she transported herself to safety. It was her duty to report back to her mistress, Shizuru, what had transpired.
Above the battle, Boris circled astride his nightmare steed. He could not bring himself to enter the fray and cause direct harm to his former comrades. Something held him back. There was even a part of him that was gladdened to see Lucian escape. He cared nothing for Miyaro nor Akiro, and he had Ito's word that Ameiko would be set free in time. It was for her own good, Boris kept telling himself. This was the only way she would ever win back the Jade Throne.
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Things progressed very quickly after that. Lucian and Miyaro were able to warn Asachi Isao and his underground rebels in the hope they would be able to evacuate. The pair then fled the city and joined up with Jiro's army, where they reunited with Koya, Shalelu and Spivey. Jiro could not be convinced to retreat. This was their only chance as he saw it. His forces met the Jade Regent's Typhoon Guard on the plains before Kasai. The rumor among the citizens of the capital was still that a rightful Amatatsu heir had come to claim the Jade Throne...and they were not wrong.
While the two armies clashed outside the city walls, Boris, along with the Empress Amatatsu Maemi, Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru, and Ameiko, possessed by Emperor Shojinawa Ito, descended on the Imperial Palace. What resistance they met from the remaining Typhoon Guard was quickly overwhelmed until, at last, they stood in the throne room before the Jade Throne. There they faced Soto Takahiro, the Jade Regent himself, as well as his grandfather Anamurumon, the leader of the Five Storms, his lover and closest advisor, the oracle Renshii Meida, his master of assassins, the tengu ninja Giras Notori, the Raven Prince, and his newest acquisition, the thunder-caller turned vampire, Zula Breaks-the-Wind. Their battle was epic in scale, with Empress Maemi falling before the storm giant oni, Anamurumon, before he himself was slain by Ameiko wielding Suishen. The Jade Regent and the graveknight Akatsuka Katsumoto battled to almost a standstill, but in the end the undead warrior got the upper hand. Boris himself slew the Raven Prince, the power of his coin along with his unholy mount quickly overwhelming the ninja, and Emperor Nobinoru took great pleasure in ripping Renshii Meida's soul from her body and devouring it. That left just Zula who, after Anamurumon's death, found herself free-willed. Having no loyalty to the Jade Regent nor the Five Storms, she pledged her fealty to the necromancer-possessed Ameiko.
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In the end, Ameiko ascended the Jade Throne, and the people were at first elated. Jiro's samurai and peasant warriors handily defeated the Typhoon Guard, especially after the oni learned of their master's death. Still, they did not enter the city, as Lucian was uncertain of what to make of Ameiko's victory, especially when last he'd seen her, she was facing certain death.
As for Ameiko, it wasn't long before Boris understood that Emperor Ito had no intention of relinquishing his new vessel. Emperor Nobinoru, having no interest in the affairs of the living, returned to the Imperial Shrine and the Well of Demons to pursue his own dark agenda. With Maemi dead, that left no one to oppose Ito. He began issuing decrees as Ameiko, immediately instituting martial law throughout Kasai. To enforce his commands, he resorted to his necromancy to reanimate the soldiers fallen in battle, both samurai and Typhoon Guard, as loyal undead minions. The people were horrified and terrified, and Jiro's peasant soldiers' will broke before the shambling corpses of their former comrades. They fled back to their farmlands to the north. A new dark age had come to Minkai
Lucian, Miyaro, Koya, Shalelu and Spivey fled as well. There was nothing more they could do. Ultimately, Miyaro returned to her forest and the kami. The oni had been defeated, but a new evil had arisen. The forest spirits would do as they had always done...protect their charges and wait out the storm. The others returned across the Crown of the World, and eventually back to Varisia and Sandpoint. They never spoke to their friends and family about what they had experienced, nor what had befallen those they had set with on that long ago day with Sandru's caravan.
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As for Boris, he was angry and saddened over Ito's betrayal, but there was little he could do without endangering Ameiko's life. The new Emperor/Empress didn't seem to mind his presence in the palace, but Boris knew it would only be a matter of time before he'd worn out his welcome. Eventually, he slipped away unnoticed and unseen, traveling the shadow dimension north, back to the Crown of the World and that small town where he and his friends had rested once upon a time. There, he walked out onto the ice-covered lake and sat and waited. Before long, she came to him, as he knew she would. His bride had been expecting his return, and she embraced him and welcomed him home. She took him beneath the ice and into the perpetual darkness of the lake to meet his children...
18 Desnus, 4716 - All Good Things
"So it's to be war, then," Teikoku Sokai snarled as the scions advanced on him.
