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  1. - Top - End - #901
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Yhrashnal

    The False Swordsman finds the answer questionable at best, but does not especially care about the particulars; the secrets of a Voice Called are well worth the life of a mere Samurai, let alone a mortal incapable of fighting, and this being that stands before them is almost definitely a Voice Called based on how its essence feels.

    "Hm. You survived. Hurry over; our task is not complete."

    While his words are welcoming, for a somewhat strange definition of welcoming, Yhrashnal is more interested in contemplating the aloof nature of the Voice within the Void; only moments ago one of it's servants fell and here stands yet another one poised to replace that which was lost. If Yhrashnal himself dies how long will it take for the Voice to find another to take his place?

    ...Then again, that is not important. Yhrashnal was defeated once and 'survived' that indignity, perhaps with the blessing of the Voice or perhaps by dint of powerful magic slumbering within his blood.

    He will not fall again.

  2. - Top - End - #902
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Jade makes a circuit of the deck, making sure all of the shadow creatures are really dead and gone. She comes back to find the others conversing with a stranger. Something appears off about him... She listens quietly and focuses her concentration on the man...

    Spoiler
    Show
    Use Detect Magic invocation on stranger and his immediate surroundings
    "Do Driderettes buy their legwarmers in bulk?"

  3. - Top - End - #903
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Donovan

    Even Donovan is unconvinced by his own story, but it seemed this swordsman had accepted it as readily as the samurai from before. Whether the swordsman is befuddled or is a kindred benefactor of this trickery, it seems unwise to question such fortune. He tries to betray no stagger or stiffness as he moves to the vessel that isn't doomed to burn.
    Last edited by Anachronity; 2018-11-26 at 08:13 PM.

  4. - Top - End - #904
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Mantis Capital Ship
    Yrashnal's offer for aid is gladly accepted, and they note that his lights stay on for much longer than a few minutes; they mutter about his modesty before he greets this strange person. Though they appear uncomfortable about this man--as if he's uncanny and off-putting--they let him go after the swordsman's words. Soon, the final preparations are made for the other warship to sail away, and the ship is soon lit into a massive fire, led by magical lights on the bow. The shadow's tendrils that, even now, attempt to re-climb the warship evaporate when the burning ship collides with the large, shadowy mass. For now, at least, you are safe.

    The Mantis, crestfallen at the loss of several ships and crew, remain dutiful and sullen, and declare an emergency need to return to their islands; they offer to let you overboard near the nearby town (which has seemed to be favored) or return to the Mantis clan's islands.

    --

    Jade does detect magic with this corpse...
    Spoiler: Readings
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    The bag he carries is enchanted with a Moderate Conjuration effect. It appears full, and is remarkably similar to the bag she carries, if a little more worn. Other than this, there's not a magical detection about the person...except that while neither his clothes nor his body radiate anything like that of a magical humanoid, his body radiates a faint bit of potential, similar to a sorceror..
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  5. - Top - End - #905
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Kyorlin

    Gathers Jade and the "swordsman", Are we going back to shore or staying with the humans here on their way back to their lands? cranes his head up and back Should we included our soggy friend in this decision? seems to double over in pain. This is why you don't learn to shape soulmelds of nonmagical creatures from a totemist, curse human almost turned me into a mantis, what ever that is.

  6. - Top - End - #906
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Yhrashnal briefly confers with the other Voice Called and, without exception, any who opine about the matter agree that the Mantis Territories would be a good place to prepare for the next past of their task once they resume their duties. Even so, there is one more matter Yhrashnal must bring forth:

    "Oni, and worse, rise in each direction; I'm sure there is work to be done in the Mantis territories. Kyuden Hida fell. Sunda Mizu-Mizu invaded. We will not fail our task so easily next time.

    I have a request though. Keep the Vasuki clan well. If nothing else, reinforce territory before it faces invasion. If we survive our work I will take care of the rest."

  7. - Top - End - #907
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Kyorlin

    I thought the void told us that Kyuden Hida was suppose to fall, so those giants could reclaim it. The giants couldn't have all perished just because their army reach mutal destruction with the humans, I count that as a victory. One last thing who are the Vasuki clan?

  8. - Top - End - #908
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    The Mantis Samurai listen to the conversation with detachment; they believe that you are higher-ranking officials than them, and give you your own privacy. When asked about the Yasuki clan, they nod and say, "We have a great appreciation for the ship made by the Yasuki clan."

