"In my latest adventure, l joined Bojing’s campaign against the Master. After witnessing the havoc wrought by his armies, our group resolved to tackle the Master in his home country of Hunza. After some disorienting encounters with the brainwashed population, we were taken by surprise by a young thief named HuFei. He had a great deal of inside information about the Cult of Knowledge and the Master and shared our desire to bring an end to both. With his help, we were able to make our way to the Master’s temple without attracting the attention of the watchful Guardians, who according to HuFei, were aware of our mission.
"The Temple of Death was under extremely close observation, but our party was able to enter either disguised in Guardian’s robes, invisible, or miniaturised. As we made our way through the Temple, Guardians questioned us suspiciously, asking us to dispose of the agricultural offerings we had brought as cover for our mission. Armed guards threatened us, but we managed to fight them off, with Mustapha’s shadow monsters serving as a distraction. We reached a large room referred to as the Hall of Law, which contained glass coffins of former Masters and their remains. Ryu and Bojing, who had researched the Cult of Knowledge, recognised the name of the current Master, Hosadas, on one of the coffins. This surprising development altered our view of the nature of our enemy. We were attacked again, but Bojing was able to use his special abilities to transport us to the Master’s lair.* Once there, most disconcertingly, we were confronted by a creature resembling a handsome young man. As we attacked him, he started to float away. HuFei grabbed his foot and then we were able to finish him off.
"The Master’s lair contained magical items, which we gathered up and shared between us.** Next, we returned to the Hall of Law to destroy the Master’s remains. I wore the Master’s platemail armour, so the Temple acolytes naturally assumed that I was the Master. As we were closing in on the Hall of Law, Bojing started to behave oddly, as if he were someone else entirely, claiming to be the Master! Salt used her magic missile to raze the coffin and instantly Bojing dropped dead! It turned out that the spirit of the Master had co-opted Bojing, asking if he wanted to become the new Master. From the moment he accepted this role, Bojing effectively ceased to exist. Miraculously, Bojing came back to life sometime afterwards and is fortunately himself again, not the Master, although much more subdued in disposition.*** So the Cult is finally destroyed and Hosadas is defeated."
** Bojing chose the levitation boots, Tetsukichi the platemail armour and magical war hammer, Salt and Nekhil got an intriguing ‘room of requirement.’
*** Bo-Jing had previously done a great service for the "King of the East"-- rescuing the demi-god's daughter and also returning to him the magical coin that bore his visage. Playing D&D with Stuffed Animals: The Most Fortunate Khatun (dndstuffedanimals.blogspot.com) As Bo-Jing accepted the offer from Hosadas, the King of the East intervened, warning him that there are no short cuts to righteousness. Bo-Jing's life was restored, but his horror at his mistake left a mark. Gone was the easy confidence that he had known since birth and that had been only been enhanced by his many successes. He came to know that he was fully mortal and vulnerable to the same temptations as anyone else. While he lost the aura of invincibility, there were a few who appreciated his new depth and sense of humility.
Ginjo, Bayan, and Bing Chi Ling made their way back to their inn. Being unarmed, they stayed on the busiest streets through the caravanserai and felt they had no reason to fear or avoid the Pasha’s guards. But owing to Hiram’s high station, they decided not to ask for assistance, either. They reached the inn safely and retired to their rooms to sleep.
Ginjo and Bing Chi Ling, along with Ryu, slept in Mauza’s room. Their sleep was uneasy and Ginjo’s dog whined throughout the night. Nevertheless, Mauza did not complain, but slept soundly, enough that the sound of his snores soon overpowered those of the dog’s whining.
And then the door was burst open and a man with a sword burst into the room, several others pushing in behind him. Ginjo grabbed his own sword and blocked the door, while Bing Chi Ling cut down the attacker who had made it into the room.
Drunk and reckless, the attacking thugs soon fell to Ginjo’s blade, and were routed. Bayan, alerted by the noise blocked their escape, and soon all were laying on the floor, groaning in pain or dead.
The innkeeper rushed upstairs, protesting his innocence and begging forgiveness for not preventing the intrusion. Servants ran into the street, calling for the watch.
