Hey, sorry if this seems a little late, but we had a battle that lasted three sessions, and I don't want to break up those post-wise.
That said, before I move on, just a reminder that the Abyssals Indiegogo campaign still has a few days left on it. I do wish the timing had been a little better to use more of that material in this story, but them's the breaks sometimes.
So let's get into it. As this is kind of a huge battle, I may skimp on details (like, for instance, armies clashing in the background very round) and slightly tweak the order of events if it helps things fit cinematically but doesn't affect the outcome of the battle. For instance, if Character A hits Character B, then Character C does something unrelated, then B hits A back, I might describe C's action taking place after A and B's exchange. Also, a while back, my group switched to a 'popcorn initiative' system, and I'm not going to go out of my way to delineate rounds, so if it seems like there isn't a clear order to when characters are acting, that's by design.
And finally, before I go into it, I put this post up explaining some of the systems I used. You shouldn't need it to follow what's going on, but just getting it out there. (There'll be another link at the end of the post.)
Previously on Tales of the Moonlight Maiden...
(You should know the routine by now, TV-style montage of clips.)
We begin with the Abyssal Exalt known as Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral in V'neef Gamon's collection room, admiring a reaver daiklave on a stand. "Ah, the Epitaph of Sunset..."
We then cut to Hǎifēng returning the sword to her in front of the wreckage of Gamon's estate, while she explains the sword belonged to her in a former life. Xương tells her that she can have it if she leaves the island and doesn't come back. His voice continues as the footage changes to her casually cutting down a Peleps marine as she returns to her ship... "...and if you get the feel the need to test it on the way back to the docks, then so be it."
...
We cut to a battle on Naibron Island's beach at night, Lunars and Lintha fighting side-by-side against the Eternal Wave cult. We have some quick shots of Xương, thrashing about and tearing up a tomescu (a many-limbed demon with insect-like features concealed in mist, wielding way too many weapons), finishing with a shot of it dissolving, looking at Xương and screaming "The bloody chains! The bloody chains!" as it vanishes into Essence.
...
We cut to Mongo, on the dock at Naibron Island the next morning, talking to Gou on the ship and asking if he's seen any surviving cultists. "We've been rounding up the bodies of the fallen, and some of them have gone missing."
...
And then, if this were a TV show, we'd have a handful of quick clips summarizing the last few sessions. I'd describe them, but either you've been following along and you're good, or you'd have to reread them for context anyhow. Either way, it starts with Bokano telling the group about the impending attack and finishes with the shot of the Captain of the Ashen Umbra's fleet arriving as night falls and the full moon rises.
And then we fade to...
A few years ago...
Sukanda the Voice realized on some level that she'd never go by that name again. An all-too-short lifetime of speaking for spirits, for interpreting their wishes and representing the gods when other mortals were too afraid or foolish to do so, gave her the sobriquet. But with her throat so thoroughly crushed, she wasn't sure she'd speak again.
In her state of dreamlike awareness, the fact that she was dead and floating in the shallows seemed a minor -- albeit potentially relevant -- factor in that assessment.
Well that looks nasty, a voice whispered to her. Does it hurt?
No, but I feel like it should, she thought reflexively. As though thinking of it made it happen, she felt a twinge of pain in her neck. But only for a moment, enough to shock her into the awful realization.
Yes, I'm afraid you're dying, the voice sighed, in response to an unasked question. Though the bubble containing your last breath has yet to escape your lips. Did the monk at least tell you why he was killing you?
For 'blasphemy.' Could she grow paler than she was, Sukanda would have done so. He said it was inappropriate for those like me to speak to the spirits, that my gifts made me an aberration to the 'Perfected Hierarchy.'
Well that's just rude of him, the voice sniffed. Surely the little gods you served attempted to intercede.
No. She didn't know her inner voice could echo so... hollowly.
None of the spirits even tried to warn him off, buy you time after all you'd done for them?
No. Her inner voice was quieter now, like she was running out of breath. She felt guilty at the admission for some reason but wasn't sure why, like a child called out for some mistake she hadn't known she'd made.
None of them called out to you, even to express their condolences? You can't hear any of them now?
No. She only answered because silence seemed to require more effort, which was odd because 'silent' was her default state now, wasn't it?