    When Kyorlin mentions the void, however, all of the Samurai stop their own quiet poring over maps and turn to inspect Kyorlin; even the bushi know what Kyorlin has said is unusual. Some of them look about, and the boat gets quiet....until one Samurai jokes dismissively, "Spoken like a man who had humble beginnings as a Crab Samurai." The rest of the men laugh wholeheartedly. One of the younger bushi, barely sixteen, asks the others for an explanation. A few others, still chuckling, explains "Crab soldiers take on impossible tasks, risky maneuvers, and tough assignments. They get a reputation for being crazy. Only a Crab Samurai would try to commune with instead of be silent with the Void."

    The great warship bearing the injured and dying men that wouldn't make the return journey goes upon its way to the massive shadow that looms and, even now, tries to grasp your ship. As the ship sails into the area where the shadow has branched out, and has a long tendril-like line from its place so far away, the ship doesn't turn to grey. Men on the ship shout and cry, and the ship explodes, and with it, the tendrils of darkness vanish with the ship's passing. Perhaps it's the lights that Yrashnal has fastened to its side; perhaps it's the light of the great flaming ship; perhaps it's the spirit of the men on the ship, as the soldiers claim, that did it. For now, however, the threat of the Sea of Shadows has been thwarted.

    Any potential voice of dissent about your next course remains silent. You make way for the islands of the Mantis Clan.

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  9. - Top - End - #909
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Kyorlin

    Saluting the men who threw their lives away, turn towards the nearest human in armor.
    My good Samurai, how long is our journey to the mantis islands? Is there a room we can rest before we assist the crew?

  10. - Top - End - #910
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    The first leg of your journey speeds you past the Shadow, and upon insistence of the grateful Samurai, you take a short but much-needed rest. The ship mades an unremarkable stop before it leave the bay, and after the ship reaches the open sea you encounter high winds and heavy rain. You're soon roused from rest and put to work. Even with fifteen Eta and fourteen soldiers (9 Bushi and 5 Samurai), the ship is large enough that in such increment weather, everyone is needed to ensure the ship has safe passage to the capitol of the Mantis. The perilous journey takes three more days and four sleepless nights; by the end of the ordeal, the days seem to blend together. There is a tense ten minutes at the end of the journey, when you've spotted the habor's light-tower but the direction of the winds won't permit safe passage into the harbor.

    When you finally drop anchor, the rain is still falling in sheets. Neither the Mantis' capital city nor the six-storied palace can be seen from the docks. Eta and bushi scramble to lash the ship to the dock, and with your help, it's not too difficult a task. YOu're at the end of the docks, and it leads to the outer walls of the city, past a kitchen on the right and then a bath house that, even in the rain, looks impressive. The walls heighten past the bath house, and you're led to the Dignitary's quarters, on the right, which is directly across from the imposing shadow of Tenshukaku, the six-storied castle into which most of the Samurai and the eta make their way. The few eta that accompany you into the dignitary's quarters rouse other servants so they can enjoy a much-delayed slumber. The attendants at the Dignitary's quarters soon see to it that you're given light refreshments.

    Eta bring you chilled, shredded fish and cabbage on top of just-warmed-up rice and tea, a simple but satisfying meal that tides you over until they can let you know that a bath is ready (to warm you up, after all). Jade and Donovan are left to their own modest but comfortable rooms. Kyorlin and Yrahnal are brought upstairs by a silver-haired Eta, who Suggests that the two of you must come upstairs to your rooms.

    --



    Spoiler: OOC note
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    If any of you wish to follow the Samurai and Bushi into Tenshukaku castle, let me know.
    Last edited by ~Corvus~; 2018-12-14 at 05:05 PM.
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  11. - Top - End - #911
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Donovan

    The drowned man spends these hectic days at sea cautiously, communicating details of importance only out of need and only with those which his strange benefactor has marked out. Otherwise he would simply make idle chat, attempting both to blend in and to reinforce those forgotten oratory skills which might soon be needed. In the turbulent weather and frequent rain he does not stand out so much, though it is still presumably the sorcery that befuddles these men which allows the more obvious giveaways of his nature to go unnoticed.

