The Romance of the River Kingdoms
- Thread starter Dr Simon
- Start date
"Some spirits had possession of it," Annika quietly answers. "They wouldn't listen to reason, and we had to defend ourselves. We managed to defeat them though. Oh, and also, there were wolves that we promised to speak on the behalf of in exchange for letting us explore the old temple grounds. Oh, and the temple was flooded with corrupt water that tried to kill us."
She shrugs.
"Otherwise, not so much trouble, I suppose."
She shrugs.
"Otherwise, not so much trouble, I suppose."
Blackrat
He Who Lurks Beyond The Veil
Three Flowers takes a breath after the fight and listens to Annika's explanation. An amused smile creeps on his face. Then he suddenly realizes that the girl had again turned into a majestic bird and entered the fight. Very unusual for what he knew of spellcasters and he was quite impressed.
Dr Simon
Explorer
In the temple refrectory, a novice (not much younger than the Vashti) brings you tea, bowls of rice and a selcetion of pickles, sweet and savoury.
The Vashti smiles at Annika's brief summation.
"Well I'm glad you were unhurt by these spirits and wolves and living water." she says. "You're right about your assessment of Yago and his associates, I'm afraid. The man you killed was called Mozin - I know of him and Yago. Petty troublemakers for the most sort, sadly all too common in this town. There is little for many people to do except turn to crime, or cross over into Ashoyin and join in the fighting. The League made an attempt to revive the economy of this town by re-opening some old mines upriver, but this was some months ago now and nothing seems to have come of it." She's getting a bit flushed and excitable. "So tell me more about speaking for these wolves. Speak with whom? Oh, but wait, the statue. That's why you went in the first place. May I see it?"
The Vashti smiles at Annika's brief summation.
"Well I'm glad you were unhurt by these spirits and wolves and living water." she says. "You're right about your assessment of Yago and his associates, I'm afraid. The man you killed was called Mozin - I know of him and Yago. Petty troublemakers for the most sort, sadly all too common in this town. There is little for many people to do except turn to crime, or cross over into Ashoyin and join in the fighting. The League made an attempt to revive the economy of this town by re-opening some old mines upriver, but this was some months ago now and nothing seems to have come of it." She's getting a bit flushed and excitable. "So tell me more about speaking for these wolves. Speak with whom? Oh, but wait, the statue. That's why you went in the first place. May I see it?"
The Rolling Man
First Post
Jar'Thol, Salsham'ai shaman
Jar'Thol eats a bit of rice but then starts eating fruits his kind are so fond of (OOC: at least, I assume). While peeling a banana, he speaks but he seems to be mostly talking to himself. "A mine reopening upriver ? So that must have been the wolfs' lair before coming to the temple ... or at least, they lived near it."
Jar'Thol eats a bit of rice but then starts eating fruits his kind are so fond of (OOC: at least, I assume). While peeling a banana, he speaks but he seems to be mostly talking to himself. "A mine reopening upriver ? So that must have been the wolfs' lair before coming to the temple ... or at least, they lived near it."
Dr Simon
Explorer
The Vashti stares at the statue, checking it all over.
"Yes, that's just how she described it to me," she mutters, almost to herself. "Tomorrow morning I'll contact Magister Ten and we can see what remuneration my predecessor left for you. Hmm." She looks lost in thought for a moment. "I wonder.... Wait here, I won't be long."
With that she leaves the refrectory. A few minutes later she returns, holding an apple-sized stone sphere.
"The Old Vashti left this for me, with a message that said I would know the right hands to place it in," she says, holding out the sphere. "And now I see this statue, I think...." She places the sphere into the upraised hands of the Grand Mutta. It fits perfectly - now the Mutta is holding the sphere aloft.
The sphere begins to glow with the colour of soft moonlight. The white stratum in the stone, carved to form a belt on the statue, also glows. There is a faint "click" as the top half of the statue lifts slightly, the join forming where the belt was.
Casting a glance around the group, one eyebrow raised quizzically, the Young Vashti lifts the top off the statue. Inside is a hollow containing a rolled scroll.
"Looks like old Vasu is still playing games," she says, unrolling the scroll.
The scroll:
It contains a sketch map of the River Anhoi and the River Leng, with Cormondal at the join. Features marked on the Leng include somewhere called Tigerskin Gorge on the southern shore, and further upstream a horseshoe-shaped island. This is marked with the words "You might find something of interest here. VL."
Also written on the scroll are the words "River is the key" and a short piece of musical notation.
