ic Snakebite In: Hidden Treasures of the Himalayas! (IC)

[Poncho]

Late June, 2024

 

A long flight from the British Museum to Asia, then a helicopter flight to a city in Nepal at the base of the Himalayan mountain range. It gave Cassandra Crow- alias Snakebite- time to reflect on what was going on.

 

Previously

 

The British National History Museum had called in a favor to Cassandra Crow; a lost expedition in the deep Himalayas. Doctor Zhai- A professor of History focused on the Himalayan mountains from China- and two of his graduate students, had set out on an archeology expedition several months ago. After consistent status updates every other week, the communication had eventually stopped, and a few weeks later a call to the staging ground village had confirmed that the Professor and his students hadn't reappeared in some time. This was worthy of some level of concern; even if the area could be dangerous, it wasn't like Dr. Zhai to lose contact and not let others know. His last messages involved the location of an ancient village said to be the resting place of many ancient dynastic treasures; taken from China when the capital burned ages ago. But the village was remote and it's precise location unknown for hundreds of years. Until, allegedly, a few weeks ago when Doctor Zhai finally found it.

 

And then he vanished. And then Snakebite was called in to attempt to find and- if needed- rescue him and his graduate students.

 

In the Present

 

As the chopper set down in a field outside a wooden village, the pilot slapped the panels.

 

"I'll be setting up here until you find the Doctor, this place is fine to stick around so don't worry about that. If you need me to move in closer; like if he's hurt or something, hit me on the radio on frequency 577, and I'll see how close I can get. Keep the GPS tracker on you so I can follow it."

 

There wasn't a storm coming, at least; the sky was clear, and the mountains hung over the tiny village like the shadow of a massive wave as the two unpacked the chopper to head into town.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

"577, Got it," said Snakebite, thumb up. 

 

The air was crisp and clean. Mountains were not her regular territory; that would be jungle heat. But she still knew how to handle them. Dress up warm, for one thing. She slung her backpack over her shoulder - medical kit, food, water, tent. Heavy, perhaps, but Cassie was stronger than she looked. A lot stronger. 

 

And by her belt, her pistol and whip. One could never be to careful. 

 

The problem was the Himalayas were big, and easy to get lost in. If there wasn't a clue in the village - then it would be like finding a needle in a haystack. 

 

But it was worth the effort. Not just for the lives in danger, but for the ancient mysteries that might be discovered. 

 

So determined, she launched her booted feet towards the village. 

 

"Hello? Hello?" she called out. She had some US dollars to spare, if she needed to loosen tongues....

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

The village, with it's brightly painted doors and windows, it's laundry lines and the men and women working around in it, was inviting to say the least. There were several vendors and sherpas handling the last preparations for climbers. These people would probably make climbs on smaller, well-trodden peaks, taken care of for a great price by the careful watch of the sherpas tending to them; being able to claim a successful climb thanks to the efforts of those who made their living in doing so.

 

As Snakebite entered the village, she could smell grilled meat and food; the town was set up so that 'main street', such as it was, was set up for the precise transport of climbers. Stalls of food, inns for staging grounds, last minute checks and sherpa's offices, all had their place on the well trodden streets. Under a canvas yurt, a woman was grilling some meat on a skewer and waved at Snakebite.

 

"Yes! I'll answer any questions you have so long as you buy some meat!" she said with a smile, cutting off a big piece to try and entice the new arrival.

 

"Oh no, me, me! You buy some of my good rope and I'll answer whatever you want!" called another voice. The selling had begun. How much these people actually knew about Dr. Zhai was difficult to say, but surely someone could at least point her in the right direction.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

"Ill by both," replied Cassie. 

 

No joke, either. She had a wad of 100 dollar bills in her jacket. And some gold sovereigns in a strap in her backpack as back up. Even out in the great outdoors, off the beaten path, it was good to have currency. And the Crow family - at least usually - plenty. 

 

She went to the meat seller first, sniffing the produce to check it was reasonably fresh. For the most part, in her experience, rural meat sellers usually sold fresh produce. You didnt make a living giving people food poisoning. Fresh, but often a lot of off cuts and gristle. 

 

She brought out a picture of the missing professor. 

 

"Have you seen this man?" she asked, as she haggled for meat. 

 

It wouldnt harm to have a few cuts to cook over a campfire later...

