Warrior Poet
Explorer
... and another quick bump just so this one doesn't slip off the bottom of the screen ...
Warrior Poet
Warrior Poet
ForceUser's Vietnamese Adventures Story Hour! (finis)
Warrior Poet
Explorer
And now a brief pause for station identification ...
We now return this excellent story hour to its regularly scheduled front page location.
Warrior Poet
We now return this excellent story hour to its regularly scheduled front page location.
Warrior Poet
Warrior Poet
Explorer
Pardon ... pardon ... pardon me ... excuse me ...
... just need to ... pardon, ma'am ... just gonna push this one back ... up to the ... terribly sorry, sir ... if I could just squeeze by with ... just up there ... yes ... no, why don't you go ahead, sir ... right, then I'll just ...
Ah, back up to page one. <dusts off hands> Right.
Warrior Poet
... just need to ... pardon, ma'am ... just gonna push this one back ... up to the ... terribly sorry, sir ... if I could just squeeze by with ... just up there ... yes ... no, why don't you go ahead, sir ... right, then I'll just ...
Ah, back up to page one. <dusts off hands> Right.
Warrior Poet
ForceUser
Explorer
Session Four, Part Three
HATE-FEAR-RAGE-DEATH.
Hunt. Kill. Rip. Eat. Copulate. Sleep.
Sleep. Slumber.
Awaken. Mother. Obey.
Follow. Climb. Run. Jump. Attack.
Scent of manflesh. Horseflesh. Hunger. Hatred.
Flash. Green. Blinding.
Fear.
FLEEFleefleefleefleefleefleefleefleeHIDEflee.
Mother. Obey.
Run. Sleep. Run. Sleep.
Darkness. Warmth. Comfort.
Sleep.
Wait.
Hunger.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tam examined the statue. The party stood in a dank corridor of uncovered stone somewhere within the desecrated temple of Hanuman. Recessed in the walls of the corridor at five-pace intervals were worked guardians of stone, silent warriors depicted with weapons and armor wholly unfamiliar to those present.
“We cannot place the culture, but we believe it is southern. South of Dai Viet.” The wu jen shook his head and rubbed the small of his back.
“How far south?” asked Woo. The monk glanced down the tunnel ahead to the extent of the torchlight; through a trick of the shadows (or perhaps something more sinister) the guardians stared back at him solemnly. He shivered.
“Hard to know. Not Champa. More southern than that. There are lands beyond filled with jungles and beasts, with wild people who live in trees and worship strange spirits. Perhaps from there.” Tam squatted, then stood and resumed his place behind the fighters.
“So what you’re saying is you don’t know,” grumbled Lei. The old wizard shrugged, and the mercenary frowned before pressing on down the corridor, torch in his buckler hand, scimitar in the other. The walls pressed in around him, and he sweated nervously in the cool underground air. Behind him, the others followed.
They passed many more stone guardians, but after a while the tunnel angled diagonally and no more statues flanked their passage. The diagonal portion of the corridor ended shortly in a pair of heavy wooden doors, well fastened into the stone wall. Mai crept up and put an ear to the wood, then stepped back and smoothed the front of her ao dai.
She swallowed, “I heard monkeys. It’s not locked.” Lei’s knuckles went white around the hilt of his weapon, and he nodded and stepped up to the doors. Vinh stepped beside him, and each man gripped one of the two iron pull-rings. Woo drew his jiann, Mai her duan jian, and Hien and Tam flexed their fingers and prepared to cast spells. With a nod at each other, the two fighters heaved on the doors, but instead of a satisfying smooth glide, the old rusted hinges protested. The wood swollen in its frame shrieked, and grating over stone the doors opened no more than a foot, while the men strained and yanked and cursed while taking care not to drop their weapons.
Inside, darkness swallowed the torchlight, casting frantic shadows through the sliver in the doors. Small forms scrabbled in surprise, but then the howling began, echoing eerily off the bare walls within. Lei gave up on his door and added his strength to Vinh’s, and between the two of them they opened the right side enough to allow them to pass. Mai darted up and tossed a torch into the chamber ahead, and sparks danced off stone as it bounced and rolled within.