    Donovan has never been a skilled seaman. Yet the body is divested of life's limitations and performs tirelessly and with inhuman strength, feigning sleep and fatigue only to minimize suspicion. The mind is more distant and turns deeply in thought. It keeps time by the endless dance of the waves beneath them, each lurch and sway distinct and beautiful. It ponders and guesses at what cause one might have to render such aid to an undead thing. It was clear to him that this was not the serenity's doing; it is not so overt. And though its totality and importance is self-evident to Donovan he is aware that others never see it that way. Indeed, cannot see it that way while so constrained by their... vitalities.

    --

    As they make land a familiar and piteous sadness fills him. That dance would ever remain with him, its ceaseless progression describing each hour day and year uniquely. But he knew the others could not feel it once they set foot on land, perhaps hadn't appreciated its cadence even as it rolled them about while at sea.

    Even on land the ocean's breath falls in droplets, and though Donovan does his best to feign relief at the respite it serves only as another annoyance that would doubtless out him if not for the aid of an unknown and therefore unreliable third party. He is careful to eat only the vegetation so that its smell is less obvious as it rots within him.
    Last edited by Anachronity; 2018-12-09 at 07:32 PM.

  12. - Top - End - #912
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Jade

    The days at sea have been the most peaceful for Jade since her transformation. She finds herself a willing practice-partner of Donovan, who seems eager enough to make small talk. Neither of them mind the rain at all, and the two of them end up helping the other beleaguered humans, and with her help, the two of them pass off their competence to seaworthy enthusiasm. What downtime they have is spent in quiet seclusion.

    In the turnings of their solitary conversation, Jade finds herself confiding a great deal to Donovan about her past; how she was once a noble human of this country; her murder by thugs; of her growing suspicion that she recently passed up an opportunity to pursue what was likely her killer and the ring-leader of her family's fall from noble grace. She relays to him her experience of the Dark Voice, and assures him that he's likely to be contacted by it, too. Finally, Jade reveals her own powers to Donovan and her regret she hasn't felt safe with the members of their group. "My death was so sudden, and I have barely had time to understand my powers or what I can do; suddenly i'm supposed to work with a bunch of strangers and trust I won't die again? I feel like I've been give a huge task and...the more I've just been able to talk all of this out with you I feel...I feel RAGE!

    I want to return to that mountain village and make them pay, make the horrible men that did this to us pay horribly for this, and I...feel I must go!
    " She listens to Donovan's words of consolation, and strikes an agreement with him; she would help them get to shore, and then would depart in the confusion of the storm. In the mean time, Jade and him look at the items they have between themselves, and on their last break before landfall, they browse the glory of magical wealth the have:

    Spoiler: Items ID'd by Jade
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    Jade as Invocation that allows herself to reveal magical properties of items in a shorter time than a person with an Identify spell.

    The helm is part of the Scale Mail, which also includes gauntlets. This is a matching set of +1 Mithral Scale Mail; it bears the hallmark of a foreign maker, and Jade cannot identify its origin further. The leather underneath is also high-quality, and doesn't seem to be affected by water at all; it dries quickly and is temperature-neutral.
    This Armor Set's value is a mark above what a standard Mithral set would fetch, even without the helm.

    The Mantis Insignia of is a shoulder-badge. Its yellow color with blue border conveys a comissioned officer rank, and the single silver flower conveys the bottom rank of the type. However, when you look at the gauntlets, you notice two thick bands of gold and a golden loop above them. Thick bands like these are likely ones denoting Admiralty, but again it's likely to be a lower-rung of suck rank.
    If you had to guess, it would be Rear-Admiral; in a standard fleet battalion, the rear-admiral would be the last-third of any offensive fleet.

    The boots are made of some fine leather that doesn't seem to degrade in its water use, like the leather from the armour.

    The two kama are simple +1 Kamas.

    Finally, the utility belt is a Belt of Hidden Pouches.
    Spoiler: Details
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    It's a widely-woven silk sash with a simple silver buckle. Hidden inside the belt are ten small pockets, each of which seems big enough to hold only a few coins. Each pocket actually functions as a small bag of holding and can hold up to 1/2 cubic foot or 5 pounds of nonliving material. No object with any dimension exceeding 6 inches can be placed in a pocket. (so it's great for potions). Anything placed inside a pocket effectively has only one-tenth of its normal weight, so a full pocket weighs only half a pound at most.