 

 

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

"Ooooh, the Professor..." her face went a little darker, like it was somethign she was a little uncomfortable about. "...He was into some dangerous stuff, m'am. Not the kind of stuff a good climber or explorer should be doing." she sad gravely. "The Hidden City and the Sunbright Temple are meant to be hidden for a reason, and we never go looking for it...we'd prefer not to anger the Yetis." she said as she helped Snakebite with several wrapped packages. "...I'd stay away from that sort of stuff if I were you...I'm not comfortable talking about it." She mumbled.

The rope seller laughed as he offered her several strongly tied ropes. "Don't worry about Granny. Always with the superstitions. We'd still be walking into doors backwards if we listened to what Granny said all the time. The Professor knows what he's doing; he had a room over at the Silver Yak up the road, you might wanna check there, see if he left anything behind. The Professor always paid good too, and he worked hard, so I'm hoping he's good. I think he went out with Baiyun and Fenzan on his last trip; those were the two who usually went with him...I think Baiyun may have come back a few days ago? I'm not sure though, if he's around, he'll be out at base camp if he's not on the mountain." He pointed down the road towards the very last station before the camping began. "Here, this is the best rope I've made all season, I'll give it to you for cheap, let's call it good luck, huh?" he offered her a heavy, sturdy rope with alternating blue and red strands. The grandmother sniffed.

 

"Baiyun's a notorious liar...I wouldn't trust anything out of his mouth."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

"A liar, is he?"

 

Cassie raised an eyebrow. Baiyun might be a liar, but so might this lady. 

 

As for the Yeti's. She had never met one, but she had seen enough reports that it was, at the very least, plausible that they existed. She hoped she had enough sedative darts.... maybe, if she was really lucky, she could capture one!

 

She frowned the thought out of her head. She was here to rescue, not capture Yeti's. 

 

But if the opportunity presented itself...

 

She took the rope, with thanks, and headed off to the Silver Yak, mulling over the clues. Baiyun, Fenzan. These were the characters she needed to speak to. 

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

The Silver Yak was a medium sized in with a rickety wooden sign hanging above the door that was, as promised, painted with a silver yak on the signboard. It was getting later in the day, so no one was super willing to start a later trek into the mountains at this point unless they were very bold, but some people were still migrating up to the final base camp, so there were people heading out carrying their gear. For an experienced archeologist and adventurer like Snakebite, she could see tourists and trekkers both; some people who had bad kit, some people who had good kit, and she could tell the difference. Some people were recording vlogs as they left, talking to followers half the world away about their upcoming trip.

 

But inside the Silver Yak, past all those people, it was actually somewhat quiet. There was a happy fire cooking some meat and bread, and an older woman tending the books at a desk where she was watching check-ins and check-outs.

 

"Hello! How can I help you? You need a room?" She called to Snakebite, waving her over. "We're the best inn in this place, promise that much."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

Cassie pondered the question. A room? It was tempting. How pressing was the danger to the professor. Hard to say. But she couldn't live with herself if she found out it was a time-sensitive and she stopped to have a room. Besides, she could see in the dark perfectly well.

 

Snake eyes. 

 

"Thanks, but I cant delay," she said. "I'm on a rescue mission. You know how it is..."

 

She produced a picture of the Professor and showed it to the woman. 

 

"Looking for this man. Used to stay her. Seems he got lost trekking. I have to find him..."

 

 

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

"Oh yeah...the Professor. You his friend?" She paused. "A rescue mission? That would make sense why he hasn't shown up lately. Alright. Here." She reached under her desk and pulled out a key. "Up the stairs, take a left, room at the far end of the hall on the right. He'd camped out in there the whole time and I haven't touched it, so it's all yours. I was actually thinking of getting it cleaned out if he didn't come back in a few days; I wasn't sure if he'd taken off without telling me or what, but it is prime real estate. But if he is lost, I hope you find him. He's a good guy." she said pleasantly.

 

The hallway up to his room was a little cramped, but not bad enough to cause issues. What did cause issues was when Snakebite tried the door and it swung open on a busted hinge to a room completely ransacked; papers thrown everywhere, the bed upturned, every possible location that something could have been hidden had been destroyed in the efforts of whoever had ransacked this room before Snakebite got here. Thrown almost haphazardly onto the floor was a safe, the papers and samples within almost completely destroyed, all with the look of massive, brutal claws.