"No!" Boris protested. "Wait dead shogun-man! Boris talk to friends! Everything be ok!"
"I think it's too late for that," Sokai replied. "Your so-called friends seem to have already made up their mind about me. Pity. We could have done great things together."
As Boris stared in disbelief, the shogun's form began to shift and change. He grew taller, broader and more...porcine? Where a handsome man had stood just moments before, there now loomed a towering, corpulent beast with the hideous head of a boar, and arms ending in fatty, four-fingered hands.
"Come my minions!" Sokai bellowed. "The time is now!"
From an archway on the far side of the chamber, a sour-smelling mist began to flow. It pooled around the edges of the room, and then started to rise along the walls, coalescing into vaguely humanoid shapes. A moment later they solidified, revealing a trio of demons whose armored flesh was scaly and moist, with large, toothy mouths gaping beneath hungry, reptilian eyes.
Sandru had seen enough. He lunged towards the demonic shogun, who was now surrounded by a dark nimbus of light. He struck the brute with three quick, wicked slashes, but when he did so, the black light flared out at him, and he felt himself grow weak, his muscles struggling to hold up his sword. From behind him, Lucian fired his bow, putting three arrows into the shogun's chest. Sokai barely seemed to acknowledge the pain. Instead, he drew the dark nimbus in tight around him, and then unleashed it in an ebony explosion. It struck Haroldo, Boris and Sandru, filling their minds with visions of madness, leaving them momentarily dazed and confused. At that moment, the shogun's demonic, frog-like minions began an obscene croaking. As it built to a crescendo, a miasma of greasy, black energy enveloped the scions, leaving their exposed flesh numbed and frozen, and causing Sandru to double over and vomit in revulsion.
Lucian drew his bow string back to his ear and prepared to fire, even though he was no more than a few feet away from Sokai. The shogun raised one mighty fist to hammer him, but as the blow descended, it struck some unseen obstacle in mid-air.
"You're welcome!" Akiro grinned at the oracle
Lucian shook his head, not sure whether to be grateful for the force wall, or annoyed. Instead, he turned and put his arrows to use on the nearest frog-demon.
"Clever," Sokai growled from the other side of wall, but then he abruptly vanished only to reappear among his servants. "But not clever enough."
The demons began croaking again, but then Akiro lobbed a fireball into their midst. It detonated with ferocious force, ripping all three of the demons to shreds. Sokai reeled from the blast, and that's when Lucian put an arrow right through his throat. Gurgling and sputtering, he toppled to the floor. No sooner had he fallen than the throne room transformed. Gone were all the trappings of royalty, leaving nothing behind save bare stone.
As the others regained their composure, Boris scrabbled quickly across the floor to Sokai's side. His small hands moved deftly through the dead shogun's pockets and closed on something smooth and hard. When he drew it out, Boris saw that it was a small statuette of a horse, seemingly carved from obsidian. He quietly tucked it into his own pocket.
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"Boris still not know why you not listen to shogun-man," the goblin grumbled as the scions made their way up the tunnel that led off the small beach in the flooded cavern. "He say make deal. He help us fight Jade Regent and tell us about other bad rulers."
"He was a demon," Ameiko sighed. "Can't you see that he was just trying to use us to get free of this place?"
Boris shrugged. "So? He help us fight enemies."
"Just so he can rule Minkai in the Jade Regent's place," Ameiko explained. "Trust me, Boris, we don't need his kind of help."
Boris shrugged again, but kept silent.
High rock shelves lined the narrow passageway they found themselves in, marred by a forest of stalactites and stalagmites that resembled nothing less than the narrow bars of a cage in the ebbing glow of the luminescent lichen growing upon them. Abruptly, Akiro halted, holding up one hand.
"What is it?" Ameiko asked quietly.
"I've magically enhanced my senses like those of a bat," the mage whispered back. "I can 'see' sounds as they bounce off of objects. Up ahead, there is something...humanoid...near the ceiling. Make ready."
He began a spell, conjuring a small orb of fire between his hands. When the spell was complete, he hurled the fireball towards the spot where he'd sensed the lurker. It exploded, and in its aftermath, a figure became visible, floating gently to the floor. It appeared female, though a featureless porcelain mask concealed her features. Long, twisting horns grew from her head, and a hairless rat's tail poked out from beneath the skirts of the blood-stained kimono she wore. In one hand she held a wickedly curved naginata. As her robe touched the floor, she suddenly erupted in a nimbus of fire, burning but obviously unharmed by the flames. She extended her free hand and cast her own spell, sending waves of power washing over the scions, leaving them fatigued in their wake. Haroldo rushed towards her sluggishly, but as he drew near, she lashed out with her polearm, stopping him in his tracks.
