The Seige of Seinaru Heikiko

“So if we hire the Emerald Branch and Dragonshadow clan to support Ameiko, but only pay the Black Lotus clan to stay neutral, it should only cost us 15,000 gold,” Nicki was saying. They were debating the economics of accepting the ninja clans’ offers to support the rebellion, and the cost wasn’t cheap.

“Sure, no problem,” Sandoval moaned. “Except I’ve only got 87 gold pieces left.” He remembered a time – not that long ago – when 87 gold was more wealth than he’d ever seen in one place. Now, he felt like a pauper. Although, this new Robe of Scintillating Colors was pretty snazzy.

“You worry too much, cousin!” Sandru laughed, giving the bard a hearty slap on the back. “I’ve got people selling all that stuff you took off the governor’s men. By the time we get back to Sakakabe, you’ll be rich again!”

And the caravan master was right; when they’d finished unloading all the magical swords and armor that Sennaka’s personal guard had been equipped with, they had plenty of funds to enlist the ninja’s aid.

Now the work of mounting the rebellion began in earnest. Every day, more northern daimyo pledged their allegiance to Ameiko, and Jiro was kept busy riding from estate to estate to meet with the lords. He’d emerged as Ameiko’s de facto commanding general, and as troops began pouring in, it was his job to organize them, ensure they were housed and fed and trained, and to create a command structure for the army. He also frequently visited the field where the army of Terra Cotta Warriors had been unearthed, learning how to control them using his magical baton.

The ninja were also already proving their worth. Ninja spies in the south kept Jiro informed on the Jade Regent’s troops’ movements and plans, and the southern armies began to suffer a series of unusual calamities: a collapsed bridge here, a poisoned well there, a granary fire somewhere else. The Jade Regent’s forces weren’t able to march north to nip the growing rebellion in the bud, but neither was the rebel army ready yet to march south to conquer the capital.

After three weeks, the group was growing impatient, but Jiro seemed confident. “Our army is not as large as the enemy’s,” he told them as they reviewed plans for the campaign, “but we have more samurai, and each of those Terra Cotta Warriors will be worth 10 human soldiers.” They were gathered in the fortress of Seinaru Heikiko, which had become their base of operations. “On the other hand, the Jade Regent has many oni under his command. He no longer tries to keep their presence a secret – in fact, he uses the fear of them as the main thing keeping his troops in line. I think this will ultimately work to our favor – if we can kill enough of the oni in battle, the regular troops may abandon the fight, or even switch to our side. Now, when we open the campaign, I’m thinking we should march towards …”

A boom of inhuman laughter suddenly echoed down from above, and a passing shadow momentarily obscured the light coming in from a nearby window. The warning bell at the gate began to peal, but it was overwhelmed by the boom of a tremendous impact, and then fell silent. Running to the window, the party saw that the fortress’s main gate had been knocked down, and several guards lay motionless on the ground. The Amatatsu banner, which had flown over the gate, lay in the dirt.

Standing atop the banner was a huge red-skinned, three-eyed monster. It was a Fire Yai, a powerful oni, and he laughed as he ground Ameiko’s sigil beneath his heel. “Come out, little mice, hiding in your holes, or I’ll take down this fortress stone by stone!” he taunted. “I am Nigankona of the Five Storms! Show me this Amatatsu heir I’ve heard so much about! I want to crunch her little bones between my teeth and drink her royal blood! Bring her to me, and I promise you all quick deaths. Keep her for yourselves, and I’ll tear every one of you limb from limb and make sweet music of your screams!” As Nigankona issued his challenge, a squadron of ja noi oni poured through the gates behind him.

