Category Archives: Jade Regent

The Jade Regent adventure path.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

as told by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia himself.

Sunday, 16 Sarenith

The battles aren’t getting any easier, and there’s only so much more I can do with my armor.  So I asked Zos to make me two potions of displacement, which should only cost me 375gp each in ingredients.  Seems like a good investment.

We are heading into the spider’s lair, but Hatsui has volunteered to scout ahead.  Not only is she familiar with the city, she believes she can contact Asachi (the sympathizer) and provide a safe place within the city from which we can base our operations.  Because make no mistake, this will not be a sightseeing visit.  I’ve a hunch that once we enter the city, we will not be leaving until Ameiko is sitting on the throne, or we are dead.

We will be traveling by windwalk and only using teleport in a pinch (Kali can’t teleport anyplace we haven’t been so we can only teleport back, not forward), so this will be a multi-stop trip.  We’ll go as far as we can the first day, and then probably need a few more hours to get to Akafuto.  We know we can move from Akafuto to Kasai in well under a day, so the plan is for Ivan and Hatsui to scout ahead and then we’ll wait until they have a safe place for us all to arrive – and probably a safe method as well.  While there aren’t any Wanted posters out, I have to imagine the equivalent notice has been given throughout Kasai in some manner.  Hatsui, as a Minkai native and frequent visitor to Kasai, has the best chance of showing up by conventional means and not triggering an alarm.

Moonday, 17 Sarenith

Today was almost entirely a travel day, as we went almost as far as we dared on windwalk.  Knowing pretty precisely the spell’s duration, we started looking for a small village at about 8pm or so and reconstituted outside one by 9pm.  We walked into the village like ordinary travellers, but of course, our little troupe hardly looks like ordinary travellers 🙂   Still, our reputation did not precede us, and Dasi set about trying to discern what the attitude here was towards the Jade Regent.  Not surprisingly, they are happy they’re not in Kasai, and they’ve also adapted to a largely subsistence level of living.  They are neither happy not unhappy – the attitude seems to be “it sure could be worse.”  There are vague rumors from the north about a true heir arriving, but such stories have been heard before and they are given very little credence.  Equally, there were also stories from the south, warning of such inane rumors, and the net effect was a collective shrug.

Toilday, 18 Sarenith

Knowing it wasn’t that far to Akafuto, we didn’t leave the village until afternoon. This gave Dasi and Kali tme to give some musical and dance performances reminiscent of the old emperors and better times.  The village seemed to enjoy their performances.  I noticed a child looking at me both a bit fearfully and curiously, and I knelt down next to him. I smiled.

“These are exciting stories, aren’t they?”

The boy nodded.

I glanced at who I assumed were his parents and they nodded as if to say it was ok to continue talking.  “Do you have a weapon of your own?”

He shook his head.  Well, of course not – this was a farming community.  I toyed with the idea of giving him an ordinary dagger as a token, but then thought his parents might not appreciate that.  I wanted for the village to remember this visit, that someday they might tell stories of how the supporters of the rightful heir had come through – wait, that’s it!  “Would you like to see my sword?”

His eyes big, he nodded.

I slowly drew out Suishen, and the boy looked at it.  The boy was taller than the katana was long, but not by a whole lot.  As he involuntarily reached a bit towards the sword, I said to him, “Wait …” and I told Suishen to light the fire.   There was an audible gasp from him and he looked at me.  “This is an ancient sword,” I said.  “It was around when some of the stories you heard today actually happened.”

Glancing around I saw I had more than the boy’s attention now, including several members of my own party who looked very judgemental for some reason.  “It has seen many battles and even now, it would like to see an Amatatsu back on the throne.  It is probably too heavy for you to lift safely today, but perhaps one day you may see this sword again and remember it.  It takes a brave man to fight for a cause on principle,” I said in a moment of gravitas.

And then Suishen kinda sorta ruined it by adding “and it takes a great sword too” and from the look on the boy’s face, I could tell he had heard it too.  He hastily backed away, his eyes huge.  Nobody else seemed to react so I knew Suishen had spoken only to him and to me, insuring that this night would indeed be memorable to the lad, and possibly scarring.  Wait – the look on my companions’ faces suggested they too had heard it.  Sigh.  I gave a Varisian coin to the boy and said, “Here is a coin I obtained in a land many months of travel from here.  Thank you for talking with me.  It has been a pleasure.”  The boy took the coin but his eyes never left the sword – no longer flaming and once again silent.

I resheathed Suishen.  I should have seen that one coming.

Although we waited until afternoon, we were only going to Akafuto  Hatsui and Ivan left early as they were going all the way to Kasui.  Plan was to wait for the word from Ivan that things were ready and then the rest of us would follow.

But that was a fail almost from the beginning.  Hatsui materialized outside the city and walked through the northern gate.  THAT was not a problem.  But Ivan planned to hover over her and see if she had attracted anybody following her or even just watching intently. But suddenly he was surrounded by dancing lights and three archers announced for him to descend immediately.

Knowing that it takes nearly a half minute to full materialize from windwalk, and being able to imagine what might happen to him during that time and immediately after, he instead chose to immediately end the spell.  That made him materialize instantly and fall to the ground – cushioned by his feather fall.  His next action was to use his Word of Recall to return immediately to the fortress, leaving some surprised guards and a bemused Hatsui behind.

And for our part, Zos looked startled and sad, “Ivan’s at the fort.”  About the same time, Kali got a message from Ivan that said, simply, I’m ok but at the fort now, come get me.  Kali was a bit surprised but did that, and upon returning with him, we got the full story.  “Windwalking into the city is not a good idea,” concluded Ivan.

Meanwhile, in Akafuto, Dasi again wandered through the town, chatting and making casual conversation, discerning the mood of the town.  Akafuto was considerably larger than the last village; n fact, I’d venture to say it’s one of the larger cities we’ve encountered (although presumably Kasai is larger still).  The overall attitude was similar to that of the village, but the word on Kasai was more specific: unofficially, visitors are viewed with suspicion.  It’s very close to martial law.  (From the body language, I got the impression that “very close” may have been an attempt to water down the news.)  This is a relatively recent development – within the week – so I suspect our recent activities might have had something to do with the Regent tightening his hold.

We asked about going by boat, but the heightened security would make our arrival no more secret, and it would still take a while to get passage and arrive.

An important detail that Dasi learned was that the Regent would never approve of a new ruler which had not received the blessing of the ancestors.  Now I suspect the Regent really could care less, but the public perception is likely similar.  This suggests that a “legitimate” obstacle to the coup is receiving this approval, and I fully expect that the Regent is going to put obstacles up to impede that goal.  If we fail, he will get more of the populace on his side.

We again arranged for a performance – a little more formally than in the village, but the up side of that is that we actually got a discount on our rooms in trade.

Wealday, 19 Sarenith

The plan has been to head to Kasai, Hatsui permitting.  Ivan contacted her and she said she was with Marika, who knows Asachi, the contact we’ll eventually meet.  We are ready to enter the city.  Once we are settled and safe, we’ll retrieve Ameiko via teleport.

Because of the martial law, we expected there to be be more guards than we’d like.  We planned to disguise ourselves mundanely, and because he’s likely to be recognized, I put away Suishen when we entered the city.

We entered without incident, although the guards appeared to be looking more closely at the women than the men.  Clearly the word is out that the heir is female; they may have even developed images.

Shortly after entering the city, however, we witnessed an incident that reminded me of the market incident.  A citizen was accosted by a guard,, and accused of being a rebel.  After she seemingly “confessed”, they dragged her off.  It seemed contrived, but for now secrecy is more important and nobody took action.  Citizens simply looked away.

Following Hatsui’s directions, we headed into town. We finally met Asachi Isao, who took us quickly from our meeting place to a more secure and private place in a more affluent part of town.  Like most towns, the affluent are afforded less government interference and while we’re not by any means safe, we are safer.

Our benefactor is not just a sympathizer … he’s an old family friend.  Apparently he quietly took possession of most of the estate and is now not only a supporter, but also a source of finances should we need them.  He has, at his disposal, many family heirlooms and belongings that he can sell to raise cash.

Ameiko was retrieved, via Kali, and got to meet a person who knew her great grandfather.  She took that well.

And after being briefed on the situation in the city, she has decided that food for the starving takes precedence over meeting the ghosts of emperors past.  So we are scouting out the city granary, to see if it is feasible to liberate the rice.   We will need help from the populace if we succeed in breaking it open but Asachi believes he has sufficient contacts within the resistance to make that happen.  Now to solve the small problem of breaking in when there are all these guards and the invisible oni flying overhead.  We believe some of the seemingly decorative statues may in fact be enchanted constructs that are guarding the building.  Since they seem to be made of stone (marble I think) we have purchased two adamantium katanas which may better be able to attack them.  This isn’t looking to be easy …

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Sarenith 16 – 19, 4713

Sarenith 16, 4713 (night, Seinaru Heikiko)

We’ve put our trip to Kasai off a day so that we could celebrate tonight with Jiro’s army. I was a little too anxious for a party, but we needed to be seen along with Ameiko so I stuck it out until people stopped caring about who was where and then called it a night. Of course privacy is close to impossible here especially with half the countryside still living in the back yard, but any change from throngs of people was a big improvement.

This whole celebration thing feels premature to me. Yes, we repelled a fairly significant attack, but all the Jade Regent has to do is send another oni or two up here after we’re gone and Jiro will be doing more than repairing the gate. Of course, the theory everyone is working under is that the Jade Regent cares about the more immediate problem which is us, not this place—the ramblings of the atamahuta oni implied as much (there are so many kinds of oni it’s like bird watching; someone should write a book)—and it’s not like he has an unlimited supply of heavyweights to throw at it, but I can’t help but worry. One skirmish is not the war. It’s not wise to celebrate too much until after it’s over and you know you’ve won. Gods know plenty of the villains in this saga have gloated to our faces only to learn that they were horribly, terribly, and fatally wrong.

