15[20:18] Before dawn the mist rolls south off the river, pushing up and down the streets of Nexus with lazy persistence in open defiance of the wind. The light of the sunrise stains the fog pink. 15[20:19] The fog thickens closer to the rivers. The far bank is totally obscured. Only the sporadic needling of beastman scouts is able to touch the boundaries of the fae line. 15[20:20] The collected defenders of the city (perhaps the Direction) have scant hours left to prepare themselves, or to seize initiative themselves. 15[20:21] What do they do? [20:21] 14Stranger will leave the war to the generals, for now. His concern -- perhaps obsession -- is making sure the noncombatants and semi-combatants (the children, the caregivers, the medical corps, and others) are properly squared away and as prepared as best they're able. And he'll be keeping his eyes open for any sneaks or creeps. [20:22] 14He doesn't trust the Fair Folk. If it were possible for them to get a fifth column inside the walls, they'd try. [20:23] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar hasn't really got a dramatic speech in mind; he's planning to outsource one to Xia Lan, or just yell the words "fuck 'em up" really loud. Instead, he's doing last-minute checks and preparations with his various sergeants, corporals, and other delegate generals, ensuring that each particular branch of the Guard knows what it's doing, what its allied mercenary companies are [20:23] <@Ferrinus> 12doing, and what to do or where to fall back in case things start to go wrong. [20:24] <@Ferrinus> 12In this way, the Dawn Sergeant is working very hard to give his forces a coherent, overarching plan going into the fighting, such that he needs to do the least amount of micromanagement and tactical reaction during the fighting, such that he can just go completely HAM on the raksha by himself. [20:27] 5 Xu Sim has called a conclave of sorcerers to meet above the Tomb of Red-Hot Iron. As he awaits their arrival, he confers with his Blood Ape retainers, whom he has rewarded with a meal of cats from the sewers. They are filthy and eat messily; he sprays at them with a pathetically tiny nebulizer in a vain effort to confront the gory stench that accompanies them. 15[20:32] The sorcerers come, four of them - the swamp witch Wren, the diabolist Red Tien, the dreamspeaker Pocella, and the Highland defector Nine Storms Fiend. Without greeting or preamble, they enter and watch Xu Sim in guarded silence. [20:43] "Good morning. Thank you all for coming. I've been conversing with my retainers here, and I think we have some information that might be helpful." 5At Xu Sim's side, the Audient Brush floats above a scroll, preparing to transcribe the story he is soon to relay to the other sorcerers. 15[20:47] "What is the meaning of this, Xu Sim?" asks Wren, suspicion evident on her lined face. [20:50] "At the heart of the faerie army stalks the colossus Akasha, the Wailing Wall. