With Munasukaru dead we were able to get the large group of victims back to the world above. It was slow going but we were able to get all of them back into the sunshine. The brute strength of Olmas and Radella is kind of scary. I watch as they carried the injured people across the dangerous areas with ease, If it were me I would have been worried about dropping them.

We have decided to give money to each of the survivors so that they can start a new life or get back to their old life. There were so many that it took Kali 3 days to teleport everyone to the nearest city.  Next I turned my attention to Kusatsu Yuka and putting her remains to rest. After a bunch of make whole spells her body and cloths finally shed the look of being torn apart. I did this not just for her but also for all those that now call the pit there tomb. I know that we have to focus on the living but a lot of common folk did not make it out of there. I suspect that for the ones that died in there it was probably a release from the constant torture. Everyone else but me, Sandru and the brothers went to the city so we made sure our guests were fed and comfortable while they wait for their turn to go to the city.

I wanted to go to the city with the others but deep down I needed time to myself to figure things out. It felt like if I went I may not come back. After the last of the survivors were teleported to the city I finally figured out that spending time with these people is what I needed. These are the kind of people that are going to be most hurt if the Oni win. I know if was only a couple of days but a lot of them shared their plans for the future. The talking seem to help them but the pain of those that did not make it out still seem to be a burden in their hearts.

The grove of the Kami is amazing. I spent hours investigating and at times just sitting in the dirt watching and listening. As much as I wanted to spend more time in the grove I felt as if something was pulling me forward to Minkai.

Koya and Amieko clearly had fun shopping. Their bright faces shown of two happy women. Shalelu and Olmas looked to be sporting new scarfs and they did not look happy about it. By the style and color I would guess that Koya picked them out. It wasn’t long after returning that both scarfs were out of sight.

I just learned that Sessi and grandmother are in Sandpoint.  In fact they have been staying with Abby for the last couple of weeks. It never occurred to me to use the crystal ball to view Sessi or Abby. It would have been nice to see their faces. From what I can tell from the sending spells Sessi and Abby are getting along very well. Apparently Koya’s journey inspired grandmother and she insisted that they not wait. I don’t understand why Sesi didn’t tell me she was going to Sandpoint, she just told me that her grandmother said that I needed to focus on getting Ameiko to Minkai. Grandmother said getting Ameiko to Minkai but said nothing about defeating the Oni. Is grandmother trying to tell me that my part ends when Ameiko arrives in Minkai?

Something doesn’t make since. I thought my sending a couple of weeks seemed like she was with her friend in Iqaliat.  How could she get to Sandpoint that quickly? There is an explanation for this but I just can’t see it. Some questions are just best not asked.

It has been a week since we left the grove of the Kami and this part of the journey has been peaceful but I just feel uneasy about something. The others seem to be going about their daily lives as normal, at least normal for a group heading to Minkai.  I feel like a bruised myself right on top of one of the god symbols.

The enchanting of Qatana’s armor has been completed. I was telling her that the armor looked to new and pristine for an adventure like her. We spent some time breaking in the armor so to speak and now this looks like the armor of a warrior. Thankfully Qatana didn’t seem to mind going along with my obsession in regards to metal armor.  She looks really good in this Mithril armor but she would look even more kick ass in something like dark Mithril, is there such a thing as dark Mithril? I was thinking about mice or skulls on the armor but things like that tend to scare people away.

It makes me happy to see Olmas, Redella, and Qatana each having a good set of armor.  I continue to struggle with weather or not to get a mithril breastplate but my role is to shoot arrows. If I upgrade to a mithril breastplate I don’t know if I can resist not picking up a big weapon and heading into melee. If the gods truly didn’t want me to be an archer then I would not be good at archery.

Today something seems to be different about Sesi. Her grandmother says that everything is fine but I just can’t shake this feeling. Abby seems to be fine so I have to wonder if I am seeing something that is not there. I have been having odd dreams about Sesi and that god symbol with the hand, Qatana says it is the symbol for Irori. Sometimes that symbol itches and other times it almost feels like I have a bruise right on the symbol of Irori. Good thing it’s not one of the symbols for the lustful gods as that would be more uncomfortable.

