I<\/span><\/p>\n think I overplayed my hand. In fact, I am pretty sure I did and now I\u2019m concerned that I\u2019ve done the exact thing we were trying to avoid: spread the alarm ahead of us as we go. My <\/span>intent <\/span><\/i>was to avoid the long slog through this cavern\u2014having to fight our way through ambush after ambush on their terms\u2014to reach the end by having the end come to us, instead. That part certainly worked, but the commander of the garrison here knew something was up when he came. And the whole thing just took too long, so we more or less knew that he knew. But <\/span>how<\/span><\/i> did he know? That\u2019s the question that has me worried.<\/span><\/p>\n Maybe Munasukaru never actually comes up here. That\u2019s certainly possible. No matter how good my illusion, no matter how clear my memories of her, none of it would matter if it was just <\/span>all wrong <\/span><\/i>on that basic level. It goes back to what Ameiko and Sandru have tried to teach me about bluffing and disguise: the details matter, yes, but you have to get the broad strokes right first. Toying with the hobgoblins was fun, and they were certainly too terrified to think too much about what was going on, but their commander may have known better because it just doesn\u2019t happen. Or at least, not in that way, or without his knowledge.<\/span><\/p>\n That\u2019s the more benign theory, and to be honest, I don\u2019t give it much weight. The more problematic one\u2014the one that I think is more likely\u2014is that they sent a messenger further\u2026in? down?\u2026wherever, in order to find out if she was really here. Or maybe they reached her, or someone close to her, using magic and learned that, no, she\u2019s exactly where she should be\u2014so who is crazy and\/or foolish enough to imitate her? (A rhetorical question when I ask it, though maybe more of a head-scratcher for them.) In which case, now several people are aware that something is going on, even if they don\u2019t know precisely what that is.<\/span><\/p>\n If we\u2019re lucky, they\u2019ll blame the trickery on Akinosa. Though I am not feeling particularly lucky.<\/span><\/p>\n But, hey, at least we avoided the slog. Or, part of it, anyway. And, as a bonus, we ended up springing a trap without having to be there for it. So there is that. But, I can\u2019t shake the feeling that I\u2019ve compromised our long-term success for short-term gains.<\/span><\/p>\n It was a pretty nasty trap, though. Or would have been, had it come as the surprise that was intended. We learned a little about constructs back at the academy and I\u2019ve picked up some here and there in my own studies, but this was the first time we\u2019ve come face to face with one. They are largely resistant to magic and physical blows, which is probably why they are so coveted as guardians. These clay ones, though, are particularly nasty because the injuries they inflict resist even magical healing (something we learned through personal experience). Imagine having to fight our way through waves of hobgoblins after tangling with <\/span>that<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n W<\/span><\/p>\n hile the others searched the storeroom I took the time to memorize a couple of spells. That seemed more productive than digging through rusty tools, junk-drawer supplies, moldy vegetables and racks of cured mystery meats. Gods, this place is disgusting. It\u2019s like an estate sale for someone who died while I was still living at home.<\/span><\/p>\n I remember when I first came here. It was a long time ago. Long before I was born. It wasn\u2019t the hobgoblins but the aranea. There were so many of them back then, more than we normally see around the forest, and I was sent here because they wanted to know why (I don\u2019t remember who \u201cthey\u201d were. Give me a break; it\u2019s been half a century.) I stumbled onto the House, only I didn\u2019t know it had a name back then. It was just this improbable pagoda rising out of a depression in the forest.<\/span><\/p>\n It looked a lot different. The aranea hadn\u2019t gutted it, and of course we hadn\u2019t burned what was left. Now it\u2019s just a chimney, but when I first saw it? It was beautiful. The pit was there, though. <\/span>It<\/span><\/i> looked different, too. This was before the front lines of this stupid war were really drawn. I made my way down because I was curious.<\/span><\/p>\n Because Yuka was curious, and because it didn\u2019t make any sense. She made her way down and she was captured by the hobgoblins, and eventually brought before Munasukaru.<\/span><\/p>\n I don\u2019t remember how long I was down here. How long <\/span>she<\/span><\/i> was down here. But I\u2014 She remembers being tortured and killed, personally, by Munasukaru. And no one should have to remember that. <\/span>I <\/span><\/i>shouldn\u2019t have to remember that. It wasn\u2019t even me, but <\/span>she<\/span><\/i> remembers, and so I remember.<\/span><\/p>\n hile the others searched the storeroom I took the time to memorize a couple of spells. That seemed more productive than digging through rusty tools, junk-drawer supplies, moldy vegetables and racks of cured mystery meats. Gods, this place is disgusting. It\u2019s like an estate sale for someone who died while I was still living at home.<\/span><\/p>\n I remember when I first came here. It was a long time ago. Long before I was born. It wasn\u2019t the hobgoblins but the aranea. There were so many of them back then, more than we normally see around the forest, and I was sent here because they wanted to know why (I don\u2019t remember who \u201cthey\u201d were. Give me a break; it\u2019s been half a century.) I stumbled onto the House, only I didn\u2019t know it had a name back then. It was just this improbable pagoda rising out of a depression in the forest.<\/span><\/p>\n It looked a lot different. The aranea hadn\u2019t gutted it, and of course we hadn\u2019t burned what was left. Now it\u2019s just a chimney, but when I first saw it? It was beautiful. The pit was there, though. <\/span>It<\/span><\/i> looked different, too. This was before the front lines of this stupid war were really drawn. I made my way down because I was curious.<\/span><\/p>\n Because Yuka was curious, and because it didn\u2019t make any sense. She made her way down and she was captured by the hobgoblins, and eventually brought before Munasukaru.<\/span><\/p>\n I don\u2019t remember how long I was down here. How long <\/span>she<\/span><\/i> was down here. But I\u2014 She remembers being tortured and killed, personally, by Munasukaru. And no one should have to remember that. <\/span>I <\/span><\/i>shouldn\u2019t have to remember that. It wasn\u2019t even me, but <\/span>she<\/span><\/i> remembers, and so I remember.<\/span><\/p>\n We can hear sounds of\u2026well\u2026an <\/span>intimate moment<\/span><\/i> through one of the arches off the pit. I picked up just enough to make out the words, \u201cI thought I heard something on the lattice,\u201d but another voice said to ignore it, and then they, um, resumed <\/span>their thing<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n Or at least, that\u2019s what it sounds like. It\u2019s a lot louder than\u2026never mind. I guess this explains why they didn\u2019t hear us earlier.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Pharast 28 (House of Withered Blossoms, Mid-Morning) I think I overplayed my hand. In fact, I am pretty sure I did and now I\u2019m concerned that I\u2019ve done the exact thing we were trying to avoid: spread the alarm ahead of us as we go. My intent was to avoid the long slog through this […]<\/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-3617","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\/3617","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=3617"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3617\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5711,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3617\/revisions\/5711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dungeonetics.com\/gamediary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Pharast 28 (House of Withered Blossoms, Late Morning)<\/h3>\n
(later still)<\/h3>\n
(even later still)<\/h3>\n