Dueling Fate

It's been a while - particularly soul-draining period at work, combined with having to work out the mechanics for the next cultivation stage. But here we are!


The sword-bearing disciple's gaze pierces you uncomfortably, but you do not hesitate to answer.

"We don't have a leader, but Bai Ping and Medhi and I are friends, and I believe they would be willing. I cannot speak for Yan directly, but I do not think he would refuse."

Chanying's gaze softens slightly, but Xifeng's eyes remain fierce as she meets your gaze levelly.

Empathy + Discernment 0 (Heart-Reading 0)

7, 4 - 1 Success!

Heart-Reading +1

There is a moment of connection between you and Xifeng. It has never been easy for you to connect with other people. You are a creature of open skies and winding trails, not of gossip and intrigue. But since you completed Consecration, you took more of the qi of the world into yourself than you had ever before. And you find something in yourself responding to something in Xifeng. It feels like stories you have heard, of cultivators being able to detect killing intent without eyes, of being able to communicate with their energy alone across a battlefield.

Xifeng is not just eager, but desperate to prove herself. If she is judging you harshly, you sense that same harshness of spirit directed at herself.

She pauses, but inclines her head. "Very well. Should you fail to follow through, we will show you no more mercy than any other team."

You nod as well, but linger a moment. You harbor suspicions about this girl's identity - but you are not a courtier. You have no need to suspect and deduce when asking will suffice. "Before I go, I must ask, exactly who have I bargained with?"

Xifeng's smile grows sharp, her eyes glint. Before she can answer, Wu raises a hand to her mouth, which is smiling at the corners. "Oh, Lind, did you not know? Before you stands Wen Xifeng, granddaughter of Elder Wen, also known as the Golden Monkey, or simply the Monkey, the Titan-Breaker, the Defender of the Dawnstar Gate, The One Who Did Not Kneel, and Head Elder of the Golden Reeds sect."

Well. That puts a few matters into their proper place.

You nod to Wu. "It changes nothing." You turn back to Wen, and extend a hand. She clasps it with a warrior's grip, and shakes it once.

—

From the sands of the lakeshore, you walk until you reach the main river which drains from it. The flow seems placid on the surface but inserting your hand into the crystal-clear water and feel its swiftness, a powerful pull that seems to be greater than the mere physical force would suggest. Your fingertips tingle slightly, a pleasant sensation from the spiritual energy carried by the liquid.

You walk upon the reed-bordered riverside, towards where you were told cultivation classes would be taught. Although you still do not practice the sect's breathing style, there may be other secrets you may learn.

Some of your fellows have joined you in the green-walled gazebo in the center of the placid lake. It is larger and more finely appointed than the first room you cultivated in, with greater power swirling through the air, but seems underfilled. An explanation is soon offered as it becomes clear that today's lesson is introductory in nature and designed for your incoming class. Presumably, most days are given over to meditation and larger groups attend. The cultivation trainer is Shen Tengfei, a portly man clad in spider-silk grey and a bushy beard. A rod of blue jade hangs in his hand, and he uses it to draw glowing words and illustrations as he speaks. "The Earthly Realms of cultivation are known as Consecration, Foundation, and Formation. The names are said to have derived from the stages of building a temple. First, the ground is purified. Next, the foundation is excavated. Finally, the temple itself is built." He gestures at the glowing pagoda-style temple he has conjured.

"Next are the Sky Realms," he points to the area above the temple, "where cultivators discard the shackles of the flesh and approach the spiritual, and finally the Immortal or Divine Realms."

"The vast majority of cultivators will never step beyond the Earthly realms, as the Heavens still level tribulations on those who step beyond the allotted power of mortals. The Elders of the sect and some of the Seniors are blessed to reside in the Sky realms. Of those in the Divine Realms…" his voice goes distant, "you all know the Emperor, Cao Feng." You follow the teacher's eyes, which are directed far off in the distance, and you know he gazes in the direction of the Imperial Capital.

"As your bodies have been purified of impurities and you have constructed a spiritual core in your dantian, it is time for you to focus on your meridians. There are numerous channels throughout your body through which qi can flow. However, there are eight which deserve special attention, as the body does not naturally allow more than a trickle to pass through these meridians at a given time. Each meridian is locked behind a "gate", which is both a spiritual and physical obstruction. Opening these "gates" is the way in which you will progress through the next stage of your cultivation. You must gather energy in your lower dantian and use it to force a way through the barrier without injuring yourself. Each Gate must be opened at once, and they will grow more difficult as you progress. Then, you must cultivate until you are ready for the next attempt."