Well, I'm sorry at least.
Thank you. She paused. Who are you?
One who would hear you speak again. Hear you speak for those who no longer can, who need to be heard by the living who reject them.
One who would have me blaspheme. She felt herself grin at the thought of standing before the monk, of telling him how wrong he was as she crushed the life out of--
She had trouble completing the thought. She suddenly felt short of breath, even though she neither had breath nor did her inner voice require it. She was dimly aware of her body being tugged back and forth by the tide, caught as it was on a coral reef in the shallow waters where she'd been carelessly dumped. The fish had not come for her yet, for some reason.
Would it interest you to know that the chain of jade prayer beads he used to strangle you is called 'Harsh Truths?'
Why would that interest me? she bitterly asked, once her weakness passed.
Because I can give you the chance to share Harsh Truths with him, the way he shared them with you. To walk and speak again, for those more grateful, for those more deserving.
What must I give up? The first thing she ever learned about entities that spoke in mysterious voices is that they always demanded a price.
The voice told her. It was no price at all. Her rapidly-cooling body grinned.
Now...
Some days her throat still stings, rough and parched like she's tried to drink deep of desert sand. It's a phantom pain, the ghost of a wound never forgotten. She likes calling it that; it amuses those among the living who get the joke and brings comfort to those among the dead who understand and recognize the sympathy inherent in it.
Tea sometimes soothes the itch. Blood works better, though. That's not the main reason why the Abyssal strides across the deck of her ship and down the gangplank to Salt-Founded Glory's pier, but the draught will be so very satisfying after the coming battle.
The reason she steps down the gangplank with the Epitaph of Sunset slung across her back, the camera dramatically panning around her as a low bass riff builds in the background, is because An-Teng is a dead nation. Someone needs to teach it that, to mourn it and speak for it as only she can.
A wide blotch of shadow with gray-white streaks appears and forms into letters that look as if they're made from black marble, the lighter patches mostly settling into the end of the first line:
Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral
Midnight Caste Abyssal
Captain of the Heaven's Apathy Shrouds Us All
In service to the Captain of the Ashen Umbra
After a few moments, the letters blow away like ash in a gust of wind. She pulls back the hood on her black leather coat and tugs down the scarf covering her mouth, revealing skin like the light of a yellow moon, an intense gaze, and short, spiky, uneven hair of such dark blue it's basically black. A gust of wind coming off the sea reveals white mourner's robes under the leather. She no longer wears the blood red jade chain of fist-sized prayer beads that once killed her -- her executive officer wears it better, even if he's not as proficient in its use.
A few months ago...
Lintha Dara-Said Brother Balabat grew up learning first-hand how little the rest of the family thought of his sept. That their claims to Kimbery's heritage were ink on paper rather than blood in veins. His strength didn't matter, his eagerness to spill the blood of their enemies didn't matter. They even claimed his hunger for flesh was not natural to the cannibalistic Lintha.
He never 'got' it until he realized he breathed blood more than air, lying on Naibron Island's beach, feeling sand burn in... he wasn't sure if it was the entry or exit wound for the blade that had run him through. Either way, his punctured lung moved less and less and all he could feel was the itching, and then the realization came.
What did you realize?
I'm just a man, the pirate thought.
Oh, I'm sure that's not true.
Even though he couldn't see anyone through his fading eyesight, Balabat got the distinct sensation of someone sitting down next to him for a chat.
My family taught me I'm better. Stronger. That we're the strongest of the Lintha and they're too obsessed with inbred demon-blood deformities to see it.
And you think you aren't? Stronger, I mean.
Balabat was not terribly bright, and only now realized it was a voice addressing him, and he wasn't just 'talking' to himself.
Who are you?
Don't worry about me, the voice whispered dismissively. Why do you think you're just a man?
Balabat gathered his thoughts. Because I died.
A sound like a rusty gate flapping in the breeze rattled through his mind, creaking but also weirdly musical. He only realized as it died down that it was laughter.
Death comes for everyone, in some form, the voice continued. Gods, Titans. Plants, animals. Even the Exalted can die.
There was a bitterness in that last remark that made Balabat feel something he'd never felt before. Pity? Compassion? He wasn't sure, it was a new sensation.