This business in Kasai seems premature, too. Everything we’ve done up here in the north has been about building Ameiko’s support slowly and carefully, allowing the rebellion to grow organically. What’s the point of all that if we end up racing towards a confrontation with the Jade Regent now? Yes, I know the goal here is to get some blessing from the past emperors of Minkai, however that works, but Kasai is right there. Once we’re in the city, will it be so easy to leave if it is as bad off as we’ve been led to believe? And if my suspicions are correct and the Jade Regent has laid a trap for us on the island, what then? Our arrival is not going to be something we can hide.

I realize we don’t have unlimited time, but the Enganoka province is still in turmoil, and Sakakabe isn’t faring much better. Wouldn’t it make sense to wait for things to settle down?

Sarenith 17, 4713 (night, Kurozawa)

We spent the day sailing on the wind over Minkai, the rippling hills, farms, and lush grasslands of the north giving way to the forest and marshes along the Tagiryu River. The Kyojin Mountains grew taller and more rugged with every mile. One could almost mistake this place for Elysium. All problems vanish given enough distance.

We haven’t traveled in this manner since Qatana left. I can’t help but wonder how she is doing, and what journey she is on with her new companions. I also can’t help but wonder how they are coping, as she is so much worse now than she was when we began and they don’t have the benefit of experience to help them out. Almost reflexively, I tried to imagine what it must be like for them to be…contained to a ship with her at sea, and then I realized I more or less already knew: the caravan across the Crown was little different, just longer, colder, and almost certainly less comfortable.

She said she would check in from time to time, and that I was welcome to do the same. I eventually will, assuming we live long enough, but it’s too soon to do it now. For one, she needs time to adjust and settle (as do we), and for two, with our accelerated schedule we can’t really afford to engage in personal indulgences. So that will have to wait. The stories will be more interesting later, anyway.

We’re not far from Akafuto, which is tomorrow’s port of call. We couldn’t travel that far in one day, so we needed a layover and chose the first substantial village we saw as we passed into the heart of the province.

Hatsue is traveling with us. She’s been to Kasai before and is pretty sure she can help us make contact with the resistance movement. And I can’t believe I actually wrote those words; it reads like something from bad community theater. But regardless of how paltry it sounds, that is what it is and it is help we can use.

We’re taking a slower route from this point on—visiting Akafuto for sure, and possibly another village or two in order to get a feel for the people and the politics—so Hatsue and Ivan are headed directly to Kasai tomorrow morning. Why her and Ivan? She needs him for the spell we used to travel here today, and also because I think he has a crush on her.

And I can’t believe I actually wrote those words, either.

Sarenith 18, 4713 (Kurozawa, late afternoon)

Kurozawa is close enough to Akafuto not be insular but far enough away to have its own identity, and that made it nearly perfect for getting a little information on what people know of events both up north and down south. That being said, no one was particularly forthcoming when it came to the subject of Kasai so it took a bit of gentle coaxing from Dasi. The most telling comment of the day was, “At least we are up north where we’re free.”

To warm the village up to us, Dasi and I put on a few performances, mostly music and dancing inspired by stories of the old emperors. It’s the sort of thing that people love; the old stories are always the best stories (which is obstensibly why they have endured for centuries). It is also a subtle way of reminding people how the empire used to be, and how different it is now.

Rumors of an heir up north—the real north, not the relative-to-Kasai north—have made it this far but, in what was far from a surprise, no one really believes them. So Olmas chose to make a bit of a splash by calling attention to Suishen and its status as an Amatatsu ancestral weapon. (As a side point, we need to talk to him about the best way to start this sort of conversation. Talking to a young child then asking them if they wanted to “see his sword” lacked prudence.) Suishen, for once, actually supported that by calling attention to himself. (As another side point, we need to talk to Suishen about that, too. Scaring the shit of a young child that isn’t expecting a talking sword lacked common sense.)

I had to go pick up Ivan at, of all places, the fortress. The plan was for him to meet us in Akafuto, but that plan did not survive even five minutes in Kasai. He and Hatsue were both okay, but to quote Ivan, “Wind walking into Kasai is a bad idea.” After dropping Hatsue off so that she could enter the city on two feet like a normal person, he tried to keep an eye on her from above. He was spotted right away, and the very organized response included marking his position with magical lights so that the archers on the ground knew where to shoot.

We got hints of this sort of thing from the villagers here. Not Ivan specifically, but on the regimented, militaristic lifestyle that has enveloped Kasai. The other quote of the day was, “The emperor loves order.”

Sarenith 19, 4713 (Akafuto, noon)

Akafuto is the second largest port city in Minkai, a major trade hub, and home to a number of shipyards. It reminds me a lot of Magnimar that way, though of course it is much larger and significantly less…diverse.

So far, what we’ve heard from the people here doesn’t differ much from Kurozawa, though the conversations about Kasai were a bit more pointed. Today’s quote was, “Go there, keep to your business, and come back fast.” Something about large cities like this makes people more willing to speak their minds. I suppose that’s because a sense of anonymity comes from being one grain of sand in the desert.

Dasi and I repeated our performances last night at the inn where are staying. That went well, but not exceptionally so. Connecting with people who aren’t looking for one is always a challenge.

We head to Kasai this afternoon. From both Hatsue and the few people here that we talked to at length, we’ve learned that soldiers there—almost certainly the Typhoon Guard—are searching everyone who enters and that they are paying particularly close attention to women. Which normally would just be creepy and uncomfortable, but now is those things plus unsettling. All that means we need to enter in disguise, and specifically in mundane disguise since we don’t want to be lit up like a signal tower under a cursory inspection with magic.

The problem with mundane disguises is that they are hard to pull off, so there is quite a bit of risk here. What if one of us gets caught? Or even just taken aside for questioning? What if that happens to more than one of us? It’s that last one that worries me the most, as I’m not confident I’d be able to get to everyone to pull them out. And it would be absolutely suicidal to try and fight a bunch of guards in their own city.  So quite a lot is riding on what amounts to makeup and wigs.

(Kasai, evening)

Obviously, we made it here, though it was not without incident. We were waiting in line to enter the city when two Typhoon guards descended on a woman and interrogated her right there in the middle of the street. Through magic they either compelled or falsified her confession, and took her away. This brought back fairly ugly memories of the market in Enganoka. I don’t know what’s worse: not being able to intervene in time, or knowing that you can’t intervene at all and are forced to watch it play out.

In Akafuto they described Kasai as being under martial law. “There is heightened security there,” they said. “If you’re about peaceful, lawful business, you’re fine.” These accounts are either magical thinking or willful ignorance as Kasai is nothing short of a police state. People are questioned indiscriminately for the crime of existing. The guards rule through fear and intimidation. Punishment seems to be summary and brutal. And I don’t doubt that many or most of the people here would sell one another out to avoid having the lens turned on them.

One glance up confirmed what I suspected ever since Ivan returned: there were Typhoon Guard patrolling the skies under cover of invisibility, and probably watching the watchers. There weren’t a lot of them, but enough to form a regular patrol. It is yet one more thing to have to keep track of. It helps quite a bit that I can see them, though, and we can use this to our advantage.

Our contact for the resistance movement is Asachi Isao. He is not just an old friend of the Amatatsu family: he actually knew Ameiko’s great grandfather, and was entrusted with the bulk of the family’s wealth when they fled over the Crown of the World. Suishen actually recognized him and was practically giddy to the point where I thought maybe Olmas had brought in the wrong sword. But then Suishen made some backhanded compliment to which Isao replied, “I see you haven’t changed” and I relaxed. (It’s also nice to know that it’s not just us.)

As the footcab-in-residence, it was my job to teleport to the fortress and bring Ameiko and company back with me. As soon as she was here, Isao got down to the business of explaining just how bad the situation in Kasai really was. Because what we needed was more gods-be-damned challenges.

He broke it down thusly:

  • The city is experiencing food shortages, which means most of the common folk are starving. One of the primary sources of food is rice, but the Typhoon Guard has appropriated the main granary in the city and is keeping the bulk of it for themselves.
  • People are questioned on the street and accused of being supportive of the rebellion. We, of course, witnessed this first-hand. The “guilty” are dragged away, interrogated, and the really unlucky ones are publicly executed.
  • Daughters of several of the noble families, including Isao’s, have been taken prisoner, presumably to be used as hostages. The goal is obviously to keep the nobility in line.

So just those problems, then.

Ameiko is itching to take action. I was pretty dumbfounded by that given how she reacted to my little stunt in Enganoka, but maybe something has changed in her. Either that, or there are just too many indignities here to ignore. Either way, this translates to yet another change in plans: instead of walking into the ambush at the shrine on the island, she wants to raid the granary and liberate the rice.

I’m all for it. I reached my breaking point long ago, so any opportunity to tear down pieces of the Jade Regent’s empire is more than welcome.

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Sarenith 14-16, 4713

Sarenith 14, 4713 (late afternoon, Enganoka)

One of Itsuru’s more immediate problems is that there are dozens if not hundreds of oni infesting his province. It’s like finding weevils in your pantry. Sennaka used them for his personal guard, as his advisors, and of course to project his power when exacting punishment on his subjects so they are quite literally everywhere. Since several of his guard ran away from the fight that removed him from power—and from this world—it’s a good bet that most of the oni up north learned of the regime change long before we had a chance to spread the news ourselves. The rabbits smelled blood on the wind and went to ground, and now Itsuru has to root them all out.

I met with his court wizard. He is capable enough, and he has the right spells, so he should be able to see those oni that are relying on a human appearance to escape notice. That is half of the battle, but unfortunately it is also the easier half as all it requires is a modest sum of gold and a bit of time. The tricky part will be taking action once the veils are lifted; the kind of action that proves fatal, but without spooking the others into running.

Itsuru actually came up with a pretty good plan for that and I honestly wish I could be there for some of it because there is nothing quite like the satisfaction of killing an oni. Except maybe tricking them into walking up the gallows and putting the noose around their own necks, then killing them. Which is more or less what he has in mind. I can’t believe I’ll be missing out on all the fun, but I guess we have larger matters to attend to.

