Chapter 8 - The Flying Castle

General Summary

With the revived Goldbloom, the Great Khans finally stood a chance against the dragon Ji-Kull. The party continuously attacked him and the dragon tried to flee. This led to Goldbloom giving chase with her outstretched wings and biting the neck of Ji-Kull, while the monk Kiu hopped on it's tail, and Bastion the Wyvern-Rider continued to stab it. The dragon Ji-Kull then fell to his death, into the sacred Pool of Healing, and the adventurers took his head.

flying Castle by Diekyers

However, in the horizon, the party saw a mysterious flying castle. From it, they heard the voice of Si-Wang, thanking them for destroying the dragon and ending the line of Kuchall. Then, she teleported the bones of the dragon onto her castle, and she left, announcing she would bring war to Pung with her undead army. The adventurers then looted the place (finding a Sword of the Masters and a Cauldron that brought people back to life), and headed back down to the city of Ukasan, and gave the king the head of Ji-Kull. They were rewarded immensely.
The Great Khans then took a boat to hurry to Ogaman, so they could finally get the Shogun there on their side, since Tsino, Pung, and Ukasan were willing to reunite. But as they arrived toward the city, they saw Si-Wang's flying castle in the sky. The party wasted no time getting up, but were blasted by ballistae being fired by the skeletal samurai on the castle. Eventually the party landed. They crashed through the windows of the palace and fought off the skeletal samurai guards.
Then, they came to the second floor, which was guarded by the skeletal, headless body of Ji-Kull. They defeated the skeleton relatively quickly, which led Si-Wang to simply laugh. She invited them upstairs, saying, "come to my throne. I have been eagerly awaiting all of you. You shall be the first ones to die to my conquest of these lands, and to join the armies of the dead. So come to haste in your death."
The Great Khans presented themselves before the Lich-Queen, who smiled at seeing them. Then, Sorn Zavirr looked to his card from the Deck of Many Things, promising him "to answer any question truthfully." He pointed it toward the Lich Queen. Then, Sorn asked, "What is the key to destroying you?"

Wraith by Samarskiy

The Lich-Queen, compelled by the card's magic, then answered, "If you destroy my phylactery, I shall return to mortality." Then the Lich-Queen was angered, and stated, "What vile magic did you use on me? No matter! You will all die before you touch my phylactery, including this Goldbloom. Rise, my samurai, and DESTROY THEM!" The skeletons of her old crown guard arose, and then took their Dai-Katanas to attack the group.
The Great Khans fell back, while Bastion rushed toward the phylactery to destroy it. He did quite a bit of damage on it, but then was swarmed by the samurai who knocked him out. The skeleton samurai then pushed forward, leading Goldbloom, Hu-Long, and Kiu to fight off the skeletons, though outnumbered. During this, the Lich-Queen shot many Rays of Frost toward the adventurers behind a protective shield around her throne, which stopped spells from getting to her. The tides of battle started to look unfavorable as Kiu also fell unconscious, as well as Hu-Long. Angska tried to heal, but the Lich-Queen countered her healing spells.
Then, heroically, Ki-Ku used a Dimension Door spell, realizing the Lich Queen's shield did not protect against spells cast upon himself, and then came into her shield. He attacked her with a Fireball spell centered on himself (though he used carefull spell to ensure he was safe). This wounded the Lich Queen, and she attacked back by giving him a paralyzing touch and then reducing him to dust. Sorn continued to counter the spells shot by the Lich Queen, and eventually Angska managed to get up Kiu, Hu-Long, and Bastion from their injuries to keep fighting.
Bastion then charged again, destroying the phylactery before Si-Wang could try to react. Si-Wang clenched her chest, feeling the mortality return to her body. She felt the cold air in her lair, and the taste of ash in her mouth. She continued to blast spells, but Sorn did a game of countering and eventually the Lich-Queen began to tire from her spell use. She tethered her life force onto Bastion, but ultimately this was folly, for he was great in constitution.
The adventurers cornered Si-Wang before one of the windows. The Lich Queen tried to blast a final spell, but it failed to hit anyone. Then, Bastion charged at her with his shield. He smashed the Lich Queen through her window, and with a mighty cry, she fell to her doom.
The castle then began to collapse around the party. Angska carried Ki-Ku's ashes, and the party then flew out of the castle as it crumbled in the sky. They landed safely below into Ogaman, met by the Shogun, who surrendered to Goldbloom in his rebellion. A week later, Ki-Ku was revived in Angska's cauldron. Goldbloom was returned to her father as the princess of Pung, and the lands reunited under the Dragon Emperor once again.