And so, Ginjo, Bayan, and Bing Chi Ling were escorted to the Pasha’s palace in the middle of the night. When asked to surrender their belongings and be locked in a holding cell, they refused, knowing that it might be the last they saw of the sales records they’d retrieved from the gnolls. They explained to the guards that they should see the Pasha immediately. Through their investigations of the bandit attacks in the Painted Canyon, they had learned that a band of man-eating gnolls were the source of the attacks. One of the guards was friends with one of the prisoners who had been rescued. “If you are who you say you are, I know the Pasha would like to meet you. “ Between Bayan’s money and Bing Chi Ling’s winning personality, the guards were convinced.
The Pasha met the party in a small audience chamber. Groggy and cranky, he stared at them with baleful eyes, demanding an explanation.
Bing Chi Ling complimented the Pasha’s pajamas, and with his fine manners, the Pasha’s mood softened. Having heard Ginjo and Bayan’s tales at the inn, he recounted them for the Pasha, sprinkling in more compliments whenever possible.
The Pasha’s moved changed to one of horror, when he learned that Ginjo and Bayan had found evidence that the gnolls were re-selling their stolen goods to respectable merchants. “Have you any proof of this?”
Ginjo produced the records. “We got the message from Hiram that you had heard about these records and wanted to see them. I am grateful to finally have the chance.”
“Hiram said—?”
The Pasha ordered for Hiram to be brought to the palace.
Hiram, not understanding why he had been summoned, began to apologize that “Your Wisdom may have his slumber interrupted on account of these ruffians who tried to rob my house tonight. I assure you they were handily repelled by my men.”
Ginjo produced the invitation with Hiram’s seal.
Next, the Pasha asked Hiram about the caravan raids and rumors he’d heard that gnolls were re-selling their stolen goods to other merchants. After asking Hiram to vouch for the honor of several local merchant’s and receiving Hiram’s assurance, “That if any of the men you named were involved in such a scheme, I would know about it.”
Ginjo produced the gnolls’ sales record book.
After allowing Hiram to tell several more lies, The Pasha ordered that his house should be searched. Neither he, nor the adventurers were permitted to leave the palace.
The next day, based on evidence he found at Hiram’s house, the Pasha ordered his immediate execution.
Mauza found multiple fletchers in Salt Springs whom, together, could satisfy Al-Fitar’s order by the end of the week. He gladly provided Bayan and Ginjo a generous allowance so they could enjoy themselves in the caravansary while he attended to other business. His only stipulation was that they would return to the inn each evening so that he could be assured a safe and restful slumber.
Ginjo and Bayan hatched a plan. They wanted an audience with the Satrap so they could tell him about their last meeting with Hiram and about the ambush at the ford. Based on his reaction they would know whether he was a party to Hiram’s treachery. However, they feared meeting the Satrap at a time when Hiram also present, knowing that he would simply contradict them. So, Ginjo sent a message to the Satrap, announcing plans to visit him the next afternoon. And meanwhile, Bayan sent a message to Hiram, inviting him with them at the inn at on the same day, believing this would prevent Hiram from being present when Ginjo visited the Satrap.
The day passed slowly as Ginjo and Bayan waited for a response. During this time, they made the acquaintance of Bing Chi Ling. He was like them, a wanderer, a warrior who had pledged a life oath to lend his sword to any righteous cause, without regard for reward or personal glory. He also had a irreverent sense of humor and enjoyed a well-conceived game of chance. So the three adventurers became friends.
At the end of the day, Bayan received a return message from Hiram to decline the invitation, but also expressing gratitude for their offer of hospitality following “the unfortunate incident at the ford” and insisting that they must allow him to make it up to them by dining at his house.
The satrap did not acknowledge Ginjo’s message.
Ginjo and Bayan decided to accept Hiram’s invitation. They asked Minh and the other sohei to secure the inn for the evening. And they invited their new friend Bing Chi Ling to join them and he gratefully accepted.
Dinner was an enjoyable affair, and Bing Chi Ling was welcomed along with the others. Hiram apologized again for any “previous misunderstandings” owning that he was “arrogant” to leave the safety and comfort of Salt Springs or even to believe that “such adventures would someone suited to a life of ease.” He patted his ample belly. “Based on the stories I have heard, I fully expected that I was going to end my life being turned over a fire covered in butter! If you think I am a coward, you are right!”
