09/15/745 A.E. About noon. 5 weeks after all had departed to do their own thing.
Opening Scene: Katana, city of brick and clay, the tiled rooftops stretched as far as the eye could see. A crowded place, this so-called jewel of the Asian gulf, teeming with over 20,000 souls. It was a busy port city, this one, where the men worked hard loading and unloading cargo while milling about the place, and where there were all sorts of merchants who were bartering for goods and making deals in most any direction you could look. Just across the way, there was a moderately sized inn, Our Lady's Embrace, though most locals simply called it "Our Lady" or "The Lady".
Inside, we find our group gathering. Jarmain had come early, and rose when a few of his friends entered. "So how have you all been?" Gillmesh sat down while Garren headed for a stage-like area where he had been performing for the crowds these past few days. There are plenty of people here, many of them worldly, as that goes, having come from near and far. Garren, being the bard he is, has been entertaining the crowd with his juggling, acrobatics, story telling, poetry, and musicianship, as well as his singing. The crowds are especially pleased to hear tales of the sea and of things happening in the great Alodarian Empire far across the sea. Garren's song captures the people's attention, and some offer money (paper???). "Wow, quite an impressive ditty," says a passerby in a heavily accented Trade Talk or Common, with a large grin on his face.
Katsumi Yuriko leaned against the wall, wearing a traditional kimono and playing with a dagger while talking to a similarly dressed woman, (Mikki Aserro Kikki). Kat was flirting with her. They had come in together, obviously had been together for a while as well. Katsumi and Mikki then sit down, the air of lilacs about them from their recent scented bath permeates the space around them. "Mikki, Kowai (Kowai means Angel), you sure you can't come with me? I'll miss you." Mikki seems lost for a moment in Kat's eyes, but she whispers back, "I'll miss you, too, but my place is here. You know that."
There is strange talk about the place, but it's hard to make out as there are 3 or 4 languages being spoken freely in this port city. A lot of talk is about a "house"?
Tagard, a gnome in blue robes, moans from the other side of the room, and stands up to his full height, albeit that's not very high, and he brings his hand on the table, seemingly showing his distaste with the waitress. "Bah, you stupid wench. This is the second time of late that you have taken my order from a different realm or something, because it certainly wasn't I who ordered this. Go back and do it right for once." The waitress looked flustered. "Excuse me, sir, but if you don't like it, I'll bring you another, but they're all pretty much the same this time of year." The gnome didn't seem happy with her answer, sighing, "Forget it then. You can throw this to the mongrels outside." Unhappily, she took the order away (no tip she suspects). With that, Tagard stands and sweeps his arm across the table, knocking everything off of it onto the floor. The clatter of a few metal tankards shows the entire room the surly gnome is not happy. He walks carefully away from the mess he made in an already busy place while the poor waitress strove to take care of all her customers, and now she had to stop and clean up the gnome's mess as well, and it just made everything worse. Tagard seemed unconcerned and walked into a darkened corner of the room, sitting down at another table. There, upon the table, lay a scrap of paper, slightly crumbled. Apparently, someone had left it there. Tagard looked it over, found it to be an open invitation for mercenaries to help House Tsuryuu with a problem they were having. Aside from directions to a meeting place that very evening, there was little else on the flier except ring stains from wet tankards. He guessed people had been using the flier as a coaster of sorts. The hot, moist air rolling in off the harbor did tend to condense on the cold drinks.
In the calm of the darkened corner, and after reflecting on the flier, Tagard decided if he wasn't going to eat, he had at least better get something good to drink while he pondered his recent situation. Though the waitress was reluctant to come, eventually she did, and so Tagard ordered. "I want one of those," he said, pointing at another patron's drink. "Blast, I forget its name. It's one of your popular drinks and it's slipped my mind. One of the Tsuryuu Jacks, I believe? Bah, whatever. Just give me something that's strong and wet, and quickly." Oddly enough the waitress seem pleased and surprised at the gnome's order. Unlike the fruit platter he had previously ordered, this was a drink, and one of quality, and an expensive drink at that. Maybe this gnome has money, after all, she thought. "Yes sir, right away," she said, smiling, though it was a bit forced, and she hurried off to get the Jack. If he doesn't like this, then it's his fault and not mine, she mused to herself.
Tagard had heard of the Jack, but had never tried it. Apple Jack, but a special fermentation and aging process (or something), made the drink exceptionally strong, smooth, and allegedly a delight. For 10 SP a glass, it had better be. Returning, the waitress asked for payment and the gnome tried the drink, seemed well pleased for a change, perhaps feeling a bit better now, and he surrendered two GPs. She gulped. Why, she thought, one GP is already 10 times too much. What's he playing at now? she silently wondered. Tagard then spoke simply. "This is for you; keep it." A genuine smile finally came to the waitresses' lips. Oh my god, 200 SP! She thanked him and hurried away. It soon became obvious that she had spoken of her good fortune to the other waitresses, for they all seemed to take special interest in the gnome now, apparently all of them anxious to wait on him now, since that darkened corner didn't seem to have an assigned waitress. In that corner, it was nearest one gets stuck with the duty - or in this case, maybe gets the big tip. Tagard was finally happy, and for the first time in many days, he relaxed. The Jack? Perhaps. The pretty waitresses at his beck and call? Maybe. He really didn't know, but just sat back and relaxed and ordered the ale he had tried before. He knew he liked that, and in quantity. The waitresses brought him mug after mug until the EP he had allotted for it called a halt to it. (5 mugs, 2 SP each). He left 1 GP more as a final tip.
Katsumi smiled and kissed Mikki again, saying, "I have something for you, Kowai." She placed a gold and jade ring on her friend's finger. (200 GP). Obviously, she was quite taken with her friend of the past few weeks. "If I ever return to Katana, can I look you up, Kowai?" Kikki is thrilled with the ring and kisses Katsumi. Many onlookers seem interested in these two (overly affectionate) women. Garren suddenly stops playing mid song when he sees this. He frowns, not happy, and begins to play a sad song. A real downer, the crowd seems displeased with his choice of music and they call for a happier tune. Though his heart really isn't in it, he relents and plays one more happy song before going to sit at his table, alone.
Mikki looked into Kat's eyes again. "I wish you didn't have to leave. I would like to thank you properly. But I can wait until next time you show up." She stood up then, kissed Kat passionately, a reminder of their intimate lovemaking, and she said good-bye. She left Our Lady then, apparently having business elsewhere. Kat watched her leave and sighed. Looking around the room, she spotted Garren and went to sit with him. She called for a waitress and one came over, tearing herself away from the gnome. "Mmmmm, lilac, that's a lovely fragrance you're wearing," said the waitress as she took Kat's order for 'warm sake'. Kat could not really smell her lilac fragrance any longer, her olfactory senses being overloaded on that particular fragrance. She had just taken a bath with Mikki, a traditional lilac scented bath often given to high-paying customers of the Geisha's from the House of Escher. Kat had recently completed a bit of training there, learning Seduction Techniques where they were a fine art.
Katsumi thanked the waitress for the 'warm sake' and looked at Garren while she sipped at it. He seemed unhappy as she looked at him. She wondered why. His feelings began to wash over her. Lonely, longing, he loved her and wanted her, even needed her to love him the way he loved her. His feelings ran deep. Kat gulped her sake' when she realized this wasn't just speculation anymore. Her magic katana, she knew, had imparted her with the power of empathy when she concentrated on an individual's feelings, trying to feel what they did. She never really experimented with it before, but now she could read Garren's feelings, almost like an open book.
NOTE: The sword must be attuned to the holder, and this takes perhaps a month or so of close contact before this function starts to work. Furthermore, the more you know a person, the stronger the empathy and the better the reading.
She never really knew Garren felt that way before. He was interested, she knew that, but she thought he just wanted to bang her now and again like most men. This man loved her, and he was jealous of others who were with her. Kat reeled at the new information, more than just a little afraid at its implications. She chose another topic and talked with Garren, trying NOT to read his feelings now that she could.
Meanwhile, Jarmain and Gillmesh spoke. "Well, anybody hear of anything worth our trouble?" asked the priest of Zeus. A general conversation about what was happening, who knew what, what they might plan to do, etc., followed. There were no immediate plans now that Sedoc had left the party, and it was beginning to look like Janjit's friendship with the ranger would have him stay on his homeland as well. And Trekken's quest, their primary reason for coming here, had died with him. Once again, they were short handed in power and skill and made plans to perhaps return home to Alodar on the first available ship.
A warrior spoke too loudly just then. "They say no one came back, and I'm not going, that's for damn sure." With that, he simply departed the inn, leaving a robed figure in his wake.
Gillmesh nodded toward the priest and pushed himself away from the table. He moved across the room and stood before the strange priest, waiting to be acknowledged, then gave a short bow as he had learned was the custom there. The priest looked Gill over and said, "How about you? You look brave. You interested in joining?" Gill replied, "I heard ye speekin to tha fighter aboot a place nea one comes back froom. That interests me." Jarmain joined the duo in conversation.
