Bo-Jing, Bangqiu, and Salt decided they would go to Khazu Kala. Expecting a difficult battle, Bo-Jing ordered that they make a comfortable camp and rest for a couple days, giving their wounds a chance to heal. And so, by the time they reached Khazu Kala, the battle was all but over. A single wizened creature, wielding a rusty wicked sword, stood surrounded by a dozen Nergui warriors—and also dozens of corpses. Bo-Jing and Ses-Hami arrived by air and Bo-Jing attacked the strange fiend with a flying leap. With his fiery sword, Bo-Jing dispatched his foe and won the admiration of the Nergui. Gansukh was dead and his name had the taste of ashes. His duplicity had brought his own death, the deaths of his loyal bodyguards, the deaths of the people who depended on him. With little argument, the survivors of the attack, both the warriors and the people, agreed they would join Bo-Jing. Yes, even in rejoining the Bolad horde in Banua.
It took three days to arrive within sight of Banua and the arrival was not a cause for celebration, but another serving of hardship. For the proud city of the steppe was surrounded by an army of beastmen, dragons, and monsters. Bo-Jing himself cursed bitterly at how the pettiness of Gansukh had brought such horror among the people he had agreed to protect. But Nar-Nuteng would not allow her friend the luxury of despair. She directed his gaze from his foes to the people who had trusted him. With courage and faith, he could bring these people into Banua. Reuniting the people of Bolad and Nergui did not guarantee their survival but preserved their hopes for another day.
Bangqiu became invisible and rose into the air, surveying the enemy camps, and determined the safest route to the city. Bo Jing received the information and led the way. The warriors of Nergui rode in two files with the people and their animals between them. They rode with their swords in the air, shouting a battle cry and in this way represented themselves as attackers of Banua rather than its allies. The beastmen cheered their passage. Bangqiu, invisible, flew into the city and alerted the defenders to the ruse. When the gatges were opened, Salt and Bangqiu blasted the band of beastmen who tried to join the people of Nergui. The unarmed people passed into the city. Bo-Jing and the warriors stayed to defend their entry, warding off more attacking beastmen. Only when the innocents had entered the city did the warriors follow. Bo-Jing entered last of all and the gates were closed.
Sunday, October 24, 2021
Defending the Lands of the Five Fires 04 (The truth about Batzorig's sister)
Npi-Nhut and the other khimoris thanked Bo-Jing for his assistance. They promised to keep watch over the valley and alert him to any more incursions. And, as a further sign of appreciation, Ses-Hami would accompany him as he made his way to Khazu Kala. Bo-Jing was especially grateful for the khimori’s assistance as a scout and promised his father to not expose him to unnecessary danger.
The company made their way out of the valley, Ses-Hami sometimes scouting ahead when they reached likely ambush points. They reached the watch fire of the Nergui horde and were given a cold welcome. The soldiers shrugged off Salt’s questions about the beastmen and rather than share their ger, sent the guests to the firewood.
The company, still including the eight men from the Worm Clan, departed early the next morning and not far from the edge of the valley, heard the sounds of battle. Drawing closer, they found a Nergui encampment under attack by beastmen. Bangqiu broke the beastmen’s charge with a wall of fire then levitated above them to blast them with a cloud of steam. Salt cast her magic missiles and the few stragglers were cut down by Bo-Jing and his men.
The families thanked the company for their timely help and, recognizing Bo-Jing’s status as the local baghatur, expressed their loyalty to him and the Emperor. They prepared a meal and, with the mildest reluctance, expressed their dissatisfaction with Gansukh, explaining that they were avoiding Khaza Kala until something changed. But over the course of the meal, listening to the tales of the Worm Clan, they were convinced that Bo-Jing was that change. The intruders that Gansukh had welcomed into his ger were a graver danger than they had feared and any hope of security lay in supporting Bo-Jing in rallying resistance to invading armies of the mysterious “Master.” There were 3 skilled archers among the group, and a retired officer from Gansukh’s army. Their first duty was to their families but they all pledged to fight for Bo-Jing.
Late in the day, Ses-Hami alerted Bo-Jing to another encampment under attack. Again, Bo-Jing and Bangqiu led an overwhelming counterattack and were ably assisted by several warriors from the encampment. One of these warriors proved to be Batzorig, formerly Gansukh’s right-hand man and brother to Gansukh’s Khatun. Salt warned Batzorig that his sister was in special danger, that the beastmen has been looking for her among the Worm Clan.
Batzorig’s battle-scarred face turned soft and his lip quivered. He nodded. And after hearing what Salt had to say, he shared his own story. He had overheard Gansukh negotiating with a sinister stranger. At first Batzorig thought it was just another black shaman trying to get her necklace. But listening more closely, Batzorig realized the stranger wanted Naransetseng herself. As the people of Khazu Kala lost confidence in their khan and made secret plans to flee to the lands of the Bolad Horde, Batzorig had convinced his sister to join them. Batzorig himself remained and pretended ignorance. This proved easier than expected as Gansukh was also doing his best to avoid his wife. Only when the stranger arrived with a group of terrifying half-man bestial monsters did Gansukh demand that Batzorig present his sister. Batzorig stalled for several hours, and then reported that she had gone to visit her mother’s grave, three days west of the city. Gansukh was furious. And terrified. Batzorig promised that he would go and find Naransetseng nd the stranger promised that he would return. This was four days ago. He had stayed close to Khazu Kala. In case Gansukh needed him.
Why? Because Gansukh was his khan.
Batzorig wanted Salt, Bo-Jing, and Bang-qiu to know that his sister was not a witch. She was the daughter of the King of the East. When he was a boy, his father and uncles went away to trade and to fight in the imperial army. His mother was alone for several years and her own brother died. There was no one to protect her until they were visited by a handsome man in fine green clothes who played a fiddle. He helped Batzorig’s mother buy goats for a good price and stayed with her. After a time, Naransetseng was born. Soon before Batzorig’s father returned, the man went away, leaving Naransetseng with a necklace. She was a beautiful baby and she learned that her father was the squat ugly man who had gone away to the war. And he was. He loved her very much. Maybe more than he loved Batzorig.
“But I think that the stranger knows her true history. That’s why he wants her.”
The company made their way out of the valley, Ses-Hami sometimes scouting ahead when they reached likely ambush points. They reached the watch fire of the Nergui horde and were given a cold welcome. The soldiers shrugged off Salt’s questions about the beastmen and rather than share their ger, sent the guests to the firewood.
The company, still including the eight men from the Worm Clan, departed early the next morning and not far from the edge of the valley, heard the sounds of battle. Drawing closer, they found a Nergui encampment under attack by beastmen. Bangqiu broke the beastmen’s charge with a wall of fire then levitated above them to blast them with a cloud of steam. Salt cast her magic missiles and the few stragglers were cut down by Bo-Jing and his men.
The families thanked the company for their timely help and, recognizing Bo-Jing’s status as the local baghatur, expressed their loyalty to him and the Emperor. They prepared a meal and, with the mildest reluctance, expressed their dissatisfaction with Gansukh, explaining that they were avoiding Khaza Kala until something changed. But over the course of the meal, listening to the tales of the Worm Clan, they were convinced that Bo-Jing was that change. The intruders that Gansukh had welcomed into his ger were a graver danger than they had feared and any hope of security lay in supporting Bo-Jing in rallying resistance to invading armies of the mysterious “Master.” There were 3 skilled archers among the group, and a retired officer from Gansukh’s army. Their first duty was to their families but they all pledged to fight for Bo-Jing.
Late in the day, Ses-Hami alerted Bo-Jing to another encampment under attack. Again, Bo-Jing and Bangqiu led an overwhelming counterattack and were ably assisted by several warriors from the encampment. One of these warriors proved to be Batzorig, formerly Gansukh’s right-hand man and brother to Gansukh’s Khatun. Salt warned Batzorig that his sister was in special danger, that the beastmen has been looking for her among the Worm Clan.
Batzorig’s battle-scarred face turned soft and his lip quivered. He nodded. And after hearing what Salt had to say, he shared his own story. He had overheard Gansukh negotiating with a sinister stranger. At first Batzorig thought it was just another black shaman trying to get her necklace. But listening more closely, Batzorig realized the stranger wanted Naransetseng herself. As the people of Khazu Kala lost confidence in their khan and made secret plans to flee to the lands of the Bolad Horde, Batzorig had convinced his sister to join them. Batzorig himself remained and pretended ignorance. This proved easier than expected as Gansukh was also doing his best to avoid his wife. Only when the stranger arrived with a group of terrifying half-man bestial monsters did Gansukh demand that Batzorig present his sister. Batzorig stalled for several hours, and then reported that she had gone to visit her mother’s grave, three days west of the city. Gansukh was furious. And terrified. Batzorig promised that he would go and find Naransetseng nd the stranger promised that he would return. This was four days ago. He had stayed close to Khazu Kala. In case Gansukh needed him.
Why? Because Gansukh was his khan.
Batzorig wanted Salt, Bo-Jing, and Bang-qiu to know that his sister was not a witch. She was the daughter of the King of the East. When he was a boy, his father and uncles went away to trade and to fight in the imperial army. His mother was alone for several years and her own brother died. There was no one to protect her until they were visited by a handsome man in fine green clothes who played a fiddle. He helped Batzorig’s mother buy goats for a good price and stayed with her. After a time, Naransetseng was born. Soon before Batzorig’s father returned, the man went away, leaving Naransetseng with a necklace. She was a beautiful baby and she learned that her father was the squat ugly man who had gone away to the war. And he was. He loved her very much. Maybe more than he loved Batzorig.
“But I think that the stranger knows her true history. That’s why he wants her.”
Sunday, September 12, 2021
Defending the Lands of the Five Fires 03 (Not the coin they were looking for)
Over the next few days, the party was joined by the remnants of the khimori herd, Npi-Nhut, Ses-Hami, and only three others. And they were attacked by the lion-eagle creatures. They creatures were fearless and seemingly driven by hunger. They attacked the party’s extra horses, swiftly killing two of them to carry them off. But Salt also reacted swiftly. Bo-Jing had given her a magic wand and she used it to throw an explosive fall of fire after the lion-eagles as they escaped. Those who weren’t killed were forced to land. Bo-Jing and his men galloped after them fought them with arrows and swords. The brave warriors were grappled by the monster’s huge talons and slashed by their claws, but they fought on, defending each other and killing the monsters. The khimori expressed their gratitude and praised the party for their success in killing the monsters that they had come close to believing were insurmountable. Ses-Hami examined the bodies, and told Bo-Jing that he believed there were six more to be faced, including one who was invisible except when he was in combat. Bo-Jing assured Ses-Hami that he and the company would stay in the valley until the threat of the eagle-lions was completely eliminated.
Bangqiu suggested that while ranging over the northern end of the valley, they should search for the Northern Coin. Bo-Jing agreed. Following the information that Erke had provided and based on their own experiences in the Valley, they found the enormous horse statue and reason ed that it must be a representation of the King of the North. Bangqiu ascended to the top of the statue. Following its line of sight, he spotted a high cliff to the north, thoroughly pock-marked with caves. From this vantage point, he also saw activity outside the cave, living figures that, by their movements were possibly human or animal, but probably something in-between. The company decided to rest and approach the cliffs the next day.
While resting, they kept a close eye on the figures on the cliff. The next day, the company approached the cliffs and spent most of the day climbing up it. At the top, they encounter a group of beastmen, obviously agitated and anxious to attack, but held in check by a man in robes, the mysterious Erke whom they’d met in the course of their travels from Khanbaliq. Erke greeted them as old friends, apologizing that he had left Banua without them. “I didn’t know when you would return. And, as you can see, I found some other partners for my expedition!” Erke detailed how, with the help of the beastmen, he had found several tunnels, one of which he was sure was the hiding place of the Northern Coin. “Unfortunately, these are the breeding grounds of the crimson death worm, watch your step or your last breath will be a cry of agonizing pain!” The men from the Clan of Worm tapped their crimson shield and laughed to each other.
Erke explained that while exploring the tunnels, most of the beastmen had already been killed. “Those fellows almost never watch their step . . .” Salt found it very uncomfortable being so close to living beastmen. Their musky odor was nearly overpowering and they stared at her with bloodshot eyes and with saliva dripping from their fangs, and whimpered like dogs when Erke shouted at them in a harsh, metallic tongue. The marks on their body glowed faintly and the beastmen scratched at the marks until they oozed blood and pus. Erke identified the tunnels he had explored and the ones he still wanted to investigate. “If we send the beastmen along first, they will draw the worms out and your men can shoot them with arrows—the worms—before they get close enough to surprise us with electric shock . . . and if all the beastmen die, then we can avoid the problem of how to pay them . . . speaking of payment, you should know I’m working the Emperor. He expects to receive the Coin but we will all be well rewarded.”
Bangqiu and Salt expressed their extreme displeasure at this suggestion. Salt didn’t believe Erke and Bangqiu didn’t care. “We don’t work for the Emperor. If we find the coin, I want it.” Erke tried to argue, but in doing so, lost control of the beastmen. He pulled a potion from his robes; as his body sublimated into a blue-green cloud, Salt blasted him with a ball of fire from her wand. The cloud evaporated and two beastmen were incinerated. The other beastmen attacked. Meanwhile a screech from the sky announced another assault from the lions-eagles. The khimori took to the skies, while the lion-eagles attacked the party’s horses. Bo-Jing and his soldiers greatly outnumbered the beastmen, who fought with a death-wish, clawing and biting their opponents as they were cut down by swords and spears. The lion-eagles killed four horses before being driven off by Salt and Bangqiu’s magical attacks, losing one of their own in the process. The party watched their flight but did not seek to prolong the battle.
Instead they set-up a camp and a number of watchers, knowing an attack could come from the air, the ground, or from within the caves. After a day of rest, Bo-Jing and Salt decided they would explore the tunnel. The men of the worm clan refused to follow them, explaining that the death worm was their totem animal. “We must warn you that if you value your life, you should not invade its home. It lies quietly, avoiding unnecessary strife, but if molested, it will defend itself with all lethal force, a mouth full of needles and poison, and with lightning expelled from its body.”
Despite this warning, the Worm Clan promised Bo-Jing that their own taboo against disturbing the worms would not make enemies of those who did. “If the Worm decides not to kill you, why should we?” Bo-Jing promised he would do his best to avoid fighting the worm but believed the coin would help defeat the Master’s armies. Bangqiu decided that he too would remain outside, both to protect the horses and to, just in case, watch the members of the Worm Clan.
