T<\/span><\/p>\n he counter-attack I was expecting never materialized, though we did get the next best thing, I suppose: several yeti emerged from the pool room and stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the cavern, forming a living wall between us and the necropolis. Why did they take a defensive position instead of making an assault? I don\u2019t know, but I can speculate: they didn\u2019t want to fight us on <\/span>our<\/span><\/i> terms. A theme that has emerged with them is \u201ccome see our king\u201d, followed by some variation of \u201cso he can kill you\u201d. And if we were to be surrounded by yeti deep in their territory I have no doubt that they could follow through on that.<\/span><\/p>\n Obviously, they plan to ambush us when and if we do as they ask. We figured that one out even <\/span>before<\/span><\/i> they <\/span>explicitly<\/span><\/i> said so<\/span><\/i>. They are not very subtle, nor are they particularly skilled at intrigue.<\/span><\/p>\n According to the others, the yeti just stood there watching us. After a while, Sparna and Ivan got bored and started a ridiculous pissing contest with them. It began with tossing pebbles at each other and then escalated to whatever was on hand, including the revenant\u2019s corpse and Katiyana\u2019s head. Because <\/span>of course<\/span><\/i> it did.<\/span><\/p>\n I think Sparna was trying to intimidate them into leaving, or going to get their chief, or something. Whatever his intention, this was making them agitated. I wasn\u2019t sure this was the best use of our time or resources\u2014we were supposed to be resting, healing, and planning, not starting <\/span>another<\/span><\/i> fight\u2014but I didn\u2019t want to be accused of not being a team player again. So I participated in the silly game until it stopped being silly. That would be when Olmas actually took a shot at one of them, burying an arrow in a yeti\u2019s chest.<\/span><\/p>\n For all Olmas\u2019s and Sparna\u2019s talk about a discipline and order, it all comes down to the pot and the kettle both being black. I may have my moments of immaturity, but at least I don\u2019t shoot people because I am bored and out of ideas. Desna was with us, however, and the yeti retreated before anyone died. On <\/span>either<\/span><\/i> side. Yours truly may have had some influence over that.<\/span><\/p>\n I was not in a good mood. I am still not. My wonderful theory about the Yeti chief? I couldn\u2019t convince anyone at all, and after talking to Koya I was beginning to doubt it myself. It took the wind out of my sails.<\/span><\/p>\n It all came down to what the yeti meant by \u201ctwo moons ago\u201d. She suggested that the spirits they worship may be connected to the moon, or that they might find the moon sacred in some fashion. How they count days is still a mystery, but the suspicion was that their chief ventures outside from time to time for whatever passes as worship or ritual.<\/span><\/p>\n This is where the idea that the chief was not possessed, but rather <\/span>replaced<\/span><\/i>, started to take root. The Five Storms knew, more or less, where we were and where we were headed. It would not be unreasonable for there to be oni waiting for us at the pass. Faced with the same storm, said oni might have turned to the Path of Spirits as we did, only from the Tian Xia side where he or she encountered the chief. We know an ogre mage can assume a human form, but there\u2019s no reason to believe that it must be <\/span>strictly<\/span><\/i> human. They could just as easily take the form of a large human<\/span>oid<\/span><\/i>, like, oh, say, a <\/span>yeti<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n An oni in the chief\u2019s place would be just as reasonable, if not more likely, than my theory of Katiyana\u2019s ghost. It all makes perfect sense.<\/span><\/p>\n Except it doesn\u2019t explain the storm, and there is this big hole in the logic. I get that the others believe this oni theory. But we all heard that voice on the wind. We all saw the storm expand behind us as if it were following us. That, and Sithhud and the Five Storms working together just does not make sense. How would they even make such an agreement? How would that even work? What bargain could they possibly make with one another? Demonic beings working together is a stretch on its own, especially when they don\u2019t have common goals.<\/span><\/p>\n So I wasn\u2019t ready to give up yet. And I made a proposal: that we test the theories.<\/span><\/p>\n They think I am out of my mind. They\u2026may be right. What I suggested we do\u2014that <\/span>I<\/span><\/i> do\u2014is unbelievably dangerous and bordering on suicidal. It is an idea even <\/span>worse<\/span><\/i> than my plan for the white dragon.