 

A light fell upon the scene in the early afternoon, through a broken window set on the open side of the room.

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

What had happened here? Snakebite could see it thanks to her post-cognition, sort of. Hazy images resolved themselves in her mind's eye.

 

The professor working, talking. Writing in his journal. Consulting maps of the Himalayas. She can see his script on it; failed expeditions, information scrawled across the map.

 

'Possible location of former village'

 

'Found lost pottery shards'

 

'likely Yeti Burial Ground, should respect the dead'.

 

Over months, Professor Zhai had painstakingly marked out almost every single location on the map.

 

Then he left one day and never showed up again.

 

A few weeks later, the door was cracked open suddenly in the night; a man came in, dark haired and a little shifty, pawing not through the professor's research, but instead flipping his bed and grabbing a bag of coins and gems and quickly making his way out.

 

The next night, under the cover of a sudden snowstorm, the window shattered. A giant, shaggy creature crawls through the shattered window. It's taller than a man, covered in heavy, thick white fur, and has large, man-rending claws. It destroys the room, but with a precision that Snakebite can notice; it's intending to destroy all the professor's research before anyone else can see it. This was not the actions of a random beast. This was an intentional disinformation campaign by...a Yeti? Was that a Yeti? It seemed like a Yeti.

 

When Snakebite returned to the destroyed room, she could at least see the past of it now.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

Hmmmm....

 

The Professor had clearly been working hard. And the Yeti? the Yeti were real - they must be. Unless someone was playing the most elegant game of deception. Yeti Burial Ground? The Professor believed they were real, and moreover, seemed intent on not offending them. So why had a Yeti attacked?

 

And someone had come in. Stolen something, maybe? A spy? Was that Baiyun? He seemed the most likely culprit, but it was far to early to be leaping to conclusions. 

 

Cassandra started searching the room, painstakingly looking for something the Professor had hidden, or the spy had missed. Perhaps even a clue as to whom the mysterious figure had been...

[Poncho]

A series of diary entries play out across the pages, though some are utterly destroyed by rending claws, entire pages and chapters ripped out. But there's passages here and there.

 

Quote

First explorations....nothing significant in the area of the Feilong Spire

 

...... signs of civilization ..... but size and shape of dwellings incompatible with humans.

 

.....graves....obvious intelligence....desecration is not desirable.

 

Success at exploration site G6.....possible contact.....remnants of hunting party...

 

The rest was simply too destroyed.

 

But site G6. That was something to go on. Now she just needed someone who knew where the professor was marking site G6. Maybe Baiyun would know, provided the information was right that he was back.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

"Claws?" said Cassie, aloud, feeling the edge of the journal and giving it a sniff. The Journal, even incomplete, was interesting. 

 

And worrying. Signs of intelligence? Ancient civilisation? This could be Lemurian. 

 

Her blood ran, appropriately, cold. She had Lemurian power, and it was an icy power she always half feared. The Lemurian civilisation was cruel, spiteful, and powerful. Most thought they were consigned to myth, or history, but Cassandra Crow was not so sure. Outposts might still remain, and the World could well do without a resurgance of Lemurian sorcery. 

 

She slammed the book shut and put it in her backpack. 

 

It was time to find Baiyun. But where? The old lady selling her rope had said the base camp. It was time to head there, even if it was night. 

 

Lemurian blood was good for something at least. She could see in the dark. 

 

 

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

The part Lemurian treasure hunter Snakebite made her way towards the base camp! It was getting a little chilly, now that the sun had set, but at this elevation the heavy snows wouldn't start right away. Instead it was simply a general cold wave that pressed into the bones as Cassandra Crow made her way through the slowly shuttering town. No one tried to stop her, though some offered concerns at her going out so late at night. Regardless, thanks to her ability to see in the dark, she had no issues making her way to the base camp.

 

If the village was nestled in the shadow of the mountain range, the basecamp was in the foothills. Several campfires were out, individuals having their first night under the stars before they began their real journey; this was the last night to see whatever failures they might have in their kit before they really got out and got into the weeds, so several people had already turned in, their tents dark in the flickering shadows. Across some played shadows from within; books being read, journals being written, the end of their easy adventure, before the hard parts really began.