[SBLOCK="High Imperial"]
The phrase "River is the key" is written strangely. Low Imperial uses a phonemic syllabary (as in English), and most of the writing on this scroll is in Low Imperial. High Imperial, however, uses a pictographic writing system (as in Chinese). The two are sometimes combined when High Imperial is used for proper names or formality but are otherwise written seperately.
Here, the word "River" is represented by the High Imperial symbol for river but "is the key" is written in Low Imperial script, which would normally suggest the use of a proper name.
[/SBLOCK]
"Yes, that's just how she described it to me," she mutters, almost to herself. "Tomorrow morning I'll contact Magister Ten and we can see what remuneration my predecessor left for you. Hmm." She looks lost in thought for a moment. "I wonder.... Wait here, I won't be long."
With that she leaves the refrectory. A few minutes later she returns, holding an apple-sized stone sphere.
"The Old Vashti left this for me, with a message that said I would know the right hands to place it in," she says, holding out the sphere. "And now I see this statue, I think...." She places the sphere into the upraised hands of the Grand Mutta. It fits perfectly - now the Mutta is holding the sphere aloft.
The sphere begins to glow with the colour of soft moonlight. The white stratum in the stone, carved to form a belt on the statue, also glows. There is a faint "click" as the top half of the statue lifts slightly, the join forming where the belt was.
Casting a glance around the group, one eyebrow raised quizzically, the Young Vashti lifts the top off the statue. Inside is a hollow containing a rolled scroll.
"Looks like old Vasu is still playing games," she says, unrolling the scroll.
The scroll:
It contains a sketch map of the River Anhoi and the River Leng, with Cormondal at the join. Features marked on the Leng include somewhere called Tigerskin Gorge on the southern shore, and further upstream a horseshoe-shaped island. This is marked with the words "You might find something of interest here. VL."
Also written on the scroll are the words "River is the key" and a short piece of musical notation.
[SBLOCK="High Imperial"]
The phrase "River is the key" is written strangely. Low Imperial uses a phonemic syllabary (as in English), and most of the writing on this scroll is in Low Imperial. High Imperial, however, uses a pictographic writing system (as in Chinese). The two are sometimes combined when High Imperial is used for proper names or formality but are otherwise written seperately.
Here, the word "River" is represented by the High Imperial symbol for river but "is the key" is written in Low Imperial script, which would normally suggest the use of a proper name.
[/SBLOCK]
The Rolling Man
First Post
Jar'Thol, Salsham'ai shaman
"Looks like we have another quest ahead of us friends. I'm starting to wonder where this will lead us, but I trust the wisdom and vision of the late Vashi. I say we try to find this island as soon as we wrap up our business here in Cormondal. This 'River is the key' reference must be something of a riddle, much like 'what you seek can be found between dusk and dawn'. Maybe it will be clearer once we get there." Jar'Thol says to his companions. He then turns to address the Vashi. "This Magister Ten, is he the leader of this town ? If so, I'd like to talk to him. We made some promises to the wolves that inhabit the old temple. We ... well, I promised them that the people of Cormondal would avoid the temple, leaving it to them and, in exchange, they would avoid the humans and not hunt their cattle. I think it would be in everyone's interest for all of you to respect those terms."
OOC: Does Knw : Geography (+4) reveals anything on Tigerskin gorge or that island ?
"Looks like we have another quest ahead of us friends. I'm starting to wonder where this will lead us, but I trust the wisdom and vision of the late Vashi. I say we try to find this island as soon as we wrap up our business here in Cormondal. This 'River is the key' reference must be something of a riddle, much like 'what you seek can be found between dusk and dawn'. Maybe it will be clearer once we get there." Jar'Thol says to his companions. He then turns to address the Vashi. "This Magister Ten, is he the leader of this town ? If so, I'd like to talk to him. We made some promises to the wolves that inhabit the old temple. We ... well, I promised them that the people of Cormondal would avoid the temple, leaving it to them and, in exchange, they would avoid the humans and not hunt their cattle. I think it would be in everyone's interest for all of you to respect those terms."
OOC: Does Knw : Geography (+4) reveals anything on Tigerskin gorge or that island ?
Last edited:
Dr Simon
Explorer
The Vashti takes a deep breath.
"He's sort of in charge," she says with grimace. "It's a bit complicated. Magister Ten is in charge of the Magisters Administory, meaning that he oversees civic law, business interests and the general allocation of town resources. He answers to Magisters in Ashoyin, but they tend to be more occupied with the civil war.