    In addition, two secret pockets lie behind each visible one, for a total of thirty (30) pockets in all. The hidden pockets can be accessed only through a command word. A true seeing spell reveals the presence of the hidden pockets but not the command needed to open them.

    Even when a pocket is full, it never bulges, so a belt of hidden pouches stuffed with 150 pounds of items looks like an ordinary belt.

    Accessing any pocket (including the hidden ones) is a move action that does not provoke attacks of opportunity. To place any object in the belt, the wearer merely presses the object into the belt. Doing so while speaking the command word places the object in one of the hidden pockets (if one of them is empty). Naming a stored object and speaking a second command word draws the named object out of the belt and place it in the wearer’s hand.


    Jade requests ownership of the various items inside the belt, but offers up a few items in exchange

    She gives to Donovan the following items, as she claims she has little use for them anymore.
    Hardleather Case with Magical Pocketknife: Handle glows in absence of light; has 2 utility knives (1d2/1d3), flathead & cross screwdrivers, tweezers, toothpick, and features a blunted end which could be used as a makeshift hammer.
    2x Potion of Invisibility
    2x Potion Mage Armor
    "Gloves of Magical Aptitude" granting +3 UMD and ability to use skill untrained. "These are the ones I will part with....hopefully you can use them well."

    Last edited by ~Corvus~; 2018-12-12 at 01:28 PM.
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  13. - Top - End - #913
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Donovan had found a rare ability to relate to the distraught elemental, feeling sympathy for the sudden and unpleasant nature of her demise in contrast to his own. Moreover, in her he sees an unusual confluence of similarities: a lifeless but sentient creature attuned to water, freed from the day-to-day needs and limited lifespan of mortality. It is possible that in time, years or decades, she could find the beautiful peace that he had found held within the sea. But his attempts to convince her of this are fruitless, her wounds too fresh and agonizing.

    So he thanks her for her insight on the voice and these new 'allies' and wishes her the best of fortune in her endeavor. Finally he asks that, should her vengeance ring hollow or its satisfaction not last, she seek him out once more so he might show her the sea's boundless serenity as he knows it.

    --

    Once she has departed, Donovan dons the gloves which Jade leaves him and the belt, but stows away the rest. It all may fetch a fine price, but only the unadorned kamas are likely to be easy to sell so soon after having gone missing. Wealth is less important than discretion at the moment.

    He'd spoken little with the other two, but now understands that they are similarly united in purpose as part of some strange ploy to cull away the weakness of the Rokugani. Donovan could certainly follow the logic of loss for a greater gain, though he mislikes the method. He goes upstairs to where he saw them led, wishing to form a consensus on their next move.

  14. - Top - End - #914
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Yhrashnal

    The False Swordsman leaves the meeting deep in self-analysis: there is so much he needs to do and now, when he has just a few moments of downtime in between of fighting to the death, is the one of the few moments he'll get to practice.

    He wanders purposelessly for a while only to catch the scent of Salt and Sea...and undeath. The new Voice Called approaches. Yhrashnal intercepts the fellow while still working on his techniques in hopes that this creature might be able to contribute something useful as well.

    "This one greets you. Where are our quarters? We have much to discuss." The 'Samurai' does not consider that there might be other connotations to this phrasing and intonation; it doesn't especially care beyond wondering if this will be his first chance to spar against someone something in a safe environment.

    Indeed, that would make a good evening a great one.

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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Donovan

    In reply to the first question, Donovan simply indicates the direction from which he came before moving to follow the samurai. Befitting his undead nature, Donovan has something of a 'distant' quality about him. As though his focus is upon something far, far away.

    "Agreed..."

    "Jade has gone. She seemed too distraught by the circumstances of her demise. The need to avenge it..."

    Donovan feels no need to add that she'd expressed a distrust of the other voice-called. It was not relevant to what needs be done.

    "She told me something of our common goal before leaving... I would like to know our designs upon this city before acting alone."

  16. - Top - End - #916
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Yhrashnal

    "None." This answer, at least, can be given immediately. Yhrashnal follows this with silence up until they reach their lodgings and he confirms, as best he can, they are not being observed.