Illuminated, the room beyond appeared to be dressed for martial training, with racks of bamboo weapons along the walls, ropes attached to the ceiling, straw dummies, and woven sparring mats over the undressed stone. On the far wall a door stood recessed at the end of a short corridor. That door lay open with blackness beyond, and wriggling through from that space came a large silver douc with pronounced incisors and a swollen barrel chest to join the smaller monkeys already there. The sparring room smelled of dust and animal waste, and in fact the floor was littered with it.
The frenzied animals attacked as the group streamed in, but the outcome was never in doubt. Afterward, Mai and Hien poked about the room, Tam sat down to have a drink of water, Vinh stood guard at the doors they’d entered through, and Lei and Woo explored the next chamber over.
“It’s a furnace room,” called the monk, “Square, there’s a door on each wall.” The furnace, built like a gigantic kiln, took up most of the space beyond, allowing no more than a corridor two paces wide on all sides of it. In the center of each wall sat a recessed wooden door, some of which were ajar. The noises of the evil primates rebounded from beyond two of them, though the distance was hard to tell.
Lei placed a hand upon the furnace’s bricks. “Cold.”
Woo nodded, “Hasn’t been used in some time.” He wrinkled his nose at the smell of old soot. The front of the furnace had an iron door, now latched. Using his staff, he unlatched it, then pushed open the rusted metal and peered inside. He coughed as a fine layer of old ash swirled from the opening of the door, but sat upon the small ledge and thrust the torch into the silent device.
“Appears to be a chimney or something here. Could lead out.” He pondered the merits of crawling up the tube; the fit would be uncomfortable but not impossible. Finally deciding against it, he shimmied down and dusted off his robe.
“There are carvings on these doors,” declared Lei, and Woo stepped over and held up his torch to get a better look. Lei stood in front of the only secured door in the furnace room. Fully intact, it depicted a host of spirits cavorting underneath a large spirit of the sky, who with outstretched arm directed the others onward. His breath blew clouds along.
“Spirits of the wind,” said Tam, who had joined the two younger men. “They are agents of August Heaven, bringing fair currents to all who rely upon them for their livelihood. This is the Wind of the North.” He indicated the large spirit.
“But that would mean the artisan who carved these doors was Viet, or held Viet beliefs,” said Woo.
“Yes,” replied the wu jen. As they puzzled over that, Mai entered the furnace room and began listening at the open doors. “Shhh!” she whispered, “They are very close!”
“Right,” said Lei, and he took up his sword and strode to her position, throwing the door aside and rushing within. Instantly the sounds of the idling creatures changed to screeching alarm and hatred, mingling with the sound of ringing steel hacking through flesh and bone.
Woo rushed to aid the mercenary, diving past Mai, torch in hand. As the others exploded into motion, Tam stood in the back, content to let the fighters do the fighting. To his right, the door depicting the Wind of the West stood half-open. As he listened to the sounds of combat and studied the portal, pondering what he had learned, he started in surprise as something beyond the door stared back at him with red eyes filled with malice and ill intent.
Before he could speak, it leapt at him.
HATE-FEAR-RAGE-DEATH.
Hunt. Kill. Rip. Eat. Copulate. Sleep.
Sleep. Slumber.
Awaken. Mother. Obey.
Follow. Climb. Run. Jump. Attack.
Scent of manflesh. Horseflesh. Hunger. Hatred.
Flash. Green. Blinding.
Fear.
FLEEFleefleefleefleefleefleefleefleeHIDEflee.
Mother. Obey.
Run. Sleep. Run. Sleep.
Darkness. Warmth. Comfort.
Sleep.
Wait.
Hunger.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tam examined the statue. The party stood in a dank corridor of uncovered stone somewhere within the desecrated temple of Hanuman. Recessed in the walls of the corridor at five-pace intervals were worked guardians of stone, silent warriors depicted with weapons and armor wholly unfamiliar to those present.