Piercing shrieks filled the air of the tunnel. In the air behind the fiendish woman, a flock of a half-dozen black-winged females appeared, fiery bows gripped in their hands. As one, they unleashed six blasts of unholy magic. The blight struck Haroldo, Sandru and Boris like a shock wave. The battle-rager and the caravan master were rocked back on their heels, but Boris looked unscathed. Akiro quickly hurled a ferocious salvo of magic force missiles towards the immolated woman. She recoiled, but then gripped her naginata in both hands and rammed it straight through Haroldo's belly. The magic of the winged fiends struck again, catching Lucian in its effect as well. This time, however, in the wake of the bombardment, both Sandru and Haroldo were left unmoving on the floor. Boris, again, seemed untouched.
"We have to go!" Lucian cried shakily.
He reached down and seized his fallen companions, then cast a teleportation spell. The three of them vanished.
"I agree, my Lady," Akiro said as he took Ameiko by the arm. "This is not a fight we can win this day."
With Boris and Miyaro gathered near, the mage cast his own spell and whisked the four of them to safety...
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"That sounds like Shiori Heikkaki," Amatatsu Onoko said, "Amatatsu Maemi's handmaiden."
"Handmaiden??" Lucian gasped. "That wasn't the empress herself?"
"I'm afraid not," the archon shook her head sadly.
She gazed down upon the bodies of Haroldo and Lucian where they lay on the floor of her mausoleum.
"I am sorry for your loss, but when you return to the Well of Demons there is an enchantment I can give you that will protect you from the unholy blight of Heikkaki's erinyes servants."
"Go back??" Boris snapped. "Why go back? No one want to listen to Boris when he say shogun-man want to help, and now two friends dead! Boris no go back!"
Lucian whirled on the goblin, anger and suspicion burning in his eyes.
"You were in the middle of the blight just like the rest of us," the oracle accused, "yet you were not so much as sickened by it. Why is that?"
Boris glared back at him.
"Boris not know about devil magic," he said. "Not know why stoopid elves and humans get dead and him not. Maybe because he goblin, and goblins strong!"
"Or maybe," Lucian said, his eyes narrowing, "it has something to do with that coin around your neck."
Boris reached up and gripped the coin reflexively.
"You give coin to Boris fair and square!" he barked. "You no have it back!"
"Onoko," Lucian turned back to the angel, "as an archon, can you not detect the presence of evil?"
"I can," she nodded.
"Then I ask you to assess our friend here," Lucian pointed at Boris. "Ever since he came into possession of that coin, a coin taken from the body of an assassin I might add, he has not been acting himself."
"You no look at Boris, bird-lady!" Boris said, standing defiantly before the archon.
Onoko focused her gaze upon him, studying him intently. Her brow furrowed, and her expression darkened.
"There is great evil here!" she hissed. "Why have you brought this to my holy place??"
"We did not know," Ameiko protested. "It's the coin. It has done something to Boris."
"Which is why it is past time we got rid of it!" Lucian said.
Boris's eyes went black as coal, and he bared his pointed teeth in a wicked snarl.
"Never!" he spat. "You never have it!"
He gripped the coin more tightly, and before anyone could react, he simply faded away, like a shadow in the sunlight.
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Boris saw the truth now. He could not trust anyone, nor anything other than himself. Even those he was closest to, his so-called friends, wanted to take what was his. Well, that time was past. From now on, he would do whatever it took to make sure no one ever underestimated him again.
He moved through the shadow plane like a wraith, descending back into the Well of Demons. It was too bad about the shogun-man. Boris could have used his help, but he knew there were others. The shogun-man had told him. He went down the tunnel where his former companions had been defeated by the bird women, and he saw the horned lady in the mask standing silent watch there again. She cocked her head as he passed, almost as if she sensed him. Beyond her was a mammoth courtyard. Huge, basalt columns held up its ceiling, while a balcony and two elevated platforms looked down upon its ivory-tiled floor. Imperial tapestries of green and gold hung from their edges, and on the far side of the chamber, a decorative overlook provided a breathtaking view of a waterfall as it poured into the misty depths. Perched on the various platforms were the bird women. Boris ignored them. He was in search of someone more important.
Past the courtyard, Boris found a small cavern. Delicate silk curtains hung from a forest of stalactites on the ceiling, and plush carpets covered the floor. A huge bed draped in satin sheets and a multitude of pillows occupied the rear of the chamber, behind a regal throne carved of jade. Seated upon the throne was a beautiful, ageless Tian-Min woman dressed in Minkai imperial regalia, though the two tentacles that sprouted from her head, writhing about her elaborate coiffure somewhat spoiled the image. Beside her, two more of the winged woman stood, attentive to her every need. Boris braced himself, and then pulled out the small statuette he'd taken from Sokai, spoke a word then returned from the shadow plane to the real world.
