Session 25. (6/7/12)

"Let's get it!" shouts Emishi and rushes for his horse. The others follow as he sets off after the dragon, now a dwindling wisp of smoke in the distance.

About a mile down the road there's a hidden cave where the dragon can watch those samurai go galloping by. Unfortunately, the smoke is a dead giveaway, and they pull up right out side.

"Come out!" shouts Yoshi Yeesu to the dragon.

"Hang on," says Emishi, "We don't know if it's hostile. We've met three dragons so far, and two were on our side."

A tongue of yellow flame issues from the cave, saving Emishi a few weeks' plucking of his un-samurai-like hairy body. The others manage to scamper back in time. The dragon follows them out. It seems to be casting a spell, but nothing happens. Emishi shrugs and steps into battle, swinging his sword and inflicting 12 damage on the dragon. Tomtare follows and clubs it for 7 damage. Ishan Ashte takes two swings, one landing for 8 damage. Yoshi Yeesu joins them and adds 12 more damage. The dragon takes a breath and expels a massive gout of flame. Emishi is engulfed, Tomtare is fairly well caught and even Sahpo's robe is singed. Sahpo ignores the smell of charring and fires three Arrows of Wood at the dragon, weakening it slightly. While Emishi and Tomtare try to put out the fires burning in their clothing, Ishan Ashte and Yoshi Yeesu attack the dragon again and do 8 and 11 damage, killing the beast. Tomtare and Emishi roll on the ground trying to extinguish the flames as the others scoop dirt onto them. Tomtare's actions are ineffective, but the flames were dying away anyway. Emishi, however, only succeeds in spreading the fire to the rest of his armour and suffers 14 damage.

Just then, two large lizards appear, as a result of the dragon's spell, and attack Ishan Ashte and Yoshi Yeesu, though both miss. Forgetting their burning friends, they turn and fight off the lizards, inflicting hits of 6 and 10, followed by 8 and 11. The lizards respond with bites of 11 and 8. Sahpo, his robe now extinguished, casts three more Arrows of Wood and weakens a lizard. The lizards attack again and Ishan Ashte is bitten, leaving him with a handful of hit points. Tomtare puts out the flames on the remains of his armour and joins Yoshi Yeesu in dealing with a lizard - hits of 9 and 11 finish it off. Ishan Ashte is swept off his feet by the other lizard's tail and is stunned. Emishi's armour falls to the ground in a smoking heap so he attacks the last lizard wearing only a charred fundoshi. Tomtare and Yoshi Yeesu join in and hits of 9, 9 and 13 finish the lizard threat.

Sahpo heals Ishan Ashte back from the brink of death, then tells everyone the Saga of Healing. Everyone feels much better when it is over.

A search of the cave reveals a hoard of six silver coins, one gold coin and two precious gems - but no entrance to hell or anywhere else. Under the dragon's chin they find a pearl which turns out to be of rank 6 and worth about 15 gold. Emishi decides he wants to use the lizard skin to replace his now-useless armour, and sends a smoke signal to the village which he hopes reads "Quick - help needed!" It is seen by the villagers and interpreted as "All day barbecue", but the result is the same and several villagers arrive, skin the lizard and cook the meat on Emishi's armour pyre. The village headman is pleased the dragon is dead as it used to terrorise the village. His family prepare warm baths for the tired warriors and a cold one for Emishi. "This cold bath is going to feel sooo good!" he declares.

The adventurers spend two days in Shichinohe, healing their bites and burns and waiting for the lizard skin to be prepared. Then they return to Hachinohe and take the skins to the tanners. The cost of turning it into armour will be 18 silver - all the money they got from the dragon. "Easy come, easy go," comments Emishi, the beneficiary. While staying in Hachinohe they meet a katari-be (a doctor). Emishi asks if he can do something about his burns, which are quite extensive.

"I've got a poultice," he says, offering a bottle of brown goo. "Only one silver," he adds.

"Is it any good?" asks Emishi, smelling it nervously.

"Critical physician roll," replies the doctor, showing amazing knowledge of game mechanics.

Emishi rubs some on his chest, then tastes a bit. "Hey, it tastes sweet and sort of... chocolaty? Does it have any other uses?"

"Do you have a girlfriend?" inquires the doctor.

"Yes," choruses everyone. The doctor leaves it to their collective imagination; they sit there dreamily, thinking of Emishi's girlfriend.

The next day they visit the five shrines in Hachinohe, make offerings and pray. At the first Emishi feels a tingle. He has asked for an answer to the riddle of the nine gates. He sees a vision of the province as if seen from a great height, with the nine towns and villages arranged in a protective ring around the mountains, rivers and renowned grazing land of the area and a glowing path leading from the first gate to the last - or is it the other way round? At the third shrine Sahpo has a religious experience. He has asked about the location of the neem tree and sees a clear vision of a town in Ezo - Shiriuchi, birthplace of Mineo, Yoshi Yeesu's father. The gods are silent at the other shrines, including the shrine of Inari. The local legend already having been discovered, they set off on the long, five-day journey to the ninth and final gate, Kunohe.

In Kunohe, the five adventurers are dismayed to find that the only shrine is not to Inari. They argue for several hours about whether they should build a shrine to Inari (and discuss the weather, politics, art, famous speeches, good and bad times from the past before eventually returning to the topic) without making a decision before Ishan Ashte finally gets fed up and goes in search of an elderly local to inquire about the Nine Gates legend. He hears a familiar-sounding tale.

"The Nine Gates legend is that there are nine gates between heaven and hell," the old woman he has found says. "Pass through all nine in order and you will arrive in hell! It is said that Ichinohe is close to hell and Kunohe close to heaven. Some say it is up the mountain pass to the west by Ogura-dake (Little Storehouse Peak)."

"But that's exactly what they said in Ichinohe, except that they say heaven is near to them!" he exclaims. He goes to report to the others. Tomtare concurs. "The name of the mountain is even the same," he says. "In fact, ...isn't that the same peak, over there to the west? Didn't we see it from the other side in Ichinohe?"

"Well it is just the other side of that ridge," says Sahpo after a short battle with the map.

"Then what are we waiting for?" concludes Emishi.

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