So what am I? He was starting to feel confused, a much more familiar sensation.
You are a man, but not necessarily just a man. What brought you here?
The Eternal Wave killed a Lintha captain. We sought revenge.
Not much of a revenge force here.
We had to move fast, and not everyone would come along.
So what you're saying is that the Dara-Said acted to help the Sennong avenge the loss of one of their own when so few others would, and fought bravely against a death cult. There was a pause, where Balabat could imagine some unseen figure nodding sagely. And then you got stabbed, and... wait, did they just leave you here?
Balabat tried to sit up and confirm that that was the case, found he couldn't move, and remembered he was dead. He was dimly aware of activity going on elsewhere, possibly more fighting.
They'll get to me, in time. They'd gotta, I'm kind of a big dude, I'll spare the rest of my crew a full day's rations at least.
But they let you get killed in the first place!
I'm just a lieutenant.
Maybe you need a better crew. One who appreciates your strength, your hunger... there's only so many ships to go around, but you'll have the chance to become captain and take your own vessel soon enough.
What... do I have to do?
All you need to do is get up. Leave the Lintha behind, both in name and in service, and join a new family. One that everyone will join eventually.
He couldn't see it, and had no way to know it was there, but he reached up to clasp an outstretched hand so it could pull him to his feet.
Now...
The former Lintha, easily twice the sheer mass of his captain, steps down off the gangplank with a meaty thud. He resembles a tanned, waterlogged corpse, his skin rubbery and thick. He's heavily tattooed, though several of the tattoos -- even some on his shaved head -- have been marred by still-fresh scars, their meanings distorted or destroyed. The scars on the sides of his neck resembling gills are much older, a whim of his foolish youth. Less of a whim and more of a dedication, his teeth are filed down to match a shark's. And, far more recently, spurs of bone have been implanted into his hands to allow him to shred flesh with his punches.
An armored jacket of bone and black jade hangs on his massive, muscular frame, and the red jade chain of prayer beads hangs over that across hip and shoulder like a bandoleer. A gift from his captain, who's still teaching him how to use it because he's a slow learner. He's not too worried; he hasn't told her he plans to sell or trade it at the first good offer. Pfft. Monk shit.
More letters of black marble appear across the bottom of the screen:
The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest
Dusk Caste Abyssal
Lieutenant in service to the Ashen Fleet, aboard the Heaven's Apathy Shrouds us All
He cracks his knuckles, careful of the bone spurs, and the letters crumble and fall away like dust.
The ships are wreathed in a cloud that moves like fog, but darker and smelling faintly of ash and blood. Outside of the ashen fog bank, the sky is clear with a full moon rising -- the fleet managed to time their arrival for just after sunset. Dragon's Mouth Bay is largely devoid of allied ships, as An-Teng has no proper navy of its own and many merchants have taken their own vessels and fled. As easy as it'd be to chalk the exodus up to cowardice, ships that could navigate the River of Queens even a little ways further inland have helped with evacuations. Vessels better-suited to open water have gone to meet the floating city of the Denzik Merchants on their year-long circuit through the oceans of Creation. It's just rotten luck that the attack is coming at the time they normally reach An-Teng[0], so the better-equipped merchants have gone out to rendezvous with their trading vessels half-way to keep them a safe distance from the danger (as well as somewhat monopolize access to the Denzik's goods, and vice-versa).
Back on the land, in the streets and on the docks of Salt-Founded Glory, the soldiers await the inevitable. They have little hopes of any sort of negotiation warning off this fleet, especially when the deathknights extend a gangplank and step out onto the dock. The soldiers still aren't entirely sure what to think about the fact that they're standing side-by-side with Lunar Anathema, but some will take that over nothing, and others (particularly An-Teng natives) know deep down that their odds are better with Lunars than Terrestrials. Among the Realm soldiers are the High Prince's Masked Commanders of the Animals, their presence encouraging -- even if unintentionally endorsing the Lunars' presence by animalistic association.
The trio of Lunars step out onto the docks, and Xương strides alone onto the pier with the doctored puzzle box to meet with Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral.
"Good evening," she says with a respectful nod.
"Evening," he greets her with a smile. "What can I do for you?"
"You can surrender; it would make things easier on all of you, though I kinda hope you don't."[1]
The unspoken consensus among the Lunars is that that's just rude.
"We have a box for your captain," Xương says, holding it up.
"May I see the box?" she asks.
Xương pauses. 'Well, shit.' "No."
She nods at that. "Well, the Captain's off having a meeting with the High Queen; they'll be along in time. So we're going to stick around for a bit, is that okay?"
Hǎifēng, close enough to hear this and being a local, knows that An-Teng doesn't have a High Queen, and hasn't in a long time. Xương, who's got a slightly better grasp on history, knows that the last High Queen of An-Teng was slain in the Usurpation, and her tomb is in the old capital of An-Teng -- the shadowland now known as the City of Dead Flowers, some distance to the southwest. The group is starting to feel like they've been played.
Xương, however, still answers her as politely as he can manage. "Sure. Want a drink?"
Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral grins as she spends a mote of Essence, extending vampiric fangs. "Gladly," she hisses, drawing her daiklave and signaling the attack.
Xương immediately slams a fist down into the dock beneath him, dumping himself and the two Abyssals into the water. At the same time, living cultists and zombies begin to disgorge from the ships and more of the latter clamber up from beneath the water onto the land as the battle begins. An anchor chain on one of the ships begins to move of its own accord, slick with blood, pulling itself free of the ship to reveal what might be dozens of ghosts bound upon its spikes -- an undead monstrosity known as a rantai. Xương, upon seeing this, flashes back to the scene in the 'previously-on' montage, the shrieks of "the bloody chains!" echoing through his memories.
So he does the first thing that comes to mind, activating a bunch of Charms and becoming a 30-foot tall humanoid sea monster. Meanwhile, back in the harbor, while the Abyssals are trying to climb out of the water, Hǎifēng flicks their fans out and rushes into the oncoming horde of zombies, leaping into the middle of them with a hoot and tripping them up. But soon enough a group of living Eternal Wave cultists emerges to lunge at them, and they grab a zombie to use as a 'human' shield.
The cultists attack Gou as well, and he jumps up over their attacks and hops from shoulder to shoulder, his anima glowing as he takes flight and fires his devil caster at the rantai.
Xương rears out of the water to lunge at the rantai, trying to grapple it. For a moment, the scene is distinctly reminiscent of a guy in a costume wrestling a rubber snake-monster in a wading pool done up to look like a small harbor. But in contrast to the silly imagery, he snaps and stretches the chains, damaging the links and stunning the undead creature.
Meanwhile, Gou and Hǎifēng prepare to do battle with the Abyssals. Gou draws himself up into Righteous Devil Form, his Essence flaring around him and making him look like a fiery phoenix as he proclaims that "All of Luna's enemies shall burn!" Hǎifēng slips away from the cultists by finding a path through the zombies to use as cover, and calling upon their lessons with Jotaro as they escape they take on Dreaming Pearl Courtesan form. As they do so they pull out their replica mask from Heaven with a dramatic flourish.
Once The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest has his feet under him, he decides to go after the big sea monster, leaping out over the water to try and punch Xương with his knuckle spikes -- only to get smacked back into the water, drawing upon his rage to move with the speed of instinct, a black sunburst-design appearing and weeping blood on his forehead as he does so.
At the same time, Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral slashes at Hǎifēng with her Reaver Daiklaive, the Epitaph of Sunset, her own Caste mark of a black, bleeding circle appearing on her forehead.[2] However, Hǎifēng is just slightly too fast for her, putting everything they've got into staying ahead of the strikes as they taunt her by whipping a sash across her face.
The rantai gathers itself as best it can and tries to lash at Xương, but just lacks the leverage to get a good grip. However, a ballista on one of the ships shoots at Xương and tags him. But he shrugs it up and keeps tearing at the rantai, trying to shatter the bloody links of bone while it keeps flailing about in his grip.
Hǎifēng, facing down Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral, decides to change up their tactics. They stand up straight, head cocked to the side, and swipe their kimono sleeves over their face, the expression on the mask seeming to change mood with every swipe until they stomp out their foot and fan out the illusory arms known to come with Laughing Monster Form. Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral lunges at them again, but now they're better prepared to do a rapid-fire series of a hundred claps right in her face to throw her off-balance. They use a series of dramatic flourishes to redirect her attack to the zombie hordes, which seems to legitimately horrify her.
While this is going on, The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest climbs up out of the water, anima flaring as he uses Owl Seizes Mouse[3] to blur at the still-airborne Gou. The two are surrounded by the swirling chaos of the Abyssal's anima banner, looking like they're in the middle of a crazed shark's feeding frenzy as he actually manages to deck Gou, the bone-spurs on his hands tearing at the Lunar's armor before he falls back to the ground.
Gou's focus is elsewhere, though -- his own anima banner flares as he channels a bunch of Essence into Weirdflame to blast at the rantai Xương is struggling with.
Meanwhile, in the background, An-Teng's defensive forces are fighting back against the zombies and cultists, and while the cultists are getting some licks in, the living soldiers are drastically prevailing over the undead hordes. In some segments of the battlefield, they're supported by dangerous beasts -- apes, boars, and the like -- while in more innocuous creatures dart to and fro carrying messages across the battlefield.
Xương keeps winding coils of the rantai's bone chain-body around his fists to keep the tension up, not having as much leverage or momentum as he'd like but he puts everything he's got into it and manages to tear the creature apart. The bloody bone chain links crumble to dust in his fingers while several of the ghosts impaled on them go screaming into the night while others just puff out into Essence and drift away on the breeze.
Meanwhile, out in the harbor, an unfamiliar ship enters the fray where the handful of Realm ships are clashing with the crews of the Ashen Fleet. The ship flies an unfamiliar flag that resembles a heavily-stylized flag of... An-Teng? The name of the ship is painted on its bow, reading Stern Warning in the local dialect of Flametongue.[4] It comes close to the ship with the ballista and a blade of some sort zips through the air unnaturally-fast, a chain trailing behind it. It loudly thunks into the side of the ship and goes tight, and then slacks as a figure on the Stern Warning leaps across, propelled by a good firm yank on the chain.
As the figure flies through the air, his cherry-blossom pink anima flares, briefly surrounding him with ghostly figures of marines leaping across with him. In the glow, the Lunars can see his long sailor's coat -- which Xương recognizes as being of Lintha make. But even if the distinctive anima banner didn't give it away, in its glow the group can clearly make out Danai, the Getimian they saved from the Wyld Hunt some months ago. He lands on the enemy ship, and with a flick of his wrist retrieves the Starshot Anchor from where it's stuck in the side of the ship, and begins ripping through the crew and destroying the ballista. He takes a moment amidst the carnage to quickly salute the trio before they get back to it.
And by 'get back to it,' I refer to Hǎifēng, circling around Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral, their image blurring as they split off a single clone and surround her. I also refer to Gou, Essence flickering over his fingers as he reloads his devil caster and takes aim at the Abyssal. A mandala of nine notched silver and blue rings swirls around him, lining up into a targeting reticle through which he fires at her. She raises her massive sword, the Epitaph of Sunset, to try and block the flame, her own anima banner cranked to its peak with the effort. The world around her grows dark for a moment, like she and Gou are surrounded by an ocean-bottom graveyard with distant skeletal fingers swaying in the tide like seaweed.
A flicker of something passes between them, a moment of connection. For the briefest of moments, Gou gets a glimpse of another Age, another place -- of his phoenix aura flickering around him as he blasts at a maddened Solar wearing stylized funereal robes holding that same sword and blocking in the exact same fashion. The Solar's surrounded by ghosts ready to assault one of the gates of Heaven, an ill-fated uprising. As Bleached Bones' Gleam lowers the blade, the world fades back to the current battle, and Gou can see in his eyes that Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral saw that as well.
Gou lands and draws his daiklave, Weirdflame held at his side. "Bleached Bones' Gleam! Let's finish this." She nods in silent agreement, setting her blade down and gathering purple-black necrotic Essence into her hands. She gathers the power to cast Shattering Void Mirror, thrusting her hands out to him and shrieking in the glossolalia of the Void. He hears flickers of his own name within it -- or at least what he understands to be his own name -- as the light between them seems to invert with the blast. He raises Haze-cleaver, circuit-like etchings in the blade flickering as they deflect the blast (though only barely).
The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest takes advantage of a seeming opportunity to lunge at Gou. The osprey-Lunar sees him coming and tries to deflect the Abyssal's punch with the butt of Weirdflame, but it's like trying to block an avalanche and it staggers him enough that the zombies fighting around the group actually manage to grab him and take a chunk out of him.
Hǎifēng's clone sees and takes advantage of an opportunity to slip up behind Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral and jab one of their war-fans right into the base of her spine, making a quip about 'poking the bear' and actually doing a bit of damage to her despite having no actual power of their own. Hǎifēng then weaves in to coordinate with the clone on a series of strikes, simultaneously slashing at her on different planes -- one goes high, the other goes low, etc.
She stumbles, and almost hits the dirt before, with a surge of Essence, Hǎifēng and the clone fully unfurl their fans and slash at her with what looks like a fistful of blades. Everything goes into a black and red silhouette as they spin and circle around her. And then all three of them stop moving for a second before all of her cuts suddenly erupt with blood at once, and she falls over dead -- actually dead, not the half-life she's been living. Her anima banner fades out, as does a haze over the zombies that's been so pervasive it's been indistinguishable from just the creepy ashen mist and necrotic Essence floating around.[5] Her Caste mark also vanishes, leaving a smear of black blood on her cooling forehead.
By now, Xương has finally stepped out onto the shore, engaging with the zombie horde for the first time and delivering an apocalypse upon them. He flings them around like ragdolls, and his footsteps send out shockwaves that trip them up. The army seizes the moment to wipe out much of the horde that remains at this point.
While Gou's attention is drawn by the fall of Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral, her first mate The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest takes a swing at him -- a big swing. Gou tries to dodge the meaty, spiked fist with a backflip, but it's not enough. The Abyssal decks him, using Lashing Tempest Palm (or Heaven Thunder Hammer, to those of sunnier dispositions) to send him flying. The camera follows his flying body a short distance until the view is blocked by a ship that is rocked with a loud crash.
We then cut to Gou, now inside the ship, staggering up to the hole in the ship's hull with one eye already swelling shut, letting out a pained, maniacal laughter that's hard to hear over the din of battle. He gives into the spark of madness within Weirdflame as the devil caster glows with a rainbow sheen, something like a colorful pilot light coming off the end of the barrel. He holds up the artifact and says "You shouldn't have done that," the laughter becoming a cackle as he beats his wings to take off and fly over The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest. He takes aim and fires a rainbow tornado of flame and killing intent.
The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest grabs the red jade chain he's been wearing like a bandoleer, spinning it around to try and deflect or at least diffuse the flame. But a bunch of it gets through, and though he lets loose a bout of swearing that only Xương can understand, as the chain lowers there's a look of exhilaration on his face as if the pain has invigorated him.
However, as Gou remains above him, The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest knows that he's also under threat from the huge Lunar monster who's come ashore -- and as he knows he can try and hit that one, he attempts to put some distance between himself and Gou and lunge at Xương instead. And while he does hit Xương, and it's the hardest Xương's been hit in a while, he barely feels it through his rough hide. And it's certainly not enough to dissuade him form planting his hands in the muddy ground beneath him, snapping at The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest. His jaw swaying in that freeform way that goblin sharks' jaws tend to do, such that when he does get some purchase on the Abyssal it seems to be pure chance, especially since the latter tries to smack it away.
While the Abyssal is facing Gou and Xương, Hǎifēng proceeds to go after the remaining living cultists among the enemy forces, scattering them to the wins so the Realm troops can capture them and/or finish them off.
At about this point, out in the harbor, the ashen mist parts slightly as another ship arrives -- and it's glowing, blazing bright white and gold, tearing through the night at ludicrous speed. (In my head I keep hearing the Immigrant Song playing in the background to set the tone.) Some of this speed is because it's a Lintha ship -- Cousin Mongo! -- and thus is being pulled by some sort of Wyld mutant.[6] But some of that speed is also because Sunder, the Eclipse Caste Solar is at the helm, infusing it with Sail Charms that let the hull glide frictionless on the surface of the water.
Then a dark shape comes off the deck and takes flight, and against the full moon in the sky the crew can see a chiropteran shape and familiar tattoos light up -- Stormseve Serenity, also from Smolder. She swoops over the battlefield, chanting in some language the group doesn't know, drawing purple and black necrotic Essence to her as she casts a spell. As she descends on the sight of the battle, scattered bones and sinew and other things from the zombies float up and wrap around her like a powered exoskeleton -- a bonestrider. (If it helps, this illustration from 2e depicts the spell in question.) She then comes down on The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest fist-first, quickly informing the others "Bokano sends her regards" before uppercutting the Abyssal into the air.
Gou swoops in to take advantage, screaming "This is the end!" as he blasts the Abyssal again -- but The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest uses a charm called Wounds Mean Nothing (Adamant Skin Technique) to weather the storm. "You are outnumbered. Surrender!" the Lunar demands.
At about this point, the group notices movement across the rooftops joining the harbor -- it's Rashmi, dashing across the nearest one, kinda doing the ninja-run thing with his arms out. It's too far for him to leap off the roof and get close. So instead he throws his arms out and flings what's easily a dozen mismatched knives into the air.[7] Time seems to slow as he leaps from the rooftop and starts using the knives as platforms, stepping on each one and jumping off of it to carry himself across until closing in on The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest and coming down at him with another flurry of thrown blades.
Xương, for just a moment, flashes back to the First Age, of witnessing a past incarnation of Rashmi on a hunt, doing the same trick with a swarm of arrows flying through the air. In this moment of connection he steps in and swings to scoop up the Lintha Abyssal, shoving him into the incoming knives like an upside down bed of nails. The Dusk Caste is utterly-stunned, and Gou unleashes a series of blasts from Weirdflame at him to keep him off-balance.
With a snarl of rage, The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest lunges at him again with Owl Seizes Mouse, but Gou buffets him with his wings, keeping just out of reach of the strike this time. "I'm tired of swatting at flies," the Abyssal mutters. He looks around, aware he's thoroughly surrounded, and lunges at Xương -- as much to try and push past him as hit him, but he just can't get the leverage. This leaves him open for Xương's snapping, swaying jaws to finally find purchase, teeth sinking into the deathknight's neck. With a playful, almost leonine toss of his head, he separates the head from the body, holding the head in his mouth for just a moment longer than should be comfortable, and spits it out as the last of the now-properly-dead Lintha's anima banner sputters out.[8]
The ashen fog begins to clear as the camera pulls back to survey the city, where there's pockets of fighting still going on -- Hu Lang and the Onyx Jackals striking back against the Deathlord's forces in the streets, Kayin, the manta-aspected Lunar from Smolder arriving with his own ship, the Devilfish, to engage the forces still out in the bay alongside Captain Tarok and Shichirou on the Mist-breaking Princess. The camera pulls back even more to reveal Tepet Ejava, also called the Roseblack, commander of the Vermillion Legion making landfall nearby to engage enemy forces on the mainland.
But zooming back in to the group, a flash of silver appears nearby that resolves into a shadowy humanoid figure that then resolves further into Kim Sơn, Chosen of the Pale Mistress, covered in blood and ichor (don't worry, none of it's his). He's panting, and says that right now he's more tired than maybe the rest of his life combined. But he asks how the group's doing, and Xương just points out the Abyssal corpses and fills him in.
They all quickly determine there's no sign of the Captain of the Ashen Umbra or their ship, the Nightmare's Unyielding Grip. Xương relays the comment that Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral made about talking to the High Queen, and Kim Sơn says that tracks with something he's been sensing. As I mentioned above, the old capital of An-Teng, the City of Dead Flowers, is a big shadowland. Around the edge of that shadowland are shrines to the Pale Mistress built by the locals, begging for her to keep the shadowland from spreading further. Via that ring of shrines, Kim Sơn can sense that something is going on down there.
At about this point, Jian shows up, wearing what appears to be the Golden Lord's battle panoply and riding the Mammoth Avatar, the literal god of mammoths and friend to the Golden Lord. She starts to ask for a formal status report, but Kim Sơn cuts her off and gives her the gist, much to her frustration. The group can clearly see the foreshadowing of bickering and bantering between the two.
Jian uses her Charms (which I haven't written up yet, I'm just handwaving the magic) to heal Gou of some of the damage he's taken as she asks how quickly the Lunars can get to the City of Dead Flowers, because she's not sure who else has any means of fast travel overland. It's about 65 miles away, and Hǎifēng says they can do that in a couple of hours. She gives them rough directions -- just go south by southwest, watch for the dried and earth-filled canals that once connected the city to the rest of the country as well as the River of Queens, and when they're close enough they won't be able to miss it.
It comes up that they're lucky -- after all of the rain lately, tonight's sky is clear and the moon is full, which should make it easy to navigate. Xương says they should thank Luna for the full moon and their assistance, and the others agree -- at which point the Lunars (well, the PCs, at least) all feel a little tingle on the spot where Luna touched them in Heaven, in subtle acknowledgement of the group's gratitude.
But the Circle exchanges some quick "Farewell for now, we'll talk later" moments with their present allies before they shift into their bird forms and take off to confront the Deathlord.
And we left off there.
As a reminder, before I go, here you'll find a post explaining some of the mechanics I used for this fight, if you're at all curious.
[0]-- I actually did the math, adapting their Second Edition route to the Third Edition map and working out when they get to certain places (subject to adjustment based on possible future supplements, of course). I didn't mean for the battle to arrive on the dates they normally get to the City of the Steel Lotus (another of An-Teng's port cities), but I actually screwed up the dates when I worked out the battle, and after I fixed that I decided to nudge the battle back a couple of days partially to reflect Xương slowing them down but also so the full moon could be dramatically overhead. And then I realized that this bumped things back to the date range I established for their approach to An-Teng, whoops. However, for reasons I have trouble articulating, I kinda like having that little extra 'this is a disruption to life in An-Teng' detail.
[1]-- To be fair, she's not just being a bitch here. As I've learned reading the manuscript previews, the Abyssal Exalted actually have to do a little mustache-twirling or else they can be mystically-punished for it.
[2]-- I don't always go out of my way to describe other Exalts' Caste marks -- especially since most of the Exalts they've fought haven't had them or had them covered up by masks -- but it felt appropriate in this moment.
[3]-- So, a lot of Abyssal Charms are just reskinned or slightly-tweaked Solar Charms. Because I didn't have the Abyssal Charms available when I statted up the characters (and didn't want to rewrite them at the literal last minute because that was the timing of the previews), I just used the Solar Charms but when applicable I've used the names of their Abyssal equivalents (some derived from past editions). So some mechanics may not exactly match up with the presentation here. And while I'm not going to systematically go through and label all of them, Owl Seizes Mouse (which is a pretty ironic name given how it's being used here) is a version of Thunderclap Rush Attack.
[4]-- The pun is purely unintentional, I swear. I didn't even notice it until one of my players pointed it out in the session.
[5]-- In other words, she was buffing the zombies.
[6]-- Cousin Mongo is, sadly, not important enough to merit a proper demon worm yet.
[7]-- I couldn't think of a good way to depict this on-camera and it felt too insubstantial for its own cutscene, but Rashmi's spent the last week asking his customers and folks in the neighborhoods he protects for knives they can spare. He's told them that the knives are offerings to Kiragaru, the god of killing at a distance, to ask for his protection. Thing is, given that Rashmi is a devout worshipper of Kiragaru and plans to use those knives in An-Teng's defense, that's all technically true. If Rashmi had been one of the player characters in this game, that might've been his 'preparation' action in the week leading up to the battle.
[8]-- If it seems like The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest was harder to kill than Grasping Fingers of Bone-White Coral, that's a side-effect of the fight taking place over multiple sessions. Sometimes it's tough to balance "make an NPC harder to defeat" against "just making the fight take longer." So in general, if I'm running a fight, and we're coming up on the end of our time slot for playing, and I'm trying to finish it or get us to a good stopping point, I might speed things up by dialing back enemy defenses or something like that. But the way sessions lined up, we started the third one with just The Prophecy of Crumbled Bone Made Manifest and the battle groups of mooks still on the field, and I didn't want to start the next fight mid-session so I decided to let him go the distance.
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