“We cannot place the culture, but we believe it is southern. South of Dai Viet.” The wu jen shook his head and rubbed the small of his back.
“How far south?” asked Woo. The monk glanced down the tunnel ahead to the extent of the torchlight; through a trick of the shadows (or perhaps something more sinister) the guardians stared back at him solemnly. He shivered.
“Hard to know. Not Champa. More southern than that. There are lands beyond filled with jungles and beasts, with wild people who live in trees and worship strange spirits. Perhaps from there.” Tam squatted, then stood and resumed his place behind the fighters.
“So what you’re saying is you don’t know,” grumbled Lei. The old wizard shrugged, and the mercenary frowned before pressing on down the corridor, torch in his buckler hand, scimitar in the other. The walls pressed in around him, and he sweated nervously in the cool underground air. Behind him, the others followed.
They passed many more stone guardians, but after a while the tunnel angled diagonally and no more statues flanked their passage. The diagonal portion of the corridor ended shortly in a pair of heavy wooden doors, well fastened into the stone wall. Mai crept up and put an ear to the wood, then stepped back and smoothed the front of her ao dai.
She swallowed, “I heard monkeys. It’s not locked.” Lei’s knuckles went white around the hilt of his weapon, and he nodded and stepped up to the doors. Vinh stepped beside him, and each man gripped one of the two iron pull-rings. Woo drew his jiann, Mai her duan jian, and Hien and Tam flexed their fingers and prepared to cast spells. With a nod at each other, the two fighters heaved on the doors, but instead of a satisfying smooth glide, the old rusted hinges protested. The wood swollen in its frame shrieked, and grating over stone the doors opened no more than a foot, while the men strained and yanked and cursed while taking care not to drop their weapons.
Inside, darkness swallowed the torchlight, casting frantic shadows through the sliver in the doors. Small forms scrabbled in surprise, but then the howling began, echoing eerily off the bare walls within. Lei gave up on his door and added his strength to Vinh’s, and between the two of them they opened the right side enough to allow them to pass. Mai darted up and tossed a torch into the chamber ahead, and sparks danced off stone as it bounced and rolled within.
Illuminated, the room beyond appeared to be dressed for martial training, with racks of bamboo weapons along the walls, ropes attached to the ceiling, straw dummies, and woven sparring mats over the undressed stone. On the far wall a door stood recessed at the end of a short corridor. That door lay open with blackness beyond, and wriggling through from that space came a large silver douc with pronounced incisors and a swollen barrel chest to join the smaller monkeys already there. The sparring room smelled of dust and animal waste, and in fact the floor was littered with it.
The frenzied animals attacked as the group streamed in, but the outcome was never in doubt. Afterward, Mai and Hien poked about the room, Tam sat down to have a drink of water, Vinh stood guard at the doors they’d entered through, and Lei and Woo explored the next chamber over.
“It’s a furnace room,” called the monk, “Square, there’s a door on each wall.” The furnace, built like a gigantic kiln, took up most of the space beyond, allowing no more than a corridor two paces wide on all sides of it. In the center of each wall sat a recessed wooden door, some of which were ajar. The noises of the evil primates rebounded from beyond two of them, though the distance was hard to tell.
Lei placed a hand upon the furnace’s bricks. “Cold.”
Woo nodded, “Hasn’t been used in some time.” He wrinkled his nose at the smell of old soot. The front of the furnace had an iron door, now latched. Using his staff, he unlatched it, then pushed open the rusted metal and peered inside. He coughed as a fine layer of old ash swirled from the opening of the door, but sat upon the small ledge and thrust the torch into the silent device.
“Appears to be a chimney or something here. Could lead out.” He pondered the merits of crawling up the tube; the fit would be uncomfortable but not impossible. Finally deciding against it, he shimmied down and dusted off his robe.