Bo-Jing and his men, along with Ryu and Salt, explored the tunnels of the crimson death worms. The warning was very helpful. The worms were most dangerous when accidentally stepped on. Gan-Yul received a nasty bite that pierced his boot; his leg swelled up painfully, but he survived. By sweeping the area ahead of them with a long pole, the party located and drove away killed dozens of the worms. The worms did indeed expel lightning at enemies who drew too close, but Bo-Jing’s soldiers learned to pelt the worms with rocks from a safe distance. But the most effective way to deal with the worms was Ryu’s snake staff. In the form of a large python, it slithered through the tunnels, driving out the worms underfoot, to constrict and devour them. The hungry snake braved the shocks and seemed nearly impervious to poison. And when the snake did become so covered in worm bites, that it began to spasm, Ryu commanded it to return to staff form. By this time, the party had located and excavated the worm’s nest, a pile of rubble that covered and older tunnel that had been worked by human hands.
The party had to cross a chasm but found themselves at last in a small chamber in which a bronze coffer rested on top of a stone pedestal. The coffer, though small enough to fit in Bo-Jing’s hand, was so heavy that he could not lift it and only by summoning all his strength could he knock it off the pedestal. Something metal clattered inside. Bo-Jing rummaged through his belongings and found a bottle of what smelled like vinegar that he’d discovered in the dungeons beneath the monastery in Khanbaliq. When he unstopped it, the smell was overwhelming but while his men heaved and wretched, Bo-Jing gulped it down, swallowing the liquid with a mighty below. With another great shout, he seized pounded the coffer with his fist until it began to buckle and crack, and then with a final groan, tore the lid away. The coin—if that’s what it was—didn’t look like the others. Bo-Jing nursed his bloodied hand and Ryu held a torch over a disk of dull metal, maybe pewter depicting four doves flying in a circle. Ryu picked it up and turned it over—both sides were the same. No writing or symbols. Ryu gave Bo-Jing the coin, who clenched it in his fist. When he had held the other coins, he had received a sense of their powers. With this one, he felt nothing. Besides the coin, there was a scrap of paper, with writing in several languages. Ryu deciphered enough to explain its general message: “Where your treasure is, your heart will be also.”
Outside the cave, Npi-Nhut approached Bo-Jing with a suggestion. He appreciated that Bo-Jing was an honorable man with conflicting duties. Npi-Nhut knew the lion-eagles would return when they were rested, healed, and hungry. He trusted that Bo-Jing and his friends would fight them off. But how many more horses would be killed in the process? And how many of Bo-Jing’s own kind would be victims of these invading marauders? For the khimoris, flying with a person on their back was dangerous. In the air they were faster and more maneuverable than the lion-eagles or any other predators, but these advantages would be lost if the khimoris had to restrict their maneuvers to avoid throwing off their riders. But Npi-Nhut would make an exception. He and his family would each carry one rider across the valley and drop them into the aerie of the lion-eagles. With the benefit of a surprise attack, Bo-Jing and four of his most valiant companions would not doubt be victorious. Bo-Jing agreed to the plan. Ryu agreed to join him. Among his henchmen, he chose his cousins Gan-wei and Yi-Ren. The dilemma of choosing between Zhang and Ganyul to be left behind, was resolved by Salt, who volunteered to be the fifth. Npi-Nhut was very pleased by this suggestion, having noticed the sorceress’s uncanny instinct for the right time to strike in battle. And so, after some quick lessons in riding in the air and without a saddle, the group set off.
They flew by moonlight so as to avoid being sighted by the beastmen on the ground who might warn the lion-eagles of their approach. The air was cold and thin. Salt rode with her face pressed into Npi-Nhut’s mane. Bo- Jing, riding behind Npi-Nhut on Ses-Hami, did his best to maintain his customary proud seat, though his legs ached with the pressure of holding on. After several hours, Npi-Nhut ordered a rest. They landed and the khimoris allowed saddle ropes to be tied loosely around their bellies to give something more for the riders to hold onto. As dawn was breaking, the kihimoris and their riders reached the southwest corner of the valley.
Npi- Nhut circled higher, the signal that they had reached their target. The khimoris circled and then Npi- Nhut led them into a slow dive toward a large shelf far above the tree line and half-sheltered by slanting overhang. Two of the lion-eagles were visible, lazily gnawing on bones, on the edge of the shelf. As Npi-Nhut neared the shelf, he veered away from it, distracting the lion-eagles as the other four khimoris briefly touched their hooves down to drop off their riders. Bo-Jing had sprung off before Ses-Hami touched down, landing on the back of one of the lion-eagles and cutting off one of its wings. Gan-wei and Yi-Ren landed on either side of the other lion-eagle and Ryu landed at a safe distance and threw down his snake staff. Npi-Nhut stayed some distance from the shelf, not allowing Salt to land. The maimed lion-eagle screeched in pain and two more emerged from the cave at the back of the shelf. As Bo-Jing rushed to meet them, he was knocked to his feet by the invisible lion-eagle. It held him down in its talons and slashed at his face with its beak. Salt blasted it with a trio of energy bolts. Bo-Jing sprang to his feet and attacked the invisible foe, tracking it by its talon marks on the rocks and by the rush of wind as thrust at him with its slashing beak. Again and again, Bo-Jing’s blade found the neck and chest of his foe. Together, Gan-Wei and Yi-Ren flanked and killed one lion-eagle, but were hard pressed when forced to fight one by themselves. They were both battered and cut by talons, wings, and the sharp beaks of the lion-eagles. Ryu’s snake caught of one of the lion-eagles, and slithered up to its wing, hampering its movement so badly that Gan-Wei was able to gain the upper hand, slashing and stabbing at the monsters back while avoiding its beak and talons. Ryu himself assisted Yi-Ren, first healing one of his most grievous wounds, then joining in battle with his heavy staff. Salt sent another volley of magic missiles, and soon the invisible lion-eagle was the only one still alive. With a final slash at Bo-Jing face, the invisible lion-eagle took to the air. Salt showered it with magical cloud, bathing it in cool violet light—suddenly an easy target for the arrows of Bo-Jing, Gan-Wei and Yi-Ren. But the lion-eagle was fast; after being hit with two arrows, it dove toward the ground, falling out of bowshot. Ses-Hami gave chase, following it all the way to the ground. When he landed, the bloodied lion-eagle sprang on Ses-Hami with its talons, tearing his back. The khimori struggled to regain the air, shaking the eagle-lion off his back, then dived on the monster, pounding its head with his hooves. By the time Npi-Nhut and the other khimoris reached the ground, the last of their tormentors was dead. Meanwhile, up in the lion-eagles’ lair, among the bones, Bo-Jing found a fine sword and awarded it to Gan-Wei.
Monday, July 12, 2021
Defending the Lands of the Five Fires 02 (Into the Valley)
The party returned to Banua and shared news of their success. Ganbaatar was thoroughly pleased, and announced a small feast in their honor. The celebration was muted, however, by the growing evidence that their recent triumph, despite the symbolic importance, was so small practical importance compared to the challenge ahead of them. The population of Banua had noticeably increased in the couple weeks that Bo-Jing and his company had been gone. The most obvious newcomers were members of the Bolad horde who returned to the seat of their khan as was their right. But more and more of the newcomers were refugees from the Nergui horde. They were not soldiers, but families and widows. Ganbaatar refereed to them as his “long-lost people returned,” and setting a tone of generous triumph. But anxiety was growing. Clearly, Gansukh could not defend his people as well as Ganbaatar, but would “better than Gansukh” prove to be good enough?
Bo-Jing discussed the matter with Ryu and came to the one obvious conclusion. As the Emperor’s baghatur, he was not a Bolad partisan. His duty, accepted as a charge from the Emperor, was not only to collect taxes, but to defend the people. He would go to Khazu Kala, make peace with Gansukh if possible and, regardless of whether he succeeded in this, find a way to bring help to the people. If he could not organize a defense himself, he would gather information to make a compelling report to the Emperor.
The mysterious Salt had also found her way to Banua. Bo-Jing suspected that Bangqiu had found some way to contact her through the dreamworld, but regardless, he agreed that he would be glad to have the advice of another magician when confronting the armies of the “Master.” Nar-Nuteng, however, decided that she would remain in Banua.
En route to the lands of the Nergui, Bo-Jing encountered a khimori, a blue-black flying horse, who introduced himself as the son of the khimori whom Bo-Jing had met in the Valley of the Five Fires. The young khimori, who was called Ses-Hami, told Bo-Jing that the Valley had been invaded by evil creatures who defiled the cradle of humanity with wanton bloodshed, fighting each other, killing animals, and setting the grass on fire. At first, the khimori had avoided these dangers by taking flight when necessary. But more recently, the land-bound monsters had been joined by flying abominations, flying lions with the heads and razor-sharp beaks of giant eagles. These monsters had pursued the khimori, and killed several of their number. Without assistance, the entire herd would soon be eliminated. Bo-Jing promised immediately to help, then spent a sleepless night agonizing over how his promise might cost human lives. By morning, he concluded that assisting the khimori might also benefit the people of Khazu Kala; if nothing else, he learn something about the monsters that were causing so much havoc in the area.
On their way into the Valley, the party passed through the Bolad fire camp and found it completely destroyed, with all the firewatchers dead. Venturing into the Valley itself, the party encountered a group of haggard soldiers with crimson shields. These men expressed their joy and relief in meeting other natural people, explaining that they were of the Clan of the Worm and that their lands had been overrun by beastmen. These savage murders attacked without reason or purpose except to find someone they called the “deaf witch” and the “queen with no name.” Circumstances had become so dire, that these men of the Worm Clan had entered the Valley of the Five Fires, with the plan of crossing it and warning their treaty-partners and to plan for common defense. Bo-Jing thanked the men of the Worm Clan and agreed that all people should unite against the alien threat. He believed that the “deaf witch” being sought by the beastmen was Naransetseng, the wife of Gansukh, khan of the Nergui Horde. He would accompany the men to warn the Nergui why they were being target by the beastmen. But first, he had made a promise to the khimori. The men of the Worm Clan asked to travel with Bo-Jing, seeing that he was a true baghatur of courage and honor. Bo-Jing welcomed their help gladly. Continuing on their way, the group encountered several of the beastmen that the men of the Worm Clan had described. These men were tattoed with strange symbols and seemed to be in the midst of a painful transformation from man into beast, having developed claws and fangs. They were fearsome opponents, but Bangqiu and Salt blasted them with a cloud of scalding steam and other magic attachs; those who survived were swiftly cut down by Bo-Jing and his men. The men of the Worm Clan pledged their gratitude at having been accepted into such valiant company.
Ses-Hami approached Bo-Jing and asked to share with him some information that he had previously kept to himself. His father, Npi-Nhut, had been captured by the beastmen. The beastmen had asked him to deliver Bo-Ing to them in exchange for the life of his father. Ses-Hami had seen that Bo-Jing was not only valiant, but honorable, and he realized his father would rather die than be part of any transaction that might endanger such a good man. Ses-Hami knew where the beastmen and other monsters were lying in wait hoping to ambush Bo-Jing, on the main path leading into the Valley. But he also knew another way, through the forest on a path even higher than the ambush point. He proposed that they attack the monsters and rescue his father.
Bo-Jing agreed to the plan. Ses-Hami led the group through the forest, to the top of a steep grassy slope overlooking the path into the valley. Indeed there was a group of beastmen plus three trolls, watching the path below. They had prepared an assortment of rubble, held in place by a pile of logs and ropes, and poised to be cast down onto the path below. Npi-Nhut was chained to a rock, guarded by three enormous wolves. Bangqiu ascended into the air and threw a ring of fire down on the would-be ambushers. The ring expanded, holding them in place. The Worm Clan rained arrows down on the entrapped beastmen. Bo-Jing ordered his men to fire their arrows at the wolves charging up the hill, while stepping forward with his sword ready to meet the attack. Salt added her own magic missiles to the volley of arrows. Only one wolf reached Bo-Jing and he was killed by a single blow from the baghatur’s sword. Those beastmen who tried to escape their prison and were not consumed by the flames were overwhelmed by Bo-Jing and his men when they reached the top of the hill. Soon the evil monsters were dead and the company of heroes emerged victorious and unscathed. Npi-Nhut was freed and he confirmed his son’s sad tale. He would gather the rest of the herd and, with Bo-Jing’s permission, travel with the brave heroes as they continued their campaign of justice throughout the Valley.
Bo-Jing discussed the matter with Ryu and came to the one obvious conclusion. As the Emperor’s baghatur, he was not a Bolad partisan. His duty, accepted as a charge from the Emperor, was not only to collect taxes, but to defend the people. He would go to Khazu Kala, make peace with Gansukh if possible and, regardless of whether he succeeded in this, find a way to bring help to the people. If he could not organize a defense himself, he would gather information to make a compelling report to the Emperor.
The mysterious Salt had also found her way to Banua. Bo-Jing suspected that Bangqiu had found some way to contact her through the dreamworld, but regardless, he agreed that he would be glad to have the advice of another magician when confronting the armies of the “Master.” Nar-Nuteng, however, decided that she would remain in Banua.
En route to the lands of the Nergui, Bo-Jing encountered a khimori, a blue-black flying horse, who introduced himself as the son of the khimori whom Bo-Jing had met in the Valley of the Five Fires. The young khimori, who was called Ses-Hami, told Bo-Jing that the Valley had been invaded by evil creatures who defiled the cradle of humanity with wanton bloodshed, fighting each other, killing animals, and setting the grass on fire. At first, the khimori had avoided these dangers by taking flight when necessary. But more recently, the land-bound monsters had been joined by flying abominations, flying lions with the heads and razor-sharp beaks of giant eagles. These monsters had pursued the khimori, and killed several of their number. Without assistance, the entire herd would soon be eliminated. Bo-Jing promised immediately to help, then spent a sleepless night agonizing over how his promise might cost human lives. By morning, he concluded that assisting the khimori might also benefit the people of Khazu Kala; if nothing else, he learn something about the monsters that were causing so much havoc in the area.
On their way into the Valley, the party passed through the Bolad fire camp and found it completely destroyed, with all the firewatchers dead. Venturing into the Valley itself, the party encountered a group of haggard soldiers with crimson shields. These men expressed their joy and relief in meeting other natural people, explaining that they were of the Clan of the Worm and that their lands had been overrun by beastmen. These savage murders attacked without reason or purpose except to find someone they called the “deaf witch” and the “queen with no name.” Circumstances had become so dire, that these men of the Worm Clan had entered the Valley of the Five Fires, with the plan of crossing it and warning their treaty-partners and to plan for common defense. Bo-Jing thanked the men of the Worm Clan and agreed that all people should unite against the alien threat. He believed that the “deaf witch” being sought by the beastmen was Naransetseng, the wife of Gansukh, khan of the Nergui Horde. He would accompany the men to warn the Nergui why they were being target by the beastmen. But first, he had made a promise to the khimori. The men of the Worm Clan asked to travel with Bo-Jing, seeing that he was a true baghatur of courage and honor. Bo-Jing welcomed their help gladly. Continuing on their way, the group encountered several of the beastmen that the men of the Worm Clan had described. These men were tattoed with strange symbols and seemed to be in the midst of a painful transformation from man into beast, having developed claws and fangs. They were fearsome opponents, but Bangqiu and Salt blasted them with a cloud of scalding steam and other magic attachs; those who survived were swiftly cut down by Bo-Jing and his men. The men of the Worm Clan pledged their gratitude at having been accepted into such valiant company.