Zhustin cast a quick Haste as the group sprang into action. Sawyer dashed out of the building they were in, and across a narrow alcove between it and the adjacent building, ducking into it and running to the doors on the opposite side, trying to stay out of sight of the attackers as long as possible. Sandoval didn’t opt for stealth: he strode out into the courtyard, singing Inspire Courage, and cast Song of Discord on the attackers. Most responded with a volley of arrows in Sandoval’s direction, wounding him in the leg, but one turned and bashed its comrade over the head with its tetsubo, and another swung at Nigankona himself, who absently brushed the attack aside.

Sandru grabbed Ameiko by the arm. “Come with me – it’s not safe here!” He drug her up the stairs to the building’s second floor. Jiro’s samurai were beginning to recover from their shock and take up posts at the fortress’s arrow slits, firing at the attacking oni, and Sandru joined them. Nicki started to move towards the door, his mind spinning with what fiery hell he should unleash, but Bella stopped him. “Quick – make me invisible!” she pleaded as she gulped down a Fly potion. He hesitated; it would really be so much more fun to fry something. But on the other hand, seeing this little girl turn into a human blade barrier was always fun, too, so he cast Greater Invisibility on the rogue, then ducked out into the alcove between buildings, slipping back against the cliff wall to remain out of sight.

Jiro followed Sandoval into the courtyard. His samurai blood was up, and he shouted insults at Nigankona, challenging him to single combat. But suddenly, there was more booming laughter from overhead, and three more oni swooped into view. These were giant two-headed creatures – Atamahuta. One head was bestial and brutish, while the other had three eyes and looked (slightly) more civilized. They were armed with giant monk’s spades, but two of them alighted atop the cliff walls overlooking the courtyard and unleashed Fireballs onto the group that had clustered near the building’s exit. Nigankona laughed, and blasted a fiery missile from his third eye that slammed into Jiro and set him aflame. Then the Fire Yai summoned an Incendiary Cloud that engulfed the group in a cloud of dense smoke and white-hot embers. The third Atamahuta flew down the cliff face to land directly behind Nicki, gashing him with his double-bladed monk’s spade.

The party had been hit fast, and hit hard. Most of those who’d left the building were now engulfed in the flaming cloud, while those still inside had the same cloud blocking their escape. Marie cast Mass Cure Moderate. Sandoval, inside the churning cloud, cast Mislead. His doppelganger suddenly appeared just outside the cloud, while the real Sandoval dashed for the open doorway to the adjacent building, escaping with relief into its cool interior. Shinjiro raced through the flames to Nicki’s side, but his efforts to avoid being burned distracted him, and his spin kick missed the oni. He called up his ki defense as the oni grinned evilly down at him.

Sawyer pushed open the door on the other building and charged at Nigankona. He stopped just short of the Fire Yai, and Lunged forward, stabbing Suishen deep into the creature’s gut. The flames on Suishen’s blade had no effect on the oni; to the contrary, the oni himself was wreathed in wispy flames, and as Sawyer struck, those flames leaped out and scorched him. Bella, now flying and invisible, darted out through the incendiary cloud, beating out the sparks on her clothing as she charged Nigankona. The oni never saw her coming, and her rapier caught him unawares, but she, too, was badly burned by his Fire Shield.

The ja noi oni now converged on Sawyer (although one persisted in pounding on his friend). They surrounded the fighter, and he became a blur of motion as he deftly parried all their attacks. Jiro’s lieutenant, Hatsue, followed Sawyer, hacking at the backs of the oni surrounding him. The ronin inside the fortress were recovering their wits, and arrows began to sprout from the oni, although those aimed at the Fire Yai tended to bounce harmlessly off. Sandru added his arrows to that mix, while Ameiko, at his insistence, hung back away from danger.

Zhustin was still trapped in the building, which was beginning to burn as the incendiary cloud swept inexorably forward. Taking a deep breath, he dashed out through the roiling flames, emerging scorched but unhurt. Seeing the fortress beset on all sides, he decided to even the odds. He waved his arms and a trio of huge Air Elementals appeared in the courtyard. At Zhustin’s direction, one flew off to confront each of the Atamahuta. Unfortunately, even the Elementals’ powerful blows seemed to have little effect on the two-headed monstrosities.