    Spoiler: OoC
    Show
    Listen Check: (1d20-5)[-1], Survival Check to search using his Scent ability (1d20+6)[15]


    Once he does so that 'Samurai' makes a transition from entirely silent to merely reticent. "If you judge this place to be lacking then take action as you see fit. Another is currently taking action here. His work need not be our own. Besides that...mortals Fast in the wake of tragedy. After the death of a commander. Upon losing brethren. Even mortals can survive weeks without food.

    The filth you are containing is unnecessary."
    To this Hound-Fiend Donovan is a colorful collection of horrid stenches somehow worse than typical mortals; a waterlogged undead is one thing but such a creature filled with rotting and fermenting mortal-fare is an entirely different abomination to someone who sees with his nose as much as he does with his eyes.

    "We are to prepare this land. We stymie the loss of clever minds and force weapons into strong hands. We purge the undesirable ones until legends of cruelty force the rest into action. Filter out the weak, leaving only people with the will to fight and the talent to win."

  17. - Top - End - #917
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    "Win...?"
    "... Against whom? And what does this 'voice' expect of us then? Must we be present for their victory? Our reckoning?"

    The goal-apparant of this 'voice' struck Donovan as hollow. Childish, even. Contrasting with the influence it seemed to hold. He could not discount the possibility that there might be something more to this plan.

  18. - Top - End - #918
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    There is little to smell on this wet evening, but rain and cold that dampens the smell of the humans inside this vast set of quarters. Your room is plain but efficient, and several luxurious-looking beds adorn the adjacent room. There is the lingering scent of Eta, the simple servants that do menial tasks for the nobility, that linger out-of-sight, but it's difficult to tell if anyone lurks nearby with the sounds of the rain and wind.

    Yrashnal, satisfied that at least if it's this tough to sense others, they might have a hard time listening to them. "They will win against something beyond mortals. Beyond Oni. Beyond monsters. Beyond us.

    Against a great enemy, they are a seal. One the Voice will have us strengthen before it crumbles under its own weight.
    " Yhrashnal seems entirely nonplussed about the scope of their task. "Beings of power submit to strange rules; a god acts through champions, a devil trades with bargains. One pulls us to cut strings another holds. And the strings the foe will one day grasp. And the tools to work the strings. And the method to grasp the tools."


    "Understood...My task must be attended to. Is there more to discuss?"
    There is no urgency or indignation in the dead man's voice. Just a flat, honest question.


    Yes. For what will come next, We should return to the North coast. Feed their fear. Ensure there are no enemies entrenched.

    Donovan speaks slowly and deliberately, careful to say what he means. ""This arrangement has been agreeable thus far...
    If it remains so, I will accompany you.
    I understand that you do not directly represent or speak for the Voice. I presume you have also found it agreeable?"


    The 'Swordsman' decorporates into a towering lupine mass of dark fur and muscle and then draws his new sword. "Not just agreeable. Profitable. Very profitable." Is his answer before he uses the blade, and his still rising power over the manipulation of his own flesh, to saw his left bicep open. What is revealed is not just flesh and muscle. No, his arm now contains crisscrossing grey wires that loop, and overlay, and intersect pylons of semi-solid tissue; all of that acts as a base and many reference points for an odd, thin sheet of slime. As the slime ripples his arm flexes and twists with explosive power. "Very profitable," he opines once more.


    The sudden change would be more surprising had Jade not already described it. Donovan appraises the augmented musculature impassively, as he might any other weapon, tool, or magical trinket. Again he speaks from a place of detachment, and thus his words drift like shifting waves as he voices them.
    "It does seem so...
    ... Another matter: I retained the fallen admiral's belongings. I'd thought his death necessary at the time...
    ... I have little use for them aside from their value in barter. Do you know where I may accomplish their exchange, without undesired attention?
    "

    Yhrashnal's flesh slowly weaves together and in moments his body looks unscathed. "Tun. Fellow Voice Called. He has accepted flesh and souls for arms and magic; perhaps he will take your items as well. Merely follow the soul-resonance to him." A moment later Yhrashnal amends his statement, "Take anything we cannot use to him. Badges of office, medals of honor, signet rings...this could make our work easier if retained."

    "Soul-resonance?"

    "Yes. Or whatever your kind call it. Sibling-contracts?"

    "I have not heard either term. Jade indicated that the Voice would likely contact me in more direct fashion eventually...
    Perhaps then it will become apparent?"


    "That which acts between us. How you identified we were fellow Voice Called. The pulse in your Rūḥ matching ours. Whispers between the essence of those who are bound."