"On top of that, the Merchants League have an enclave in what was once the Imperial Garrison. They supposedly look after their own affairs but they also play a role in protecting the town. Then there's a council of other interested parties like the guilds and the Vash... well, I guess it's me now.
"Come with me tomorrow and we can discuss this deal of of yours with Magister Ten. He's a fair man, but I can see a lot of people who wouldn't think that wolves could be dealt with using laws and treaties."
[SBLOCK="Jar'Thol"]
Tigerskin Gorge is about 20-30 miles upstream, and named for the orange and black strata in its rockface. It was mined for rare ore, but not for a while.
The island is probably Ropoko Island, further upstream and situated in the middle of some rapids. Rumoured to have a ruined shrine hidden amongst the trees that cover it.
[/SBLOCK]
"He's sort of in charge," she says with grimace. "It's a bit complicated. Magister Ten is in charge of the Magisters Administory, meaning that he oversees civic law, business interests and the general allocation of town resources. He answers to Magisters in Ashoyin, but they tend to be more occupied with the civil war.
"On top of that, the Merchants League have an enclave in what was once the Imperial Garrison. They supposedly look after their own affairs but they also play a role in protecting the town. Then there's a council of other interested parties like the guilds and the Vash... well, I guess it's me now.
"Come with me tomorrow and we can discuss this deal of of yours with Magister Ten. He's a fair man, but I can see a lot of people who wouldn't think that wolves could be dealt with using laws and treaties."
[SBLOCK="Jar'Thol"]
Tigerskin Gorge is about 20-30 miles upstream, and named for the orange and black strata in its rockface. It was mined for rare ore, but not for a while.
The island is probably Ropoko Island, further upstream and situated in the middle of some rapids. Rumoured to have a ruined shrine hidden amongst the trees that cover it.
[/SBLOCK]
Dr Simon
Explorer
OOC: Moving on...
The next day, the Young Vashti visits the local legal authorities to not only inform them about her "patients" but to find out what your reward from the Old Vashti's legacy is.
It turns out to be credits notes, redeemable for cash or goods, with any Merchant's League establishment (there is a sizeable League House in Cormondal). These amount to 20,000 yen each (that's 200 gp equivalent). [OOC note: You still have a gold pitcher, silver bowl and three pieces of jewellery found on the Greedy Spirits to evaluate. Technically these might belong to the temple, but the Vashti is currently unaware of them.
There is much disbelief and grumbling over Jar'Thol's deal with the wolves, but the salsham'ai gives a spirited defence of his actions, coupled with a rousing oration about the needs for species to live in harmony and so a draft proposal is agreed that will prevent anyone from approaching the temple provided livestock is unharmed.
In discussions with the Young Vashti, she thinks that, if you decide to investigate this island in the Old Vashti's cryptic note, you would be best travelling upstream by boat since the trails have long since become overgrown (the recent attempts to re-open the Tigerskin Gorge mines were done using river travel). She warns you that there are rapids either side of Ropoko Island and that you would need to portage above them, then travel directly down the centre of the stream to end up within the "U"-shaped harbour formed by the island.
OOC: If you want further shopping Cormondal has most amenities, although magic items beyond scrolls and potions (or the mechanically-equivalent) are not commonly bought or sold.
The next day, the Young Vashti visits the local legal authorities to not only inform them about her "patients" but to find out what your reward from the Old Vashti's legacy is.
It turns out to be credits notes, redeemable for cash or goods, with any Merchant's League establishment (there is a sizeable League House in Cormondal). These amount to 20,000 yen each (that's 200 gp equivalent). [OOC note: You still have a gold pitcher, silver bowl and three pieces of jewellery found on the Greedy Spirits to evaluate. Technically these might belong to the temple, but the Vashti is currently unaware of them.
There is much disbelief and grumbling over Jar'Thol's deal with the wolves, but the salsham'ai gives a spirited defence of his actions, coupled with a rousing oration about the needs for species to live in harmony and so a draft proposal is agreed that will prevent anyone from approaching the temple provided livestock is unharmed.
In discussions with the Young Vashti, she thinks that, if you decide to investigate this island in the Old Vashti's cryptic note, you would be best travelling upstream by boat since the trails have long since become overgrown (the recent attempts to re-open the Tigerskin Gorge mines were done using river travel). She warns you that there are rapids either side of Ropoko Island and that you would need to portage above them, then travel directly down the centre of the stream to end up within the "U"-shaped harbour formed by the island.
OOC: If you want further shopping Cormondal has most amenities, although magic items beyond scrolls and potions (or the mechanically-equivalent) are not commonly bought or sold.
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