Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

"I don't feel like it's the best idea to tempt the unknown," Ling Qi said slowly. "How close is close to the enemy?"

"Estimating based on known enemy locations, the passages nearby are likely a supply route," Guan Zhi replied.

Su Ling grunted. "That about matches up with the divination. Low concentration, but near."

"Then I think it's the best path," Ling Qi said, shooting an apologetic look to Liao Zhu.

He merely chuckled. "I was merely expressing confidence in our abilities. This will be a different sort of challenge."

"My agreement lies with Miss Ling. This one has prepared resources for such trials, even if the hour has come sooner than not," Xuan Shi said, giving her a nod.

"Hope you put as much effort into them as you do sucking up to girls," Ji Rong scoffed.

"He says that like it's a bad thing," Hanyi sniffed.

Xuan Shi scowled at him from behind his collar, but Guan Zhi silenced both of them with a look. "I am inclined to avoid unknowns at this point in the operation as well. The Sect has studied the enemy scouting patterns."

"What do we call these fuckers anyway?" Ji Rong asked. "Can't just keep saying 'the enemy'."

"Shishigui," Bian Ya said quietly. "The corpse eaters."

Guan Zhi glanced at Bian Ya. "That is the term which has spread among those on the front line. The Sect has not yet officially adopted the term but… it will do."

"Corpse Eater Demon huh, that's an ugly name," Sixiang mused. "Kinda weird though, don't all of you humans eat meat?"

There was a difference, Ling Qi thought absently. Despite seeming similar, the words used had different connotations.

"If you say so," Sixiang whispered dubiously.
"Disciple Liao, Disciple Ling, continue ahead, but keep the distance short. We will be coordinating more closely for this leg of the journey," Guan Zhi said crisply. "Everyone else, back into battle order."

Ling Qi stood, smoothing her dress as the others rose as well. For better or for worse, the choice was made.

The passages that led on were less steep than some of the proceeding ones, and far narrower at that, only wide enough for two men standing shoulder to shoulder at their widest. For Ling Qi and Liao Zhu, it was about a ten minute trip before they started to see signs of the fungal growth. It spread, weblike through the corridors, clinging to the ceiling and walls in thick fleshy strands, here and there the fungal growth had peeled away from the ceiling to hang in drooping loops.

As they proceeded down the tunnels the growth grew thicker, soon they strode across a spongy mat of fungus and the walls grew ever harder to make out. The whole of it tugged at her senses as well, the presence of the stuff seemed to fill her spiritual senses with a sort of blurriness.

"Are you well Junior Sister?" Liao Zhu said lowly. They stood outside the mouth of the passage that opened into the main body of the growth, a dark, circular tunnel that pulsed imperceptibly as if it were breathing.

"Yes, it's just distracting, no signs of hostility," she said shaking her head.

"The Oozey Thing isn't growing, but it is not dead, Gui does not like it," her little brother grumbled. She could feel his suspicion as he glared at the odd growth through her senses.

"I suppose with your attunement it would be," he mused. "In that case, while I travel ahead to mark out the presence of our foes, you will travel behind to map and study the environment."

For a moment, she wanted to object, but it made sense. One way or another, he was the better scout, whereas she, and by extension Sixiang were better suited to this role. She nodded.

"Good, relay reports at intervals of five minutes," he said crisply. There was no playfulness in Liao Zhu's voice. "You recall the emergency codes?"

"Yes, senior brother," Ling Qi said, already feeling for the connection which Bian Ya had bound to them before they left the main group. Like her spirit bonds she merely needed to think in the proper way and the message would be sent.

"Good, I will see you soon, Junior Sister," by the time his quiet words had faded, he was already gone, and she only caught the faintest flicker of silver to mark his passage.

Ling Qi breathed out, and turned her eyes to the fleshy fungal wall, reaching out to brush her fingers over the surface. It was warm, less warm than a human body but not by much. There were spores in the air, but they did not cling aggressively. She felt no fluctuations in her qi that would indicate harm. 'What do you think, Sixiang? Everyone?'

"I Zhen, agree with Gui, but Big Sister is being sneaky, so burning is out," Zhengui replied.

"You're both being silly, it's not that bad," Hanyi scoffed. "Sis should not work herself up too much, this isn't like Momma's house."

"It's kinda funky," Sixiang chirped. "And I bet it's gonna get even funkier further in. This thing is at least partway spiritual, and it's big enough to make things thin. Just watch your step, it's easy to lose track of things in a dream."

'You would know,' Ling Qi thought wryly. She squared her shoulders giving her spirits the indication to stay alert and ready, then flowed into the tunnel as a whisper of shadow.

Silver lights winked in the darkness as Ling Qi began to explore, the only sign of her activating techniques. Knowing that Liao Zhu was moving to scout for the enemy, Ling Qi focused her attention on the odd growth that made up the tunnels themselves, feeling the traceries of qi that surrounded her.