    "I recall the sensation you describe...
    For the time being, I will see to my task. Unless there is yet more?
    "

    "Clean your innards. Rot is a powerful scent. Suspicious. Telling."

    "Twice-noted." At that, Donovan turns to leave. There is a slight sway in his walk, more reminiscent of a sailor still finding their land legs than the stiffness of undeath.


    With the source of the horrid stench gone Yhrashnal settles himself onto the floor to assess the changing capabilities of his body. A name rises from the depths of his mind; the seedling of the most ancient bloodline sprouting into tiny pieces of insight he must piece together with the changes his body now allow.

    Ancestor 'Kottos', the striker. This only adds to what he knows he is, what he knows and what he is.

    Yhrashnal. Young descdant of the Yhrashnal clan, descendant of Kottos, Devouring Spirit feasting upon the Mortal plane. One who will grasp Perfection and bring about Tranquility.
    Last edited by ~Corvus~; 2018-12-15 at 04:29 PM.
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  19. - Top - End - #919
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Yhrashnal

    In his true form The Beast can feel the full scope of his hunger for the first time in quite a while; as his body becomes greater, incorporating hints and tricks from his ancestors into the knowledge he has accrued on his own, the cravings start.

    Mortal flesh shredded and torn such that he can swallow chunks of a limb without stopping to chew. Marrow to rich with what his physical body needs that he cannot help but tease himself by merely nibbling at the bone and scraping away small bits of the inner treat bit by delicious bit. This form of his Hunger is the hardest to ignore, with the tempting scent of mortals so well entrenched upon this place. As he rises to the most powerful state an immature Barghest can achieve Yhrashnal finds his reserves of energy to be sorely lacking.

    His magic...well, his soul is progressing beyond what it once was, at any rate. While the scope of his inner powers has not expanded much, excluding the slow return of his ability to fly, he slowly draws more of that old potential into the open; his ability to properly consume slain mortals reemerges first and that's all he really misses from the time before the Old Blood awakened within him, but power to make foes less purely through the pressure exerted by his presence is likewise welcome. All of his power works off a fuel though: the Essence of his being. And his Essence is, in turn, fueled by souls undergoing judgement and torture within him. The powers are there to be use even without him indulging, but probing the scope of his abilities reinforces the idea that Hunger is fundamental to his being and that he should slate this Hunger upon mortals as soon as possible.

    As that is not convenient at the moment he instead focuses his attention back on his physical body; this form of the Hunger can at least be silenced for some time by whatever fare the mortals bring him and, as such, he has more to work with here. It doesn't take all that much to call up the power of The Striker and try to become one with it. Just a few moments of focus to call the power of his body.

    He recalls the form of the warrior outside of Kyuden Hida dying a humble death, and that of the Samurai who fought with great skill, and that of himself in his most powerful state; his body twists and adjusts to try to accommodate all of this, but he can only manage two out of three. A second set of arms erupt from his torso under the first and, within him, the infrastructure for additional arms is cobbled together from an already unnatural anatomy. Two more eyes bud above his original pair, but the complexity of making these eyes functional without magic working overdrive to facilitate their use stumps him for several minutes. Again and again he tries to make this idea work without going down the path his ancestor traversed and growing another head entirely; eventually he simply duplicates what already exists and leaves the problem for a later day.

    This form is strangely comfortable. Yhrashnal's recent changes in his musculature mesh oddly well with what shaping his body this way is meant to achieve; each arm accepts his commands with only slight delay and his ability to focus his vision benefits greatly from the added eyes. This is quickly made redundant by the natural awareness he comes to possess. Within a strangely large radius around his body he is vaguely aware of everything; he need only discipline his mind and pay attention to his surrounds to map the shapes and distances of everything within the borrowed room, though he must actively call upon this awareness to make any good use of it. For now, at least. "Hm."

    Those two extra eyes slowly merge into a single unblinking eye between his brows; with his added sensitivity to his surroundings he finds this configuration naturally befits this form.

  20. - Top - End - #920
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    Kyorlin

    Upon leaving the room with Tun he ponders what he meant by his companion's poison, was he referring to the recently deceased creature? He likely produced venom of some sort or was Tun referring to the beast? No, the beast didn't seem that clever to be using poisons perhaps the undead thing? I haven't seen him fight so that's possible, Jade is the only one left but she is a creature of acid and that rarely counts as a poison.