In fact, a roasted butter-basting was the delicious fate of both a lamb and a goat that night; Hiram and his guest enjoyed their beautifully roasted meat, together with all the finest accompaniments. Hiram ate and laughed heartily and very much enjoyed the stories of his “new best friend,” Bing Chi Ling.
After dinner, Hiram called for music and dancing. The musicians who had sat in the shadows during the meal, lightly tapping on their drums, emerged to beat their instruments with full, unified intensity, summoning three dancers who shimmied with the music in perfect time and, with the bangles ringing around their waists, added another timbre to the music.
Always most wary when distracted, Ginjo cocked his ear toward the kitchen, and heard the muffled sounds of heavy boots on the cellar stairs and the jangle of clinking armor. He stood up and flung open the shuttered balcony. Two guard were waiting there, their swords in hand.
While their swords were ready, the guards were not prepared for Ginjo’s sudden exit. He pushed past them and leapt off the balcony, raising a call for help. Bayan rose, urging Bing Chi Ling to follow. With people in the street gawking and pointing, Hiram did his best to calm the commotion, pleading for a “chance to talk this out,” and offering them thousands of drachmas. “I know important men in the north who can help you!” The guards sheathed their swords, but Bayan and Bing Chi Ling ignored Hiram’s offers; instead, they calmly tied a rope to balcony and lowered themselves to the street.
Al-Fitar asked Bayan and Gin Jo some pointed question about what they thought they knew. It turned out to be very little.
Yes, the invitation to Salt Springs looked like nothing more than a set-up for an ambush. It could be that the Satrap of Salt Springs was in league with the Master’s forces. Was there any evidence that the Master or his agents had contacted the Satrap? Was there evidence that the Satrap had ordered Hiram to arrange the ambush? Was there evidence that Hiram had arranged the ambush? Was there evidence that he or any of his bodyguards had known it was coming? Were there not plenty of reasons why the gnolls had a special hatred for Ginjo and Bayan? The gnolls’s list of names was evidence of terrible crimes, but was there anything connecting it to anyone in Salt Springs?
What they seem to have proved was merely that the gnolls were a serious threat to almost everyone except Bayan and Ginjo. Al-Fitar did not dare send his soldiers into the Painted Canyon. Although they fought well in large numbers on the plains or when they were the ones doing the ambushing, Al-Fitar knew that even his best officers would not have made it through the Painted Canyon without heavy losses. But Bayan and Ginjo showed an unusual combination of honor, courage, and guile. Rather than try to unravel the conspiracy, Al-Fitar preferred that they should work with what they knew. The gnolls were attacking his merchants with great success. But a savage mob of gnolls were no match for Ginjo, Bayan, and a few disciplined sohei. The Company should escort a merchant to Salt Springs, lay low in the caravansary while the merchant made arrangements to fulfill Al-Fitar’s order, and then escort the merchant back to Al-Fitar’s camp. Either the gnolls would show that they had learned their lesson and the merchant would be allowed to make his way in peace. Or the gnolls would have to learn their lesson again. “Isn’t that right, schoolmasters!”
And so Al-Fitar introduced Bayan and Ginjo to Mauza. He had two drovers, who also served as guards. But he was grateful for the additional protection. They would travel disguised as nomads. Al-Fitar needed arrows, thousands of them, but Mauza was on good terms with all the fletchers in Salt Springs.
The journey to Salt Springs was tense. They had nothing to steal and all the previous attacks had always targeted caravans traveling from Salt Springs, but Mauza understood that his new bodyguards had a reputation that cut both ways. The gnolls would be crazy to attack them. But according to all the stories about them, the gnolls were crazy.
On the way, they had the good fortune to cross paths with some real nomads, some of whom were wearing fancy riding boots! Yes, they had been among the captives that Ginjo and Bayan had rescued. They assisted the travelers in improving their disguises and sold them a few emaciated goats to improve the ruse. They described their favorite places to camp so as to avoid the dangerous ford crossing. Finally, they told them that the howl of jackals at night was a good omen; the jackals were sly hunters who stayed silent when the gnolls and hyenas were on the prowl.
That night, and for three following, the travelers slept with the lullaby of howling jackals. On the fourth day, they safely reached Salt Spring. Mauza introduced Bayan, Ginjo,and the others as nomads he had hired as drovers. He led the way through the caravansary to his favorite inn and booked three rooms.