“There are carvings on these doors,” declared Lei, and Woo stepped over and held up his torch to get a better look. Lei stood in front of the only secured door in the furnace room. Fully intact, it depicted a host of spirits cavorting underneath a large spirit of the sky, who with outstretched arm directed the others onward. His breath blew clouds along.
“Spirits of the wind,” said Tam, who had joined the two younger men. “They are agents of August Heaven, bringing fair currents to all who rely upon them for their livelihood. This is the Wind of the North.” He indicated the large spirit.
“But that would mean the artisan who carved these doors was Viet, or held Viet beliefs,” said Woo.
“Yes,” replied the wu jen. As they puzzled over that, Mai entered the furnace room and began listening at the open doors. “Shhh!” she whispered, “They are very close!”
“Right,” said Lei, and he took up his sword and strode to her position, throwing the door aside and rushing within. Instantly the sounds of the idling creatures changed to screeching alarm and hatred, mingling with the sound of ringing steel hacking through flesh and bone.
Woo rushed to aid the mercenary, diving past Mai, torch in hand. As the others exploded into motion, Tam stood in the back, content to let the fighters do the fighting. To his right, the door depicting the Wind of the West stood half-open. As he listened to the sounds of combat and studied the portal, pondering what he had learned, he started in surprise as something beyond the door stared back at him with red eyes filled with malice and ill intent.
Before he could speak, it leapt at him.
Warrior Poet
Explorer
New updates form Sepulchrave and ForceUser within a day! Yes!
The monster/animal mental monologue at the beginning is intriguing. I once wrote a short story from the perspective of a dog (not anthropomorphized, but still "thinking" using English) that read something like that. An excellent introduction, off pace with what has come before. Nice.
And cheers for the cliffhanger! This story is so solid! Thanks for posting!
Warrior Poet
The monster/animal mental monologue at the beginning is intriguing. I once wrote a short story from the perspective of a dog (not anthropomorphized, but still "thinking" using English) that read something like that. An excellent introduction, off pace with what has come before. Nice.
This was a nice way to allude to a fight and its outcome -- sometimes it's a nice change to not describe every combat in a round-by-round way. It's also a good way of hinting at some of the advancing abilities of the players.
And cheers for the cliffhanger! This story is so solid! Thanks for posting!
Warrior Poet
ForceUser
Explorer
Session Four, Part Four
TAM FELL backward against the furnace, bruising his shoulder as he fended off the engorged langur with his staff. The creature hissed and grasped at him as his shoved it roughly to the floor. Behind it, more red eyes glittered in the shadows. Gasping for breath, the wizard backpedaled toward the far side of the room, careful to keep his guard up. He yelled, “More back here!”
Vinh, his polearm hindered somewhat by the tight corridor, had not followed the other fighters into the room beyond the south door. In the jumbled light through the short hall he saw blood and fur flying, and heard men stomping through shallow water. When Tam yelled he turned and spied the monkeys coming from the western portal, so dashed to meet them. Remembering Tuyen’s unconventional fighting style, he improvised in the cramped space, thrusting his weapon down and before him, sweeping side to side as he switched his grip. Clumsily, he wounded one beast and pinned another to the stones, pressing deep until the abdomen crunched and blood welled up. Vinh gritted his teeth and drove the other monkeys back beyond the door.
“I need light in here!” bellowed the no-sheng. Hien responded, squeezing past Mai and tossing Vinh a torch. He threw it through the door before charging in. Behind him, Tam crept back toward the fray. Hien pressed against the furnace and tried to monitor both fights.