Ses-Hami approached Bo-Jing and asked to share with him some information that he had previously kept to himself. His father, Npi-Nhut, had been captured by the beastmen. The beastmen had asked him to deliver Bo-Ing to them in exchange for the life of his father. Ses-Hami had seen that Bo-Jing was not only valiant, but honorable, and he realized his father would rather die than be part of any transaction that might endanger such a good man. Ses-Hami knew where the beastmen and other monsters were lying in wait hoping to ambush Bo-Jing, on the main path leading into the Valley. But he also knew another way, through the forest on a path even higher than the ambush point. He proposed that they attack the monsters and rescue his father.
Bo-Jing agreed to the plan. Ses-Hami led the group through the forest, to the top of a steep grassy slope overlooking the path into the valley. Indeed there was a group of beastmen plus three trolls, watching the path below. They had prepared an assortment of rubble, held in place by a pile of logs and ropes, and poised to be cast down onto the path below. Npi-Nhut was chained to a rock, guarded by three enormous wolves. Bangqiu ascended into the air and threw a ring of fire down on the would-be ambushers. The ring expanded, holding them in place. The Worm Clan rained arrows down on the entrapped beastmen. Bo-Jing ordered his men to fire their arrows at the wolves charging up the hill, while stepping forward with his sword ready to meet the attack. Salt added her own magic missiles to the volley of arrows. Only one wolf reached Bo-Jing and he was killed by a single blow from the baghatur’s sword. Those beastmen who tried to escape their prison and were not consumed by the flames were overwhelmed by Bo-Jing and his men when they reached the top of the hill. Soon the evil monsters were dead and the company of heroes emerged victorious and unscathed. Npi-Nhut was freed and he confirmed his son’s sad tale. He would gather the rest of the herd and, with Bo-Jing’s permission, travel with the brave heroes as they continued their campaign of justice throughout the Valley.
Sunday, July 11, 2021
Defending the Lands of the Five Fires 01 (Cleansing the Shrine of Sum Sakhius)
The party return to their house in the city and enjoyed long baths for finalizing their plans to return to the Bo-Jing’s post in the lands of the Valley of the Five Fires. Bo-Jing announced that they would leave the next day, hoping that an early departure would avoid any more audiences with the Emperor. Bangqiu sent a thought message to Kafka in the Happy Valley, telling him that the monastery in Khanbaliq was suitable for reconsecration and habitation by genuine monks, although there were some problems in the way of an ant infestation and sewage system irregularities that would need to be addressed at some point.
The company set out the next afternoon. As they traveled north, Bo-Jing and Bangqiu found that increasingly their reputations preceded them. When there was no inn available, there was a snug house, and when there was no house, there was an encampment around a roaring fire, the smell of roasting meat and a crowd of smiling faces. Mainly they wanted to hear about the coin that Bo-Jing and Ganbaatar had given to the Emperor. Where did they find it, what were it’s powers, what would the Emperor do with it, would there be marriages to Imperial daughters? Some knew of the feud with Gansukh and the Nergui horde. Some had heard rumors of Bangqiu’s powers. And always there were one or two young men hoping to spar with the bright-eyed warrior maiden.
Bangqiu and Bo-Jing wanted to find another coin. And along the road, they found someone who wanted to help them, a mystic named Erke who told them he visited the Valley of the Five Fires in the dreamworld and heard rumors of the where the Northern Coin could be found. “The horse of Khagan Harad still looks for his master.” Bo-Jing invited Erke to travel with them.
As the party traveled further north, the welcomes were as warm as ever, but with an undercurrent of desperation. They were hearing strange stories about men taking on the minds of beasts, becoming maddened by the basest instincts. There were a few jokes about the barbaric ways of the Nergui horde, but most understood this was something more. Instead of tall tales, these people wanted to hear that yes Bo-Jing and Bangqiu did lead a battle against wolves, giants, and flying monsters. And yes, when the time came, they would do it again.
When the party reached Banua, they were ready to put aside thoughts about the coin. Ganbaatar was “so thankful that you decided to leave the good life in the capital and return to little old Banua.”
Based on stories of what was happening in the lands of the Nergui horde, Ganbaatar had forbidden his people from traveling in the lands west of Banua. And yet, the Master’s armies, the beastmen were likely on their way. He was especially concerned to hear stories that the shrine of Sum Sukhis had been defiled. Northeast of Banua, Ganbaatar considered this the true jewel of his lands. “A holy place for all people. No matter your faith, any one who visited there with an open heart would come away with peace and joy. Until now.”
Pilgrims had gone and not returned. Others had given up their pilgrimage, finding themselves more and more uneasy as they came in view of the stupa that marked the holy place.
Bo-Jing, Bangqiu, and Nar-Nuteng were glad to go. Erke would not. Instead, he would stay and wait for them in Banua.
The travel to the shrine took several days and while the people they met were welcoming as they got closer there were fewer and fewer people. They met a hermit who told them the strange history of the shrine, that it was built with a pool on the ground floor, an upper story, and a lower floor that was closed off to everyone, in expression of the constant necessity to resist evil. And now the shrine had been overrun by monsters, blue and purple oni who attacked pilgrims and defiled the shrine.
On the day when they finally reached the shrine, they met a pair of 10-fotot tall blue-skinned monsters, trying to knock down a tree in which an eagle was nesting. Bangqiu and Ryu used their magic to transix the monsters. They fell to the ground in a stiff slumber. The eagle flew down from the trees to peck out the monster’s eyes and feed it to her chicks. In examining the monsters bodies, Bo-Jing noticed several large, pus-filled sores and bloody boils. Ryu could talk to the eagle who explained that the monsters lived in the “quiet stone house” and had “taken the silence away” with fighting and screaming.
The party entered the shrine and found the pool as described by the hermit and a staircase leading down. At the bottom of the staircase, they found a pair of oni standing guard outside a door, their backs facing the party. Bangqiu spoke to them in his most commanding voice and in their own language, explaining that he had come from the Master and wanted a full report. The oni promised that they were doing the Master’s bidding, and guarding the place but there was something in the underground that was making everyone sick. Everyone wanted to leave but the chief said no. Bangqiu expressed the necessity of speaking to the chief at once.
The oni agreed and let the party back upstairs and to the upper floor. The other oni they met were glad to meet visitors. Using both his sword and the power of the Eastern Coin, Bo-Jing was able to convince them that he was a powerful ally. Some were violent, but not in a sustained, cohesive, or even fully serious way, and not necessarily directed at “the little folk.” On a lark and perhaps to impress the visitors, two of the onis decided to throw a third over the balcony and into the pool below. All of them were covered with the same sores that plagued the onis that had been harassing the eagles.
When they reached the chief’s quarters, they found him less cowed and more hostile, and suddenly found themselves surrounded by a dozen monsters who had already shown their capacity for easy violence. Thinking fast, Bo-Jing called on the power of the Eastern Coin and with a sharp word, the chief was struck to the ground motionless. The onis hesitated and then one sprang for the chief’s yak-skin cloak, proclaiming himself “the new chief.” He was challenged by one of the other oni and in the midst of the melee, Bangqiu made the cloak disappear.
The onis didn’t notice immediately, but when they did, they began to cry out in outrage once again threatening the visitors with violence and doing their best to deliver on their threats.
An invisible Bangqiu, stepped outside the a window and called from there, “the cloak of the chief is outside. The first one outside will claim it as the new chief.” To prove his point, the invisible Bangqiu dropped the cloak. Those oni standing near the window saw it fall to the ground. After testing they were too big to jump out the window, the oni, pushed their ways to the stairs or over the balcony. As soon as they got outside, the still invisible Bangqiu, made the cloak disappear again, only to carry it and drop it further away from the shrine.
As the rest of the party made their way out of the shrine, they met a pair of onis that had been so stricken with sores that they were barely recognizable as oni any more. Their skin had been stretched and discolored a pale violet and most of their teeth had fallen out of their mouths. And they attacked with fearless rage, seemingly relieved to be cut down by the blades of Bo-Jing and his comrades.
The party looked at each other and nodded grimly. Bo-Jing led the way back down to the door that the oni had been guarding. In their absence it had been smashed open. In the space below, they met and killed more of the diseased oni. They also found a boulder of black stone, nearly as large as the shrine itself and pulsating with a sickly purple light. Immediately, their skin began to itch and their minds were clouded with evil thoughts.
Continuing to explore, they found two rooms with writing carved on the wall. They felt peaceful here, especially when they touched the wall. They could not read it, but Bo-Jing recognized seeing something like it in the books that Bangqiu carried with him.
The party exited the shrine and camped, waiting for Bangqiu’s return. When he did return, they told him about the writing and he agreed to enter the shrine and examine it. They re-entered the shrine and indeed Bangqiu could read the writing. When he read it, their minds felt completely at peace. Returning to the room with black-purple boulder, they found it had been shielded by another gentle yellow light and that they could stand next to it without ill effect. All the same, Bangqiu announced that a wooden door and promises were insufficient to keep the shrine safe. He covered the entrance to the undercroft with a seamless wall of stone.
The company set out the next afternoon. As they traveled north, Bo-Jing and Bangqiu found that increasingly their reputations preceded them. When there was no inn available, there was a snug house, and when there was no house, there was an encampment around a roaring fire, the smell of roasting meat and a crowd of smiling faces. Mainly they wanted to hear about the coin that Bo-Jing and Ganbaatar had given to the Emperor. Where did they find it, what were it’s powers, what would the Emperor do with it, would there be marriages to Imperial daughters? Some knew of the feud with Gansukh and the Nergui horde. Some had heard rumors of Bangqiu’s powers. And always there were one or two young men hoping to spar with the bright-eyed warrior maiden.
Bangqiu and Bo-Jing wanted to find another coin. And along the road, they found someone who wanted to help them, a mystic named Erke who told them he visited the Valley of the Five Fires in the dreamworld and heard rumors of the where the Northern Coin could be found. “The horse of Khagan Harad still looks for his master.” Bo-Jing invited Erke to travel with them.
As the party traveled further north, the welcomes were as warm as ever, but with an undercurrent of desperation. They were hearing strange stories about men taking on the minds of beasts, becoming maddened by the basest instincts. There were a few jokes about the barbaric ways of the Nergui horde, but most understood this was something more. Instead of tall tales, these people wanted to hear that yes Bo-Jing and Bangqiu did lead a battle against wolves, giants, and flying monsters. And yes, when the time came, they would do it again.
When the party reached Banua, they were ready to put aside thoughts about the coin. Ganbaatar was “so thankful that you decided to leave the good life in the capital and return to little old Banua.”
Based on stories of what was happening in the lands of the Nergui horde, Ganbaatar had forbidden his people from traveling in the lands west of Banua. And yet, the Master’s armies, the beastmen were likely on their way. He was especially concerned to hear stories that the shrine of Sum Sukhis had been defiled. Northeast of Banua, Ganbaatar considered this the true jewel of his lands. “A holy place for all people. No matter your faith, any one who visited there with an open heart would come away with peace and joy. Until now.”
Pilgrims had gone and not returned. Others had given up their pilgrimage, finding themselves more and more uneasy as they came in view of the stupa that marked the holy place.
Bo-Jing, Bangqiu, and Nar-Nuteng were glad to go. Erke would not. Instead, he would stay and wait for them in Banua.
The travel to the shrine took several days and while the people they met were welcoming as they got closer there were fewer and fewer people. They met a hermit who told them the strange history of the shrine, that it was built with a pool on the ground floor, an upper story, and a lower floor that was closed off to everyone, in expression of the constant necessity to resist evil. And now the shrine had been overrun by monsters, blue and purple oni who attacked pilgrims and defiled the shrine.
On the day when they finally reached the shrine, they met a pair of 10-fotot tall blue-skinned monsters, trying to knock down a tree in which an eagle was nesting. Bangqiu and Ryu used their magic to transix the monsters. They fell to the ground in a stiff slumber. The eagle flew down from the trees to peck out the monster’s eyes and feed it to her chicks. In examining the monsters bodies, Bo-Jing noticed several large, pus-filled sores and bloody boils. Ryu could talk to the eagle who explained that the monsters lived in the “quiet stone house” and had “taken the silence away” with fighting and screaming.
The party entered the shrine and found the pool as described by the hermit and a staircase leading down. At the bottom of the staircase, they found a pair of oni standing guard outside a door, their backs facing the party. Bangqiu spoke to them in his most commanding voice and in their own language, explaining that he had come from the Master and wanted a full report. The oni promised that they were doing the Master’s bidding, and guarding the place but there was something in the underground that was making everyone sick. Everyone wanted to leave but the chief said no. Bangqiu expressed the necessity of speaking to the chief at once.
The oni agreed and let the party back upstairs and to the upper floor. The other oni they met were glad to meet visitors. Using both his sword and the power of the Eastern Coin, Bo-Jing was able to convince them that he was a powerful ally. Some were violent, but not in a sustained, cohesive, or even fully serious way, and not necessarily directed at “the little folk.” On a lark and perhaps to impress the visitors, two of the onis decided to throw a third over the balcony and into the pool below. All of them were covered with the same sores that plagued the onis that had been harassing the eagles.
When they reached the chief’s quarters, they found him less cowed and more hostile, and suddenly found themselves surrounded by a dozen monsters who had already shown their capacity for easy violence. Thinking fast, Bo-Jing called on the power of the Eastern Coin and with a sharp word, the chief was struck to the ground motionless. The onis hesitated and then one sprang for the chief’s yak-skin cloak, proclaiming himself “the new chief.” He was challenged by one of the other oni and in the midst of the melee, Bangqiu made the cloak disappear.
The onis didn’t notice immediately, but when they did, they began to cry out in outrage once again threatening the visitors with violence and doing their best to deliver on their threats.
An invisible Bangqiu, stepped outside the a window and called from there, “the cloak of the chief is outside. The first one outside will claim it as the new chief.” To prove his point, the invisible Bangqiu dropped the cloak. Those oni standing near the window saw it fall to the ground. After testing they were too big to jump out the window, the oni, pushed their ways to the stairs or over the balcony. As soon as they got outside, the still invisible Bangqiu, made the cloak disappear again, only to carry it and drop it further away from the shrine.