Nicki was caught between a rock and a hot place, hemmed in between the enormous Atamahuta on one side and the flaming cloud on the other. Never having had much fear of fire, he sprouted huge bat-like wings and flew off through the flames, surprising the oni so much that his riposte missed badly. Emerging into the courtyard, Nicki cast a volley of Quickened Magic Missiles at the Atamahuta perched on the western cliff.

The two Atamahuta atop the cliffs ignored the Air Elementals, deigning to treat their blows as a threat. One cast a spell, and masses of writhing Black Tentacles sprung up from the ground in the center of the courtyard, surrounding both Jiro, and Sandoval’s double, trying to hold them in place. At the same time, his partner cast another Fireball on the same area, frying Jiro yet again. The third oni whirled his double-bladed weapon, dividing his attacks between Shinjiro and the Air Elemental, but only succeeded in striking the latter. Shinjiro responded with a Flurry of Blows of his own that got the oni’s attention. Unfortunately, the incendiary cloud continued drifting forward, and its engulfed both Shinjiro and the Air Elemental. Jiro stumbled out of the flaming cloud, but was forced to drop and roll to try to extinguish the flames engulfing him.

Marie was still inside the building, which was now burning on its own. She knew that the spells the oni were using were controlling their enemies’ movement as well as damaging them. Desperate to counter their tactics, she cast Greater Dispel Magic, and the incendiary cloud and black tentacles both vanished. Freed from those constraints, she dashed out of the burning building into the courtyard, looking around to assess who most needed her aid. Sandoval, now invisible thanks to his spell, sent his double to the other side of the courtyard as a distraction, then cast Slow on the group of enemies around Sawyer. The Fire Yai was unaffected, but four of the ja noi oni suddenly shifted into slow motion.

Nigankona grinned evilly at Sawyer. “A foe who thinks he is worthy of me?” he bellowed. “You puny mortal!” He was armed with a massive tetsubo, and he began to try his best to smash Sawyer into a pulp. With each blow, great cracks opened in the earth where the magic club hit, and the air was filled with deafening thunderclaps. But somehow, Sawyer dodged or deflected each and every strike. Furious, he blasted a fiery missile out of his third eye, but even that failed to hit its target.

Then it was Sawyer’s turn to retaliate. “Let me show you how we ‘puny mortals’ do it!” he shouted, and Suishen flashed into motion. Each and every slice and thrust drew oni blood, although Sawyer was paying a heavy price for each hit, as the oni’s protective flames blistered him with each hit. Bella saw how badly Sawyer was suffering to hurt the Fire Yai, and she wanted no part of that. Back-pedaling in mid air, she drew her bow, and took advantage of her Hasted speed to unleash a machine-gun like volley of arrows at Nigankona from point-blank range. He could not see the invisible rogue, and she kept moving as she shot, so he could never anticipate where the next arrow would come from. The first struck him in the neck. He raised his arm to block where he thought the next arrow would come from, and it came into his armpit instead, piercing his lung and nicking his heart. As he staggered backwards, the next shot buried itself to the fletching in his chest. As he clutched that arrow, Bella’s final shot hit him directly in his third eye. He stood, tottering, for a moment before he toppled slowly backwards like a felled tree.

Their leader might be dead, but the other oni showed no signs of abandoning their attack. One of the ja noi fell to a ronin’s arrow, but another turned and clubbed Hatsue with its tetsubo. Jiro, finally not trapped or burning, charged to Hatsue’s aid. Calling upon a lifetime’s samurai training, his katana flashed, and the oni’s head rolled onto the dirt. Ignoring her wound, Hatsue unleashed a Flurry of Blows on another of the ja noi that sent it tumbling limply across the courtyard.