 

The Sherpas and guides were centralized, sitting around the largest bonfire surrounded by their own tents. They stayed apart from the ones they were guiding, having their own culture and language to speak. if Baiyun was here, he was around the flickering, fading fires of the center of the camp, amongst the people who actually knew what they were doing.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

The Sherpas were the ones to ask, though Cassandra. Nobody would know the mountains like them, and nobody would know the comings and goings like them either. 

 

She sauntered to the bonfire, huddled in her coat, hands in her pockets. 

 

"Hello,"

 

She started. There was no particularly good way to start the conversation, at least not one she could think of. So best to plough on, and cast aside anxiety. People picked up on anxiety, and it made them anxious. Fear was contagious. 

 

"Apologies for the intrusion. But I am looking for someone, someone called Baiyun. Do any of you know the name?"

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

"Hello. If you're looking for a guide, we're all spoken for." One of them said, but they waved none the less, making room for Cassandra at the fire. "But we'll share the fire." They didn't seem too concerned. But when she asked for Baiyun, their faces changed. They all turned to look at one guide, who was trying to leave, but he stopped in his tracks and looked at Cassandra.

 

"...Baiyun? Never met him." Baiyun lied, directly to her face. "...I'm sure he's up on the mountain."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

Cassie raised an eyebrow - surprised that anyone could be that bad a liar. 

 

Her hands twitched, wondering whether to reach for her whip or dart pistol. Her snakeblood made her as strong as any human, and faster still. She was an expert in capoeira and brazillian jui jitsu. And yet- this was Baiyun's territory. He would be weathered and tempered by the harsh mountains, and it was unwise to underestimate anybody in their home territory. If they were anywhere else, she would be totally confident. Here - there was room for a sliver of caution. 

 

"And I'm sure you are Baiyun," she said, smiling, a glint in her eye. "What's interesting is why are you trying to run? What have you got to hide?" she said - not moving forward, but not backwards either. 

 

"I heard you are a notorious liar, Baiyun. So come on, lets see what lies you spit out now. They might be amusing."

Edited July 6 by Supercape

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

"Alright, alright!" he raised his hands, frustrated and annoyed. "What do you want!? Are you with that kook of a professor? Yeah I took his money. He wasn't going to need it anymore and I hadn't gotten paid for my latest trek with him. I did it! I took that 'secret' pouch of coin and gems he pretended he didn't have. He was loaded anyway, so who cares." The Professor wasn't really loaded, of course. That was part of the stipend and grant that the museum had given him to pay for this expedition in the first place. 

 

"Not only was he loaded, he wasn't gonna use the money. He's clearly gone and disturbed the Yetis and the Sunbright Temple; we aren't meant to go to those places, and the Yeti killed him to keep it a secret." he shuddered heavily, frowning.

 

"And I'm next, you know. He took me up there, one day. I saw the temple. Fenzen did too, and he disappeared. The Yeti definitely got him. So I'm the only one left."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

Cassie held out her hand, palm upwards. 

 

She didn't need the money either. But she wasn't going to let a thief get away with it. 

 

"Hand over the money, thief. It wasn't yours to take."

 

She took a step forward - not too fast, not too slow, but certainly not cowed. "And let me worry about the Yeti. I'm not stopping until I find the Professor, dead or alive."

 

The Yeti? If they were real... where they protecting this Sunbright Temple? Or was it some slieight of hand? Somebody, or something, stoking up the fires of myth to suit their own purposes?

 

One thing was for certain. She had to see this temple herself!

 

"And then you can tell me where that Temple is. I'm going to see it with my own  two eyes!"

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

Baiyun grumbled and pulled out the pouch. He looked at it for a moment, then took out a few coins. "I'm still taking my payment for the last expedition, the one he didn't come back from. That's only fair." He declared before handing back most of the money. "You can take the rest. Not like it matters, you go after the Yeti, you're gonna be dead like the Professor and Fenzan." he mumbled.

 

"I don't know where the Temple is, exactly. It's a little...complicated." he says, frowning deeply. "You see, we were at one of his exploration sites. I don't remember which one, he had a big map with all his expedition sites on it. I'm sure he wrote it down. When we went back on the second time, peering around for Yetis, and a big snowstorm cooked up. I couldn't see my hand in front of my face, I couldn't hear the Professor or Fenzan. There was nothing but white everywhere, snow was coming up to my knees. I was sure I was going to die. I was stuck stumbling around, totally lost in a complete white out." he shuddered.