As the rest of the party made their way out of the shrine, they met a pair of onis that had been so stricken with sores that they were barely recognizable as oni any more. Their skin had been stretched and discolored a pale violet and most of their teeth had fallen out of their mouths. And they attacked with fearless rage, seemingly relieved to be cut down by the blades of Bo-Jing and his comrades.
The party looked at each other and nodded grimly. Bo-Jing led the way back down to the door that the oni had been guarding. In their absence it had been smashed open. In the space below, they met and killed more of the diseased oni. They also found a boulder of black stone, nearly as large as the shrine itself and pulsating with a sickly purple light. Immediately, their skin began to itch and their minds were clouded with evil thoughts.
Continuing to explore, they found two rooms with writing carved on the wall. They felt peaceful here, especially when they touched the wall. They could not read it, but Bo-Jing recognized seeing something like it in the books that Bangqiu carried with him.
The party exited the shrine and camped, waiting for Bangqiu’s return. When he did return, they told him about the writing and he agreed to enter the shrine and examine it. They re-entered the shrine and indeed Bangqiu could read the writing. When he read it, their minds felt completely at peace. Returning to the room with black-purple boulder, they found it had been shielded by another gentle yellow light and that they could stand next to it without ill effect. All the same, Bangqiu announced that a wooden door and promises were insufficient to keep the shrine safe. He covered the entrance to the undercroft with a seamless wall of stone.
Slave Pits of the Undercity 03 (Finale)
While in the Happy Valley, Nar-Nuteng had trained rigorously with Beatriss; in sparring contests with Bo-Jing’s retinue, the bright-eyed girl proved she could hold her own with any of them. Bo-Jing never openly acknowledged her prowess, but his insults desisted. And when she announced that she would return with him to free the slaves, he made no objection.
Salt, meanwhile, had disappeared. She had accompanied Bo-Jing and the others to the Happy Valley but refused to enter Beatriss’s fortress. Villagers claimed to see her from time to time and Bangqiu seemed to know where she was. Truthfully, no one seemed to care and soon it was time to return to Khanbaliq.
Bo-Jing, Nar-Nuteng, and Bangqiu made the now familiar journey back to the capital. Rumors of an invasion from the western deserts circulated in the taverns and Bo-Jing and Bangqiu were often recognized as that baghatur and that sorcerer who had deflected the Master’s advance. Good food, welcoming company, and soft beds made the short trip feel way too short.
Back in Khanbaliq, the hospitality was less hospitable. Bo-Jing was invited to tea with one of the Emperor’s high-ranking ministers. In this meeting, Bo-Jing learned that the Emperor was surprised that Bo-Jing had tarried so long in Khanbaliq. Bo-Jing bumbled through a few excuses and then promised to make preparation and leave the day after tomorrow.
Bo-Jing, Bangqiu, and Nar-Nuteng agreed that they had one more day to drive the slavers out of the Monastery and free the captives within.
They party made this approach by the main gate, fully prepared to meet another ragtag group of monks and their fire-breathing machine. The courtyard was empty, the machine still in the same ruinous state that Bangqiu had put it in during the last assault. Bangqiu made himself invisible and using his magic boots, rose up over the gate to land in the courtyard. The doors to each of the winch rooms were closed and barred—from the outside. Listening at one of the doors, Bangqiu heard scratching and slavering, but smelled something far worse than rabid dogs. He knocked the bar off the door and then rose into the air. A half-dozen ghouls rushed out with wild eyes and bloody teeth. They smelled Bangqiu but couldn’t find him and clawed furiously at the air.
When Bangqiu did appear, he was only a few feet above their heads. They rushed towards him and—into a thick cloud of scalding steam that delivered their second death.
Bangqiu entered the winch room and raised the first gate to allow his friends into the gatehouse. Then he opened the second winch door and blasted its two undead occupants with a barrage of hot green bolts of light. He opened the second gate and the rest of the party entered the courtyard.
Bo-Jing led the way to the temple room in which they had fought the priestess, and warned Bangqiu and Nar-Nuteng that the priestess had been killed by the sudden descent of an enormous sword held aloft by a thirty-foot statue while trying to escape through a trapdoor at the statue’s feet. The sword was once more poised aloft, and no one wanted to open the door. Bo-Jing persuaded Ryu to eat one of the lotus pods to enter the dreamworld so that he could pass through the trapdoor without opening it. After passing through the door, returned from the world and deliberately triggered the trap door from the safety of the other side. With silent cheers, the party lit torches and went below.
The party found themselves in the narrow, fulsome tunnels of the antpeople. Wanting no quarrel of double-sword-wielding creatures whose carapaces were like steel, and whose voracious larvae lurked in huge pools of offal, the party sought and found the path of least resistance—by avoiding the sound of clicking and clanging and the smell of rotting compost, the party passed through the antpeople’s lair and into the relatively homey tunnels of the Khanbaliq sewer system. The tunnels were well-made with wide iron walkways alongside an easy-running course of garbage, waste, and storm runoff.
By accident or evil design, the iron walkway was insecure in some places and the bold Bo-Jing was dropped unceremoniously into the sewage canal. There was a circular current here and Bo-Jing found himself pulled swiftly toward the bottom. The fast-thinking Nar-Nuteng through him one end of the a rope. Bangqiu seized the other end and with the help of his magic boots, ran up the arched ceiling to hover above the canal and help Bo-Jing pull himself out of the sewage. The party continued, Bo-Jing still leading the way, but tapping the floor ahead of him with a half barge pole.
The party group found their way to the cells where the slaves had been held captive, and found that they were now occupied by a several monks, who murmured softly to each other while sharing a bowl of rice perched on a stool. One of them saw the party’s approach and caught his breath. The others turned to stare in terror, not moving until the rice bowl slid off the stool onto the floor. None of them reached for his spear or hatchet. At last one of them spoke, “You have come to kill us too?”
Bo-Jing had learned from talking to the rescued slaves, that many of the monks had come from the same southern villages. These monks were thin, one of them emaciated, shivering in his thread-bare scrap of saffron cloth. It was clear to Bo-Jing that if a lucrative slaving operation was running through the monastery, these men were seeing none of the profit. He asked them why they were there. Their answer, in Southern-accented Zhou, with references to soldiers, burning rice paddies, and promises of getting educated in the North, became completely unintelligible when Ryu asked them to name the basic precepts of the two-fold path.
Ryu shook his head and looked at Bo-Jing. “You understand the way of the two-fold path better than these men.”
Bo-Jing asked the men if they wanted to leave the monastery with him. After receiving his reassurance that he did not wish to torture or eat them and his promise that if that was his plan he would just kill them now, the monks agreed to show Bo-Jing a way out.
But it wasn’t time to go out. There was something else down there that Bo-Jing needed to deal with. The monks didn’t know if there were more slaves but there could be soon. There were two bosses and after the priestess boss disappeared, there was one boss, a disgusting man with several pet weasels.
The party wandered the sewers until they met another group of sewer-dwellers. Well-fed and well-clothed Northerners, these men did not even pretend to be monks. “This is just our home.” They were led by a sinister look shaman and maintained a fortified stretch of tunnel on both sides of the sewage canal, with no obvious way of crossing between them.
They knew the weasel man and where to find him. If the party was looking to buy slaves, they could take a message. The party waited and played dice on one side of the tunnel while runners from the other side went to find weasel man. During this time, Bangqiu found a way to cross the sewer undetected and eavesdrop on the men on the far side of the tunnel. The men expressed mild curiosity about the visitors, but said nothing that betrayed a hidden agenda beyond selling slaves. When the runners return, the conversation changed. Weasel man did not want to meet the visitors. These were the robbers who had killed all the monks and stolen so many slaves. Instead, the runners, explained, weasel-man wanted them to find out where the robbers lived so he could report them.
When the runners shared their message with Bo-Jing and Nar-Nuteng, the warriors didn’t need magical powers to know something was up. Bangqiu, invisible in the darkness of the shaman’s cave, promised him new powers if he could help him meet the weasel man.
The shaman liked the sound of this offer. The other men were confused, but when the shaman ordered boards to be placed across the canal so the rest of the party could cross over. After a brief and amicable farewell, the party were on their way, led by the shaman who school his staff and rattled his bone jewelry as he led “the voice” and “the voice’s companions” through a series of passage, at last bringing them to the circular room where Bo-Jing and Nar-Nuteng had once before encountered weasel-man.
Weasel-man wasn’t there, but the weasels were, three of them, large as wolves. Bo_Jing called on the power of the Coin of the East and the weasels, fell to the floor and curled into tight balls. Nar-Nuteng heard the sound of human footsteps running out of the room. They followed the sound back into the antpeople’s tunnel, but soon lost the trail. The monk-refugees were afraid and asked to return to their cells. Bo-Jing told them they could if they found their own way back. They decided to stay with him.
The party decided to return to the circular room, hoping to lay in wait for the weasel-man. While rummaging through his belongings, they found a store of decent food, a sack of tael coins, and business records. A group of monks arrived, unarmed, but well-fed. They greeted the visitors and promised that their master did want to meet them. But he was in the city.
Bangqiu was skeptical and tapped one of the monks on the forehead, ordering him to tell the truth. The man began blabbering. His master was hiding in the stone shed. The other monks gasped and began to run. Bangqiu and the others chased them, through the antpeople tunnels to the surface, then through a garden toward a small shed built next to the monastery wall. Bangqiu became invisible and reached the shed first. The small room was cramped with tools, cooking pots, and sleeping mats. There was an exit, a stout door built into the monastery wall. The shed appeared empty, but Bangqiu sensed the sweaty, weaselly breath of another person. Bangqiu positioned himself in front of postern door. When the monks reached the shed, they cried out to the empty room that Li-Ho had told the robbers he was there. An invisible man reached for the door and collided with the invisible Bangqiu. The two men grappled and wrestled. The other man stabbed Bangqiu with a knife and Bangqiu retaliated with a blast of magic missiles.
Both men became visible and stared at each other. Weasel-man was pudgy and round with a flat nose and large eyes. But the smell. Weasel-man retreated while commanding the monks to attack. As they grabbed tools and charged, Bo-Jing arrived. He killed the Weasel-man with one slash of his sword and ordered the monks to leave his friend alone. They joyfully threw down their weapons. “We are free!”
Salt, meanwhile, had disappeared. She had accompanied Bo-Jing and the others to the Happy Valley but refused to enter Beatriss’s fortress. Villagers claimed to see her from time to time and Bangqiu seemed to know where she was. Truthfully, no one seemed to care and soon it was time to return to Khanbaliq.
Bo-Jing, Nar-Nuteng, and Bangqiu made the now familiar journey back to the capital. Rumors of an invasion from the western deserts circulated in the taverns and Bo-Jing and Bangqiu were often recognized as that baghatur and that sorcerer who had deflected the Master’s advance. Good food, welcoming company, and soft beds made the short trip feel way too short.
Back in Khanbaliq, the hospitality was less hospitable. Bo-Jing was invited to tea with one of the Emperor’s high-ranking ministers. In this meeting, Bo-Jing learned that the Emperor was surprised that Bo-Jing had tarried so long in Khanbaliq. Bo-Jing bumbled through a few excuses and then promised to make preparation and leave the day after tomorrow.
Bo-Jing, Bangqiu, and Nar-Nuteng agreed that they had one more day to drive the slavers out of the Monastery and free the captives within.
They party made this approach by the main gate, fully prepared to meet another ragtag group of monks and their fire-breathing machine. The courtyard was empty, the machine still in the same ruinous state that Bangqiu had put it in during the last assault. Bangqiu made himself invisible and using his magic boots, rose up over the gate to land in the courtyard. The doors to each of the winch rooms were closed and barred—from the outside. Listening at one of the doors, Bangqiu heard scratching and slavering, but smelled something far worse than rabid dogs. He knocked the bar off the door and then rose into the air. A half-dozen ghouls rushed out with wild eyes and bloody teeth. They smelled Bangqiu but couldn’t find him and clawed furiously at the air.
When Bangqiu did appear, he was only a few feet above their heads. They rushed towards him and—into a thick cloud of scalding steam that delivered their second death.
Bangqiu entered the winch room and raised the first gate to allow his friends into the gatehouse. Then he opened the second winch door and blasted its two undead occupants with a barrage of hot green bolts of light. He opened the second gate and the rest of the party entered the courtyard.
Bo-Jing led the way to the temple room in which they had fought the priestess, and warned Bangqiu and Nar-Nuteng that the priestess had been killed by the sudden descent of an enormous sword held aloft by a thirty-foot statue while trying to escape through a trapdoor at the statue’s feet. The sword was once more poised aloft, and no one wanted to open the door. Bo-Jing persuaded Ryu to eat one of the lotus pods to enter the dreamworld so that he could pass through the trapdoor without opening it. After passing through the door, returned from the world and deliberately triggered the trap door from the safety of the other side. With silent cheers, the party lit torches and went below.
The party found themselves in the narrow, fulsome tunnels of the antpeople. Wanting no quarrel of double-sword-wielding creatures whose carapaces were like steel, and whose voracious larvae lurked in huge pools of offal, the party sought and found the path of least resistance—by avoiding the sound of clicking and clanging and the smell of rotting compost, the party passed through the antpeople’s lair and into the relatively homey tunnels of the Khanbaliq sewer system. The tunnels were well-made with wide iron walkways alongside an easy-running course of garbage, waste, and storm runoff.
By accident or evil design, the iron walkway was insecure in some places and the bold Bo-Jing was dropped unceremoniously into the sewage canal. There was a circular current here and Bo-Jing found himself pulled swiftly toward the bottom. The fast-thinking Nar-Nuteng through him one end of the a rope. Bangqiu seized the other end and with the help of his magic boots, ran up the arched ceiling to hover above the canal and help Bo-Jing pull himself out of the sewage. The party continued, Bo-Jing still leading the way, but tapping the floor ahead of him with a half barge pole.
The party group found their way to the cells where the slaves had been held captive, and found that they were now occupied by a several monks, who murmured softly to each other while sharing a bowl of rice perched on a stool. One of them saw the party’s approach and caught his breath. The others turned to stare in terror, not moving until the rice bowl slid off the stool onto the floor. None of them reached for his spear or hatchet. At last one of them spoke, “You have come to kill us too?”
Bo-Jing had learned from talking to the rescued slaves, that many of the monks had come from the same southern villages. These monks were thin, one of them emaciated, shivering in his thread-bare scrap of saffron cloth. It was clear to Bo-Jing that if a lucrative slaving operation was running through the monastery, these men were seeing none of the profit. He asked them why they were there. Their answer, in Southern-accented Zhou, with references to soldiers, burning rice paddies, and promises of getting educated in the North, became completely unintelligible when Ryu asked them to name the basic precepts of the two-fold path.
Ryu shook his head and looked at Bo-Jing. “You understand the way of the two-fold path better than these men.”