One of those matters was, apparently, making treasure maps from Sennaka’s skin, as has become a grotesque custom of ours. That Itsuru actually agreed to this was pretty stunning, but then again Itsuru was, himself, stunned to find the ancestral weapon of the Higashiyama family sitting in the Sikutsu family vault. So Sennaka had been keeping all manner of secrets, and I guess Itsuru wanted to know if there were others.

There weren’t.

Our meeting with the Emerald Branch is tonight. Thanks to Itsuru’s generosity, we have a bit more money to spend which means we can actually afford to hire one of the ninja clans. We universally agreed that, if we are going to do this then we should go with the good guys; unlike the others, the Emerald Branch is more of a vigilante group. That’s something that is near and dear to us since vigilantism is pretty much our whole thing. That, and presumably they have Minkai’s best interests at heart, and are thus motivated only somewhat by money.

Dasi spent a good part of the day making good on his promise to research sovereign dragons. There’s a whole nation in Tian Xia that’s ruled by one, of course, but that’s probably a bit impractical so he’s looking for something closer to home. He uncovered a bit of mythology (or perhaps history?) that was interesting, but nothing that brought us any closer to our goal. So that particular search goes on.

(night)

This stupid coin is causing all manner of grief and I am itching to be rid of it. While the Emerald Branch was more than happy to accept our payment for their support, their representative spent a lot of time pelting Dasi with questions that suggested they knew more about Kaibuninsho’s secret than they were letting on. How did he acquire such magical talent? Did he have any unusual items or talismans? And on and on. Eventually Dasi just had to tell them that we weren’t spilling all the details because we are not idiots, though he used more diplomatic terms.

Their parting comment was a warning to us about items of power having motives of their own, and to be careful. Everyone’s an expert. While I won’t be so bold as to claim that we know what we’re doing, we do know what we are dealing with so we are in a better position to be handing out advice. Especially since I did the gods-be-damned work that got us there. But, sure, go ahead and share your copious wisdom, gleaned from rumors, legend, and hand-me-down stories. I am sure that’s all very valuable.

To be fair, they do want what’s best for Minkai, and that includes us not becoming the enemy. And, they are the good guys so their motives are genuine. But, still, we didn’t get where we are by being careless so is it too much to ask that you give us the benefit of the doubt?

On the up side, they offered their services for half their originally quoted price, which was pretty stunning and equally generous. Our direct involvement in the coup that put Itsuru in power seems to have gone over well with them. It’s nice when things randomly go right.

Call me a pessimist, though; I am waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Sarenith 15, 4713 (night, Seinaru Heikiko)

The other shoe dropped. Twice. Or maybe there were three shoes all along. This isn’t something I would know.

Both the Dragon Shadow and the Black Lotus clans upped their fees, significantly, after they learned we had hired one of their rivals. They actually used that word, “rival”, despite the fact that the three representatives get together once a month for a dinner date. Supposedly, we had “altered the terms of the original agreement”, despite the fact that there were no such terms. Dasi was able to talk one of them down a bit, but the other would not budge.

I guess we should have reversed the order. But it’s done. We have one clan on our side, and the other two on the sidelines.

Tomorrow we head towards Kasai. That’s about several weeks or months sooner than we were expecting, as the original plan was to wait for Itsuru to consolidate his power here in the north while Jiro raised and trained an army to stand behind Ameiko. That all changed when Itsuru sent to Jiro and asked if “her majesty had received the blessings of the old emperors yet?” To which we all were like, “Huh?” Because I am pretty sure they are all dead.

So that would be a “no”.

We turned to Dasi for an explanation, and even he sounded uncertain. Supposedly there is this shrine on an island near Kasai, and all emperors must visit there to pray for the blessings of a bunch of ghosts. Or something. This culture gets weirder by the day.

We have no idea what we’re going to find there because of course no one knows anything about it save for the past emperors of Minkai, and they are all dead and thus not talking. It also seems like a good place for a trap since the Jade Regent knows about us, about Ameiko, and it’s a fair bet he also knows the same stories. So the plan is for us to go on ahead (with the Seal, just in case it comes up on this little errand), make sure it’s reasonably safe, and then teleport back to get Ameiko in the hopes that we can avoid unpleasant surprises.

Sarenith 16, 4713 (late morning, Seinaru Heikiko)

The unpleasant surprise came to us. Several oni and their fire giant lackies attacked the fortress this morning, rudely interrupting breakfast. Unlike the oni we’ve dealt with in the past, these were no pushovers and it took a bit of effort to bring them down, especially with our spells bouncing harmlessly off them. So the Jade Regent is finally taking us seriously, and has stopped sending in his second stringers.

The fire giants, as it turns out, were just hired help. How do you hire a giant? Is there some job fair where you can go to find fire giants that are looking for work? Do you put up enormous “Now hiring!” signs in the mountains? Maybe being the errand boy for a fire yai oni is a coveted position. I am sure they thought this was going to be an easy gig where they smash a bunch of humans and then go home with whatever it is a giant takes for payment. And they certainly did manage to kill a few of Jiro’s troops, but only one of them will be returning and he wasn’t in the mood to talk about his career goals.

Speaking of Jiro’s troops, they performed surprisingly well especially considering what they were up against. Though they did have some help from Shalelu and Ameiko, his archers nearly took down one of the giants on their own while we were tangling with the atamahuta oni and their fire yai leader. It’s not easy seeing people die defending your cause, but the rest of the budding soldiers here are looking ahead, not behind. To them it’s not a somber moment, but rather a cause for celebration and those that died will be remembered for their commitment, sacrifice, and accomplishments. It’s a little weird, celebrating someone’s death, but I understand where they’re coming from. It’s not often you can say, “we repelled an attack from giants, demons, and giant demons”.

Radella is taking possession of the coin and it was a little unsettling seeing a new symbol appear as it accepted her. So here we go. This will buy us the time we need to figure out how to get rid of the damn thing.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

as told by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia himself.

Starday, 14 Sarenith

We were able to set up a meeting with the Emerald Branch this evening with little trouble.  Before then, I would have time to do a little shopping.

My enhanced bow doesn’t take full advantage of my strength.  I’ve been wearing my magical belt long enough that I’m stronger than I used to be.  Ivan says he can create a bow like he has, that adapts to whatever the user’s strength is, if I provide him with a masterwork composite bow.  It’ll be a shame to see this old bow go, but I can sell it and use that plus a bit more to get a new bow and let Ivan work on it.  I don’t use the bow that often but those times I do, I’ll want to really make those arrows count.

We made a point of telling Itsuru what Zos’s treasure maps revealed, and also warned him about oni on his staff.  He agreed that was a disagreeable state of affairs, so after Kali discreetly scanned his core staff with True Seeing, told him they were good, and discussed a plan to bring the rest of the staff in a few at a time, and his court wizard – who already knew True Seeing – would be able to check them. Failures would be quietly dispatched.

Dasi, meanwhile, was working hard to find a friendly neighborhood sovereign dragon.  Turns out that not-so-nearby Xa Hoi is supposedly ruled by sovereign dragons, but our chance of meeting our commitments here and getting there too before the new moon is small (though not zero I admit).

(Later)

I wasn’t there, of course, but I’m told the meeting with Emerald Branch went surprisingly well, along these lines:

We killed the assassin.
“Have you proof?”
We have his distinctive nun-chuks here.  And his flute.
“We’ll need to verify.”
Of course.  We want you as an ally.
“We are impressed.  Only 10K.”
<surprise> Graciously accept.
“How did you kill ninja?”
Tired him with nightmares.
“Ah.  Did the assassin have other belongings?”
Of course.
“Like what?”
Disguise kit.
“Pft. Any magic?”
The nunchuks are magic.
“Hmm. Right. The other clans may be more curious than we, ally.  Tread carefully.”
Thank you for your wisdom.

Dasi was talking, so of course it actually took longer than that.

After the pleasant surprise of getting an ally for 10K less than we thought we would, we arranged meetings with the other two clans for the next day.

Kali cast codespeak so we could have a frank conversation about the coin.  We’ll let them suspect what they want but we won’t admit to possession of the coin to any of them.

Sunday, 15 Sarenith

Our first meeting with a ninja clan was with Dragon Shadow.  That one, I’m told, didn’t go as well.

“Why are you here?”
Killed the assassin. Want you to remain neutral.
“Really? Heard you hired the other clan.  Neutral will cost 10K now.”
<bargain>
“Agree on 7000.”
Give you 7500.
“You negotiate strangely.”

Two hours later, it was with Black Lotus

“Why are you here?”
Killed the …
yeah, more of the same.
Except they wanted 10K and wouldn’t negotiate.

And again, Dasi, so …

Dasi continued his research, this time seeing if the dragon in the Amatatsu family crest had origins in a sovereign dragon.  (Probably, since legend had it that 5 sovereign dragons were the founders of the five royal families.)

Our work seemed done in Enganoka.   We teleported to the fort to discuss plans with Jiro.

While we were talking with Jiro, he formally pledged to Itsuro.  He mentioned that, in a sending, Itsuro had asked if Ameiko had sought the blessings of the old emperors yet.

We all said … ??  Tell us more?

Apparently there is a shrine on a small island off the coast of Kasai, where every emperor has stopped and sought the blessings of emperors previous.  It would seem that we – well, Ameiko – have another stop to make.

And then the coin.  Everything comes back to the coin.  Can’t let it go, can’t pick it up.  Ivan made a point of touching it briefly so that he’d be better able to use Locate Object later if it left us.  But then Radella surprised me … surprised everyone, I think … by announcing she was going to take it.

She picked it up, put it on, and waited for something to happen.  Judging from the distracted look on her face, I think something TRIED to happen, but then she looked okay again, and she looked down at the coin.  I saw it now had a 7th symbol on it … I guess that means it accepted her.

I’m not sure I’m happy about that, but it was clearly her choice.