Thanks to Qatana I was able to keep busy working the next enchantment on my bow. Qatana providing the needed spell really help out and I always enjoy her company. Having to buy the materials for 9 true seeing spells really up the price on the enchantment but it just seems right. I always enjoy doing things with Qatana and her protectors.  I would not be surprised if Amieko and dealing with the Oni is just the beginning of our adventures together.

I still have the feeling that something is up with Sesi but she just keeps telling me that everything is fine and that we can’t control fate. Abby just laughed at this and told me that I have always been protective of the people I care about.

The forest has peaceful as Miyaro said it would be. I am glad that the Kami are on our side. I still don’t fully understand why the Kami created a prison for the Oni of the five storms instead of wiping them out. The only thing I can think of is that they were hoping that the Oni would change.

We have made it to the river. I thought building a bridge over the water would be a lot fun. Turns out that there is a lot more to bridges then just creating a stone path across the water. Luckily I seem to be traveling with some smart people. Truthfully I didn’t even understand half of what they were saying. The bridge safely allowed us to cross the water, not sure how many caravans will be taking this path in the future. I guess if Sandru leaves Minkai this could be a safe path, assuming Miyaro is his guide.

Wow it has been a couple of weeks since we crossed the river. Our travel has been peaceful. I have learned a lot about the forest from Miyaro

Kali says that we have just about reached Minkai. I have kept myself busy by creating and upgrading magical weapons and armor for my friends. It is odd to finally admit that I consider all of the friends.

For the record Miyaro is truly amazing. Her secret is absolutely amazing and it makes me mad that she feels that she has to hide it from stupid humans. I was really considering showing her the symbols the gods decided to put on me but it just seemed too creepy. I am not exactly sure how to explain them without sounding creepy.  Hopefully I have was able to properly explain to Miyaro that her abilities are amazing and that I am jealous of them.

Minkai! We arrived and nothing happened. Even the hand symbol has stopped bothering me. I remember Sesi used to talk about how interesting it is that a god picked a hand as his symbol. She would trace the symbol of the hand and talk about how interesting it would be to meet a followers of Irori. Come to think of it she even once asked if I would be upset if someday she became a follower of Irori. I had completely forgotten about that conversation but with what is going on I have to wonder if that means something.

Stepping foot into Minkai feels like the end of chapter one of a book. I spent some time taking in the sounds and smells of the area. Standing here I now get that Sesi was trying to tell me that I have to go were fate takes me even if I can never return. Worrying about it just makes me miserable. When did I start trying to go against fate?

Now we are heading to the camp of a Ronin named Hirabashi Jiro. This will be Amieko’s first test.  Dasi explained about Ronin’s so it should be interesting to meet Hirabashi. I am interested in talking to those that follow the Ronin.

It has been several weeks since Sesi or her grandmother have responded to sending. Abby says that they are no longer there in Sandpoint but now she seems odd. I tried to push it with her but she just told me to knock it off. Which in Abby speak means I am not going to tell you anything. She did tell me that it may be several more weeks before she responds.

I am not sure how I feel about my relationship with Sesi. It took me all this time to realize that her grandmother wasn’t the real reason she did not come along. As usual Abby kept feeding me clues until I figured it out for myself.  All of this still does not help me to understand what is happening.

This morning after our first night in Minkai I feel like some weight has been lifted off my shoulders.  Ameiko on the other hand looks a little tense this morning. I can’t imagine what she is going through. While I was there to cast beacon I reassured her that all your friends are here to help her. Bring stability to Minkai and defeating the Oni are worthy causes but you have to take it one day at a time.

I explained to Ameiko that scouting is relaxing and that I have been trying to figure out a way that she could spend some time away from the caravan scouting. Getting her away from the caravan without anyone seeing isn’t the problem. I told Ameiko that for this to work I would need her to figure out how we can do this without me getting into a heaping pile of trouble with the others.  So today I scout alone.

Night two in Minkai was the might of strange dreams.  The only thing I really remember is the hand symbol of Irori watching me and then suddenly the hand waved goodbye and disappeared. I guess that is a sign that I am not the right path.