Bo-Jing asked the men if they wanted to leave the monastery with him. After receiving his reassurance that he did not wish to torture or eat them and his promise that if that was his plan he would just kill them now, the monks agreed to show Bo-Jing a way out.
But it wasn’t time to go out. There was something else down there that Bo-Jing needed to deal with. The monks didn’t know if there were more slaves but there could be soon. There were two bosses and after the priestess boss disappeared, there was one boss, a disgusting man with several pet weasels.
The party wandered the sewers until they met another group of sewer-dwellers. Well-fed and well-clothed Northerners, these men did not even pretend to be monks. “This is just our home.” They were led by a sinister look shaman and maintained a fortified stretch of tunnel on both sides of the sewage canal, with no obvious way of crossing between them.
They knew the weasel man and where to find him. If the party was looking to buy slaves, they could take a message. The party waited and played dice on one side of the tunnel while runners from the other side went to find weasel man. During this time, Bangqiu found a way to cross the sewer undetected and eavesdrop on the men on the far side of the tunnel. The men expressed mild curiosity about the visitors, but said nothing that betrayed a hidden agenda beyond selling slaves. When the runners return, the conversation changed. Weasel man did not want to meet the visitors. These were the robbers who had killed all the monks and stolen so many slaves. Instead, the runners, explained, weasel-man wanted them to find out where the robbers lived so he could report them.
When the runners shared their message with Bo-Jing and Nar-Nuteng, the warriors didn’t need magical powers to know something was up. Bangqiu, invisible in the darkness of the shaman’s cave, promised him new powers if he could help him meet the weasel man.
The shaman liked the sound of this offer. The other men were confused, but when the shaman ordered boards to be placed across the canal so the rest of the party could cross over. After a brief and amicable farewell, the party were on their way, led by the shaman who school his staff and rattled his bone jewelry as he led “the voice” and “the voice’s companions” through a series of passage, at last bringing them to the circular room where Bo-Jing and Nar-Nuteng had once before encountered weasel-man.
Weasel-man wasn’t there, but the weasels were, three of them, large as wolves. Bo_Jing called on the power of the Coin of the East and the weasels, fell to the floor and curled into tight balls. Nar-Nuteng heard the sound of human footsteps running out of the room. They followed the sound back into the antpeople’s tunnel, but soon lost the trail. The monk-refugees were afraid and asked to return to their cells. Bo-Jing told them they could if they found their own way back. They decided to stay with him.
The party decided to return to the circular room, hoping to lay in wait for the weasel-man. While rummaging through his belongings, they found a store of decent food, a sack of tael coins, and business records. A group of monks arrived, unarmed, but well-fed. They greeted the visitors and promised that their master did want to meet them. But he was in the city.
Bangqiu was skeptical and tapped one of the monks on the forehead, ordering him to tell the truth. The man began blabbering. His master was hiding in the stone shed. The other monks gasped and began to run. Bangqiu and the others chased them, through the antpeople tunnels to the surface, then through a garden toward a small shed built next to the monastery wall. Bangqiu became invisible and reached the shed first. The small room was cramped with tools, cooking pots, and sleeping mats. There was an exit, a stout door built into the monastery wall. The shed appeared empty, but Bangqiu sensed the sweaty, weaselly breath of another person. Bangqiu positioned himself in front of postern door. When the monks reached the shed, they cried out to the empty room that Li-Ho had told the robbers he was there. An invisible man reached for the door and collided with the invisible Bangqiu. The two men grappled and wrestled. The other man stabbed Bangqiu with a knife and Bangqiu retaliated with a blast of magic missiles.
Both men became visible and stared at each other. Weasel-man was pudgy and round with a flat nose and large eyes. But the smell. Weasel-man retreated while commanding the monks to attack. As they grabbed tools and charged, Bo-Jing arrived. He killed the Weasel-man with one slash of his sword and ordered the monks to leave his friend alone. They joyfully threw down their weapons. “We are free!”
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Slavepits of the Undercity 02
After finding the rescued captives in the Happy Valley, Bo-Jing and his crew, along with Bangqiu returned to Khanbaliq. Nar-Nuteng had elected to stay behind in the Happy Valley and train with Beatriss. Although Bo-Jing had sometimes denigrated the girl's prowess in battle, he admitted that her unique way of looking at things was often useful and enhanced his own decision-making. Finding his men too obliging and Bangqiu too selfish, Bo-Jing was glad to meet Salt, a plucky team-player with a mind of her own plus nascent magical abilities.
The party set out early in the morning and encountered a group of imperial guards. The guards recognized Bo-Jing's status as a baghatur and seemed embarassed when it become apparent that they were going to the same place. While Bo-Jing and his friends were seeking to infiltrate the monastery, the imperial guards had been charged with-- guarding it. Reaching the monastery, Bo-Jing learned that their previous entry point was no longer an option. The stables had been reduced to rubble, with broken boards, large stones, and garbage blocking the passage that had once allowed access to the lower level. This was the point the guards were expected to patrol. With feigned naivete they suggested that if Bo-Jing had business with the monks inside, he should present himself at the front gate. Their solemn duty was to remain "right here directly in front of the ruined stables no matter what might be happening somewhere else such as at the front gate-- way over there on the other side of the monastery from where we couldn't possibly be expected to see or hear anything anyway."
Following the guards directions, the party found the entrance, a roofless gatehouse with two portcullises and a courtyard beyond. The monks in the courtyard seemed welcoming, pausing in their work of lading a cart to greet the visitors, but soon showed their duplicitous nature. The monks opened the outer portcullis and, once the party had entered dropped it closed without opening the inner portcullis. When Bo-Jing drew his sword and threatened him, they turned the heavy cart toward him and blasted him with a stream of boiling oil. Bo-Jing sustained little in the way of burns but his armor was damaged and all of his men sustained minor injuries from the splash. More seriously, it seemed likely the monks had the means to cause more mayhem from behind the near-complete safety of the portcullis.
Bangqiu stepped forward and blasted the monks with hot steam. As they ran away from their machine, he used his magic to become invisible and levitate over the inner gate. Bangqiu found the winch room and raised the gate and allowed his comrades inside. Then he assumed bird form and flew away.
The monks, with their poor weapons and threadbare robes showed little appetite for combat without the protection of a gate between them and Bo Jing's sword. They fled to their ramshackle dormitory and Bo Jing led a charge toward the temple. In the gloomy, cobwebbed sanctuary, dominated by a huge statue of a man with a sword raised above his head, they found the head priestess and her minions. She hexed Bo Jing and his man-- Ganyul and Ganwei were transfixed, while Bo-Jing shook off the paralyzing magic and responded with a curse of his own. Clenching the Eastern Coin in his palm, he castigated the deceptive priestess as she rose her hands to cast another spell; she froze as if his on the head, blinked and wandered away in a stupor.
And so the battle was on. A dozen captives, in chains, turned on their captors who were cut down by Bo Jing and his men. Ryu tended to Ganyul and Ganwei. Salt watched from the shadows until a monk in black robes slinked up behind Bo Jing with a wicked dagger. A bolt of blue energy from Salt struck the man in the back of the head. He cried out in shock; Bo Jing spun on his heel and cut him down.
The panicked priestess stumbled toward the statue and bent over to open a trapdoor. As she raised it, the statue's sword swung down and killed her.
The captives cheered. Bo-Jing found the key to unfasten their chains and together with his friends, led the newly-freed people out of the monastery.
Like the others, they were mainly from the "Southern Empire" of Zhou Song. They would not be safe in Khanbaliq and could not make the long trip home unaccompanied. Most had lost their families in the war and were grateful to start a new life in the Happy Valley.
Saturday, May 15, 2021
Slave Pits of the Undercity 01
tl;dr:
Bojing and his crew go to explore a monastery which has been transformed into a place of human trafficking. Walking in the front door, Bojing saw a woman on a bunk and Nar Nutang yelled that the woman on the bunk was a shape-changing monster and Bojing listened and killed the woman but the woman wasn't a shape-changer but a real slave.
Bojing and the crew saw some ""MONKS" and a merchant; Bojing, a powerful baghatur, stuck fear into the monks' hearts forcing them to run. The slave merchant's two powerful bodyguards remained, one with the abilty of shooting meteorites the other a powerful warrior that the mighty Bojing even struggled with but the crew defeated the bodyguards and recovered the keys to rescue the slaves.
"AKSHULLY":
When Bo-jing learned from Ryu that innocent people were being pressed into slavery in the shadow of the Kanbaliq's walls, his heart hardened against the Emperor. He promised Ryu that we would cleanse the monastery of this wickedness, free the enslaved people, and one day depose the cruel despot who misused his power in this way.
Beatriss knew about the monastery and its ugly secrets. Besides the corrupt monks who received captives from the outskirts of the empire and beyond, Beatriss warned her new protege about shape-changers and a lizard that turned people to stone. After her months-long absence from home, Beatriss herself would return to the Happy Valley. Based on these warnings, Bo-jing and Nar Nuteng both bought mirrors.
Based also on Beatriss's advice, Bo-Jing, Nar-Nuteng, plus their sometimes associate, sometimes rival Bangqiu, along with Ryu and Bo-Jing's men-at-arms, entered the monastery through a secret door and based through several halls so long ruined that their original purpose was impossible to know. They encountered a horde of undead creatures whose chilling touch caused temporary paralysis. None of the party was lost in this encounter, but Bo-Jing elected to choose another entrance to gain access to the actual monastery.
Bo-jing led the party in breaking into the stables. There, the party encountered a group of monks whom were so terrified at the sight of the fearsome baghatur that they fley in terror. A woman who had been hiding in the loft space peered down. "Who is there?" she called. "Who will save me from this place?" Something about the young woman's helplessness put Nar-Nuteng on edge and she warned Bo-Jing of the seductive shape-shifters. Bo-Jing charged up into the loft area and angrily killed the too-good-to-be-true ingenue. She screamed and bled and died and her body did not revert to a gray, alien form. She was not a monster but a true victim, killed by the one she thought would rescue her.
Bo-Jing was despondent and blamed Nar-Nutang. Bangqiu rebuked him for being too emotional. But Ryu patiently explained that he alone was responsible for his mistake and that he must accept it and learn from it and give his focus in the moment to rescuing other slaves.
The party found their way into a series of tunnels dug under the monastery and inhabited by disgusting ant-men. With the power of his magic coin, Bo-Jing drove away the ant-men and the party navigated the labyrinth to arrive at the lair of the resident slave lord, a greasy-looking man in leather armor. While contending with a dozen cowardly monks and several ferocious giant weasels, the slave lord escaped. Rifling through his belongings, they found some useful information about the work of the slavers including contacts in other cities.
The party continued to explore and discovered a series of cellblocks, where they encountered a group of monks negotiating with a merchant sought to purchase and enslave a number of the people imprisoned there. Alarmed by the heavily-armed intruders, the monks and the merchant were put to flight while the merchant's bodyguards stayed in place to guard his retreat. A blast of steam from Bangqiu killed one of them while Bo-Jing defeated and slew the other in trying hand-to-hand combat. A search of the surrounding storage rooms located the keys and the party freed about a dozen prisoners. These people, mainly young women from Southern Zhou were glad to leave the monastery but feared being left alone in a city where they would be regarded as enemies. Bangqiu suggested that they should be taken all the way to the Happy Valley and resettled there.
Wednesday, May 12, 2021
Interlude: Bo-Jing in Khanbaliq
Bo-Jing and and Ganbaatar presented the Southern Coin and enjoyed a week of congratulatory banquets and interrogatory private audiences. The Emperor granted a one-year tax holiday to Ganbaatar and his people. One of the Emperor's Ministers insinuated that Bo-Jing had not kept his possession of the Eastern Coin a secret and that the Emperor was prepared to appoint Bo-Jing was prepared to appoint him to the post recently vacated in Blue City. Concealing his concern as to whether this was an offer or a threat or both, Bo-Jing simply restated that he looked forward to returning to his post in Banua and continuing to serve the Emperor there.
During this time, Ryu visited the local Monastery of the Two-Fold Path, located just outside the walls of Khanbaliq. He was shocked and dismayed to find it was being used as a holding place for captives who would be sold as slaves-- many of them to the Emperor himself.
Bo-Jing made a private vow that he would rescue these slaves, restore the monastery to its intended purposes, and one day punish the Emperor.
Sunday, April 18, 2021
The Taxman Part 10: Southern Coin
In Banua, Bojing, Beatriss, and Nar Nuteng parted ways with the sorcerers and resumed their search for the coins. They made their way once more to the southern cave, guarded by the stone warriors. Beatriss, Bo-Jing and Ryu fought three of the warriors and then Ryu swallowed a lotus pod to go into the dream world in hopes of accessing the secret chamber at the back of the hall. He was able to converse wit the stone statute who friendly and chatty but refused to step aside to allow access to the chamber. "I don't know you and I cannot allow you inside unless you know me."
Bo-Jing and Nar-Nuteng reasoned that the word they'd found in the yeti cave was the fox's name, but the fox didn't seem any better to read it than they were. There seemed nothing to do but go back to Banua and find someone who could read the old script. But on the way there, they encountered a wild fox and with a few scraps of meet and the power of the Eastern Coin, were able to befriend the fox, speak to him, and learn about his indigenous belief system. Most notably, the great ancestor of all foxes was named üneg.
And indeed the fox in the Southern cave responded well to that name and happily stepped aside, allowing them into a small dark room where they found the Southern Coin, most notable for its red tint. Bo-Jing gripped the coin and knew that it would make him an even more powerful warrior. But he also remembered his honor and his promise to Ganbaatar. "We will present this coin to the Emperor together."
The party returned to Banua to announce their success. Ganbaatar was pleased and praised Bo-Jing for his honor. "Your Emperor will be most pleased will us and with you in particular. Let us go to Khanbaliq at once."
Within days, Ganbaatar had organized a caravan and they began the trek to the capital. Along the way they stopped in Blue City and received a reminder of the dangers of displeasing the city. Among the bodies of the criminals hanging from the walls, they recognized the same governor who had warned Bo-Jing against doing anything to cheat the Emperor. The sign hanging around his neck proclaimed, "In cheating the people, I cheated the Emperor."
Thursday, March 25, 2021
The Taxman Part 9: Meeting the Rivals
Back in Banua, Ganbaatar had good news for Bo Jing. The people of the Bolad horde, having heard that the Imperial Agent had drivn off the bandits and killed the yetis that were attacking the fire camp, were paying their taxes with minimal grumbling. Ganbaater asked Bo Jing about his success in searching for the lost coins. Bo Jing was clumsily evasive but Ganbaatar didn't press the matter.