Sixiang was right, this growth was very large indeed. It stretched beyond her senses in some directions. Above, she could feel the stolid qi of rock and earth only a few dozen meters above, and behind her, she could feel the same not so far away at all. But below, the growth stretched past her knowing. Yet, it didn't precisely feel like one entity. The closest analogue that came to mind was a hive of bees. Distinct but united, only a single 'mind' or spirit shared between them, but assembled from smaller pieces like a child's blocks.

All around her the fungus breathed the fleshy walls expanding and contracting imperceptibly. It did not seem aware of her, did not seem aware of anything so far as she could tell. However, she could feel things within it that put her on guard. Here and there, dotted throughout the mass she could feel other creatures, beasts trapped inside, not struggling, merely asleep.

"And Dreaming," Sixiang mused. "Heh, what a glutton. It's eating their dreams. I guess I better hope I'm not tasty."

Ling Qi frowned at the muses' flippancy and came to a stop in a secluded bend of the narrow tunnel. She rested her hand on the slightly warm fungus. It vibrated slightly under her fingers, but she sensed no other reaction. The beasts it held within were all weak things, mostly first realm, with a handful of low second grade's slumbering deeper within the fleshy mass. A passive feeder then? It was hard to get a handle on the things' power, but she didn't think it was beyond the third realm.
"Hm, it's just good sense not to expend more energy than you need too. Might be it has no interest in picking a fight with anything that can fight back, or… no, there is a little something in the air."

Ling Qi narrowed her eyes, and the silver flecks in them intensified for a moment. It was subtle, so subtle that she had actually missed it before, but miniscule flecks of Dream qi were drifting in the air, they were too weak to affect her, which is why they had escaped her notice, but yes, they would definitely put someone from a lower realm asleep given time.

"It can probably only really sense things when they're asleep and dreaming," Sixiang murmured. "I suppose I'm good since I'm hidden in you."

"What are we gonna do Sis?" Hanyi said impatiently. In the back of her mind Zhengui shifted as well, seeming agitated.

'We need to keep things quiet for this part, If this thing is passive all the better,' she thought absently, examining the tunnel. She shifted her thoughts, focusing away from her spirits and instead thinking of Bian Ya, and the flickering node of wind qi that the girl had attached to her. She relayed what she had found so far in terse and clipped terms as she continued down the passage.

"Relaying Disciple Liao, enemy presence minimal, chart path, keep east. Ten minutes until group arrival." Bian Ya's voice echoed quietly in her thoughts.

Ling Qi nodded to herself. Right, no time to waste then.

She breathed out, and merged with the darkness of the tunnel.

Over the course of the next ten minutes Ling Qi carefully catalogued the tunnels she traveled through in her mind, relaying the information back to Bian Ya as she went, and pausing only to listen to relayed reports from Liao Zhu. The passages through the fungus were twisty, often ending in dead ends or turning back on themselves, or otherwise going nowhere, but she did manage to chart out a route that traveled downward, doing her best to keep east, not only to avoid enemies, but to keep the stone she could feel in range. If nothing else, Xuan Shi could probably set up a passage through a wall if she could find another passage that came near the fungal crevice.

However, the further she descended, the more difficult it became to go forward. The dream qi in the air grew thicker and thicker, until it clung to her like a fog, even then it didn't harm her, but, she would take a step and find herself turned around, or in a passage she had already been in. Once, she had even found herself in a wholly unfamiliar tunnel, and only Sixiang's careful guidance had enabled her to step through the veil in just the right way to return back to her starting point.
So it was that Ling Qi returned to the entrance to report in person without having found a clear path through. Between Elder Jiao's cloaking talisman and Xuan Shi's own concealing arrays, she could not even feel her allies until she was directly looking at them. It was an odd and disconcerting feeling. But, she didn't let that show, instead making her report on the phenomena.

"Do you believe you can penetrate the obstacle given further time?" Guan Zhi asked her. The older girl stood before the others, her arms behind her back.

"...It is possible that I could brute force matters," Ling Qi admitted, thinking of the technique she had so recently mastered. Ephemeral Dreamlit Dancer would allow her to cross the space unhindered, pulling a few people along at a time, but the cost to her qi would be prohibitive, given the distances involved. "I do not know how much use I would be afterwards though."

Guan Zhi frowned, glancing to Su Ling, who stood stiffly next to Bian Ya and between the two boys.

"The divination was clear, this is a viable path," Su Ling replied defensively. "Must be something we are missing."

"Could burn through," Ji Rong said, raising a fist. "I got a few things for shredding through shitty dreams."

He met Ling Qi's eyes as she straightened up, and she huffed in amusement. Was he thinking of challenging her to a rematch? Guys were like that sometimes she supposed.

"And bring down all of our foes upon us no doubt," Xuan Shi grumbled.

"Hmph, your toys not rated for a bit of door busting?" Ji Rong scoffed.

"Sect Brother Liao continues to report that the Shishigui use only the higher, less infested passages," Bian Ya said absently. "Messengers, a handful of sentries and no more. He reports that the creatures regard this region with suspicion and wariness, and move with greater haste and less caution through it."

