"If you seek passage through the Fog to the Temple of the North Wind, you must first prove that you are an honorable soul." Brother Xian Bhi said. "The Amber Horde left the folk of the Ashen Roads homeless and without shelter. If they are to survive, they must find a refuge.
"There is an imperial garrison tower near here - it could shelter the people, but we do not know what has become of it, and the roads are unsafe. Could you go to the garrison tower and see if there is any threat there? Before we run to it, we must know if the enemy is within!"
We nodded as we turned to leave, and a few minutes later, we stopped at a particularly tall and sturdy-looking bamboo plant near the tower. Since I had the most experience climbing ratlines aboard a ship, I was elected to go up with my spyglass and scout out the tower.
As I reached the top, I brought my pre-extended spyglass up to my eye to scan the tower, and a few seconds later, I called down, "The tower's guarded by Samoorai ghosts! We'll have to report back!"
As I slid back down the bamboo pole, we returned to the camp to report back to Brother Xian Bhi, who said, "This is terrible! But there may be a way to help the dead and the living. The guards' imperial standard was taken by the Amber Horde - if you can get it back, they will find peace and the tower will be safe! Bring it to me once you have recovered it."
The three Horse barbarians whinnied as they galloped towards us on the ashen roads, armed with curved sabers and crossbows. Nikolai stood his ground as he took a stance. "Earthquake!"
As he struck the ground with his staff, pillars of earth began erupting forward from his position, and the barbarians were thrown off their hooves to be stunned by Emma's sniper rifle like they were clay pigeons.
"My turn!" I shouted as I leapt in with my sword in hand. As one barbarian began to get up, I covered my sword's blade in blue energy to blunt it as I slammed it into his back. Drawing my pistol, I then shot his nearby comrade in the face as the last one ran away in fear.
Nikolai snapped his fingers, and two broomsticks popped out of nowhere to float next to us, and we followed Nikolai's example of mounting them by swinging our left legs over the broomstick. "Hold on!"
As Nikolai kicked off the ground, I nearly fell off my broomstick as it jerked upwards, and we flew in an arrowhead formation high above the barbarian's head as he entered the Amber Horde camp. "Alright, I'm breaking our formation. Just point it the way you want to go, and lean to control your speed. Cover me while I snatch the standard!"
Emma and I nodded, and as Nikolai hurtled towards the standard in the center of the camp on his staff, we fired our guns to cover him as the barbarians were roused out of their tents. As Nikolai pulled the standard out of the ground, all crossbows were aimed at him instead, and through some miracle, he didn't get killed as he flew up into the air. "Meteor Strike!"
As fireballs the size of barrels rained down on the Amber Horde camp, Nikolai began flying as fast as he could, nearly crashing into us as he went. "Follow me!"
"Ah, the standard! I will purify it, and then you must place it inside the garrison tower." Brother Xian Bhi said, a bit after we returned to the camp. "Beware! The guards will resist you with all their strength. But if you fight with virtue, you will bring them honor and peace."
"We'll be about it." I answered, and as we walked to the garrison tower, Emma asked, "Can't we use the broomsticks again?"
"It's fifteen gold coins for one use. That's highway robbery, right there. I only bought them in case of emergency." Nikolai said, and we soon arrived at the garrison tower, where all of the Samoorai ghosts were waiting for us with their swords drawn.
Emma fired her first shot, taking out a ghostly warlord, and she ran to join me, her bayonet turning her sniper rifle into a makeshift spear, and Nikolai casted his spell. "Hybrid Spell: Wraith!"
As a black-cloaked Nikolai joined us in close quarters combat, I saw the words carved into the blade of his sword: Memento Mori. Remember that you will die.
As the blade made contact with the ghosts, they dissipated to fuel the glow black aura surrounding Nikolai's blade, and as we finished off the third quarter of the enemy, Nikolai let out a "KIAI!"
It probably would've sounded epic if it weren't for the fact that Nikolai's voice cracked, and Emma and I struggled not to laugh at the reminder of his puberty as a black arc of energy sliced through the remaining Samoorai ghosts. "Quick - plant the standard!"
Barging in through the tower's doors, I found a small patch of soft dirt where I shoved the pole of the standard down into. "It's done. Now the tower's safe for the villagers."
We returned to the camp, where Brother Xian Bhi bowed low to us. "You have done my people a great service. I will announce that the garrison tower is a sanctuary to the people."