Bo Jing and his companions spent a few weeks in Banua, waiting out a blizzard and a cold snap, and then decided to go to Kuzhu Kala so that they could return Narantsetseg's necklace. On the way there, they found the remains of several large campfires. By investigating one of these sites, they found a discarded brass badge of a distinctive design. Beatrsiss and Bo-Jing both recognized it as part of the uniform of the armies of the "Master" whom they had fought in the Sind desert. The next evening as they were seeking a suitable place to make their own campsite, they heard the noise of a large gathering and as they cautiously approached heard snatches of songs in the voices of the bestial bakemono, possibly amasssed in large numbers. They circumvented the sounds of the enemy camp and rode onward through the dark, Beatriss leading the way.
After another dya of travel, the party reached Kuzhu Kala and found a place to stay in one of the yurts outside the walls. Soon, they learned that Gansukh was entertaining a pair of mysterious visitors, foreign sorcerers whose descriptions made them instantly recognizable as Bangqiu and Hyamsam. Rumors hinted that Gansukh had hired them to find something and that he was very disappointed with the news of their progress.
Beatriss and Bo-Jing decided that even if their friends had become their rivals, they were friends first and might need assistance. They entered the town just as the gates were closing and went to the yurt of Gansukh. A cataclysm of emotions erupted over the Khan's face as Bo-Jing came into his presence, holding the Khanum's favorite necklace. Caught in the midst of a red-faced red directed at Hyamsam and Bangqiu, GanSukh looked ready to draw his sword when he heard Bo Jing's greeting-- until he caught sight of his necklace. The color drained from his face and he smiled weakly. "Oh, where did you find that?"
Gansukh was saved from further embarrassment by his wife's excitement at seeing her necklace. Gansukh sent her and the other women away as his soldiers crowded in. Bo-Jing and Beatriss learned, as they expected that Bangqiu and Hyamsam had found a coin and that they were refusing to turn it over to Ganuskh in exchange for the reward he was offering of several thousand tael. A long argument ensued in which Bo-Jing revealed that he too had a coin. Beatriss told Gansukh about the threat posed by the Master and offered her services in fighting off his advance. Bangqiu nodded, avowing that he too would help protect the lands of his host but would not relinquish the coin. With nothing else to offer, Gansukh became threatening. The coin rightfully belonged to him and he would take it by any means required. If the sorcerers refused his gifts of wealth and prestige that was no matter. Beatriss and Bangqiu agreed that they were ready to fight if necessary, but that Bangqiu should first try his charm magic. Because it was clear that Gansukh had become an enemy.
Bangqiu sat down and stared at his hands as if considering Gansukh's offer. Then he looked up without standing and said, "I think you are a good friend and have made an interesting offer. I only wish to think about it over night. Let us retire with our friends outside the walls so that we can see the wisdom of your offer."
To everyone's surprise, Gansukh agreed. He ordered his soldiers to make way for the visitors to leave his tent and gave the order for the gates to be opened. Once outside, the reunited friends rode into the cold night, headed towards Banua.
Friends? And still rivals. Bangqiu told Hyamsam and Bo-Jing that they should both give him their coins, that he was the most powerful member of the party and that he was the best suited to unlocked the combined power of holding all four coins.
Friday, March 5, 2021
The Taxman Part 8
Nar-Nuteng and Bo-Jing's men surveyed the scene-- scores of animated skeletons and a group of men on horseback. Reasoning that while the hollow-headed skeletons were a horror, the minds of evil men were the true danger, the heroes launched a volley of arrows at the men on horseback who reacted by raising their shields and spurring the horses behind the ranks of undead that were closing in around the entrances to the cavern hall.
As Bo-Jing reached the tunnel, Gan-Wei pointed out to his master the enemies on horseback. Bo-Jing, clutching the magical coin in his pocket cursed the men with their evil; immediately they broke out into an argument with each other and within moments, blades were drawn. Beatriss joined the archers and Ryu called for divine wrath on the undead horde; a dozen skeletons exploded in a flash of blinding light just as they reached the entrance to the hall. As Ryu strode toward the entrance to meet the undead horde with his holy symbol. the necro-shaman from outside Khuzu Kala appeared from nowhere and launched an exploding ball of fire into the hall. Ryu was knocked off his feet and his robes were badly singed, but as the shaman raised his wand, decrying "self-righteous fools who stand in the way of progress," intervened. Squeezing the Coin of the East into his palm, Bo-Jing cursed the shaman with a word of rebuke that made him drop his wand and wander away in a stupefied daze.
Ryu regained his feet and resumed destroying skeletons, clearing a way for Bo-Jing to reach the skeletons. Beatriss and the other warriors, meanwhile, cut down the few skeletons that reached the cave. Some of the men on horseback continued to fight each other while others galloped away.
Soon Bo-Jing reached the befuddled shaman and cut him down without mercy. When the shaman's body fell to the ground, the skeleton fell into disarray, come continuing to attack, while others retreated, some attacking each others, while other's attacked shadows. Most of those who pressed the attack were obliterated by Ryu while the stragglers were obliterated by Bo-Jing and Beatriss. When the dust cleared, Bo-Jing claimed the shaman's ring and reveled in its power-- he was invisible!
Beatrriss noticed that the shaman was once again wearing Narantsetseg’s necklace and encouraged Gan Wei to take it. "You should return it to her."
Sunday, February 28, 2021
The Taxman Part 7
Bo-Jing, Beatriss, Nar-Nuteng and their followers and companions returned to the Valley of the Five Fires by way of the Bolad fire camp. The fire-watchers asked to see the yeti cave and see for themselves that the yeti were in fact dead. The party agreed to this request. In addition to yeti corpses, they also encountered a group of warriors inside the cave. Although evidence suggested they were members of the Nergui horde, they denied this, claiming instead that they were wanderers looking for a place to camp. Beatriss order the unknown warriors to leave the cave and they did, muttering curses under their breath. The party didn't tarry long in the cave, casually the many runes and symbols before escorting the fire-watchers back to their camp.
It was a two-day trip back to the Crystal Cave. Along the way, they developed their plan for taking the coin. Ryu explained that with assistance of some honey-scented dried poppy pods, he would be able to enter the dream world or ethereal plane and take the coin. Also on the way to the crystal cave, they encountered Gan Yul. He explained to them that Gansukh had sent groups of warriors into the Valley to look for them. Rather than argue, Gan Yul had silently resolved that in forcing him to break an oath, Gan Sukh had broken his allegiance to the Nergui Horde. And thus he was free to enter the Valley and would join Bo-Jing's squad again. "If you'll have me. Otherwise, I will seek the coins for myself." Bo-Jing grateful accepted Gan Yul as his noken.
The party reached the cave and by use of potions brewed for them in Banua, Beatriss and Ryu were able to enter the cave. Ryu entered the dream world and smashed the statue in order to claim the coin. It was pure gold but reflected a green tint. Ryu delivered the coin to Bo-Jing whom, apprising the new powers conveyed to him by the coin, immediately began to equivocate over the arrangement he had made with Ganbaatar. "He just wants it because he's power hungry." Ryu shook his head slowly and stared at ground.
The party made their way north, toward Banua, but with no stated purpose. As they approached the Bolad fire, they decided to visit the yeti cave once more. This time, Bo-Jing used the last gaseous form potion to slip through the crack in the wall and discovered a hidden chamber, carved with of the entire valley. A cave was precisely delineated at the southern end, marked with a series of symbols:
Rather than return to Banua, the party decided to venture to the south end of the valley and find the cave identified on the map. Concealed by magic, the entrances, a total of four straight tunnels, would have been impossible to find without the map and the drawing of the cave. They walked into a tunnel that led to a hall covered with gleaming white stones. Three columns of stone warriors filled the hall. As Beatriss and Bo-Jing stepped into the hall, two of the statues cave to life. The two brave warriors warned their companions to stay out of the hall, for fear of causing additional statues to come to life.
The stone warriors were 20-feet tall and wielded stone swords. Bo-Jing used his sword to break the statues sword and then level it. Beatriss meanwhile, stayed low and smashed the statues legs. The two of them moved to the back of the hall. There was a bas-relief statue of an even larger warrior with a fox sleeping under his legs.
Bo-Jing and Beatriss puzzled over what to do about this problem. They invited Ryu into the hall, assisting him in destroying the statue that came to life and attacked the monk as soon as he crossed the threshold. And then they asked him to ingest one of the honey poppy pods. He did, and when he entered the dream world, he saw that he could see there was a hidden room beyond the fox, but we couldn't enter it. As he explained it to to Bo-Jing and Beatriss, the fox had stood up and continued to block his path.
While debating what to do next, Nar Nuteng, from the tunnels outside the hall, raised the alarm. "Skeletons! We're being attacked by skeletons!"
Friday, February 26, 2021
The Taxman's Rivals
In Khuzu Kala, Gansukh’s henchman Batzorig made quiet inquiries among the shamans, foreigner sorcerers, and wanderer, seeking adventurers for a special quest. Among those who answered the call was Bangqiu and Hyamsam, magicians from the far south who, since arriving in the lands of the Five Fires had developed reputations for eccentric behavior and awesome powers.
As soon as he appeared before Gansukh, Hyamsam proclaimed that the Emperor had sent him North to search for the magic orbs. There was a significant language barrier. The translator asked Hyamsam several times what he meant by an orb and received a different answer each time.
The next day, Hyamsam returned to the tent of Gansukh, this time accompanied by Bangqiu. Hyamsam had prepared for himself a special draught that allowed him to understand the language of his hosts, even while he continued to pretend ignorance. Listening to their side conversations, he learned they were looking for coins. He and Bangiqu explained that in their language orbs and coins were the same thing. The continued misunderstanding allowed all parties to believe they had come to an agreement. Gansukh explained that an Imperial agent and his well-armed warriors along with a pale-skinned woman warrior, was searching the valley for magical treasure, having entered the holy ground under the pretext of burying their fallen comrades. If the foreign magicians could discover what they had found or where they were searching, Gansukh would be very glad to receive the information. Bangqiu and Hyamsam were introduced to several local shaman who would accompany them into the Valley of the Five Fires and to the burial mound where they might pick up the trail of Bo-Jing and Beatriss.
The sorcerers spent a night at the Nergui fire, where they repaid thinly-veiled insinuations about their masculinity with insouciant displays of their magical powers-- and then retired early. The next day they descended into the valley and across the plains. The next day they found the burial mound and a pair of wolves pawing at the fresh graves. Hyamsam assisted the wolves in exhuming the bodies and stripped one of his burial armor, leaving the corpse for the wolves. And when the wolves slinked off, each dragging a warrior’s leg, Hyamsam followed at a safe distance. When the wolves reached a cave, Hyamsam announced his intention to follow them. When a shaman produced a glowing rock to use as a light source, Hyamsam took rock and told the shaman to wait outside. Reaching the mouth of the cave, Hyamsam, found the wolves crouched just inside, gnawing on warrior femurs and looking territorial. Even more territorial were the 12-foot tall men dressed in animal skins. Hyamsam blasted the group with a cloud of hot steam. The wolves were killed, but the giants melted into wall, ony to appear a few second later. By this time, however, Hyamsam had made himself invisible and the shaman was retreating to rejoin the rest of the party. The giants gave chase and Hyamsam used this opportunity to venture into the cave. Following a trickle of water, he ventured deep into the cave until he found himself on the shore of a large pool of warm, swirling water.
Outside the cave, the shamans and outlaws repelled the giants; the giants to their cave.
Back inside the cave, Hyamsam stripped down and dove into the pool. The glowing rock provide great visibility under water and he found that the gentle whirpool was created by a natural drain in the middle of the pool Re-surfacing for a moment to take a great gulp of air, Hyamsam dove back under and into the drain, following the submerged tunnel for a some distance. Though half-afraid of running out of air, Hyamsam kept pushing until he reached the end of the tunnel, and re-surfaced in a small cave. There was a coin there, pure gold and with a white tint. He took the coin and immediately sensed a number of new powers, among them the ability to see in the dark.
Hyamssam swam back through the underwater tunnel and then out of the cave. He kept the glowing rock in his pocket and brought it out when he met the giants; by throwing it into a distant corner, he distracted them long enough to run outside. That night, after dinner, while the others were settling into sleep, Hyamsam told Bangqiu about the coin.
As soon as he appeared before Gansukh, Hyamsam proclaimed that the Emperor had sent him North to search for the magic orbs. There was a significant language barrier. The translator asked Hyamsam several times what he meant by an orb and received a different answer each time.
The next day, Hyamsam returned to the tent of Gansukh, this time accompanied by Bangqiu. Hyamsam had prepared for himself a special draught that allowed him to understand the language of his hosts, even while he continued to pretend ignorance. Listening to their side conversations, he learned they were looking for coins. He and Bangiqu explained that in their language orbs and coins were the same thing. The continued misunderstanding allowed all parties to believe they had come to an agreement. Gansukh explained that an Imperial agent and his well-armed warriors along with a pale-skinned woman warrior, was searching the valley for magical treasure, having entered the holy ground under the pretext of burying their fallen comrades. If the foreign magicians could discover what they had found or where they were searching, Gansukh would be very glad to receive the information. Bangqiu and Hyamsam were introduced to several local shaman who would accompany them into the Valley of the Five Fires and to the burial mound where they might pick up the trail of Bo-Jing and Beatriss.
The sorcerers spent a night at the Nergui fire, where they repaid thinly-veiled insinuations about their masculinity with insouciant displays of their magical powers-- and then retired early. The next day they descended into the valley and across the plains. The next day they found the burial mound and a pair of wolves pawing at the fresh graves. Hyamsam assisted the wolves in exhuming the bodies and stripped one of his burial armor, leaving the corpse for the wolves. And when the wolves slinked off, each dragging a warrior’s leg, Hyamsam followed at a safe distance. When the wolves reached a cave, Hyamsam announced his intention to follow them. When a shaman produced a glowing rock to use as a light source, Hyamsam took rock and told the shaman to wait outside. Reaching the mouth of the cave, Hyamsam, found the wolves crouched just inside, gnawing on warrior femurs and looking territorial. Even more territorial were the 12-foot tall men dressed in animal skins. Hyamsam blasted the group with a cloud of hot steam. The wolves were killed, but the giants melted into wall, ony to appear a few second later. By this time, however, Hyamsam had made himself invisible and the shaman was retreating to rejoin the rest of the party. The giants gave chase and Hyamsam used this opportunity to venture into the cave. Following a trickle of water, he ventured deep into the cave until he found himself on the shore of a large pool of warm, swirling water.
Outside the cave, the shamans and outlaws repelled the giants; the giants to their cave.
Back inside the cave, Hyamsam stripped down and dove into the pool. The glowing rock provide great visibility under water and he found that the gentle whirpool was created by a natural drain in the middle of the pool Re-surfacing for a moment to take a great gulp of air, Hyamsam dove back under and into the drain, following the submerged tunnel for a some distance. Though half-afraid of running out of air, Hyamsam kept pushing until he reached the end of the tunnel, and re-surfaced in a small cave. There was a coin there, pure gold and with a white tint. He took the coin and immediately sensed a number of new powers, among them the ability to see in the dark.
