Zhiyu-Ji Djinn, Campaign Notes
Episode 9
A creature formed of shadows leapt from behind the figure and swallowed milord Carlos whole, vanishing them both in the process.
I approached the figure, who was left standing alone at the top of the flight of stairs. I challenged him/her to return milord, and demanded to know who and what s/he was. S/he said s/he was MISIRA, Embodiment of All Alien Beauty, and that I could recover milord if I could get past him/her. So I tried to walk past, but s/he swung his/her thin blade of the titanium metal at me. It was easy to block, but when I did the force of his/her easy swing flung me back against the far wall as if I had been a swatted fly. The others leapt in through the windows and joined with me, as I charged again. I played at being the dumb bull - trying the same trick again – and at the last second instead of blocking his/her blow uselessly I ducked past him/her, not allowing myself to be touched. S/he anticipated my every move, as if my thoughts were laid open for him/her, and made no effort to stop me with his/her sword. Instead s/he summoned up a shimmering net, or curtain, of essence to block my path. I skidded to a halt in front of it as the others attacked MISIRA uselessly. The curtain was quite effective at preventing my passage. MISIRA admitted s/he had lied, and called us insects. I think it was intended as an insult. His/her back was to me, so I struck him/her sharply on the head, at the join between the metal half and the flesh half, thinking it was surely a weak point. It wasn’t. My strongest, most powerful blow was shrugged off with no effect.
Realising the futility of directly attacking MISIRA, milord Theo and I attacked the net, but it was very solid and did nothing but spark as we rained blows upon it. Milord Theo attempted to blast it with sorcery – the most devastating attack we possessed – but this, too, did nothing. At that point we had exhausted all options involving force, and so I decided it was time to attempt guile. I laid my weapons at MISIRA’s feet and we acknowledged his/her superiority over us, pretending to surrender to him/her in the hope that, as prisoners, we too would be taken to where milord Carlos had been taken. S/he, either magnanimous in victory or reading our intentions like an open book (and I favour the latter theory) gave us our lives and told us to go. S/he left, shattering his/her curtain and leaving only his/her sword to block the passage. It buzzed when I approached, seemingly sensing my presence and proximity. Milady Endless Brine covered it with her cloak, but it still zapped me with an energy attack when I got too near.
We climbed the outside of the building to bypass it, and then once more began to ascend the deserted floors using the stairs.
About 5 floors up, there were two Raseed guarding a door. As there was a chance they were guarding prisoners, we surprised them and attacked, with milord Theo and myself going for the one on the right, the other two for the one on the left. They were armed with vicious looking guns, so I leapt in and immediately went for a disarm, forcing our target to drop his hand-cannon. He then grabbed me as I slashed at its face, and milord Theo repeatedly hammered at it. He kept on hammering it as I slipped from its grasp and stabbed it as a warning not to try that again. It didn’t get the chance, as milord Theo smashed it to the ground. The other two were similarly successful, and the fight was over in less than 10 seconds.
This gave us our first chance to examine the Raseed close up. They were revealed to be not men in armour, simply armour that moves like a man.
Through the door was an enormous office, decorated differently from previous ones we had seen – a more personalised style, perhaps, symbolising a more important occupant? We rifled it, and carried on upwards.
A few floors up we heard milord Carlos (and another man) screaming. We dashed for the source. There was a room in which the two were being tortured by skeletons. First through the door, I smashed them and their infernal machines. I released milord Carlos from his bonds, milord Theo rescued the other man – “Liger,” he said his name was. Milord Carlos was unconscious, but milord Theo talked with Liger for a while about how Algeroth could be stopped – Liger claimed he could destroy some part of Algeroth if we could find a way to break into the shell of the thing above the mountain, though as he admitted he was a dæmon, he may not be trustworthy. After talking with us he left the building, while we went up. Milady Endless Brine carried milord Carlos, who would not wake.
Up another 20 floors, their form became more organic, living matter mixed with the metal. Man-sized pods, mostly open and empty, lined the walls here. A dozen were closed, and they contained Prætorian Stalkers. There were several floors of pods; some contained Raseed, some skeletons. Some we could see only the shape of the thing within – could they be the things in the cloaks? Three floors of these type of pods, though slightly different outlines in each. These were followed by a floor of empty pods, but not hatched. Still growing?
The floor beyond that was a-buzz with electricity. Some kind of ball of electricity hung in the centre of the open space, above a freestanding archway, arcing lightning across the room every so often.