The rest of the class is given over to an overview of the eight meridians. You are given a dizzying overview of dozens of theories - medical, spiritual, traditional. Entire scholarly careers have been built on writing dueling treatises regarding the Foundation stage. Everyone has an opinion, and each path undoubtedly offers significant advantages - the Gates opened first reveal the greatest benefits by the time the cultivator is ready to start the next phase. The Golden Reeds orthodoxy favors opening the gates of Affinity and Self first, as any path can benefit from greater depth of power, and leaving the Gate of Stars until you have a greater use for the insight it offers. But no one is here to make a decision for you.


As the cultivation class drones on, Lind sinks into the Devouring Crucible once more. As he does, he feels a flash of insight from the lessons imbued from that obsidian shard given to him by the Ghost. He can feel the flames of the Crucible eating away at the first of the Gates.

Devouring Crucible Foundation Stage Benefit Revealed - the target number of breakthroughs is reduced by 3 per Gate. However, Lind will take damage from each breakthrough equal to (7 x Gate Number).

First Gate Target Number - 17(20)! Which Gate Lind tries to open will be determined when he makes his first attempt! This target number must be met over one set of Cycling rolls, ie, in one action. Failing a breakthrough by a significant amount may have negative consequences.

There is enough time at the end of class that you could meditate, but you do not feel ready just now. Your head is too full of knowledge to make a decision yet on what you wish to attempt first. Instead, you must clear your head, and so you make your way to one of the sect dining halls.

Lunch is being served in a building half-opened to the air, and a dizzying array of disciples meet your eyes here. If you thought the sect members who travelled to and from town made for a diverse set, the exotic features (many nonhuman) outlandish clothing and dizzying array of weapons and spiritual tools on offer make for an arresting sight, as you are able to view all of them in the act of devouring bowls of rice topped with meat and sauce of their choice. Your spiritual senses do not tingle with the scent - this is good food, but mundane, and the Immortal Chefs ply their arts at the village or elsewhere in the sect. Still, the trays of dirtied dishes being removed and replaced at a steady pace speak to the quality of the meals on offer.

Roll: Insight (4) + Logic 0 (Math 0)

6 2 2 8 = 1 Success!

Something about the number of disciples, though, makes your mind itch. It takes you a moment, but only that.

There are too few for the number and size of the buildings here.

There have been hints. The ruined pagoda found by Bai Ping. The too-small meditation chamber, just now. Even the fact that a Senior of the sect would recruit students from so far afield as your village speaks to something. But now you are sure - the Golden Reeds has far fewer members than it once boasted. Why, you cannot say, but it is a question worth asking.

Now is not the time, however. You scan the crowd and find the raggedy-haired figure of Medhi sitting alone at a corner table. The once-scrawny disciple has filled out into lean muscle, fed by Consecration and, you suspect, new access to regular meals. But even as he idly moves barbequed pork from bowl to mouth, you see that there is distraction in his eyes. His eyes glance to the vast shimmering lake, the mountains, and even back to the village.

If it were you looking at the distance like that, you would be fighting wanderlust. You know you have barely scratched the surface of the sect grounds. But Medhi wandered not from choice, but from necessity. He does not have the look of a hunter.

He has the look of prey.

You take your own bowl, filled with some form of shellfish and a lesser version of the sour-and-sweet sauce that you ate with the Kraken's tentacle, and sit next to Medhi. Without saying anything, you tilt the bowl and offer some of your food, which he takes, and with the slightest gesture does the same, which you reciprocate. You both chew in silence for a moment.

"It is good," you comment.

"...yes." He says.

"There would not be such good food in the lands beyond the mountains," you comment.

"...I could grow my own food. I have been learning."

You bite back a comment about whether a month makes Medhi the equal of a skilled farmer, and shrug. "I suppose you could."

You eat for another few moments.

"I liked it here. I really did." Medhi sighs as he stares at the lake.

"There are parts I like," you comment neutrally.

"...that is a way of saying there are parts you don't."

"No path in life is perfect. The broken cobbles let you gauge your pace," you say, quoting something from the Travels of Li.

Medhi snorts, and it almost comes out to a sob at the end. "They're setting us up to fail, Lind. Even our 'teacher' doesn't believe in us. I don't want to play their game. I'm feeling I should just leave."

Medhi appears to be having a crisis of confidence. What do you say to reassure him?

[] Your team is not as disadvantaged as it appears. Each of you has talents, the same as the other three teams, and you have made it this far. If you work together, you can be even stronger than those with advantages.

[] Your teacher has seemingly treated your poorly, but there must be more to it. At your next meeting, you will challenge her as a group and force her to explain herself.

[] At least one of the other teams is willing to work together. Perhaps this competition will not be so serious as to ruin your odds of success at the sect. Maybe it could even be fun?

[] Write-in