Moonday, 16 Sarenith

We rose early, as we often do.  I was considering if I should suggest another training session for the green troops, although, to be honest, the chance of attack was much smaller now that Itsuru was the daiymo.

But I was wrong.

Not a half hour after rising, we heard a loud boom from the direction of the courtyard, and an immediate babble of voices.  Involuntarily we all stood up and looked through solid walls in that direction, even as we heard a voice say quite clearly, even though we were not near:

“Bring. Me. The. Amatatsu. Heir.”

I glanced at Ameiko.  “Do NOT. I got this.”  She smirked and said, “I’ll take care of the inner defenses,” as she drew her rapier with, I swear, a gleam in her eye.  I told Suishen “flame on” and moved towards the courtyard.  Shalelu followed Ameiko and Koya began pulling out the things she needed to do healing.  Many people would probably need that today.

“Wait!” called Zos, and did his alchemical thing.  I immediately felt myself moving faster. Ivan also cast a blessing over most of the group and it was the same thing Qatana used to do.  And Dasi, of course, began to sing a song of inspiration.  “Yes, good,” I said and moved out.

Outside waiting for us were a small group of young fighters … and two – make that three – towering monstrosities and several fire giants.  From inside I heard Ameiko yell, “Archers! Focus on one target! Take the one closest to the inner wall and shoot until it falls!”

It wouldn’t have been all that long ago when finding a dinosaur appearing several yards in front of me would have given me pause, but when exactly that happened, I spared a quick glance over my shoulder and sure enough, Kali was grinning.

I saw one of the monstrosities leap down from the upper wall, but land a little too softly. Fliers, I thought, and as I continued to advance to the battle I said quietly to Suishen “Air walk.”

A wall of fire tried to separate us but almost as soon as it appeared, it disappeared.  I finally got close to one of the big uglies, and bloodied him up a fair amount.  Ivan turned him into a pincushion and he responded by turning into smoke and threatening to drift away,  However, another set of toadstickers from Ivan and .. well, it seems that Ugly wasn’t entirely smoke, because they actually killed him.

A bright flash alerted me to a round of chain lightning, and since it didn’t hit me, I presumed I could thank Kali later for that. I picked out another big guy and marched over to him.

Between us and the dinosaur, we beat up these uglies pretty well.  And pretty quickly.  Radella seemed her usual self, despite the coin hanging around her neck.  And then just when I thought the battle was over, Zos, Kali, and Ivan all disappeared and I heard their voices from outside the busted front gate.  Apparently they did something with or to one last fire giant that, I don’t know, I’ll have to ask them about when things settle down.

For now we have a front gate to repair, many people to heal, and a (hopefully small) number to mourn.  And a quick inventory of newly transferred possessions:

[740] potion of fly
[741] potion of fly
[742] monk’s spade (?)
[743] monk’s spade (?)
[744] fosail-hoselu (sp?) [chain mail equiv]
[745] fosail-hoselu (sp?) [chain mail equiv]
[746] 3 great swords

Character: Ivan

Ivan’s Journal

Exiting the portable hole Ivan hands a cinnamon roll to Koya before heading over to Hatsue .

“You know we could use an extra pair of hands to help get everything ready for tomorrow” whispers Ivan to Hatsue as Ivan hands her the last cinnamon roll and then proceeds to cast beacon (status) on Hatsue.

“Be right back” says Ivan has he walks over and retrieves his quiver and bag of holding from Radella. Ivan is unclear if the response from Hatsue was an acknowledgement or if she was simply enjoying the cinnamon roll.

“Thanks” Ivan says as Radella hands over the equipment. He can’t tell if she suspects something or not. It’s the same feeling that he gets each time and thus far she hasn’t felt the need to interfere.

Hatsue finishes up the cinnamon roll as they arrive at the doorway to the storage room. They only had to wait a few minutes before the door opened and Akiko, Honamiyo, Miiko, Tamae, Yoire, Naomi, and Remi enter the storage room.

“Ok. As normal we will start with your treats” says Ivan as he hands out a cinnamon roll to each of the women.

“Don’t worry I also picked up one so that you can give one to Jiro” continues Ivan as he sets the cinnamon roll down on the shelf.

“I saw Jiro heading back to his office so once you finish your treat you can go present your gift. Today I brought help so we will start getting everything ready while you talk with Jiro.” Continues Ivan

“ok” replies Remi

“So this time is a little different than the ones in the past. I know this is old hat for all of you but since we have someone new let’s just review everything while you eat your cinnamon roll” says Ivan

“Firstly everyone gets a ration of food which today is your containers filled up 6 times with dried beans. I know that I am repeating myself but this is each person and not each family.” Says Ivan

“I still insist that pregnant women get an additional ration as they are eating for two and it is important for mother and baby to get plenty of food. Like before I leave the decision of determining which women are pregnant completely up to you. I am not qualified to figure out which women are pregnant and I am not about to start asking women if they are pregnant.” continues Ivan

Ivan pulls another bag out and sets it down “What is new this time is that we are also going to give everyone in the fort 3 pieces of these sweets, including Jiro and his people. These are tough times and everyone deserves something a little special. You can of course give the children an extra piece of candy“

“In the past I have asked you to not share where this food is coming from to anyone. Except I did tell you to always tell the truth to Hatsue, Jiro, and Amieko. It was important to me to let my companions discover their own path. You can now honestly tell people that this food is provided by those that follow the heir.  If you are question by my companions you are free to tell them the truth” says Ivan

Ivan motions towards the door “Ok now go talk to Jiro while he is still in if office”

Hatsue describes in details the ideas behind the end game Tsume shogi as the two of them get the food ready for distribution in the morning. Just as they were finishing up the preparations  the door opens and the women re-enter the storage room.

“Are you still talking about the game?” says Akiko

“Yep, maybe someday I will get far enough into a game with Hatsue to try one of these strategies. Anyway perfect timing as we are done.” replies Ivan

As Ivan and Hatsue leave the store room Ivan says “how about you show me one of those moves on the board before we play an actual game”

Ivan and Hatsue head back to the common area.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

as told by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia himself.

Wealday, 11 Sarenith

The pending battle with Sennaka, and the unfortunate coin has led to more talking and disagreement within our group than anything I can remember since we came together. At the very least, it required a frank conversation with Ameiko to discuss her dual role as both cargo and unknown national ruler. It was an awkward and uncomfortable conversation to have with a friend, but these are awkward and uncomfortable times. Kali sort of moderated.

For her part, Ameiko acknowledged that she cannot be part of every battle, because strategically speaking, some things need to happen to help her reach the throne, but she cannot be seen to have initiated them. And practically speaking, it is too risky for the presumptive heir to risk her life in every confrontation. While she (and we) are skilled, all it takes is one lucky blowdart, one lucky blow, one arrow with the right bane or the right poison, and the whole campaign would be for naught. (True, there are we scions, but using any of us loses the benefit of blood connection to the throne that I feel will truly galvanize the population eventually.)

This acknowledgment means a lot to me, because she is giving me permission to be her agent rather than simply her protector. Yes, of course, if she is in danger I will rush to her side as soon as possible, but I need not be tethered to her waiting for that moment. I feel like I am part of the group again, able to help with things that need to be done and not feeling guilty for leaving Ameiko “unprotected.” As our circle of supporters grow, more and more places will be safe for her, with more and more people able to help protect her.

She agreed to stay behind at the fort while we deal with Sennaka. There is no small risk staying here, either, but it gives her an opportunity to be a leader in front of a handful of “her people” and a couple of very important “others” (that is, Jiro and Hatsui). Ten years from now, perhaps these people will be telling how “I met the empress before she was empress”. Additionally, if we are successful in overthrowing Sennaka, the risk here at the fort may even fall to zero.

For his part, Zos is leaving his animated Gorgon and told it to obey Ameiko.
Dasi is leaving the magical samisen, on the possibility that Ameiko would need it to scry.
And Ivan is leaving three magic weapon scrolls, since if oni attacked, most of the archers and swordsmen would not have enchanted weapons and so would not be able to damage them at all.

Oathday, 12 Sarenith

I thought I saw Qatana briefly this morning, or maybe heard her voice but she’s nowhere around now. I asked Kali, who distractedly said Qatana will not be joining us at the resort. There’s more to this but we are on a schedule now and in a hurry to get back to the resort. Because Qatana’s not here, Kali will have to use teleports to get us back to the clearing we were at before.

Arriving there, Dasi and Kali, along with one of the Pawns, will tour the resort under the premise of being new workers, giving us yet another scouting of the rooms. I also learned that the Pawns speak Minkai or Tien; increasingly it seems I need to study the Minkai language as my increasing mastery of Tien seems insufficient. Sigh. Why can’t they all just speak Common like back home?

Sennaka is expected tonight or tomorrow. A quick trip by Nehali confirmed he was about where we expected, and strongly suggested his arrival would be tomorrow. We are discussing our strategy, which seems to simply be a frontal assault. We are trusting the army to be held back by the Pawns, leaving us to deal with Sennaka and the guards. There was some surprise at the concept that he would be offered the opportunity to surrender, but I feel from what I know of this culture’s code of Honor, it is a necessary thing to do. His almost certain refusal will provide us the moral and possibly legal right to kill him, should it ever be questioned closely.

Of course, if there are no survivors, that will be unnecessary. But best to have a plan B.

Fireday, 13 Sarenith

This should be the day.

At 7:30am we broke camp. We expect Sennaka to arrive around noon, and while we are out of sight, it seems prudent to be virtually invisible rather than simply out of sight. And this proved wise, as a couple of advance guards did arrive a bit before noon, and examined the very area we had camped. We watched silently from within the woods. Nehali reported that most of the artisans were gone. Seemed that Sennaka must be close.