Epilogue

But what happened to our heroes, the Great Khans? They went their separate ways, but it can be summarized as such.

• Angska continued her journey to collect more on the star maps. She would become a great astrologer in her old age as a shaman. Her research led to even greater sailing within the lands of Pung, charting out the stars and their movements. Thus the Pungians began to create a great navy in their lands.

• Bastion returned to the Kaita Horde as their Great Khan. He was immortalized as a god king. Being a creature of Taracotta, he ruled for centuries and brought Pungian civilization to the barbarians. Eventually the lands of Kaita created more cities and became a formidable kingdom on their own thanks to their Khan Bastion.

• Hu-Long returned to Han-Yi and gained ownership of the inn there, as the innkeeper promised. He made renovations to it with the money he made, and immortalized himself in song and about the journey, calling the adventure "The Last Dragon Emperor, or, The Great Khans and their journey to become gods and kings and how they single-handedly saved the land thanks to Hu-Long." The former title was much more used.

• Ki-Ku used his money to make a big house. A really big house. Zeke was eventually freed from his slavery, but remained in service of Ki-Ku for his riches.

• Kiu, despite his commendable efforts to save the land, continued a life of humility instead of following a life of wealth. He returned to the monastery, believing he finished his spiritual journey. When he became old, became a legendary master of the art of Kung-Fu. Many further Pungian monks would desire to be like "The Great Kiu."

• Sorn Zavirr gained a house in Ogaman thanks to the Deck of Many Things, but rarely used it besides as a base for his surface travels. He would return to the Dark Elves in his reports about the surface dragons. The Dark Elves were overjoyed hearing that the men of the surface had fended off great evils, and the relations between the Dark Elves and the men of Faraway continued to improve. Sorn would continue his studies of the dragons until he died.

As for Goldbloom, when her father died, she became the next Empress of Pung. Long did she rule, and referred to her surrogate parents, the Great Khans, for wisdom in her rulings. A second golden age came to the lands of Pung for the 500 years of her reign. She granted the Tallians their independence, and outlawed slavery. With her, the dragons still ruled men in Pung for centuries to come. Unlike the rest of Faraway, the dragons of Pung thrived, and it became a strange paradise where men and dragon could co-exist.

THE END

Date (in world)

April 16th-24th, 1A 3510.

Report Date

17 May 2021

Related Historical Events

• 3509 ME
  War of the Six Kingdoms in Pung

Player Characters

Angska is a human Druid of the Stars. She is an accomplished astrologer in her home village in Shikaizu, but in recent days has received visions of a coming doom to Pung. She seeks to restore her homeland's calendar to finish the pieces.

Bastion is a Goremu Cavalier, a living terracotta warrior in a sense. He was designed with the ideals of bushido in mind, and has taken it upon himself to serve his country despite the wars of the Six Kingdoms raging.

Hu-Long is a Dragonbord Bard of Valor who has been low on money and seeks opportunity for work. He loves his own music and seeks fame and fortune to the very end, hoping to be a star in the eyes of everyone.

Ki-Ku is a homeless wanderer after being driven away from village to village for his unstable magic as a Wild Mage. He is thus constantly searching for food and money, and seems to relish in that lifestyle.

Kiu is an Open Hand Monk, coming from the monastery of the Long-Quan. He was sent out on his pilgrimage to fix the imbalances in the local region of Tsino, and has displayed mastery over the art of Kung-Fu.

Sorn Zavirr is a Dark Elf draconic sorcerer, sent by his superiors to learn more of the dragons of the surface world and uncover the meaning behind his gift.