 

"Then, for a moment, the clouds cleared. The storm stopped. I was standing on the edge of a sheer drop. And from where I was standing, I was looking down into this massive valley. Not a snow covered valley. It looked temperate, almost. Like I'd ended up somewhere else in the world. And the Temple...I don't know how to explain it. It was the temple of the gods; it was larger than a city, the towers held up the sun. It was beautiful. It was a place where man should not step. And from where I was, I could see the Professor and Fenzan, already down in the valley. But I could tell they were doomed. The Yeti would get them for sure. So I turned and ran, as fast as possible. I ran hard, as hard as I could. The storm kicked back up, and I ran through it too. Eventually I got through it, found a trail, and made my way back." he shuddered again, remembering his experience.

 

"If you follow the Professor, you're not coming back. I know you won't. But I'm warning you now; it's better left alone."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

An inaccessible temple was something Cassandra was dead set on accessing. 

 

Definately set. Possibly dead. 

 

"Hmmm. Strange, curious, and irresistable," she said, tapping her chin excitedly. "Either you are making it up, or that was sorcery in play. Is this temple in our dimension?"

 

She had seen some strange stuff in her time. Magic and sorcery was real, even if she didn't understand it. She didn't have much experience with it, but alternate dimensions? That was another matter. She had spent more time in the Lost World than nearly any living human (that resided "topside"). 

 

"There is no time to lose then. The professor may still be alive. So I'm going after him!"

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

"I don't know anything about 'other dimensions' or 'sorcery', but if there is a place of magic, it is that place. If there is a palace of the gods then it is that building. If you're going, you can feel free, but I'm not going anywhere near that place ever again. You can go by yourself." Baiyun said, crossing his arms. The other Sherpas seemed equally uninterested in testing their ancient mythology, looking awkward and concerned. "I doubt anyone here is willing to go on this foolish expedition with you; I took it because I was desperate." he declared.

 

"...So if you're going, good luck, but you'll need more than that." And with that, Baiyun returned to his spot next to the fire.

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

I'm guessing he doesnt not much about squat... thought Cassandra, reminding herself that just because one shouldnt underestimate anybody, one shouldn't overestimate them either. It was a fine tightrope, and not one she walked well. Perhaps it was the Crow Aristocracy, unconsciously giving her a snooty arrogance that she couldn't quite shake off. 

 

"Maybe I will need more than luck. But I'm going all the same!" she said, boots crunching on the snow. "And I'm going on my own if nobody else fancies the spirit of adventure!"

 

All she needed was a direction. And a map. She had the map, but not the direction.

 

She pulled out the GPS from her backpack. "The least you can do is given me the coordinates!"

[Poncho]

(GM Post)

 

Baiyun grumbled from his spot at the fire. He clearly didn't want to get involved anymore, viewing this whole thing as a really bad idea, but the stares and grimaces of his compatriots around the fire made him finally sigh. He reached into his pack and pulled out a small electronic GPS, which he opened a side panel for and removed a sim card. 

 

"Here. This was the card Iwas using for my GPS on that trip. You can have it. It'll give you my path at least. But it's not an easy climb, so be ready to have to deal with a few rough patches if you're taking it." he said evenly. He looked back at the guides at the fire, checking to see if that was good enough for him to be allowed back to his posistion for warmth. "...Okay, fine. And when you're heading over that old rope bridge, be careful, we shored it up a few times but I really think it's close to finally giving out and collapsing, and we don't have anyone really willing to get it all fixed up."

[Supercape]

Snakebite

 

Cassandra took the card gladly. A vague thought manifested as she did - that Baiyun was some super ninja who would snatch away the card and use it as a shuriken. Or maybe it was poisoned. But Snakebite was immune to poison, and Cassandra knew it was a silly notion. 

 

A few silly notions did keep her on her toes, though. 

 

"I can handle a few rough climbs" she replied, confidently. At least - she sounded confident. Whether she was or not, was another matter. She could climb, and climb pretty good. But this was the Himalayas. 

 

"And thanks for the warning about the bridge..." she said. "If you guys want, I'll see if I can get it fixed up, hows about that?"

 

How hard could fixing a rope bridge in the middle of the night halfway up a mountain be, after all?