It was around 2:30 when we observed a small group marching up the road towards us. About half looked like ordinary guards and half looked a bit more buff … personal guards or samurai probably. By agreement, the Pawns would wait for a sign from Nehali that we were beginning our attack before blocking the army, which was camping further away from the resort. It looked like we may have 10-15 warriors to defeat. Now just give them a chance to spread out a bit …

It was 5:30 when we used our last trick – an arcane eye to give us an up-to-date scouting report. Carefully noting where the guards were now located, we prepared: a magic circle against evil for me, and flame on. Zos and Kali went invisible. Word was sent to the Pawns. And the four of us – Radella, Ivan, Dasi, and myself – appeared in the room with Sennaka, his advisor Kazuo, and many guards.

We surprised them, but my count was off. It was more like 20-25 guards and samurai total, but fortunately they WERE still spread out over the resort. It took some of them 10-15 seconds to reach us. And by that time, frankly, we had been hasted, and the ones in the immediate room had encountered chain lightning, scorching rays, flurries of arrows, and some sharp swords. Almost all were wounded, and probably half were dead. As I worked my way steadily towards Sennaka I called out to him to surrender and he called back, with derision, that he challenged me to the death! I returned the favor.

And while around me guards, samurais, and advisors bled, fell, and were frozen in place, it took only 12 seconds and eight swings of Suishen to end a tyrant’s reign. And find that his advisor was, no surprise, an oni.

Immediately we turned to the samurai and demanded they now declare loyalty to the new ruler of the province. With contempt, one spat “You?”

“No,” I replied. “Sennaka’s brother Itsuru is the rightful heir. We do not take this office for ourselves. We represent the rightful heir to the throne, who opposes the injustice, the indiscriminate killing, and the collaboration with oni. A challenge was lawfully issued, accepted, and resolved. There is no additional conflict, and we understand that honor required you defend Sennaka. But he is dead now. We will heal your wounded and you may take control of the grounds as you wait for Itsuru’s arrival if you agree to cease fighting.” The remaining samurai hesitated, exchanged glances, and then agreed.

We spent time healing ourselves, the samurai, and eventually the Pawns as well. We took proof of Sennaka’s death to quell the army, as well, and the found it even easier to follow a new leader.

Although it’s unclear right now how much we can legitimately take and how much needs to pass to Itsuru, we did take inventory.

From Sennaka:
[715] darkwood box w/family sigil
[716] 2 potions of shield of faith
[717] 2 potions of bull strength
[718] potion of CMW
[719] potion of dark vision
[720] potion of lesser restoration
[721] armor (magic)
[722] +2 katana
[723] +1 composite longbow
[724] 20 arrows
[725] dagger
[726] MW wakazashi
[727] belt of mighty constitution +2
[728] cloak of resistance +2
[729] banner (magic)

From Kazuo:
[730] MW tetsubo
[731] composite longbow (large) +6 ST
[732] MW tatomodu armor
[733] 20 arrows

and from the other fallen:
[734] 6 leather armor
[735] 6 wakazashi
[736] 12 thunderstones
[737] 6 composite longbow +4 ST
[738] 120 arrows

Ivan did a quick sending to Ameiko, who sent back her congratulations and appreciation.

Kali again teleported us back to the fort.

Starday, 14 Sarenith

After a restful evening at the fort, we arose and travelled to Enkanoka. We needed to bring Itsuru up to date. We gave him the full story and told him there were samurais waiting for him. Dasi provided a compelling story with all the proper flourishes. In gratitude for our helping solve this problem, Itsuru provided us with

[739] ancestral longbow (magic)

10,000 gold pieces

We got permission to use Sennaka’s body to make treasure maps (ok, it wasn’t QUITE that forthcoming but we did make it clear we’d be using some of his skin and Itsuru did not object) and they revealed

stables from the resort
treasury in the palace
area of new excavation in the resort

We will not be touching the treasury, but the others we intend to go back and check out …

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Sarenith 12-13, 4713

Sarenith 12, 4713 (morning, Shuryo Onsen)

I don’t know how I am going to pull off this charade today while I am sick to my stomach. It’s been several hours now and Qatana still hasn’t returned, and I have no idea what’s going on with her. I’ve got this sinking feeling that she’s just not coming back.

When I came into the dining hall this morning most of the others were already there and they were still mulling over what to do about the coin. Which means we’ve made no progress since I went to bed last night when we were waffling over whether to sell it to one of the clans, try to take possession of it, or just hold on to it for the next couple of weeks while we figure out what to do. That last one is basically just stalling; avoiding making the decision because that’s easier than agreeing on one. And who knows? Maybe we’ll figure something out. Before he turned in, Dasi said something about researching sovereign dragons which means the plan could conceivably be: find where one lives, drop in for a visit and ask it politely if it wouldn’t mind eating a minor, evil artifact.

If that sounded absurd then, it seemed even more so this morning. Qatana came into the room in the middle of that discussion and I guess she had finally had enough. “This is ridiculous,” she said. And then she vanished.

She didn’t turn invisible—I would have still seen her—so she was definitely gone. Knowing what I know about her spells? She must have shifted to some other plane. It’s the only explanation that fits. I imagine this was her way of expressing her opinion on the debate.

At the time I just figured she wanted a break from it all, but after an hour or so went by and we were getting ready to leave and there was still no sign of her? That’s when I started worrying. Still, she knew where we were headed and when we’d be there, so I thought to myself, Maybe she’ll just catch up with us later, but of course now it’s later and there’s still no Qatana.

I know she has been unhappy with how events have played out, and given her history she has little tolerance for what we’ve seen since our arrival here. The past few days have been a poison in the air, choking the life out of us and maybe she is just done with it all. I guess there’s a part of me that would not be surprised if that were so, and perhaps has even wondered why she’s stayed as long as she has. She spent the worst part of her life in a city where people were frequently indulgent of the worst of humanity. Here, they are willfully ignorant of it because their society values doctrine over ethos; it’s codified into their culture and leafed in gold. The ideal is that you become a good servant, not that you serve good.

A few do manage to rise above this. Certainly Jiro. The Nine Pawns as well (though classism is alive and well there). They see blind adherence to this archaic code of honor for what it is: an easy way out of personal and societal responsibility. As long as you can say you are doing your duty, you don’t have to make any hard choices. It’s a system that lets people like Sennaka commit atrocities with legal authority and no consequences. How messed up is that?

(late afternoon)

One of the Nine Pawns gave Dasi and me a tour of the resort under the guise that we were artisans hired to do something-or-other as part of the renovations. We didn’t really have a plan beyond me being a sculptor and Dasi being…whatever it was he was supposed to be. Because, really, no one cared. We looked a part and that’s all that mattered. What few workers even paid attention to us probably just figured “they’re here to do a thing” and never gave it a second thought.

Radella, Ivan and Zosimus stayed behind because they took the self-guided version last night while I was casting my spell to eavesdrop on Kaibuninsho. The point of doing all this was to get familiar with the facility, figure out where Sennaka would most likely be spending his time, and where guards would likely be stationed. That took us all of about 10 minutes, but to avoid suspicion we needed to stretch it out. It took Radella & Co. quite a bit longer, mostly because they were skulking around in the dark trying not to be seen.

Like most luxury properties in Minkai, this one sports shoji walls and doors. Paper is great for interior lighting but lousy on privacy. I can’t imagine trying to have an intimate moment with someone when you can literally be heard, and possible seen, from across the building. Not that this is going to be an issue for me personally—I don’t have time for that sort of thing, even if there were someone around to provide an opportunity—but that’s not really the point. Though I guess if you can afford to build your house out of washi paper, you can afford to pay people to pretend to look the other way.

We meet with the Nine Pawns again tonight to finalize the details for tomorrow now that we have a rough idea of how we’re going to pull this off. It won’t require precise timing but if our parts are more than a couple of minutes out of alignment we’ll either be facing a prepared Sennaka or a rather large and presumably violent army. Back when it was just them, the samurai were arranging events such that they’d have their best possible shot at taking down their ex-daimyo, but they didn’t really expect to succeed or live through the attempt. We intend to do both, so we need to make sure everyone knows their part.

There’s still no word from Qatana.

Sarenith 13, 4713 (morning, Shuryo Onsen)

Qatana’s sending came early this morning. “Cannot support Ameiko. In Magnimar. Found group setting out on grand sea voyage and may join. Will keep contact if you desire. Pookie says ‘hi.’

The problem with this spell is that it catches you flat-footed. You’re busy doing your thing and then surprise! There’s a voice in your head that isn’t yours, followed by a mental sandpaper that chafes until you reply.

So this was it. How do you respond to something like this? In two dozen words when you aren’t able to gather your thoughts?

Magnimar?! Fast trip. Was afraid you were leaving for good. Understand why though. Will miss you. Stay in touch. Tell Pookie, ‘waiting for your novel.’

The latter was an old, inside joke, but I guess she didn’t remember it.

Take care of yourself. Watch your back. Just realized I have lots of wands and diamond dust in pack. Pookie says, ‘Book is good idea!’

So, yeah, she is not coming back. Damnit!

(afternoon, Shuryo Onsen)

Calling this a “plan” is being fairly generous. They literally want to just pop inside and start swinging. I don’t want to say it’s insane, but it certainly lacks our usual subtlety. Normally we take the time to come up with something a bit more sophisticated that doesn’t have us fighting everything at the same time, but for some reason they’re all hot for this new approach.

“I could summon something native to this region. An animal large enough to get their attention without being suspicious,” I offered.

“Why? Save the spell.”

“Don’t we want a distraction?” I asked

“Why bother?”

Well, OK then. Plan “Big Dumb Fight” it is.

Equally dubious is this obsession with giving Sennaka a chance to surrender honorably. When the idea was first floated I thought they meant “before we executed him”, which made a lot of sense to me. But what they actually mean is “right at the start” which seems…unwise. He has no reason to be afraid of us, so it’s just going to give him free time to prepare when he should be dodging steel. But I’m just part of the supporting cast here so it’s not my call. His guards are all fair game from the get-go, so I’ll be busy, anyway.