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI can fly in under invisibility, and use a spell to mask my scent. The wand will give me the ability to see in the dark. I\u2019ll have a protective spell up that will prevent mental control over me. And I\u2019ll use another spell that will let us exchange whispered messages, if needed. I can get into the chief\u2019s throne room completely undetected.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n To what purpose? To find the yeti chief, and see what spells, if any, were on or around him. I would be able to tell the difference between mental control and shapeshifting. It would give us valuable information.<\/span><\/p>\n Sparna didn\u2019t like it. Neither did Olmas. What if I was discovered? What if I was hurt? I\u2019d be surrounded, with no real hope of rescue. I could be facing the chief, who is able to cast spells, and the entire yeti tribe. The objections kept coming.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI can always teleport away. That\u2019s my escape plan.\u201d And it was a pretty good one, too. It was enough to get them to agree to it.<\/span><\/p>\n The problem, of course, is that it wasn\u2019t foolproof. Meet a yeti\u2019s gaze, and I might be overcome by the magical fear it instills in you. Alone and paralyzed, I would not be able to do anything except fall to the ground. I didn\u2019t point this out. Because they\u2019d never let me do it if they knew it could fail. But \u201ccertain\u201d can be an impossible standard. You could waste your entire life waiting for \u201ccertain\u201d. That, and, I am not some gods-be-damned fragile child! I wasn\u2019t then, and I sure as hell am not now.<\/span><\/p>\n Don\u2019t get me wrong: I don\u2019t <\/span>want<\/span><\/i> to do this. I mean, I do, but I don\u2019t. But the thing is, I don\u2019t want us to have to kill <\/span>every living thing<\/span><\/i> here in order for us to leave (am I the only one?). This may be our best shot at that.<\/span><\/p>\n N<\/span><\/p>\n othing happened overnight. I was worried they\u2019d come after us while most of us were asleep, but it seems they are confident we\u2019ll come to them eventually. Where they assume they\u2019ll have the upper hand. They are right about the first part; the second remains to be seen.<\/span><\/p>\n I am more than a little nervous. One unpleasant side effect of these rings is that you have lots of time at night to fret and worry. I spent what felt like hours thinking of all the ways this plan could go wrong and what to do about it, which was nowhere near as productive or helpful as it sounds. I used to be able to break these mental loops through meditation, but\u2026that was a long time ago.<\/span><\/p>\n We\u2019ll stay together until we reach the anti-life shell inside the necropolis. Then I am on my own. The plan is for them to give me time to enter the throne room, then they\u2019ll launch a raid to provide a distraction while I figure out what, if anything, has happened to the chief. I\u2019ll have very little time to do this. If l screw it up, if I am discovered, or if our theories are just outright wrong, then we\u2019ll be completely surrounded and fighting the entire Yeti tribe.<\/span><\/p>\n Please, Shelyn, let this work.<\/span><\/p>\n I<\/span><\/p>\n am still in shock. It worked. It <\/span>worked<\/span><\/i>! My muscles still ache, I was so tense, but it worked! And it\u2019s over.<\/span><\/p>\n Panic almost set in when I reached the chief\u2019s throne room and <\/span>he wasn\u2019t there<\/span><\/i>. I knew what he looked like because I had seen him before, and there was no sign of him at all. But, if he was invisible or shape-shifted or hiding through magic, it was only a matter of time before I found him.<\/span><\/p>\n The yeti knew we were coming and they were waiting for us in absolute silence. It was unnerving. The tension was so thick it felt like I was swimming through it. I couldn\u2019t so much as <\/span>whisper<\/span><\/i> without giving myself away and that meant that I couldn\u2019t warn the others, either; couldn\u2019t tell them I needed just a little more time, that there were more than we thought, or that a group of them could make a run at the caravan if they felt so inclined. I just couldn\u2019t risk being heard. The yeti didn\u2019t know <\/span>I<\/span><\/i> was there, and I was not about to lose that advantage and make myself a target.<\/span><\/p>\n In the end though none of that mattered. I was still sweeping the room when the others came in. It was too soon, which meant that they had been able to just walk in. I guess we should have expected that; this was supposed to be a trap after all. As the saying goes, we had them right where they want us.<\/span><\/p>\n I didn\u2019t see where the chief came from or how he had remained hidden, but I saw the first spell go off and then I knew, <\/span>I knew,<\/span><\/i> it was Katiyana. She\u2019d used that lightning strike on us before, and the chief was using it now. What were the odds? And then Olmas called out where he was and I turned around and saw him.