    It matters not as on their ride abroad the ship he has learned to craft poisons of his own so he make transmute his own brews to suit his needs.

    Finds an Eta Would you show me to my party's room and send for someone that can take me to an enchanter of sorts.

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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    One of the Eta, who currently has a tray of tea and is in route to a room, bobs her head, bows, and murmers, "a moment of your time." She continues to the room, slips inside, and after a moment she appears again and takes you upstairs, by means of a centralized staircase, to a room on the third floor that likely overlooks the bay.

    "We shall arrange a Shugenja to join you tomorrow; I am sorry to hear of the departure of the Earth and Water Shugenja earlier this evening.

    ... are you all up still? Would you like some tea sent to you?" After this, she takes her leave.
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    Kyorlin

    Excuse me, what do you mean the Earth and Water Shugenja departed? his thought are a descending as his emotions whirl.

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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    The Eta pauses, and then gives another bow. "Ah...The lady that arrived with your group? The others that left the ship said she went by the name of Jade? She left a little while ago; she seemed like she was in a hurry."
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    Kyorlin

    Shocked asks How long ago did she leave? Which way did she go?

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    The Eta gives a shudder, murmers an apology and bows again. "You and the other Sohei went to a private room...And the Shugnja and the...the fourth companion of yours went to a room, where we gave tea. When we came back to give food, she had ready left, and she looked like she was heading for the docks. If you go out there..." the Eta pauses, and then murmers, "If she is not at the docks, then chances are, she will have left to ascend the Path of Thunder. We keep a Shrine to Osano-Wo here, and many Shugenja take the chance to honor the Kami."
    [Knowledge: Osano-Wo is the Fortune of Fire and Thunder, the second son of the Kami Hida]
    "...The path is likely to be very treacherous in the terrible weather this evening. If you wish to find her, good luck!"

    The Eta bows her way back to a wall before she can be stopped, and then leaves through a sliding door,
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Donovan

    With the same blasé attitude with which one might buckle a shoe, Donovan empties his innards into a latrine. Though his gastric system is far from functional, the pungent mixture of seawater, rancid cabbage, and necrotic bacteria manages to be perfectly vile all the same.

    He mutters to a nearby Eta about feeling ill in the wake of great losses, and needing to go outside to clear his head. He passes within the vicinity of Kyorlin, but does not stop to speak unless his attention is called.

    The sea's breath still shrouds the land, and the drowned man's task for this night is simply to investigate the city's layout, its water sources, and whether he might find a solution to his peculiar logistical conundrum. Naturally he is also looking to broaden others' perspectives, should a safe opportunity to do so arise.

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    Kyorlin

    Heads towards the docks at a quicken pace, trying not to draw attention but look like he is late to a business meeting. Once he reaching the docks he looks around for her
    Spoiler: spot/search check
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    250ft darkvision(1d20+12)[19]

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    Kyuden Gotei ~ 2 A.M.

    Donovan steps out into the cold rain and feels the wet and thick droplets before he registers the lack of light. Kyorlin pushes past him and travels to the left of the entrance to their quarters. The buildings around Donovan look different in black-and-white, but there's no denying that they are made with style and grace. He can see the contrasts of shiny, opulent metals that gild the exteriors of the quarters here, and the rich veins of marble in different shades of grey.

    Just past the dignitary quarters, Donovan sees a number of ponds. Slender reeds grow on the banks of them, giving the area dark patches and blocky shapes to the pools where fish with colored mottling and beard-like cords swim. The ponds show a meticulous care, and the rocks that form the pathways between the ponds are all worked stone and marble. They give an amalgam of what-could-be, the pinnacle of human craftsmanship for natural settings, an irony in and of itself. The drowned man look up with movement.

    Kyorlin travels past the bath-houses towards the docks. He lets himself stop and appreciate the care that's gone into these houses. They are all marble, and the roofs are made from from a cut stone, too, that looks a little more soft than the stone below it; slate, perhaps, from how it's made to look like wavy and interlocking plates, or perhaps some mineral clay; it's tough to distinguish in the darkness. He passes a path that could lead him deeper into the city, but he decides to walk first to towards the docks and what seems to be the dining halls.