Nicki flew back towards the far end of the courtyards, trying to position himself so that only one of the Atamahuta could target him. From there, he drew his wand and fired off a Lightning Bolt at one of the two-headed oni. The Air Elementals continued pounding on the Atamahuta, and one actually seemed to draw its foe’s attention, as it returned the attack. Marie seared it with a Flame Strike for good measure. The one nearest Nicki, however, ignored the Elemental and flew over to attack the sorcerer in mid-air. The third focused his attacks on Shinjiro, slashing him twice.

The monk flew into a Hasted Flurry of Blows, punching and kicking for all he was worth. His first few blows were like hitting a stone wall, and the big oni hardly seemed to notice. But suddenly, the resistance evaporated, and Shinjiro had the satisfaction of feeling his fists and feet really sinking in. The oni had a momentary surprised expression before his eyes (all five of them) rolled back into his head and he sank to the ground, dead.

Sawyer was still surrounded by ja noi oni, although one was moving sluggishly and another had spent the entire battle hitting his friends. He crouched as the oni charged, Suishen held in a two-handed stance, then lashed out. A spray of blood filled the air as Suishen found its mark over and over again, and when he was done, all three oni lay in lifeless heaps in the dirt.

Now all the action was with the two remaining Atatmahuta at the opposite end of the courtyard. As everyone rushed that direction, Bella reached into her haversack and pulled out a quiver of arrows she’d had made specially for her back in Sakakabe. She’d gotten tired of enemies with tough hides, and she could see the Air Elementals blows bouncing almost harmlessly off the two-headed oni. But these arrows had broad heads of pure adamantine, and she loosed a volley at the Atamahuta towering over Nicki. To her delight, the shafts sank deep into its flesh.

Nicki had his back (literally) against the wall as the giant two-headed oni drew back its double-bladed monk’s spade for another blow. “Burn in Hell, asshole!” Nicki screamed (somewhat disappointed he hadn’t thought of a more eloquent epithet), and a gout of Hellfire shot up out of the earth, engulfing the oni in sulfur-laced flames. As it screamed in pain, Nicki dashed away, ducking under its distracted swing. Two of Zhustin’s Air Elementals swooped down on the smoldering creature, but their fists bounced off its magically protected skin. Zhustin’s Scorching Rays had no such difficulty, however. They hit the oni like a blowtorch, and he crumpled to the ground.

That only left one Atamahuta, but he was high overhead, along the cliff overlooking the hidden fortress. Seeing his fellow oni fall, he bellowed with rage, and seemed to find new strength. He attacked the Air Elemental facing him with a vengeance, and as he hacked at it with his double weapon, arcs of electricity sparked and sputtered from its blades. Sawyer, using Suishen’s Air Walk power, charged upwards, lunging to stab the oni-hating blade into its side. Bella, still on the ground, nocked a pair of adamantine arrows on her bowstring and let fly, following in hastened succession with an ongoing volley of shots. The first two arrows each sank into one of the oni’s throats. The others buried themselves in its chest, and it tumbled lifeless to the ground.

As most of the group gathered around Marie for healing, Nicki rushed across the courtyard to the fallen Fire Yai. Everyone assumed he was in a hurry to be the first to loot the body, but instead, he waved his arms over it. To their horror, the flesh melted away from its bones, and the huge three-eyed skeleton that remained began to shudder to life. As it lifted itself upright, Nicki pointed to the sky. “Fly overhead and watch for any other threats!” he commanded, and to their amazement, the giant skeleton obeyed, lifting off the ground and flying large circles overhead. As they stared open-mouthed, he repeated the process with one of the two-headed Atamahuta. Sandoval started to object, but Nicki silenced him with a glare. “I’m sick of the Jade Regent being the only one with oni fighting for him. It’s time we got some of our own!”

The group earned 14,172 XP for defeating the oni attack, putting them at 369,034 XP, with 445,000 required for level 14. This concludes book five, Tide of Honor. We are moving on to the final installment of the adventure path, The Empty Throne.