<\/span><\/p>\n The start of the skirmish, though a ways away, made just enough noise that I could risk a whisper. I messaged to them that I was <\/span>sure<\/span><\/i> it was Katiyana as I flew to the yeti chief\u2019s position, still under the cover of invisibility. I stopped directly above him, letting the protective ward that was surrounding me envelop him.<\/span><\/p>\n And then chaos erupted.<\/span><\/p>\n The chief stumbled back, almost falling over, then cried out \u201c<\/span>Stop fight! Stop fight!<\/span><\/i> Bad spirit! Friends, if you help me!\u201d He was struggling against something that we couldn\u2019t see. It was Katiyana, of course, fighting to regain control. But as long as the ward was up she couldn\u2019t do it.<\/span><\/p>\n I reached down and placed a similar ward directly on him, so he wouldn\u2019t be dependent on me being so close. I saw that Sparna had the nine-ring sword out, intent on exorcising her spirit. \u201cThis sword can force her out,\u201d he said, \u201cbut I have to strike you with it.\u201d This seemed like a bad idea to me, but the chief not only consented, he <\/span>pleaded<\/span><\/i> to Sparna to do it. \u201cIt\u2019s trying! It can\u2019t take me! I give you magic rock if you get rid of bad, bad spirit!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Lightning kept striking around us. That spell she had cast was still active, and she didn\u2019t need the yeti\u2019s body. It took only her will to unleash each bolt.<\/span><\/p>\n Sparna struck, but to no avail. \u201cOh!\u201d the chief cried out as the blow landed. \u201cIt\u2019s hanging on!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Spells were going off everywhere now: I remember seeing at least one to protect Sparna from lightning, and another to dispel the protections Katiyana had cast on him.<\/span><\/p>\n Sparna struck again, and finally it worked. Katiyana\u2019s ghost was literally <\/span>flung<\/span><\/i> from the yeti\u2019s body. Then more spells went off as we tried to take her down. I fired blasts of pure force, and two spiritual entities appeared next to her and pressed the attacked. Some of these bounced off her harmlessly, and some struck true. A lightning elemental materialized and came to her aid, but just as quickly it was banished from the material plane. I lost track of what was happening until Radella moved in and struck the ghost down. Katiyana cried out something about being the Avatar of Sithhud, and then she was gone.<\/span><\/p>\n And it was over.<\/span><\/p>\n The yeti chief or king\u2014I am still not sure which is correct\u2014was true to his word. He thanked us for what we had done, for expelling the spirit that had forced him to confront us, and offered his ioun stone to Sparna in thanks. We forged a welcome, if awkward, truce. Several yeti were dead. Bevelek was dead. It was not their fault <\/span>or<\/span><\/i> ours, but that doesn\u2019t undo what was done.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s some 700 or 800 miles to Ordu-Aganhei. It will be two weeks before we can raise Bevelek. But at least we\u2019ll be moving again. We won\u2019t be able to leave until tomorrow morning, though\u2014it will take a few spells we don\u2019t normally prepare to get across the chasm and out of the Necropolis\u2014so I\u2019m going to spend some time with Koya and see if we can\u2019t remove the stain of Fumeiyoshi from this place. The necropolis was originally built to venerate Desna, after all. We shouldn\u2019t leave it like this.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Calistril 1, 4713 (Uqtaal Necropolis, Evening) T he counter-attack I was expecting never materialized, though we did get the next best thing, I suppose: several yeti emerged from the pool room and stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the cavern, forming a living wall between us and the necropolis. Why did they take a defensive position instead of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_import_markdown_pro_load_document_selector":0,"_import_markdown_pro_submit_text_textarea":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[32],"class_list":["post-3075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-journal","tag-kali"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3075","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3075"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3075\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5695,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3075\/revisions\/5695"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Calistril 2, 4713 (Uqtaal Necropolis, Morning)<\/h3>\n
Calistril 2 (Uqtaal Necropolis, Afternoon)<\/h3>\n