Amatatsu Maemi's eyes went wide when the black stallion with eyes and hooves of flame suddenly materialized out of thin air, though what truly caught her off guard was the large-eared goblin perched on its back.
"Empress tentacle-lady," Boris sketched a bow from his seat. "Me Boris, and Boris have important things to tell you."
The erinyes devils beside the throne tensed, drawing back the strings of their fiery bows.
"You may tell me why I should not slay you immediately," Maemi hissed.
"Because Boris and friends sent her to kill you by pretty lady with horn in cemetery," the goblin replied, "and friends come back soon to kill you big time!"
Maemi's mouth gaped for half a second.
"Amatatsu Onoko," she whispered. "Is that who you speak of? That heretical b@&!~??"
"Yeah, that her name," Boris nodded. "She tell us kill you so Ameiko can get blessing to become big chief of this land."
"Ameiko?" Maemi asked. "That is a woman's name. Could it be? Is there truly a surviving female scion?"
"Yep," Boris nodded again. "She come long way to take throne from Jade Regent. She have fancy seal and everything. But she have problem. She too worried about what right and what wrong. She not able to do what she need to take what hers. She get bad advice from friends."
"I see," Maemi narrowed her eyes. "So what is it that you ask of me?"
"Boris think Ameiko need advice from ancestors. Tell her right way to kill Jade Regent and take what hers. Boris want to help you help Ameiko, but her friends won't let Boris."
"Then they should be removed from the equation," Maemi smiled.
"Boris think so too," the goblin said, "but friends very powerful, and they have lady with horn helping now. Boris think need more powerful friends to beat them. Boris hear there other ancestors trapped in well. Maybe they help too."
Maemi was silent for a long moment.
"Perhaps," she said finally, "for the right price, they will."
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Amatatsu Maemi and her retinue of erinyes, plus her handmaiden Shiori Heikkaki, left her domain for the first time in decades. She took Boris deeper into the Well of Demons, into the dominions of her sworn enemies under a flag of truce. She introduced him first to Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru, a horned skeletal figure who wore a dark kimono and carried an ornate staff. He was accompanied by a creature that resembled a cross between a lobster, an octopus and a human. Nobinoru at first had no interest in deposing the Jade Regent. He had no yearnings for his former life, as Maemi did. However, when he learned that Boris had actually been invested as a scion by the Amatatsu Seal, he was intrigued. He agreed to lend his assistance in exchange for a small fee...a piece of Boris's soul.
Next, Maemi brought Boris before Emperor Shojinawa Ito, a once powerful necromancer who had transformed himself into a lich, but now only existed as dread ghost, bound for all eternity to the Imperial Shrine. It was he who stood guard over the remains of Emperor Shigure, hoping to find a way to possess the corpse so that he might walk the world of the living again. He was more than willing to assist Boris in his endeavors, but the only way he would be able to lend his aid was if he could possess an imperial scion. He gave his vow that it would only be temporary, just long enough for him to escape the island. Boris offered up Ameiko as a host.
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When they emerged from the Well of Demons, they were a truly horrifying sight to behold. Empress Amatatsu Maemi was accompanied by her handmaiden and her aerie of erinyes, while Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru brought with him a half-dozen hydrodaemons, as well as his piscodaemon major domo, Ikku. Last was Emperor Shojinawa Ito, who rode atop a monstrous nightwing, followed by his loyal vassal, a graveknight named Akatsuka Katsumoto.
Amatatsu Onoko sensed them first and warned the scions. There was no question that they were overmatched and could not stand against the united Imperials, but there was another problem: Ameiko could not teleport nor dimensionally travel with the Amatatsu Seal. She had left it in Onoko's care while she was in the Well of Demons, but now it was in her possession once more. Akiro volunteered to stay with her, and Onoko vowed to stand by her, but Ameiko commanded Lucian to leave with Miyaro. When he protested, she told him that he must warn their allies. He had to reach Koya, Shalelu and Spivey again. Hirabashi Jiro had to know that they had failed so that he might not throw his mens' lives away needlessly. Lucian could not argue her logic, but when he spoke the words to his teleportation spell and whisked himself and Miyaro away, it ripped out his heart to do so.
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Akiro and Onoko were fearless and truly a sight to behold as they fought to drive back the devils and daemons. Ultimately, however, the outcome was inevitable, and when Emperor Ito forcibly took possession of Ameiko, Akiro lost heart. He fell, leaving only the archon to fight on. She new she could not win, and Ameiko was beyond her ability to save. Before she could be overwhelmed, she transported herself to safety. It was her duty to report back to her mistress, Shizuru, what had transpired.