Guan Zhi was silent as they spoke, only holding up a hand to quiet their words after a long moment. "Disciple Ling, you are familiar with spirits of darkness and dream, correct? Do you believe that this entity is capable of negotiation?"

"...I am unsure," Ling Qi admitted. "It's power would make it seem so, but it's nature makes me uncertain. Sixiang?"

"I can probably translate if that's your meaning. I have weirder cousins, I think you'll have to go pretty deep to get it's attention properly though," her muse responded aloud, earning a twitch from Ji Rong.

"Then that seems the optimal path for the moment. Attempting violence would also alert the entity before us, so attempting speech first is only sensible," Guan Zhi said crisply. "Disciple Ling you will attempt negotiations for passage. Should this fail, we will use Disciple Ji's methods. Disciple Ling, Lead us to the furthest stable point."

Ling Qi nodded, clasping her fists together and bowing her head. She tried not to let her nerves show. She knew what rumors said of her, but really it wasn't like she often negotiated with spirits. But they needed Liao Zhu to focus on keeping track of their enemies, so the duty fell to her. She had to hope that what she had studied of the Melody of Spirit Seekers would help.

"Don't worry too much, we have your back," Sixiang murmured. Hanyi and Zhengui affirmed the words, and Ling Qi felt her tension bleed away. She wasn't alone here. She could handle this.

And so, they descended.





And once more, she was alone. She had left the group behind a short distance back, at the point where the tunnels had only just begun to warp. They were only moments away if the need arose.

"Ready to go," Sixiang murmured, and Ling Qi felt phantom hands on her own. She nodded, and glided forward, stepping into the eddy of dream qi that filled the tunnel. She felt the world shift, but this time, she didn't step through. She flared her qi and stepped in.

Between one eyeblink and the next the fungal tunnel was gone. Ling Qi stood atop a shimmering rainbow sea, her boots sending out ripples across the 'water', Hanyi stood at her side, holding her hand, and on her other side, Zhengui towered.

All around them was chaos. Where the shimmering rainbow pool ended a maelstrom began. Blurred images, fragments of creatures and environments mingled and melted too fast to track. However, they were not what drew her attention. No, that was the eyes.

Thousands, tens of thousands of eyes in every shape and size floated, drifted and spun through the chaos. It reminded her of Elder Jiao, but without the laser like focus or singular will. They gazed upon broken fragments, observing, watching and longing. As she watched, an eye split open lengthwise along it's reptilian pupil and devoured a fragment of hope and longing, another nibbled at an image of a dark and glittering city, festooned with bones, and another snapped up a simple sliver of animal hunger.
It all stopped however, as the ripples of her footsteps reached the edge of the pool, and they turned to look at her. The hairs on her neck rose, and she very nearly expressed her flute then and there.

But they didn't attack, a susurrus of whispers struck her ears like the scratching of fingernails on wood and Zhengui let out a low rumble of distress, lines of magmatic light flaring on his shell. She rested a hand on his head.

"I come only to speak," she said clearly, focusing her attention on the largest eye, a dark green, nearly black thing, with a pupil like a goat.

Beneath her, the pool, Sixiang, rippled and she felt the muse's qi ripple outward into the maelstrom. 'Translating,' as it were.

The eyes hissed and twitched spinning and rotating around her. Then the scratchy whispering intensified, and Ling Qi hunched her shoulders as they 'spoke'. Even filtered through Sixiang it was uncomfortable.

[Our Prey. Ours. Go. Go silver dreams. No Sky. No Star. Go. Go GO&^%***]

Ling Qi winced at the incomprehensible noise that its words turned into hammering at her thoughts. It was like a hundred thousand voices all screaming at her at once. At her side Hanyi shuddered, clenching her eyes shut, and the threatening rumble rising from Zhengui only intensified. Zhen let out a hiss like steam escaping from a volcanic vent.

"If Dead not Dead Thing screams at sister and Hanyi again. Zhen will make it regret all things," her little brother hissed.

The eyes shuddered and spun shying away. This thing… it really was afraid, wasn't it? Despite the deep, deep well of power she could sense from them… it? Once she forced herself to look past the disturbing imagery, the greatest thing she could sense from it was fear. Her earlier thoughts returned. The creature fed on the weak, passively consuming those who fell asleep within. However… why then, did their enemies fear and avoid the deeper parts of the crevice?

With the Melody of the Spirit Seekers echoing under her breath, Ling Qi considered how to approach this.

[] Sympathetic approach (Base success 30+, 3 rolls, more time consuming, higher cost.)
[] Threatening approach (Base Success 60+, 1 roll, least time consuming, no cost.)
[] Confident Approach (Base Success 45+, 2 rolls, less time consuming, lower cost.)

All options will have additional benefits or penalties based on the rolls,

The target number is the baseline number which determines how successful each roll is, the number of rolls is the number of times that you will need to roll. Cost is the cost paid negotiating with the spirit.

All successes will be by degrees.