The robed priest continued, "Aye, some men were sent out, samurai all, and have not come back."
In the conversation, they learn this priest represents the House of Tsuryuu, a samurai order. Ostensibly, they hire themselves out as mercenaries to worthy causes, but ironically, are themselves in need of some mercenaries at the moment until some of their more experienced men can be recalled from distant lands. It would seem the recent loss of over a dozen samurai (though mostly young samurai) has left them with a problem. Another warrior is listening as well, and he speaks. "It is not typical that over a dozen samurai should disappear without a word. I'm not eager to go looking into it, no matter how much money they offer." They speak to the priest (he had been handing out fliers, like the one Tagard had found), and agreed to come to the meeting later that evening.
Jarmain greets Kat and Garren after the priest leaves. "Well, I don't mean to interrupt you two, but Gillmesh and I have heard the news that a few Samurai from House Tsuryuu have gone missing. There is some sort of 'Investigative' team being formed and there is a meeting tonight. Gillmesh and I are planning on attending and we're hoping you would as well." Kat nods to Jarmain, saying, "Of course, my friend; we'll be there." He gives them the time and directions to the meeting place.
Katsumi then got up, went over, and started talking to Gillmesh. The fighter seemed to ponder something. "Our numbers dwindle." They discuss their recent training, acquaintances, and talk about who they may find to help fill out their ranks. Mostly, they wait for the night's meeting.
There is some talk of a fine new Galleon in the harbor. Apparently, it has just been recently launched. Some of the waitresses (going off duty) decide to go down and have a look.
More hours pass in idle conversation while they nurse their drinks. Soon, night approaches, and it's time for the meeting. They rise and leave the tavern and go in search of their destination. Apparently Tagard, now slightly ahead of them on the narrow, twisting, cobble stone streets, had also decided to go, for they saw him looking for the right address, fell into step with one another since they both sought the same building, and finally came to it. There were a few people there already. Taking off their footwear, as was the local custom, they entered the inner rooms.
There is a meeting getting under way, but the room is not very full. A man called Soraki, it seems, calls the meeting to order. A simple place, the fire is a central stone-lined pit, and it warms the room where people begin to sit on the floor and the only table is more like a coffee table, very low and central. Soraki starts. "Welcome to House Tsuryuu. Recently, as you may have heard, some of our fine young samurai set out to find more about the problems to the west. It has been two days now, and no word has come from that region. Anything could have happened, but honor demands the samurai would have sent word by now, or die trying. We are . . . worried." He looks at the group then and conversations start all over the room. Calling a halt to the noise, he continues. "Without more knowledge, there is little we can do, and right at the moment, our own troops are scattered far and wide."
Some locals seem worried, for samurai are not fools with a sword, they actually know how to use them, and if they bought the farm . . . well, the implication goes unspoken for most, but suffice it to say to reacquire such agricultural real estate wouldn't come cheap.
Soraki makes his offer then, saying, "We are looking for brave men, (and women), big of heart. Only big men will do. If you, any of you, will brave this undertaking, we will pay handsomely. (Admittedly, a relative term). Payment is 250 GP for each man now, and a like amount upon return with the required information." Most of the people there leave after the offer is made, seemingly not having the heart for it, some talking openly that even 500 GP can't be spent by a dead man. Tagard stays, as well as our intrepid adventurers.
Gillmesh then asks, "Ah will go, boot tis nea money in payment that Ah want." Soraki eyes the warrior. "Not money? Hmmmph. Then what?" he asks. They speak of special training that Gill would like to acquire from the house of these samurai, and it is agreed. Tagard also speaks, "I'll join. I have nothing better to do, and I have a feeling something in this isn't as simple as it sounds." The remaining band of adventurers agree to go for the cash, collecting 250 GP up front and taking an oath to do their best to find out where the samurai are and why they failed to report, and exactly what happened to them.
Tagard agrees to join the party, and they make plans to leave with the morning sun. The samurai had been sent west to find out what happened to some business concerns of the House, but little is said of that. They are informed the journey is about half a day's walk. They go their separate ways into the night and agree to meet back there in the morning.
09/16/745 A.E. Morning.
The rode leading west is a simple dirt road, and there has been no rain in the area for days. Dust rises as they trod the road, but as they walk, they get better acquainted with Tagard, and he with they. They have their noon meal by the side of the road, and then continue forward. Around 2 in the afternoon, they spot something up ahead lying in the middle of the road. They approach cautiously, taking their own sweet time, but eventually it turns out it is a dead man, a samurai, badly cut to ribbons, and he apparently bled to death while he struggled down the road heading east. His Do-maru armor was seriously cut up on one side, but the other side was undamaged. Yet, the numerous, small wounds had taken their toll. His purse was still at his side, and the money was still in it - (11 GP, 12 EP, 14 CP).
Wanting to know what happened to this man, Garren attempts to get a Psychic Reading from the corpse. Garren kind of blanks out for a minute, his eyes going to a distant point on the horizon.
Garren feels the breeze, the fear, the cold, the unnerving cold. He's scared, the blinding pain shoots through him. Cold. Loss of blood. My duty, my duty. Honor must be served, I must warn them; my duty.
The bardic priest of Poseidon snaps out of it then, shaking his head. He sits down in the dirt on the side of the road, slightly dazed. What would scare a samurai? he thought. After Garren relays his impressions, they decide they can do no more for the man aside from collect his body on the way back. Jarmain moves the body to the forest, covers it with his winter blanket, says a silent prayer, and marks a nearby tree to remember the location. Then they continue west toward their destination.
Two more hours with no interruptions brings them to a ringed orchard where hundreds of apple trees are surrounded on the outskirts by cherry trees. The smell of fruit (apples) hangs heavy in the air. Garren notices, however, that one of the apple trees near him is dead, standing there, barren, leafless, like a tree in the dead of winter. In fact, perhaps a dozen apple trees in the immediate area are similarly dead. A quick investigation does not reveal what killed them. They do, however, spot something amiss in the heart of the orchard. Again, cautiously, they eventually make their way into the interior where they find over a dozen samurai warriors, similarly cut to ribbons (apparently from one side). The ground is wet near their bodies, but no reason as to why can be ascertained. True, there is blood, but that is not was made the ground wet, for it was wet even where the bodies did not rest. They collect 14 sets of weapons (katana and wakizashi).
Looking around, they find a shack, a workers' shed, and inside they find the gruesome remains of half a dozen orchard workers. Unlike the dead samurai, the workers' bodies reek of death and decomposition, having been dead for many days now. The flies still feast upon the maggot-infested bodies, eating flesh, drinking juices, and laying eggs. Again, the party tried to learn what might have done this, but further investigation in the orchard proves fruitless. (Oh my god, did I say that? ;-)
In disgust, Gillmesh spits on the ground, noticing a small, shiny object next to his luggie. Picking it up (the object, not the luggie), it seems to be an oddly shaped piece of glass. Hmmm, half dollar sized, almost missed it in the grass since it was clear, the smooth round edges offer no danger as a sharp piece of glass might. Thin, strong, flexible, he doesn't know what it is, and after showing it to the others, who similarly confess their ignorance, he pockets it for now.
Tuall had been going back toward Katana. His leads of a large sapphire didn't pan out, and his hopes of perhaps stealing it were dashed. He had been on this continent for some time now, having had come over with an associate, but that business had been long concluded. Now Tuall thought perhaps it high time he made his way back home to Alodar. As he passed an apple orchard, he heard voices, and being a natural thief and sneak, he snuck up on them for practice as much as anything. To his surprise, he recognizes the party; well, Gillmesh and Jarmain, anyway. To make a long story short, he entered the camp, finding that he had not been as quiet as he had hoped since he was greeted with drawn weapons. Fortunately, they also recognized the fighter/thief, and a reunion of sorts occurred.
Again, they went over the scene, looking for any clues. Then Tagard saw a slight flash on the mountain wanna be, an overly large hill of rock next to the orchard. Pointing it out to the others, they looked, but saw nothing. It had been there, however, he was certain. Alas, it would take too long to go up the mountain today and it would be dark long before they got there. They decide to camp.
Breaking out their new magical tent, they unfold it until it reaches the size of a pavilion. A wonderful tent, it was warmer inside than outside (or cooler, depending), and had many rooms with black silk walls partitioning each one off from the other; there were eight rooms altogether.
Kat had been trying not to, but she couldn't help but feel Garren's emotions as they grew stronger. He wanted her, he longed for her, but he was uncertain she would reciprocate, and the uncertainty and fear held his tongue in check, but not his feelings. Kat sighed, made up her mind, and took Garren by the hand, leading him toward one of the back rooms in the tent. They spoke for a time (mostly she spoke), and using her skills at seduction, Katsumi took Garren. He offered little resistance. O.K. To tell the truth - no resistance.
In the other rooms, the rest of the party found there was something their tent did not do. It didn't muffle the sounds emanating from the other rooms, and the noises of passion and lovemaking were rather loud. Most of them went outside and sat beside the trees and discussed tomorrow's plans. After a good long while, the noise relented, and a tranquil peace followed in the wake of the piece Garren had just received. No, I didn't misspell peace.
The night passes, more or less, uneventfully after that.
09/17/745 A.E. Morning.
No one had any decent cooking skills, and breakfast was mostly dried meat, rations, apples, and water. Gill packed up the tent, happy the thing seemed to be self-cleaning to some degree, considering. He stored it away, all 20 pounds of it, in his pack. "We goin up tha hill taday?" he asked. Tagard answered first, saying, "I think we should; I believe there is nothing more here that we can find, and perhaps there's something up there that will lead us to the answer to this annoying problem." "Yes, my thoughts exactly," echoed Jarmain and the others.
Gill takes the lead and the others follow. The noon sun had burned away the mist upon the slopes by the time they reached the spot Tagard had estimate was the source of the flash. They began to look around, and once again Tagard spots something amiss. A sort of mist, a shimmering, near a white rock. Investigating, he finds a tall outcropping of rock, and near the very bottom of the rock he discovers it is extremely cold. The white color had been frost, but it was too warm for that, yet it was frost. Pouring water on it, some of it even froze, though most simply ran off. Very odd. They climb the rock with Tuall's help, a 20-foot sheer face, and the rest get up with the aid of Tuall's rope. Since Kat went up first, all notice she unashamedly doesn't wear undergarments. She smiles to herself since she suspects they are enjoying the show, and she is happy to given them a show. Eventually, everyone reaches the top. Again, Tagard notices what appears to be an illusionary wall. As an illusionist, he sees these things more readily than most, and this wall, this facade of rock, was not real. After much discussion and caution, they pass through, following the apples they had thrown through it first as a test for danger.
Garren's Continual Light rock illuminates the way. The cave entrance is very cold, and there is a large gap barring the way. The gap is a 20-foot drop, and at the bottom there is an odd, brownish illumination. They discover it to be Brown Mold, and conclude this brown mold is the source of the cold and why the rock toward the bottom could freeze a bit of water. There are two frozen apples at the bottom (where they had landed). Next, they negotiate their way over the pit, then continue down until they find more brown mold. This mold sports a body in platemail, not too far from the perimeter of the deadly patch of fungus, that was apparently some unfortunate adventurer who had succumbed to its deadly heat-absorbing properties some time in the past.
Trying several things, they fail to get close without getting hurt, the rapid loss of heat from their own flesh actually causing frostbite damaged when they got too close. Finally, Kat rushes in, knowing full well it will hurt and hurt like hell, but she grabs the body, drags it free of the mold, and shaking, nearly frozen, she falls unconscious since the molds had absorbed most of her body heat. Garren heals her, chastising her reckless actions, but they have their prize. The guy looks about 35 years old, a human, he wore platemail and had a bag and a purse and his sword, naturally. He also wore a ring. Garren wanted to know what it was, and he looked into the man's lifeless eyes, but the man's poker face was too good, and so the frozen dead man revealed nothing.
There were a few crystals sticking in the body. This body also had been cut to ribbons, so apparently it did not succumb to the brown mold as they had first surmised, though the mold sure grew on it later, indicating it was still warm when he fell into the patch of mold. But it probably wasn't the mold that killed him. It was whatever sliced him up so thoroughly. Examining the crystals, they found they were not really ice, but would eventually melt against the warmth of their skin. Probably some mixture of water and another odd ingredient, these crystals were sharp, and would almost certainly last a day even in the hot sun. Luckily, the brown mold had preserved them, and they pondered what they could mean.
The purse contained platinum pieces (115 PP), and a Blue Pearl (magic). They decide to use their Wand of Identification. The pearl is a mage pearl, the platemail is +1, and the ring (oh my god) actually contains something akin to a Wish spell (or something that powerful). They marvel at their good fortune (or is it good fortune?)
From down the tunnel, they hear a wind, a whirling sound, a buffeting noise, a clamor of sorts. Something big is down there, and it's coming up. And suddenly, even unexpectedly, they all feel extremely afraid.
SESSION ENDS
© April of 2000
by
James L.R. Beach
Waterville, MN 56096