The next floor was the very top floor of the building. It contained computers, and also gave access to the roof, where there was a walkway – but we also had to be careful to avoid the lightning that struck down from the pole at the tower’s summit. Walking around, getting struck occasionally was unavoidable, but though it hurt it was fleeting pain and caused no lasting harm.
This led to nothing of interest since none of us could read the language of the computers. So we had only the archway left to investigate thoroughly. As inorganic and organic matter seemed to be unharmed by passage through it, first me and then Kino braved it ourselves.
Episode 10
Passage through the archway took us into a void; blackness save only for a thin metal walkway, stretching out into the distance, a long, long way. We made to cross it.
After a time, it widened out a bit. Then, suddenly, with no warning, milord Kino clutched at his throat and appeared to be strangling. The feeling passed from him, but it left a scar on his neck.
We came to a mile-high pillar of metal, which began to glow white as we drew near. Five figures stepped into the pillar and vanished, causing it to pulse with energy. There were also five skeletons standing at points around the pillar. We dashed forward and cut them down.
Before we could follow the five into the pillar, milord Kino was hurt again – this time bleeding from his shoulder but with no cut. The bled blood formed itself into a miniature figure of a knight. He then seemed to be physically okay, so we stepped into the pillar.
We found ourselves in a house, dead people decorating the room, having died by violence. There were peaceful sounds from outside; it was a countryside farm cottage. Outside, we saw we were far from the Imperial Mountain, and could tell this because it was visible in the distance – as it used to be, before the eruption.
We were located quite near to the city of Nexus, which was free from machina – like it must have been in the past.
The men we were following were not hard to track, but they did travel with great speed. We followed them for a couple of days, until we reached a village they had decimated on their way through. Then we were on to a city that they had entered, where we caught up with them. Others more knowledgeable of such things told me that this was the city of Thorns. Catching up with our prey we saw that they were five Deathknights, each with a machina device on their arm. Here, they were fighting (and defeating) other Deathknights.
We decided to attempt to capture one of our prey, the archer, who was separate from the others, lending our aid to the locals but more importantly to interrogate one of them as to who they are, why they are here, and, perhaps most importantly, where here is.
I was first to make contact with the enemy. Expecting him to react quickly, my second attack was a feint, but he was quicker than that, dodging even my first strike. But I rained blows upon him and some connected. The others were but seconds behind me in joining our ambush. Our target called out to his companions and the biggest and meanest-looking of them ran over to help, flaring huge amounts of dark essence as he did. I knocked the archer out, but his friend swung his massive black sword at me, striking me past my defence and knocking me flying right across the street. Milord Kino joined me in getting knocked to the gutter, but he charged right back in. He was knocked back a second time, blasting the huge Deathknight with some power as he flew through the air. I seized this opportunity to run behind him and pick up the archer and steal his unconscious body from beneath his distracted comrade’s bulk.
We took him and retreated. Oddly, they did not pursue. We heard the large knight’s title shouted when he was ordered to let us go: First and Foremost of the Pride.
We fled to the south and east, prisoner in tow. Many days were spent travelling, as we recovered from injuries received. The prisoner was separated from his arms and his machinaical bracelet. Milord Carlos deduced its purpose was to assist them in getting home, since the portal had appeared to be one-way.
We talked with the prisoner eventually, once we were far from Thorns and were sure there was no hunt on our tails. He was called Ashen Lotus of Destruction, one of the five servants of the Deathlord First and Forsaken Lion here to destroy his rival, Mask of Winters, before he becomes powerful.
According to him, we are in the past, in RY 768, through the magic of Algeroth.
This is shocking news, especially to me. This means that somewhere out there is another, younger me, still a deluded pawn of Lady D’Arquing. This was the year before I helped her destroy my people. Here, the Zhiyu are still alive! If the Deathknights are here to change history, perhaps we can too. I could go to my city and save my people, ensure that their destruction never took place. I could save my queen. I could save myself.
But if I do that, I cannot help the others in their, no: our mission; to prevent the servants of the Deathlord from altering history for the worse. What if we five are the only ones that can prevent the past from being changed? Individually, these Deathknights seemed stronger than us; it may need our combined strength to defeat them even if they are without Ashen Lotus of Destruction. And what right do I have to make such a decision for myself? The almighty Sun God made me his servant, that I might assist my lords and lady in bringing light to the dark time we have so recently left. I see clearly now; we are here to save history, not to change it. And if for this reason I must sacrifice my people once again; so let it be.