Vinh dove into what was once an eating hall. Monkeys scrambled over rows of wooden benches and tables silhouetted in the ruddy light. Some scattered; others leapt at him, and he hew them down as he moved in to allow anyone behind him room to follow. Woo, the lower half of his robe darkened with water, skidded comically into the chamber beside him. His torch revealed the rest of the hall, including the pantry in the back. Over there the creatures gnashed and spat at the adventurers, preparing to attack. Nodding at Woo, Vinh darted toward the pantry-room, then squatted and shouldered over a table bench, barricading the animals inside. As he did so they rushed and began to scale the table, which was not much of a deterrent to tree-dwellers. Vinh scrambled back, ready to meet their charge, but suddenly a sickly green skull, aflame with arcane energy, burst into being between them. Vinh recoiled, momentarily fearful, and the monkeys cried out in terror and fled to the farthest corner of the pantry. Behind the warriors, Tam stood in the doorway sweating, fist out-thrust, a look of determination in his eyes. Vinh and Woo stepped away from the horrid illusion, and Vinh noticed a distinct lack of combat from the other fight.
“All dead?” he asked his friend, leaning on his kama-do.
“All dead,” Woo confirmed. He gestured at the monkeys cowering behind the ghost light. “Kill these?”
“Why?” said Tam, “Let us go. They will not follow.” The warriors nodded, and soon a bench blocked the Door of the Western Wind. They joined the rest of the party in the room beyond the Door of the Southern Wind, which turned out to be a long-disused meditation chamber, complete with contemplation pool, which explained how Woo and Lei had gotten soaked during their fight. Two other doors stood in this area, one of which was connected to the room by a short flight of stairs. It stood ajar, and Mai confirmed that behind it was a ten-pace hall, which ended in an unlocked portal. On the western wall of the contemplation chamber stood yet another wooden door, behind which was a very long corridor.
After discussing it, they agreed to brave the longer tunnel because it appeared to go deeper into the temple. As they explored it, they discovered small sleeping cells with moldy floor mats to their right as they went. Many were covered in monkey dung, both old and fresh.
“This was where the monks slept,” affirmed Woo.
“No,” exclaimed Vinh, “not monks. No-sheng. Look.” He entered one of the rooms and bent to recover something. When he stood, the torchlight revealed a rusted greave.
“Well that makes sense,” said Hien, “We’re near the entrance, right? You’d want the soldiers to bunk close to where they guard.”
“Be careful!” cautioned Mai. She squatted ahead of the others, scrutinizing the flagstones. “I’m still looking for traps.”
“I don’t think they’d trap their sleeping quarters, Thi Mai,” said Woo. “Would make it a bit difficult if they had to get up to pee in the middle of the night, don’t you think?”
Defensively, she replied, “You never know. Doesn’t hurt to be careful.” The monk shrugged and stepped aside. Feeling foolish, Mai scanned once again and fell back behind Lei. Vinh nodded at her encouragingly, “No, doesn’t hurt.”
After fifty feet, the hallway turned right. At the elbow of the corridor stood a flimsy wood door, and shining his torch down the turn Lei saw a similar door about twenty feet away. “Officers quarters,” he declared, and upon inspection this proved to be true. The first two rooms had several sleeping mats in disarray, but in the third and largest room they found remnants of a single elaborate bed. Poking around, Mai discovered a time-ravaged but impressive tunic of red silk embroidered with a magnificent war elephant. The style was unfamiliar, Tam declared, but matched the statues they’d seen earlier. Whoever these Hindus had been, they had not been from Dai Viet.
Stepping out of the commander’s chamber, they discovered that the hall turned right yet again, ending in another wood portal. On its left, a sturdy iron-banded door stood slightly open. Upon inspection, Mai declared that the flimsy door led back to the eating hall and the sturdy one to what appeared to be an armory. Avoiding the dining hall, the adventurers crept into the other room and discovered four rows of racks, some of which still held rusty spears, polearms, and staves. All of the racks were spaced along the right wall, leaving a wide walkway to the left. They spread out as they moved in, and at the far edge of the torchlight Lei discovered a set of elaborate double doors at the end of the left walkway. The doors stood ten feet tall, ironbound and thick, with detailed engravings of a now familiar Monkey Warrior-god leading his host against some forgotten enemy. Lei admired the god’s courage and poise.
Among the racks, Woo discovered a shortspear not rusted away to dust and splinters. Hefting it, he noted its remarkable balance and masterwork artisanship. Glancing at Lei, who was examining the doors, he snorted in derision and tossed the spear back on the rack. As he turned to go, Mai shook her head at him.