(night, Seinaru Heikiko)

Operation “Big Dumb Fight” was both big and dumb, as predicted. It also put me in the middle of the action, where I had to cast my spells while people were swinging in my face. I am not kidding: at times I had to completely ignore the person trying to kill me because I had more important things to do. But it worked and Sikutsu Itsuru has been informed of his brother’s untimely death. I am sure lots of tears were shed at the news.

Amazingly, Sennaka’s army literally just stopped fighting after word had spread. I have never seen anything like it. Even the guards we were engaged with—the ones that weren’t oni that is, as most of those fled half-way throughstopped and pledged allegiance to Itsuru right there on the spot once we told them he was their new daimyo. It seems no one was willing to fight to defend the name of a dead man that they didn’t like very much. And by “very much” I mean “at all”.

All of them knew he openly consorted with demons. It’s kind of nuts when you think about it. The implication is the only thing really keeping Sennaka alive was their oaths to defend him. Gods, this country.

Tomorrow we are paying Itsuru a visit ahead of our second meeting with the Three Monkeys. We’re hoping he can help subsidize the plan to buy the support of the Emerald Branch and the neutrality of the other two, because it would practically bankrupt us to do it ourselves. If he cares at all about the future of the country we are trying to take back, he’ll find a way to pitch in. Especially since we did the heavy lifting that put him in the governor’s seat.

From this it should be obvious that we are not going to be using the coin as either a bargaining chip or a fundraiser. We don’t want it to end up being used against us, and we don’t want to lose track of it, so that only leaves trying to claim it. A couple of us are potentially good fits for the skills that are emblemized on it, so we’re going to give it a go. If it works, then we buy all the time we need. The only catch is the stain on the soul, but Koya can intercede with Desna if necessary to undo any damage…so long as the new owner doesn’t get carried away.

Yeah, it’s risky, but what else can we do?

 

Character: Ivan

Ivan’s journal: April 2019

Like the wind Radella moved through the rooms on the way to the horses. Ivan only paused for a moment to pick up a couple of pastries for later as he hurried to keep up with the determined Radella. Dead guards lined the path way as Ivan and Radella made their way to the battle ground.

Holding the head of Sennaka up high Radella tried to get the attention of the soldiers. Ivan looks across the battle field thinking to himself “Clearly they do not understand they need to listen to Radella”. The illusion of the fire dragon hovering about Radella provided the proper motivation for the soldiers to stop and listen to her.

“The samurai have all agreed to follow Itsuru. If you guys can come back to the house then I can heal up you guys and the samurai.” Says Ivan as they head back to the house.  By the time Radella, Ivan and the others returned to the house the portable hole was pretty much filled up by Zosimus. “So much for travel by portable hole” thinks Ivan to himself.

The party parts ways with the samurai and teleports back to the fort.

“I think it is best to stay in tonight” Ivan thinks to himself as he picks up the Shogi board and sets it on the table. Sitting down at the table Ivan does not have to wait very long for the usual opponent to join him in a game of Shogi.

“Tonight I hope to be able to make 18 moves before you win. Don’t you dare insult me by going easy on me” says Ivan to Hatsue.

After failing to get past 9 moves in the first game Ivan recounts the story about the night he created the circle and the two people that he interacted with on that night. Ivan casts an illusion to show each of the people that showed up in his vision as he tells the story. As soon as Ivan brings up that Kali’s says she follows Lamashtu Hatsue immediately interrupts Ivan with “No, No, No you are not to have anything to do with her or anyone else that follows Lamashtu!”

After Hatsue finishes explaining the reasons why he should not have anything to do with the followers of Lamashtu Ivan simple looks at Hatsue and says “Ok, I trust your judgement”

As they begin the second game of shogi Ivan pulls pastries from his bag and offers one to Hatsue. “I picked these up at Sennaka’s house, he’s dead so he didn’t need them. If it really bothers you I can pay his brother for the pastries” says Ivan

“I think this one time it will be ok” replies Hatsue as she takes a bite out of the pastry.

Game after game Ivan played against Hatsue but he was not able to progress past move 11 in any of the games.

“Well I guess 18 moves was a little too ambitious. That just means that when I get there it will be that much more special “says Ivan with a smile

“Well I am going to turn in” says Hatsue as she stands up.

“Good night” replies Ivan

In the morning Ivan is walking through the camps when he is interrupted by the young Musha sisters Chie and Arisa as they take his hand and guide him to the tent which obviously is not very usable.

“They broke the tent again” says their pregnant mother Yuri holding the youngest of the three daughters.

“Ok let me take a look” says Ivan as he climbs into the tent.

“I can fix this but I will need a couple of brave helpers” says Ivan as he sticks his head out of the collapsed tent.

“We’ll help” reply the girls as they climb into the tent.

“There the tent is all fixed” says Ivan

“Can we play tag now” replies Arisa

From outside the tent a voice says “Not in the tent”

“Thank Ivan for fixing the tent” says Yuri

“Thanks” says the two girls

“Your welcome. You know I couldn’t have done it without …” replies Ivan but the girls were already long gone before he could finish the sentence.

“Thank you Ivan. Would you like to stay and have some tea?” says Yuri

“Oh sorry I can’t today maybe next time” replies Ivan

Ivan parts ways with Yuri and heads back to the others.

The discussion at hand was how to get Ameiko back to Enganoka. Portable hole once again seems to be the only good option to get everyone to Enganoka. Ivan just watches as it is explained to Ameiko that traveling via portable hole is the best option to get her back to Enganoka.

For obvious reasons Ameiko and Shalelu seemed to be a little nervous about getting into the portable hole. After taking off all extra-dimensional equipment Ivan steps into the portable hole to show them it is ok. Casting life bubble Ivan reaches through the doorway and takes a hold of both Ameiko’s and Shalelu’s hands and then gently pulls them into the portable hole.

“See this is not so bad, there is most likely enough air in here for this short trip but this spell will provide 8 hours of breathing. Don’t worry I will keep you both safe” says Ivan to Ameiko and shalelu as they enter the portable hole.

Character: Olmas

Annals of the Order of the Dragon

as told by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia himself.

Sunday, 8 Sarenith

It’s pretty clear that this issue with the assassin has to come to a head soon.  It’s blocking progress with the ninjas, and we’re spending a lot of time looking over our shoulder.

Dasi tried another divination with the samisun to learn more.  He learned

  • his name is Kabuninsho
  • he came from an obscure past from Sakakabe
  • trained there as a ninja
  • gained fame first as a spy
  • recruited to Oni’s mask
  • meteoric rise
  • over just a few years, rose on aloofness and ingenuity
  • rumored to go against his own associates whewn he felt it appropriate
  • “ninja of chaos”

There was a discussion about what to do with the Ameiko zombie – excuse me, “construct” – as well as the resurrected merchant …

Did I mention the resurrected merchant?  Yeah, well that wasn’t very well discussed.  Kali and Qatana just decided to do it.  I’m not sure I actually object, but I guess I’m surprised to be surprised.  Anyway, the construct will be given a proper burial tomorrow, and the merchant will accompany us to the fort at some point for his own safety.  After all, his actual hometown probably truly has been erased off the map, if we know the oni.

Moonday, 9 Sarenith

In anticipation of a top notch ninja stalking us, Zos made a few more delay poison potions for others, including Ameiko.   We did then go and check out the village, and we did discover it was gone.  Well, not really gone, but annihilated.  From the look on Ameiko’s face, I think it set her thinking.  The resurrected man held up well, considering he was viewing the destruction of his home, his relatives, his friends … really, his history.  We buried the Ameiko clone, and Kali and Qatana did some things to honor the dead  (I barely understand the elven ceremonies from Varisia)  and we left.

We windwalked to the fort.

Qatana set herself to producing glyphs of warding at the guard towers, where they would explode if someone tried to enter the fort as we once did.  She also installed one of sleep near the front gate.  These were all tagged with passwords to try to avoid unnecessary “incidents”.

Neither Hatsue nor Hiro had heard any new news.

Dasi whipped out the magical samisen and tried a divination regarding the daiymo.  He was successful, and learned

  • his name is Sakutsu Senaka
  • had a decent reputation in naval engagements
  • reputation as a good tactitian
  • supposedly the epitome of honor
  • ordered by the regent to maintain order in the north
  • his influence over Sakanabe is an open secret
  • known for his engaging personality

Some of these seem contradictory to what we already know of him.  Honor here seems to mean following the rules.  The epitome of honor would seem to me to mean you found a way to do the right thing while still staying within the rules.  Hiro comes to mind.

I wonder if Senaka used to exist but has since been replaced with an oni.  I’m increasingly certain that the Jade Regent must be an oni, or worse.  Why would he – or she – not install confirmed allies in key positions?  The actions of the current Senaka do not seem honorable.

Perhaps I’ll talk to Ameiko about that later.

Kali interrupted my thoughts by announcing that she just scryed on the assassin and he looked to be packing for a journey.  He seemed a bit tired too

Das tried a scry on Senaka, and was successful.  He saw him

  • in a pavilion
  • eating with others watching him
  • seemed to be reminiscing and gesturing as though he were reliving old stories

and Dasi saw him armed wth a longbow, katana, and wakazashi, and tried to memorize the faces he saw surrounding Senaka.

And it was a few minutes after that that Kali silently held up a note: “being scryed”.  We kept our conversation benign.

Toilday, 10 Sarenith

Around 2am, Qatana reported the nightmare she’d cast kicked in.  One more sleepless night for our assassin ,,,

Upon arising, Dasi again tried scrying on the daimyo and saw him in resplendent armor and the armor was being repaired.  It was greenish, with a horned helmet and a jade green mask.

Recon reported there was no sign of an approaching army.  But a recon by some windwalk-enabled people did reveal the daimyo was about where we expected. and we reported back on that.  He was still some distance from the fort, but it was sufficient to make most at the fort realize this was for real.

With Kali providing an illusionary opponent (and with Hiro’s consent) we ran some surprise drills with some of the patrols.  They actually did fairly well, holding their ground even when the foe seemed stronger than they expected.  Ameiko also assisted, giving her some visibility and perhaps credibility in front of some future subjects.