Hyamssam swam back through the underwater tunnel and then out of the cave. He kept the glowing rock in his pocket and brought it out when he met the giants; by throwing it into a distant corner, he distracted them long enough to run outside. That night, after dinner, while the others were settling into sleep, Hyamsam told Bangqiu about the coin.
Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Taxman Part 6
After a meal and a rest, Bo-Jing investigated the area, looking for signs of what had happened to the fire-watchers. He found blood and other signs of a struggle with large and fearsome beasts. And in the icy snow outside the fire camp, he found large tracks and sings of bodies being dragged. Deducing that the Bolad fire-watchers had been victims of a yeti attack, he rallied his troops and explored the area following the tracks to a well-worn path that led higher into the mountains. The party found a cave of dried flowers and nearby a cave inhabited by three yetis. Beatriss, Bo-Jing, and Naron faced off agains the terrible foes, and supported by Ryu and Bo-Jing's retinue, emerged bruised and battered but victorious. They explored the rest of the caverns and found runes carved into almost every wall. By creating a careful map and listening to the wind, they deduced that there was a hidden chamber situated between the flower cave and the yeti's cave, reachable only by a crack in the stone mere inches wide. They concluded that this was another reason to go back to Banua-- to seek out a place to purchase more of the gaseous form potions that Beatriss had used to enter the crystal cave.
Back in Banua, Ganbaatar was interested to meet Bo-Jing and hear about his rumored success in dealing with the bandits. He smiled to hear about his brother and especially how quickly Gansukh had turned on Bo-Jing. "That's my brother, he thinks everyone lives to please him and anyone who doesn't becomes his enemy." He was also grateful to hear that Bo-Jing had hunted down and killed the yetis who had plagued the Bolad fires. "I will send out new fire-watchers tomorrow."
And then he asked about the coins. "That's why you spent so much time in the Valley of the Five Fires, right?"
Bo-Jing admitted that he hoped to learn the secrets of becoming invisible or taking on the form of an animal. Ganbaatar reminded him that the coins were ancestral treasures of his people, but acknowledged that his brother was probably looking for them too "And maybe others, worse than him." Ganbataar offered to take on the task of collecting taxes in Banua with the understanding that Bo-Jing would continue to look for a coin and-- if he found one-- he and Ganbaatar would present it to the emperor as a gift. "I'm sure he will reward you and in this way, we will keep the coins away from my brother.
Bo-Jing and Beatriss spent a few weeks in Banua. Ganbaatar supplied an office and sleeping chambers within the palace and convinced Bo-Jing to hire a scribe to handle the task of accounting for taxes collected and the expenses of Bo-Jing and his staff. Finally, Beatriss accepted an offer of service from a teena-aged girl named Nar Nuteng who wanted to learn how to wear armor and fight with a sword. seeing that the girl was already a skilled archer and hunter, Beatriss was glad to accept her as her sister-in-arms.
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
Taxman Part 5
Bo-Jing and Beatriss found the heroes' burial mound and Ryu presided over the funeral of the warriors killed by the necromancer. The ceremony was disrupted by wolves from a nearby cave, but Bo-Jing chased the animals away before they could scavenge the bodies.
Bo-Jing and Beatriss spent the next week exploring the Valley and various small caves. They encountered fearsome monsters including yetis and giants that seemed to step at-will between the waking and the dream world and meld into walls. Most notably they located a cave with a crystal door, accessible only by a small hole. By drinking a magic potion, Beatriss was able to become a cloud of fog and slip through the hole. Inside the cave, she found one of the coins, embedded in the chest of a crystal statue. But like the strange giants, the entire statue resided in the dream world and could not be touched or wakened.
Running out of food and ideas, Beatriss and Bo-Jing left the valley. Opting to avoid Gansukh, they sought out the fire camp of Ganbaatar's Bolad horde. They found the camp, at the northeast corner of the valley, but the camp was deserted and the fire was out. Uneasy, but also very hungry, the party found the stores of firewood and rice. After restarting the fire, they cooked themselves a large meal.
Monday, February 22, 2021
Taxman Part 4
Bo-Jing met with Gansukh, and asked him what he knew of the Four Coins. Gansukh explained that they were heirlooms of his people. If any of them were discovered, he could surely claim his place of leader of his father’s people. All the legends said they were hidden in the Valley of the Five Fires, a sacred place that he and his brother and all the local men of honor had sworn not to enter when receiving their first horse and formally joining the horde. But Bo-Jing was an outside. If he found one of the coins for Gansukh, he could name his price.
Bo-Jing knew what he wanted. “Something that could make me invisible.”
Gansukh promised he could do that.
Bo-Jing finished training his men and buying provisions for their trip to the Valley of the Five Fires. When the day came for them to set out, Gansukh asked Bo-Jing and Beatriss if they could help him with one thing.
“I am having problems with a thief. Of course I could deal with him myself, but it is not my place to enforce the law. I would not usurp the will of the Emperor or his agent . . .”
Gansukh explained that a shaman had stolen some jewelry belonging to his wife, a necklace and a ring. His right-hand man Batzorig, who also happened to be his brother-in-law would show them where the shaman lived. He could identify his sister’s necklace. And also the ring.
So the company set off. They found the shaman’s abode, a sprawling house built of stone and thatched with straw, next to a cave and a stone formation that happened to closely resemble a skull. When Bo-Jing ventured inside the house, a strange wailing noise, rose from an invisible source. Bo-Jing retreated and set fire to the rood of the house. While the wet thatch smoldered, a mob of skeletons began filing out of the caves, raising a terrifying din by clanging their swords against their shields. Ryu showed his holy symbol and began turning the skeletons to dust in a blaze of holy fire. A squat man stepped out from behind a rock. He pointed a wand at Ryu and hurled a huge ball of fire in the holy man’s direction. Ryu was knocked to the ground and the three of Bo-Jing’s men were killed in the fiery explosion. The others were badly wounded. When the smoke cleared, the shaman was gone.
“What are you doing to my home? To my creations?”
Beatriss and Bo-Jing argued with him. The skeletons ceased their advance and Ryu lowered his holy symbol.
The shaman confessed to having stolen Narantsetseg’s necklace, but denied that he’d stolen anything else from her. The shaman threw the necklace on the ground. Batzorig, recognizing it as his sister’s eagerly grabbed it. “This is it. She’ll be so happy!”
Beatriss asked Batzorig to describe his sister’s ring. When he could not, he agreed that there might have been a misunderstanding and that they should return to Khuzu Kala.
Narantsetseg was happy to see her necklace returned, so happy, that Beatriss did not trust her husband’s disappointment. “What about the ring?” Narantsetseg was deaf and could not be questioned closely, but she smiled like amother who had recovered a lost child, stroking the necklace with ring-heavy fingers.
Beatriss accused Gansukh of staging a trick that cost three men their lives. With a great display of insult and outrage, Gansukh ordered them to leave his tent. “I will pay your tax and then you will have no reason to stay here!”
During the week that Gansukh collected the tax money for Khuzu Kala, Bo Jing made inquiries as to how to bury the men who had been killed. Gan Yul explained that while most the bodies of most people were laid out on the steppe for the animals, esteemed warriors were sometimes buried in a place of honor. And before the treaty, the Valley off the Five Fires had been known as the Cradle of Humanity. The most esteemed warriors were laid to rest in the valley where humans had first appeared in middle earth.
B-Jing collected the taxes from Gansukh and then set out to bury his fallen men. Gan Yul led them to the edge of the Valley, where they rested at the fire tended by the Nergui horde. Gan Yul, as a member of the Nergui horde, would not enter the valley. But he pointed out a lone mountain in the middle of the valley and explained to Bo-Jing where to find the warriors’ grave. “On the far side of the mountain, at the edge of dawn’s shadow.”
Bo-Jing knew what he wanted. “Something that could make me invisible.”
Gansukh promised he could do that.
Bo-Jing finished training his men and buying provisions for their trip to the Valley of the Five Fires. When the day came for them to set out, Gansukh asked Bo-Jing and Beatriss if they could help him with one thing.
“I am having problems with a thief. Of course I could deal with him myself, but it is not my place to enforce the law. I would not usurp the will of the Emperor or his agent . . .”
Gansukh explained that a shaman had stolen some jewelry belonging to his wife, a necklace and a ring. His right-hand man Batzorig, who also happened to be his brother-in-law would show them where the shaman lived. He could identify his sister’s necklace. And also the ring.
So the company set off. They found the shaman’s abode, a sprawling house built of stone and thatched with straw, next to a cave and a stone formation that happened to closely resemble a skull. When Bo-Jing ventured inside the house, a strange wailing noise, rose from an invisible source. Bo-Jing retreated and set fire to the rood of the house. While the wet thatch smoldered, a mob of skeletons began filing out of the caves, raising a terrifying din by clanging their swords against their shields. Ryu showed his holy symbol and began turning the skeletons to dust in a blaze of holy fire. A squat man stepped out from behind a rock. He pointed a wand at Ryu and hurled a huge ball of fire in the holy man’s direction. Ryu was knocked to the ground and the three of Bo-Jing’s men were killed in the fiery explosion. The others were badly wounded. When the smoke cleared, the shaman was gone.
“What are you doing to my home? To my creations?”
Beatriss and Bo-Jing argued with him. The skeletons ceased their advance and Ryu lowered his holy symbol.
The shaman confessed to having stolen Narantsetseg’s necklace, but denied that he’d stolen anything else from her. The shaman threw the necklace on the ground. Batzorig, recognizing it as his sister’s eagerly grabbed it. “This is it. She’ll be so happy!”
Beatriss asked Batzorig to describe his sister’s ring. When he could not, he agreed that there might have been a misunderstanding and that they should return to Khuzu Kala.
Narantsetseg was happy to see her necklace returned, so happy, that Beatriss did not trust her husband’s disappointment. “What about the ring?” Narantsetseg was deaf and could not be questioned closely, but she smiled like amother who had recovered a lost child, stroking the necklace with ring-heavy fingers.
Beatriss accused Gansukh of staging a trick that cost three men their lives. With a great display of insult and outrage, Gansukh ordered them to leave his tent. “I will pay your tax and then you will have no reason to stay here!”
During the week that Gansukh collected the tax money for Khuzu Kala, Bo Jing made inquiries as to how to bury the men who had been killed. Gan Yul explained that while most the bodies of most people were laid out on the steppe for the animals, esteemed warriors were sometimes buried in a place of honor. And before the treaty, the Valley off the Five Fires had been known as the Cradle of Humanity. The most esteemed warriors were laid to rest in the valley where humans had first appeared in middle earth.
B-Jing collected the taxes from Gansukh and then set out to bury his fallen men. Gan Yul led them to the edge of the Valley, where they rested at the fire tended by the Nergui horde. Gan Yul, as a member of the Nergui horde, would not enter the valley. But he pointed out a lone mountain in the middle of the valley and explained to Bo-Jing where to find the warriors’ grave. “On the far side of the mountain, at the edge of dawn’s shadow.”
Saturday, February 20, 2021
Taxman Part 3
Gaansukh was pleased to hear about Bo-Jing’s success in disrupting the bandit’s activities. He called for two yurts to be erected for use by Bo-Jing and his men. Bo-Jing was pleased by the way his men had conducted themselves in their fight with the bandits, and made an opportunity to train them in more advanced maneuvers. Gan Yul, a memebr of the Nergui horde, asked to join Bo-Jing's company and was accepted. Beatriss used this opportunity to return to the bandit’s tower. Having lived the first half of her life in the underground city of Cynadicea, she was most comfortable in the darkness. Plus she owned a magical sword that let her become invisible. She left her horse below the camp and traveled the rest of the way on foot. She found many fewer tents in the camp and no men in the tower. Going from room to room, she concluded that most of the valuable had already been taken by the other bandits. She claimed a staff, likely magical, that they had missed, and returned to Kazhu Kala.
Despite his prowess and reputation, Bo-Jing was discouraged, that unlike Betriss, Bangqiu, and Hyamsam, he had no method for becoming invisible. Together with Beatriss, he found an old woman named Tolai who lived in fine yurt all by herself, made her living brewing potions purported to have magical powers. Bo-Jing showed her a potion he had found in his adventures and asked her to analyze it for him. She collected her fee and conducted various tests, finally pronouncing that it would make the imbiber vanish. “Turn invisible?” Well . . . depending on what you mean by invisible. Their body would turn in a cloud of mist, which is indeed very difficult to see. Bo-Jing was grateful for this information but what he wanted was to be invisible, to be able to sneak up on his enemies and attack them with surprise.Tolai shook her head and laughed to herself before asking Bo-Jing if he knew the legend of the Four Coins. Tngri had made them for his four sons, the Kings of the North, the East, the South, and West. A fox had stolen them and hidden him and they would never be found. "But if anything could make a powerful warrior invisible, it would be one of those four coins."
Friday, February 19, 2021
Taxman Part 2
During their time getting to know Banua and its people, Bo-Jing and Beatriss were joined by their friends Bangqiu and Hyamsam. Bangqiu agreed to help them find the bandits’ lair. Using his magic, he located an ancient tower high up in the hills of the borderlands, surrounded by a dozen yurts. Bo-Jing, Beatriss, and their retinue were able to locate the tower and visit the people who lived there. They called themselves “Oken’s Horde” and claimed no allegiance to either brother. The tower was the tomb of their ancestors and they camped near it to prevent its desecration. They dismissed Bo-Jing’s questions about bandits, explaining that it was common practice for young men to raid across the border for livestock. It was an unfortunate practice but not the work of organized outlaws. Oken himself pledged his allegiance to the Emperor. He offered 1,000 taels as tax payment for the Oken horde and suggested that be taken into Bo-Jing’s service. “We know this land like the back of our hands. Give us authority to collect on your behalf while you take your ease in Banua or Blue City.” Bo-Jing declined and Oken, visibly offended, all but order the group to leave.
Having traveled to the borderlands, Bo-Jing and Beatriss decided to make his way to Khuzu Kala and meet Gaanbaatar’s twin. They were met and welcomed by a group of horsemen, who showed them the way to Khuzu Kala, offered rest in their own yurts and promised to introduced them to the khan the next day.
Gaansukh showed himself to be a hard man, scarred and half-dressed for battle in leather armor and with his sword close at hand. He lectured Bo-Jing on his superior suitability to be chief, insinuating that his cowardly brother had poisoned their father to prevent him from naming a successor. “And so the nobles selected that coward only because he was a few moments older. What about stronger?” However, he almost promised that he would pay the Emperor’s tax.