Above the battle, Boris circled astride his nightmare steed. He could not bring himself to enter the fray and cause direct harm to his former comrades. Something held him back. There was even a part of him that was gladdened to see Lucian escape. He cared nothing for Miyaro nor Akiro, and he had Ito's word that Ameiko would be set free in time. It was for her own good, Boris kept telling himself. This was the only way she would ever win back the Jade Throne.
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Things progressed very quickly after that. Lucian and Miyaro were able to warn Asachi Isao and his underground rebels in the hope they would be able to evacuate. The pair then fled the city and joined up with Jiro's army, where they reunited with Koya, Shalelu and Spivey. Jiro could not be convinced to retreat. This was their only chance as he saw it. His forces met the Jade Regent's Typhoon Guard on the plains before Kasai. The rumor among the citizens of the capital was still that a rightful Amatatsu heir had come to claim the Jade Throne...and they were not wrong.
While the two armies clashed outside the city walls, Boris, along with the Empress Amatatsu Maemi, Emperor Sugimatu Nobinoru, and Ameiko, possessed by Emperor Shojinawa Ito, descended on the Imperial Palace. What resistance they met from the remaining Typhoon Guard was quickly overwhelmed until, at last, they stood in the throne room before the Jade Throne. There they faced Soto Takahiro, the Jade Regent himself, as well as his grandfather Anamurumon, the leader of the Five Storms, his lover and closest advisor, the oracle Renshii Meida, his master of assassins, the tengu ninja Giras Notori, the Raven Prince, and his newest acquisition, the thunder-caller turned vampire, Zula Breaks-the-Wind. Their battle was epic in scale, with Empress Maemi falling before the storm giant oni, Anamurumon, before he himself was slain by Ameiko wielding Suishen. The Jade Regent and the graveknight Akatsuka Katsumoto battled to almost a standstill, but in the end the undead warrior got the upper hand. Boris himself slew the Raven Prince, the power of his coin along with his unholy mount quickly overwhelming the ninja, and Emperor Nobinoru took great pleasure in ripping Renshii Meida's soul from her body and devouring it. That left just Zula who, after Anamurumon's death, found herself free-willed. Having no loyalty to the Jade Regent nor the Five Storms, she pledged her fealty to the necromancer-possessed Ameiko.
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In the end, Ameiko ascended the Jade Throne, and the people were at first elated. Jiro's samurai and peasant warriors handily defeated the Typhoon Guard, especially after the oni learned of their master's death. Still, they did not enter the city, as Lucian was uncertain of what to make of Ameiko's victory, especially when last he'd seen her, she was facing certain death.
As for Ameiko, it wasn't long before Boris understood that Emperor Ito had no intention of relinquishing his new vessel. Emperor Nobinoru, having no interest in the affairs of the living, returned to the Imperial Shrine and the Well of Demons to pursue his own dark agenda. With Maemi dead, that left no one to oppose Ito. He began issuing decrees as Ameiko, immediately instituting martial law throughout Kasai. To enforce his commands, he resorted to his necromancy to reanimate the soldiers fallen in battle, both samurai and Typhoon Guard, as loyal undead minions. The people were horrified and terrified, and Jiro's peasant soldiers' will broke before the shambling corpses of their former comrades. They fled back to their farmlands to the north. A new dark age had come to Minkai
Lucian, Miyaro, Koya, Shalelu and Spivey fled as well. There was nothing more they could do. Ultimately, Miyaro returned to her forest and the kami. The oni had been defeated, but a new evil had arisen. The forest spirits would do as they had always done...protect their charges and wait out the storm. The others returned across the Crown of the World, and eventually back to Varisia and Sandpoint. They never spoke to their friends and family about what they had experienced, nor what had befallen those they had set with on that long ago day with Sandru's caravan.
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As for Boris, he was angry and saddened over Ito's betrayal, but there was little he could do without endangering Ameiko's life. The new Emperor/Empress didn't seem to mind his presence in the palace, but Boris knew it would only be a matter of time before he'd worn out his welcome. Eventually, he slipped away unnoticed and unseen, traveling the shadow dimension north, back to the Crown of the World and that small town where he and his friends had rested once upon a time. There, he walked out onto the ice-covered lake and sat and waited. Before long, she came to him, as he knew she would. His bride had been expecting his return, and she embraced him and welcomed him home. She took him beneath the ice and into the perpetual darkness of the lake to meet his children...
Boris is like a cockroach. He's always there...in the dark....