    The kitchens and the dining halls, a series of actually impressive buildings are empty and dark at this hour, except for the few embers of the large ovens in the back. They look as if they could fit an entire shelf of bread in them; the kitchen alone must have a capacity for over a hundred people. He descends the steps of the kitchen to the halls below them, and the smell of fish wafts to Donovan. He looks over the kitchen, and he spots rooms where many fish lie in ceramic containers of what must be "salt-cellars." The air, here, is even colder in these dark rooms, until he realizes that they are likely underground and subjected to the still waters of ocean and rock. Still, the kitchen shows the touch of love and care, of dedication and craft.

    He follows Kyorlin's detailed search of the docks:

    The enormous pier is currently lit by the light from the Lighthouse. It houses roughly fifty boats, all of which have been moored for the evening, and no people, not even the Eta, are nearby for questioning. Likely, the ships came in late and the people on them finished their tasks quickly to avoid the storm. The ship you'd been on is one of the larger warships, but none are occupied, and all are fit to rest and rock in the turbulent wind, falling water, and calmer bay. The ships rise and fall a little in the waves, and Donovan watches as Kyorlin does a desperate search of the area.

    Across the bay, Donovan and Kyorlin can see the still-shining light of the great lighthouse, and one beam of light grazes the Eastern edge of the Shrine to Osano-Wo, the Fortune of Fire and Thunder. As if the spirits themselves are watching, a flash of lightning pulses as the seeking tendrils from the sky connect with the metal upon the shrine; It is a marvelous statue of a serpent, made of precious metals, and housed in a four-sided structure, whose eight columns make up four Torii, and a spacious a wide roof has a high-reaching wire, with a cord that flexes down to the statue itself. In the moment of the lightning's strike, the entire statue lights up and it gives a pulse that, even in the obscuring rain, leaves spots on the eyes for several seconds.

    Those few moments of light illuminated a path that extended from the shrine, beyond the walls of this enclosed region of Kyuden Gotei, a path already mentioned by other servants as The Path of Thunder. It's easy to see why: One braves the journey to the shrine, and the shrine nearby serve as a securing-point for lightning; thunder could easily be an accompanying partner in a storm such as this. Other than the Thunder and lighting, the ships and the water, there is little to be seen on the docks, and no sign of Jade.

    Donovan is able to make his way back to the Dignitary Quarters and down a cobbled ramp. In front of him lies an impressive barracks, a hundred-foot-long building, the same length of the Dignitary quarters, but with a fortress-like appearance and three stories tall. Donovan sees a few spots near the barracks' entrance that are just a tad bit cleaner than others, likely where guards would stand...except in such a long and wet storm. For now, it is closed and it seems unlikely he would get inside without being noticed.

    To his left, he sees the jagged rocks and swampy banks of the bay, and the walls of the inner-area that obscure his view of the rest (except for the vague shapes of Tenshukaku, the castle, and the lighthouse). It he looks right, he can see more broken ground that leads into the unforbidding wilderness and the furious spray of water and the bay. Should he walk further, he will see only the stone and mortar that form the wind-wall for the pier, and upon closer inspection, a more grisly reality to this back-alley area of the city.

    Donovan sees a number of chains and manacles upon the wall behind the pier. A residue of rust and blood, not even washed away by the heavy rain, lies here, as a grisly reminder that even the often spilt blood of humans can make marks that nature itself must take great time to wash away.

    There are other walls, too, that obscure the rest of the city, but without a need or strong desire to climb or scale walls, Donovan remains ignorant of the rest of the capitol city.
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  29. - Top - End - #929
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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    Kyorlin

    Failing to locate Jade on the docks he searches for this path of thunder.

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    Default Re: Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

    From what Kyorlin can see, with the help of the fixed-light ray of the Lighthouse, the Path of Thunder leads around the other side of the large bay, and the path disappears beyond the Inner Walls. From his current spot, the way with the least amount of "people" would involve a treacherous journey among jagged rocks and stormy water, to the peninsula upon which the Shrine and Lighthouse are perched.

    Kyorlin also can see a few small rowing-craft, among the large ships, that lie overturned and lashed down--by ropes of course--on the ships. Though it could prove difficult to achieve with the gusting wind, he is likely strong enough to manage the craft, and if they don't break apart when brought into the water, he might be able to row across. Though it would be a treacherous journey, the great Mantle would certainly provide him with capable enough skills to make it there intact.
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