While staying in Khuzu Kala, Bo-Jing and Beatriss learned more about Oken’s horde. A tradesmen asked Beatriss to bring some food and warm clothes to his brother who was a “guest” of Oken’s. While scard to say so, it was clear that the tradesman understood that his brother was being held against his will. With some reconnaissance help from Bangqiu, Bo-Jing and Beatriss were able to confirm that multiple prisoners were being held in the tower. The three of them planned an early morning visit to Oken’s horder, arriving at the camp as dawn was breaking, and going straight to the tower without advertising their presence, thanks to Bangqiu’s cloaking magic. They entered the tower easily and were met by a few armed men, poring over a map at a table on the bottom floor. Beatriss accused them of holding prisoners. The men objected to the accusation and one went upstairs to get Oken. Soon violence broke out. Oken, his lieutenant, and his adviser, a sorcerer were all killed and the other bandits surrendered. Beatriss and Bangqiu found the prisoners and freed them while Bo-Jing stripped one of the dead bandits of his leather armor, deducing that it must be magical given that it had survived a magical assault that had charred its owner to black bones. Meanwhile, the surrendering bandits had used this opportunity to loot their former leader’s treasure chamber, releasing a cloud of poison gas. Bo-Jing, Beatriss, and Bangqiu decided that if they really wanted to rescue prisoners, they would have to forego any looting and instead used this opportunity to make a get away. Bo-Jing had the wherewithal to take the map from the table, reasoning that if it was useful to bandits, it would be useful to a taxman.
Having traveled to the borderlands, Bo-Jing and Beatriss decided to make his way to Khuzu Kala and meet Gaanbaatar’s twin. They were met and welcomed by a group of horsemen, who showed them the way to Khuzu Kala, offered rest in their own yurts and promised to introduced them to the khan the next day.
Gaansukh showed himself to be a hard man, scarred and half-dressed for battle in leather armor and with his sword close at hand. He lectured Bo-Jing on his superior suitability to be chief, insinuating that his cowardly brother had poisoned their father to prevent him from naming a successor. “And so the nobles selected that coward only because he was a few moments older. What about stronger?” However, he almost promised that he would pay the Emperor’s tax.
While staying in Khuzu Kala, Bo-Jing and Beatriss learned more about Oken’s horde. A tradesmen asked Beatriss to bring some food and warm clothes to his brother who was a “guest” of Oken’s. While scard to say so, it was clear that the tradesman understood that his brother was being held against his will. With some reconnaissance help from Bangqiu, Bo-Jing and Beatriss were able to confirm that multiple prisoners were being held in the tower. The three of them planned an early morning visit to Oken’s horder, arriving at the camp as dawn was breaking, and going straight to the tower without advertising their presence, thanks to Bangqiu’s cloaking magic. They entered the tower easily and were met by a few armed men, poring over a map at a table on the bottom floor. Beatriss accused them of holding prisoners. The men objected to the accusation and one went upstairs to get Oken. Soon violence broke out. Oken, his lieutenant, and his adviser, a sorcerer were all killed and the other bandits surrendered. Beatriss and Bangqiu found the prisoners and freed them while Bo-Jing stripped one of the dead bandits of his leather armor, deducing that it must be magical given that it had survived a magical assault that had charred its owner to black bones. Meanwhile, the surrendering bandits had used this opportunity to loot their former leader’s treasure chamber, releasing a cloud of poison gas. Bo-Jing, Beatriss, and Bangqiu decided that if they really wanted to rescue prisoners, they would have to forego any looting and instead used this opportunity to make a get away. Bo-Jing had the wherewithal to take the map from the table, reasoning that if it was useful to bandits, it would be useful to a taxman.
Saturday, February 13, 2021
Taxman Part 1
"Turmoil has engulfed the Galactic Republic. The taxation of trade routes to outlying star systems is in dispute."
Star War: The Phantom Menace, opening Crawl
"The best Star Wars is Phantom Menace. All the new ones suck."
Rainbow-Monkey-Sock (Player who runs Bo-Jing)
Bo-Jing comes from a prominent family, most well known for their wealth and mercantile prowess, but with a history of military success and loyalty to the Imperial Khan's great-grandfather. Bo-Jing's own recent success in battle gave new currency to the old stories and brought him to the attention of the Emperor himself. Bo-Jing and his friends were invited to the Capital to witness Bo-Jing receive his commission as as Imperial agent, charged with collecting taxes and keeping order in the lands of the Naran horde, on the wild northern edge of the Empire. He was granted authority to recruit assistants and used this authority to grant commissions to a few of his cousins.
On the way to the lands of the Naran Horde, Bo-Jing and Beatriss, together with their henchmen Ryu and Naron and Bo-Jing's cousins, stopped in Blue City where Bo-Jing met his immediate supervisor, the local governor. The governor advised Bo-Jing that his new role would give him great authority over the local populace. "But whatever you do, don't cheat the Emperor. He will find out and you will be punished." Bo-Jing and Beatriss joined a caravan bound for Banua, the capital of the Naran horde. Along the way, Bo-Jing recruited local warriors to join his squad. From them he learned that the Naran horde, following the death of it leader, had split into two rival branches, led by twin brothers. Gaanbaatar, the older twin led the larger Bolad horde, and controlled the old capital of Banua and most of his father’s lands. Gaansukh, whom Bo-Jing would learn based his claim to leadership on his strength, had established his own seat in a fortified camp on the shore of a lake known as Khuzu Kala.
When Bo-Jing arrived in Banua Gaanbaatar met him with courteous disdain, alluding to an appeal he’d made to the Emperor five years ago when his brother revolted and split the horde in two. His attitude softened greatly when Bo-Jing shared the details of his commission and how he planned to spend his salary. The Emperor had promised to pay him a bonus for taxes collected beyond the last census count and he wanted to use that money to build a road to connect Banua with Khuzu Kala. Gaanbaatar tested him, asking, “But surely you want to collect your money as quickly as possible and return to court?” No, Bo-Jing, assured him, he had no interest in court life and had chased adventure across the ocean and over burning deserts. Now his ambition was to make sure the people saw their tax money put to good use. Gaanbaatar suggested that he could handle the collection of taxes and Bo-Jing could help him with another problem. His people didn’t need a road. They just needed to be able to ride to Khuzu Kala without fear of a bandit attack. As Gaanbaatar explained it, a group of bloodthirsty bandits lived in the rough borderland between the two brothers. Merchants were afraid to make the trip and even poor nomads knew that they put themselves at risk when crossing the borderlands to visit family on the other side. The bandits had evaded the Khan’s men, but perhaps a small group of canny and experienced warriors would be able to track them down.
Bo-Jing pledged to help with the bandits. During his few days of rest, he heard rumors about other things that interested him. Monks in mountains, magical coins, and a Valley of Five Fires that all the surrounding hordes had agreed not to enter.
Thursday, January 28, 2021
Master of the Desert Nomads Part 7: Disrupting the Master
Based on their experience with the so-called "Master," Beatriss and Tetsukichi realized their own adopted homeland was in danger. Without believing that the Master could pose a serious threat to the Imperial Khan, he could bring misery and destruction to the people of the Zhou Empire, very likely beginning with the Happy Valley. They asked their proteges Bayan and Timur to accompany Al-Fitar in his efforts to rally defense of his father's lands to the best. But Beatriss, Tetsukichi, along Hyamsam, Bangqiu, and Bo Jing collectively decided to go east.
On this occasion, the journey home was nearly as trying as the journey out. The Master's armies seemed to attract strange and terrible monsters-- a multi-headed lizard buried in a pit, a lizard made of flames that emerged from their own campfire. But they were truly horrified when they reached the Asada River and the ruined village of Pramayama. A huge contingent of the Master's army was encamped along the banks. The river was the only thing blocking them from the most peaceful region of Zhou. And that army, was busy building a bridge to bring their supplies and siege engines across the river.
Thanks to the magic of Hyamsam, Bangqiu,a nd Mustapha, evading the army was easy enough, but as they pressed on they encountered a horrifying advance party of giants, trolls, harpies, gnolls, a fire sorceress, and bloodthirsty barbarians. The defenders of Zhou determined that this was not just a raiding party, but scouts, seeking the pass by which the army would invade. In a first skirmish, several of Kafka's archers were killed and the most powerful raiders escaped.
The homelanders regrouped. Bangqiu took to the sky and found a short cut; the defenders pushed ahead, and sought a place where they wanted to stage a battle. They chose a high hill on the edge of a plain where they expected the raiders to pass. Bangqiu approached the raiders invisibly. The archers started the attack, firing from the top of the hill. Most of their arrows fell harmlessly among the well-protected raiders who responded by charging the hill. Mustapha created a troop of illusionary skeletons at the bottom of the hill, giving the raiders what looked like an easy target. The fire sorceress made the mistake of identifying herself. Before she could cause any damage the defenders on the hill, Bangqiu blasted her with a barrage of magic missiles. He then reverted to bird form to escape the giants and flew back to the hill.
As the raiders reached the hill, the defenders created a wall of fire, trapping them at the base. As the harpies approached, the archers shot them down from the sky. The raider's ground troops were divided, with half trapped by flames as the trolls and barbarians circled around the hill. The powerful fire giant happily waded through the fire and bounded up the hill. Hyamsam blasted him with a cloud of steam and Kafka finished him off. Meanwhile, Bo Jing singlehandedly killed one of the trolls with his fiery sword. As the raiders fell victim to their own homicidal urges at the hands of the calm, well-organized defenders, Tetsukichi noticed that the human leaders of the band were hanging back. He and Bangqiu led a group down the hill to make sure none of the raiders escaped. They were successful.
The defenders pressed on toward the Happy Valley, stopping periodically to ensure that they weren't being followed. There were no raiders in sight. They reached the Happy Valley and quietly prepared their troops for a possible attack. None came. Invisible Victory.
Thursday, January 21, 2021
Homecoming Part 9 (Finale and a new beginning)
The surprise attack on Byxata did not go as the Traldars had expected. Somehow, the Hutakaans had been ready. Kfaz was there, leading a well-organized defense. The defenders targeted Ben-Kraal with javelins and sling stones. He was knocked from his mount and half-trampled. The Traldars called off the attack and retreated. They had the wherewithal to shield Be-Kraal and hoist his half-dead body onto a mount. A few of the boldest warriors urged their lizards to climb up the town walls to guard the retreat of the main body. While there were few casualties, the Traldars returned to Ronkan in defeat.
The party received little blame. There was talk of a traitor who must have alerted the Hutakaans. But the loudest talk was about Ben-Kraal and his poor decision to lead his warriors into a trap.
Sukh, Ginjo, and Phubi pushed their way intot he tower and Ben-Kraal's sickroom. They warned him of the seditious talk about him. He shrugged it off. He would be challenged to a duel and killed and a new leader would be selected. It was the Traldar way. After a nod from Ginjo, Phubi pulled out the scroll she had found in the middle. She read it over Ben-Kraal. In a flash of white fire, the scrool was consumed and all in the room felt fully invigorated. Ben-Kraal jumped out of bed, fully healed. He strode down the stairs, but assumed an awkward, wincing gait as he met the crowd outside.
As predicted, there was a challenge. The two men stripped naked and began to fight. Ben-Kraal sustained a couple punched, shook his head and then took hold of his challenger and threw him to the ground. His challenger stood up only to be punched in the face and knocked to the ground again. The challenger pulled himself to his feet and the crowd took a breath, expecting Ben-Kraal to finish him off.
Instead the sturdy warrior took a few steps back. "Today I learned the value of mercy. Maybe some of you."
Some were angry, some were inspired, most were confused, but all had to respect Ben-Kraal's decision not to finish the fight. The challenger knew better than to claim the mantle of leadership. It would stay with Ben-Kraal.
The next day, Sukh and Ginjo pressed Ben-Kraal with the urgency of returning to the temple. In his study of the books, Ginjo read about a powerful enemy of the ancient Hutaakans, one who had lived for centuries and whose power, it seemed, still lingered. This was an evil mage named Acererak.who after transforming himself into an undead being, had continued to develop his arcane powers. Also for centuries, the Hutaakans had been researching how to destroy him and had developed certain magic items for this purpose. Sukh and Ginjo wanted to visit the temple once mre, with the key, find the Hutakaan treasury, and hopefully those items.
Ben-Kraal was surprised that Sukh was no longer pressing him to make peace witht he Hutakaans but instead plotting to loot their temple.
"I know them and I know you. You are honorable. When we visited the temple together, you fought beside us."
Ben-Kraal agreed that Sukh and Ginjo should loot the temple. "But do not return here." He apologized to the bakemono for their rough treatment. "If there are other people outside this valley that are more like you than like us, than your promised land must also be elsewhere. Leave us to our petty war."
There was no public goodbye. Ben-Kraal insisted that the Traldars must believe that the party would be returning that night laden with treasure. He provided four lizard mounts to help carry the load.
So the party returned once more to the temple. They found the treasury behind the altar and used the key to gain access. Ginjo was disappointed at the lack of weapons, but compensated himself by collecting thousands of gold coins and ingots, filling up a dirty old sack that was conveniently draped over one arm of an ornate wooden throne. He was even more disappointed later when he opened the sack later and found all of his treasure had disappeared. But rather than cast it aside, Sukh suggested that it might come in handy someday. They were also puzzled by a wooden rod, light and brittle, and carved with a single magic sigil. A mystery for another day.
The party loaded the food and supplies that would be the bulk of their treasure, plus a small coffer of gems that Sukh had deliberately not placed in the devouring sack and said goodbye to the lost valley. They climbed on top of the temple and that up the side of the valley, taking the same trail by which they had seen the Master's minions arrive and depart.
With the help of the giant footpad lizards, scaling the peaks of the Lost Valley was an achievable feat. The travelers descended into an oven-hot sandy desert. Traversing a nightmare landscape of burnt-out villages and rotten oases, the party soon became homesick for Ronkan. As their water supplies ran low, they realized it was too far to go back and they could only press forward. By powers beyond their ken, they encountered a party of riders who, after some initial wariness, took ity on the strange wanderers. They shared water and explained they were scout in the army of Barack Al-Fitar, fighting a desperate hit-and-run-run-run campaign to defend their land against the depredations of a sinister warlord, called by his minions by only the name "Master" and with no knowable objective other than destruction.
Ginjo offered that he and his friends had also encountered and fought against the Master's minions. And he was eager to continue to fight against them.
And so the party was introduced to al-Fitar and, inducted into his army. Al-Fitar showed himself to be "tough but fair," demanding strict discipline among his troops, but granting the party latitude and autonomy based on their experience and willingness to commit to the the cause. In particular, he made it clear that although the four bakemono shamans resembled many of the Master's minions, they should be judged by their individual characters, rather than this resemblance. He excepted the party from the most demanding aspect of army life, while warning them that he would soon be asking them to perfomr a very dangerous mission.
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