Kali scryed again on the ninja and saw an old woman talking to servants at the teahouse.  Ah, well, not useful, if he’s looking for us. They won’t know where we are.

That evening, Qatana tried to scry and found the assassin walking through a shadowy and indistinct corridor during the entire scry.

When it got to be 11pm, she started her nightmare spell.  Meanwhile, Radella and I staged another mock attack, taking minor damage before we ended it and debriefed the guards with Hiro.  These exercises have really helped, I think.

Wealday, 11 Sarenith

At 7:30am, we were windwalking off to the resort to meet the Nine Pawns.  We were not expected until later in the day, but wanted time to select a camp and settle in before sending Nehali to meet them. It still took us a few hours to get there, so it was 1pm before we sent Nehali to the rendezvous point.

It was 3:30 when Kali again held up the sign “he’s watching” and we again carried on a benign conversation for 15 minutes.

But it was 4 before somebody spoke to Nehali, who had been instructed to tell them we wanted to meet with them.  It was agreed to meet under cover of darkness at our camp.

At around 8, they returned.  Kali led the discussion, and the Pawns agree to keep the army separate from the personal guard.  This they would do by creating barriers along the path between the resort and the army camp.  Presumably by the time they could battle past them, our job would be done.

Will there be magic among his personal guard?  Probably.  Will there be samurai?  Almost certainly.

Several indicated they wanted to scout the lodge.  The Pawns said we could probably simply disguise ourselves as artisans. Around 8pm, Zos, Radella, and Ivan set out to do just that.

An hour or so later, Kali tried to scry our personal assassin again, and found him in a refugee camp, disguised as a refugee.  But the more she watched, the more clear it became: the assassin was at the fort, in the refugee camp there!

We immediately recalled our scouting party by cutting Ameiko.  (She understood.)  They hurriedly returned. Ivan sent two messages to Hatsue – “assassin in refugee camp” and “do nothing; on our way”.

Using his Word of Recall, Ivan returned himself, Ameiko, Radella, Dasi, and Shalelu. Quickly after that, Kali teleported the rest of us there.

We quickly briefed Hatsue and Hiro, and Hatsue expressed doubt. “I’ve detected no evil among the refugees!” she said, but we all presumed some magic was at play.  I’m now wizard but I’ve heard it said you can conveniently transfer your aura to, say, even a doorknob for a short amount of time, so her attention might have simply been misdirected.

Kali, having seen the assassin the most, led the charge to find him without frightening him before she could throw a dimensional anchor on him.  Using airwalk, I took an aerial approach and Radella approached on the ground. After a couple of false leads, Kali found the right person and between the dimensional anchor she placed on him, and the fatigue he was already feeling from the nightmares, he was not nearly so slippery as our last meeting.  It was Ivan who delivered the killing blow, making him look like some sort of large straggly bird with the number of feathers sticking out of him.

There was a quick mumbling of “nothing to see here; move along” to the other refugees, but we picked up the corpse and the belongings from his tent and left the area to inspect them.   Examining him and his belongings, we found

[698] potion (later determined to be barkskin)
[699] potion (cure serious wounds)
[700,701] potion (invisibility} x 2
[702] vial (5 doses) black adder
[703] vial (5 doses) death blade
[704] vial (5 applications) oil of taggit
[705] portable hole
[706] disguise kit

[707] mithril chain mail +2
[708] nunchaku Dragonmaw (+2, special on crit or disarm)
[709] 10 shuriken +2
[710] blowgun (looks like flute)
[711] 20 darts
[712] MW wakashazi
[713] ring of protection +2
[714] coin on a string

It is that last that is causing the most trouble.  Between divinations, and hasty research, and in some cases just plain memory, it appears this is the Shinobi Fuhonsen.  Legend has it that it was the first payment given to the first ninja for their first mission.  But it’s not just historical.  It grants the owner a number of additional skills or spells helpful to ninjas.

However, in the brief time he held it and inspected it, Dasi felt like the coin wanted him to keep it.  And as we did more research on this, we learned

a) the coin must APPROVE of its new owner (it must be worthy)
b) the new owner will be inevitably drawn to darkness
c) if we don’t provide it with a suitable owner by the next new moon, it will seek an owner on its own
d) it can only be destroyed by a sovereign dragon
e) Upon choosing its 8th owner, “something catastrophic” will happen to the world

This will require much more discussion, I fear.  It is very valuable magicwise, it is very valuable money-wise, and it is deadly in the catastrophe sense.  And it will do something on its own if we do nothing.

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal – Sarenith 9-11, 4713

Sarenith 9, 4713 (small hours, Enganoka)

Late last night, Dasi used his spell to learn more about our assassin, feeding into it all we have learned over the past few days. What he got back was a portrait of loneliness.

Kaibuninsho—the only name he is known by—comes from an unassuming background and a family of no particular significance. He grew up in Sakakabe where he built a reputation for himself as a talented spy. Eventually, he was recruited as a ninja into the Oni’s Mask clan where he branched out from espionage to assassination. From that point on he withdrew from the world, living as an island in the sea.

He’s a man who has no one and nothing. All there is to his life is what he does: the next contract, the next kill, and the waiting between them. The only thing he cares about is making others miserable. It’s rumored he even moved against members of his own clan when it suited his purpose. At least Kimandatsu had friends.

How do people live like that? Why do they even bother living at all?

(night, Seinaro Heikiko)

Kiomasu’s village was little more than blackened remains. We descended into a patchwork of char and ash that bordered a mass grave. This was Sennaka’s leadership, laid bare.

The story Kiomasu told us was unfortunately not new. Sennaka is demanding more and more from the people he rules: more money, more tribute, absolute veneration, and so on. If you don’t comply, if you even falter, his men-at-arms show up and crush you. And this isn’t just about morality: Sennaka is also a fool. Dead men and burned villages don’t pay taxes. If you want more money from your subjects, you don’t also spend that money cutting off your sources of income.

We held a brief burial service for the victims, and the man from Enganoka whose corpse served his future empress. Kiomasu is still in shock and his grieving has only begun, but only time can heal that.

We’re back at the fortress now. Kiomasu’s been temporarily settled in the growing refugee camp which Jiro and Hatsue set up to house villagers that are likely to be in the path of the looming attack. We have a couple of days before we need to meet the Nine Pawns at the resort, and if we’re here we can at least contribute while we pass the time. Qatana will be placing wards around the courtyard and the guard posts we used to gain entry, and Olmas has some ideas to help prepare the still-untested soldiers for the battle.

Me? I reached out to Kaibuninsho again in part because I was bored, and in part because I don’t want him causing trouble for us in Enganoka. We still need to go back there to meet with the other ninja clans.

The image in my mirror resolved to show him in a nondescript room, packing for a journey. I guess word travels fast.

I just wanted to let you know that we’ve left town.

He didn’t say anything in response. This man is in serious need of a friend.

I figured, we’re all professionals here. I didn’t want you to waste your time.

He snorted in response.

I admit, I am kind of sad that you won’t talk to me anymore. I thought we had thing going on here. Plus, you look lonely. Who else do you have to talk to?

Kaibuninsho pulled out a leather pouch and unrolled it on the bed, revealing a number of vials filled with a variety of colored liquids. So this was all I was going to get from him. Idle threats.

I watched him finish packing and then let the scrying drop. I got what I needed, anyway, which is that we can forget about him for the immediate future. First, he has to figure out where we are, then he has to get here, and he can only travel so quickly. Especially when he isn’t sleeping well, something we’ll be seeing to again tonight.

While I was visiting with our would-be assassin, Dasi was spending some quality time with Sikutsu Sennaka. He used the spell from the samisen to learn what he could about the man. What he got back was that Sennaka was a famed daimyo, accomplished soldier and general, and competent naval commander. He earned that fame through a number of skirmishes and conflicts with not just other daimyos in Minkai but also other nations of Tian Xia, and for personally engaging on the battlefield. After the emperor went into “hiding”, the Jade Regent tasked him with maintaining order in the north and he has done so rather efficiently and ruthlessly. Though he’s only the governor of the Enganoka province, it’s an open secret that he has influence over the Sakakabe province as well as governor there is weak and easily intimidated.

Off the battlefield, Sennaka is viewed by the populace as the epitome of honor, something that we found rather surprising (though in retrospect, it explains some of what happened at the market). Less surprising? His forte is military campaigns, not administration. This is probably why he responds to problems with military force. The man only has one tool and by the gods he is going to use it.

After his magical research, Dasi got a good look at Sennaka by scrying on him. It’s a technique we’ve honed to a fine edge, and I’ve long since lost my aversion to it…in certain circumstances, anyway. Like turnabout being fair play, and people who are morally bankrupt. Dasi didn’t get much more than the man eating dinner, though, which is unsurprising given the time of day. He was surrounded by his elite, samurai guard, and they were telling stories about some battle or another. Dasi tried to produce a sketch so that others could play, too, but…well, Dasi has many talents, but drawing is not one of them.

How Sennaka is able to maintain this reputation for honor is beyond me. In some ways, I think it speaks to a larger issue of class divisions within Minkai. If you are nobility, then different rules apply to you and you have the authority to harass and castigate those beneath your station. Honor is not an ethical standard here, but rather one of cultural norms. An amoral daimyo can abuse their authority without tarnishing their reputation since unwavering loyalty to one’s lord is expected, not earned. There are also plenty of ways to hide your less savory activities so that your facade stays clean and this is exactly when Sennaka is doing. Of course, a true leader is also supposed to protect their subjects, but around here it seems that bit is viewed as optional.

What’s most disturbing is that this is not the work of the Five Storms. It’s just how things are here, and it isn’t sitting well with me. At all. Olmas and Qatana are struggling with it, too. And no one really knows where Ameiko stands. I understand that she has to work within the system for now, but is this how it’s going to be when she’s on the throne? It has me worried because I can’t ignore it any more. I was lucky to not have to grow up in a caste system. Why in the names of the gods would I choose to live in a different one?