“What?” said the monk. The thief, with an eye for wealth, shot him a scornful glance as she retrieved the spear. "This is quite nice.” She spoke low, arching an eyebrow. “You must have overlooked it.”
“Must have,” shrugged Woo. He walked to a different isle and ignored her. Mai presented the weapon to Lei, who was quite pleased. He dropped his old spear on the rack without another thought.
Left of the double doors on the adjacent wall stood yet another door, this one of etched stone banded in metal. On the lintel above a mason had engraved words in a language no one present knew, and none could guess what lay beyond the portal. Conferring, the group set that mystery aside for the moment and concentrated on what waited behind the more elegant doors, which were not locked. Hien, who had remained silent throughout the exploration of the armory, expressed a deep uneasiness with what lay beyond. When Lei pushed open the doors, they all felt it. A dark foreboding, a sense of inevitability, a soul-wearying languor washed over them then, and after readying sword and spell, they swept aside the doubt and fear tugging at them, and stepped forward once again into the unknown.
TAM FELL backward against the furnace, bruising his shoulder as he fended off the engorged langur with his staff. The creature hissed and grasped at him as his shoved it roughly to the floor. Behind it, more red eyes glittered in the shadows. Gasping for breath, the wizard backpedaled toward the far side of the room, careful to keep his guard up. He yelled, “More back here!”
Vinh, his polearm hindered somewhat by the tight corridor, had not followed the other fighters into the room beyond the south door. In the jumbled light through the short hall he saw blood and fur flying, and heard men stomping through shallow water. When Tam yelled he turned and spied the monkeys coming from the western portal, so dashed to meet them. Remembering Tuyen’s unconventional fighting style, he improvised in the cramped space, thrusting his weapon down and before him, sweeping side to side as he switched his grip. Clumsily, he wounded one beast and pinned another to the stones, pressing deep until the abdomen crunched and blood welled up. Vinh gritted his teeth and drove the other monkeys back beyond the door.
“I need light in here!” bellowed the no-sheng. Hien responded, squeezing past Mai and tossing Vinh a torch. He threw it through the door before charging in. Behind him, Tam crept back toward the fray. Hien pressed against the furnace and tried to monitor both fights.
Vinh dove into what was once an eating hall. Monkeys scrambled over rows of wooden benches and tables silhouetted in the ruddy light. Some scattered; others leapt at him, and he hew them down as he moved in to allow anyone behind him room to follow. Woo, the lower half of his robe darkened with water, skidded comically into the chamber beside him. His torch revealed the rest of the hall, including the pantry in the back. Over there the creatures gnashed and spat at the adventurers, preparing to attack. Nodding at Woo, Vinh darted toward the pantry-room, then squatted and shouldered over a table bench, barricading the animals inside. As he did so they rushed and began to scale the table, which was not much of a deterrent to tree-dwellers. Vinh scrambled back, ready to meet their charge, but suddenly a sickly green skull, aflame with arcane energy, burst into being between them. Vinh recoiled, momentarily fearful, and the monkeys cried out in terror and fled to the farthest corner of the pantry. Behind the warriors, Tam stood in the doorway sweating, fist out-thrust, a look of determination in his eyes. Vinh and Woo stepped away from the horrid illusion, and Vinh noticed a distinct lack of combat from the other fight.
“All dead?” he asked his friend, leaning on his kama-do.
“All dead,” Woo confirmed. He gestured at the monkeys cowering behind the ghost light. “Kill these?”
“Why?” said Tam, “Let us go. They will not follow.” The warriors nodded, and soon a bench blocked the Door of the Western Wind. They joined the rest of the party in the room beyond the Door of the Southern Wind, which turned out to be a long-disused meditation chamber, complete with contemplation pool, which explained how Woo and Lei had gotten soaked during their fight. Two other doors stood in this area, one of which was connected to the room by a short flight of stairs. It stood ajar, and Mai confirmed that behind it was a ten-pace hall, which ended in an unlocked portal. On the western wall of the contemplation chamber stood yet another wooden door, behind which was a very long corridor.
After discussing it, they agreed to brave the longer tunnel because it appeared to go deeper into the temple. As they explored it, they discovered small sleeping cells with moldy floor mats to their right as they went. Many were covered in monkey dung, both old and fresh.
“This was where the monks slept,” affirmed Woo.
“No,” exclaimed Vinh, “not monks. No-sheng. Look.” He entered one of the rooms and bent to recover something. When he stood, the torchlight revealed a rusted greave.
“Well that makes sense,” said Hien, “We’re near the entrance, right? You’d want the soldiers to bunk close to where they guard.”
“Be careful!” cautioned Mai. She squatted ahead of the others, scrutinizing the flagstones. “I’m still looking for traps.”
“I don’t think they’d trap their sleeping quarters, Thi Mai,” said Woo. “Would make it a bit difficult if they had to get up to pee in the middle of the night, don’t you think?”
Defensively, she replied, “You never know. Doesn’t hurt to be careful.” The monk shrugged and stepped aside. Feeling foolish, Mai scanned once again and fell back behind Lei. Vinh nodded at her encouragingly, “No, doesn’t hurt.”
After fifty feet, the hallway turned right. At the elbow of the corridor stood a flimsy wood door, and shining his torch down the turn Lei saw a similar door about twenty feet away. “Officers quarters,” he declared, and upon inspection this proved to be true. The first two rooms had several sleeping mats in disarray, but in the third and largest room they found remnants of a single elaborate bed. Poking around, Mai discovered a time-ravaged but impressive tunic of red silk embroidered with a magnificent war elephant. The style was unfamiliar, Tam declared, but matched the statues they’d seen earlier. Whoever these Hindus had been, they had not been from Dai Viet.
Stepping out of the commander’s chamber, they discovered that the hall turned right yet again, ending in another wood portal. On its left, a sturdy iron-banded door stood slightly open. Upon inspection, Mai declared that the flimsy door led back to the eating hall and the sturdy one to what appeared to be an armory. Avoiding the dining hall, the adventurers crept into the other room and discovered four rows of racks, some of which still held rusty spears, polearms, and staves. All of the racks were spaced along the right wall, leaving a wide walkway to the left. They spread out as they moved in, and at the far edge of the torchlight Lei discovered a set of elaborate double doors at the end of the left walkway. The doors stood ten feet tall, ironbound and thick, with detailed engravings of a now familiar Monkey Warrior-god leading his host against some forgotten enemy. Lei admired the god’s courage and poise.
Among the racks, Woo discovered a shortspear not rusted away to dust and splinters. Hefting it, he noted its remarkable balance and masterwork artisanship. Glancing at Lei, who was examining the doors, he snorted in derision and tossed the spear back on the rack. As he turned to go, Mai shook her head at him.
“What?” said the monk. The thief, with an eye for wealth, shot him a scornful glance as she retrieved the spear. "This is quite nice.” She spoke low, arching an eyebrow. “You must have overlooked it.”
“Must have,” shrugged Woo. He walked to a different isle and ignored her. Mai presented the weapon to Lei, who was quite pleased. He dropped his old spear on the rack without another thought.
Left of the double doors on the adjacent wall stood yet another door, this one of etched stone banded in metal. On the lintel above a mason had engraved words in a language no one present knew, and none could guess what lay beyond the portal. Conferring, the group set that mystery aside for the moment and concentrated on what waited behind the more elegant doors, which were not locked. Hien, who had remained silent throughout the exploration of the armory, expressed a deep uneasiness with what lay beyond. When Lei pushed open the doors, they all felt it. A dark foreboding, a sense of inevitability, a soul-wearying languor washed over them then, and after readying sword and spell, they swept aside the doubt and fear tugging at them, and stepped forward once again into the unknown.
Last edited:
Similar Threads