Sarenith 10, 4713 (noon, Seinaro Heikiko)

The refugees are growing restless. I can understand that. They are living in a small tent city in the clearing behind the fort, and though that clearing is rather large it is still a lot of people in close quarters instead of their homes, dependant on others for pretty much everything. They are all here basically on faith, and faith will only get you so far. There are rumblings that the rumored attack is just that, and when that sort of talk starts spreading people make up all manner of conspiracy theories.

Of course, we know better because we have seen the message that Jiro’s men intercepted, but that’s not something we can share because I am sure there are spies among the camp. So, instead, we’ve let it slip that a small army is marching north. It’s the worst sort of lie: one of omission where the words are technically true, but the last thing Jiro needs is discord among the people he’s trying to protect. So hopefully this will put a stop to it, or at least slow it down.

I’ve sent Nihali off to scout with Qatana and Radella. Ivan and Hatsue have set out on the wind to find Sennaka’s army, and ensure it’s where we expect it to be. That leaves the rest of us here, literally minding the fort. To pass the time, Dasi used the samisen to check in on Sennaka again and saw him tinkering with his armor. You’d think Sennaka would have people to do that for him. What exciting lives soldiers must live.

Earlier this morning, Olmas asked me if I could help him with a military exercise to help train Jiro’s troops. I’ll just let that sit there for a moment.

“Can you create a realistic illusion of an enemy creature for them to fight? One that reacts to them? Or perhaps summon a creature that you can control, and prevent it from using lethal attacks?”

He wanted something they can fight for real, that would be a surrogate for an actual battle. Summoning would certainly work, but I felt uncomfortable creating a creature for the sole purpose of target practice. Granted, summoned creatures are not “real” in the metaphysical sense: they are temporary constructs which are generic members of a species, not actual beings transported from some other place. But, “real” or not, and temporary or not, they are still infused with life and experience the world through their senses, and they still feel pain. It is one thing to create life and use it to aid you in battle, and another entirely to create it merely to be destroyed. I wasn’t sure how to explain that, or why the difference mattered, so I gave him an excuse instead.

“A summoned creature would actually be dangerous. Someone could be seriously hurt, as the control I have over them is limited. An illusion, however, can be very realistic. It will smell, sound, and feel very real unless they get close enough to touch it.”

“Can you make it react to being ‘injured’?”

“If I am watching the battle, yes. It will be very convincing.”

This seemed to be good enough for his purposes. And it might actually be fun.

(evening)

We went with an ogre mage. We’ve killed so many of them now that I know how they move, fight, heal from injuries and, of course, die. That, and they serve the purpose of a supernatural foe that can still be taken down with sufficient effort. Jiro asked us to ambush one of the patrols, so I had the illusion emerge from the trees as they passed through a small clearing. From up above, I watched them form a firing line and pelt it with arrows, over and over as it advanced, shrugging off its “wounds”. The men and women scrambled to bring down their foe, several calling out in surprise and frustration, “Why aren’t these stopping it?!”, “It should be dropping!” and “It won’t die!”

I tried to keep it as real as possible. They got several good shots in so I had the ogre mage collapse as it reached their positions. Then Jiro, who was observing from somewhere nearby, called out that it was a training exercise and we all returned to the fortress to debrief.

“Real oni will be a lot like this,” Olmas said. “They can shake off attacks, and heal rapidly from injuries. When confronted with them, you want to concentrate your fire and stay focused on one target at a time.”

While good advice, it is in all honesty probably not enough. Without magic weapons, most oni just aren’t going to go down very easily. But, the exercise was as much about mindset as it was tactics: weapons won’t matter if they can’t even keep their wits about them in the fight. On that front, Jiro had obviously trained them well. I was actually quite surprised at how quickly they recovered from the initial shock of the “attack” and how disciplined they were in coordinating their defense. Maybe they’ll actually live through this rebellion.

Radella and Olmas plan on a nighttime exercise, too, by surprising the guards pretty much the same way we ambushed the previous occupants: with a sneak attack on the guard posts up above. That sort of thing takes some serious mettle because while the two of them can hold back enough to make non-lethal strikes, Jiro’s men won’t be in on the secret and they will be swinging flor blood. Radella and Olmas can more than handle themselves, obviously, but…anyone can get lucky and I certainly wouldn’t want to be skewered as part of a training exercise. Hopefully this little stunt will not get out of hand.

Ivan and Hatsue returned and informed us that Sennaka’s army is exactly where we expected them to be. He’s traveling with a small battalion of about 200 soldiers. Either he takes his personal security very seriously, or he’s compensating for feelings of inadequacy. We expect him to arrive at the resort in three days. We’ll be there tomorrow afternoon to ensure we are ready for him.

Sarenith 11, 4713 (late afternoon, Shuryo Onsen)

We have our first meeting with the Nine Pawns tonight. I told Nihali what we needed, and sent her to perch on the roof of the resort. After a couple of hours one of the former samurai, disguised as a tradesman, approached her.

“What are you doing here, little raven? Are you lost? Are you looking for shiny things?”

“I’m not lost,” she answered.

“Is your home in the woods?”

“West of here. We arrived early.”

Nihali said he seemed unfazed talking to a magical creature in the form of a bird. That is good news, as it means we won’t have to waste time convincing them of our capabilities, or to take us seriously. So, points to Itsuru for getting that message across.

“They’d like to go over things,” she added.

“Under cover of night.”

So now we wait.

Kaibuninsho spied on us a couple more times, once last night and today a little over an hour ago. We’re moving around again, so he’s going to have to make a decision: continue to try and play catch-up, or make a guess as to where we’re going to be at some point in the future and then get there first. When I checked in on him myself yesterday, he was poking around the tea house and learned we hadn’t been there in a while.

He looked like he hadn’t gotten much sleep the previous night. Qatana’s spell caught him in the small hours that morning (and then again late last night).

(night, Shuryo Onsen)

Shit! We don’t have much time. We’re going as soon as Radella, Ivan and Zosimus others get back which I hope is very, very soon.

I checked in on Kaibuninsho and he’s in a refugee camp of some sort and at first I was like, “there are so many of those, it could be anywhere” but while talking that out it dawned on us that there’s one at the fortress. So now―

They’re back.

(late night, Seinaro Heikiko)

We got him!

We packed up camp and were standing in the shrine room of the fortress in just shy of 10 minutes. I brought most of the group with me, and Ivan brought the rest using a spell that teleported himself and the others to his designated sanctuary…which he had just happened to name here.

The conversation I spied on between Kaibuninsho and the other refugees was not 15 minutes old which meant he was probably still out there. We gathered Jiro and Hatsue and hastily explained the situation, then with a combination of magical disguises and invisibility, we went hunting. I stayed in the air above the crowd, waiting for Dasi and Hatsue to sweep the encampment for hostile intent. It took time, and there looked like there might have been a potential false start, but they managed to find someone who was hiding their true intentions. Someone who felt like our man. I descended just close enough to see without giving myself away―no one ever looks up―and recognized his disguise. It was him.

I hit him with a spell to anchor him to the material plane. There would be no quick escapes this time. Bathed in a glowing green light, he was now an obvious beacon to the others, and Radella was on top of him in seconds with Olmas and Hatsue close behind.

Kainbunshisho looked terrible and it was not just part of his disguise. He had clearly not slept well in several days, almost certainly thanks to the nightly deluge of nightmares we had sent his way. Wanting to make the most of this, I hit him with another spell, this one leaving him physically exhausted. Within seconds he was surrounded, blinded, and unable to escape. Ivan dealt the killing blow.

And just like that, it was over.

Only now we have a new problem, this one potentially much bigger than the assassin, himself. He was carrying what Dasi called a “fuhonsen”―an ancient, Tian coin that no longer has a monetary face value but is prized by collectors and sometimes worn as a charm. This particular one, however, is much, much more than that. I went to examine its magical aura and it was like reading the sun. It’s an artifact. A minor one, granted, but an artifact nonetheless. This went a long way to explaining Kaibuninsho’s bag of tricks. He had very powerful help.

Dasi used a spell to learn more about it. According to legend, it was the first coin used as payment for a ninja’s services in Minkai. Over generations it has become infused with magic, its powers emblematized by the symbols on each side. It would be a boon for us in more ways than one, except there’s a catch. Because there’s always a catch.

Now that I was prepared for it, I was able to work out its talents after studying it a bit more carefully. And I uncovered some very nasty surprises.

“The two blank spaces on this side of the coin are powers that have not yet been…developed. Assuming they are worthy—and I’ll get to that in a minute—the coin creates a new power that is related to a skill embodied by its new owner,” I explained.

Its potential powers are not set. They represent a relationship between the coin and its owners: past, present and future.

“The bad news is, you must excel at all of these skills, and you must excel at a skill of your own, for the coin to find you ‘worthy’ as an owner.”

I could see a couple of my friends were about to ask the obvious question, so I answered it preemptively. “It decides what that means. I can’t put it into words. But I do know this: you are judged at the new moon. If you are not found worthy by then? It vanishes and seeks out a new owner.”

I slumped back in my chair and sighed heavily. I was suddenly very, very tired. “The really bad news is…that it has a corrupting influence on its owner. The process can take months, possibly a couple of years, but it slowly pulls your heart towards darkness.”

And therein lays the problem.

We can’t take possession of it because using it would, eventually, corrupt the owner. We can’t keep it out of circulation because it will seek out an owner if it’s not claimed. We can’t destroy it because, according to legend, only a sovereign dragon can do that and we don’t have any of those on hand. And we shouldn’t sell it because that will put it in the hands of someone who will most likely become a problem for Minkai in the future. Oh, and legend also says that a great calamity will befall the world once its full powers are realized, which is just two owners away.

So, we are completely screwed. There is just no good answer here.

We argued over this for what felt like hours. Do we keep it and take our chances, until we find a way to destroy it? Do we sell it to one of the ninja clans, turning it loose on the world with even more power? Do we just let it vanish, and hope it doesn’t turn up in the next few generations?

I don’t know what we should do.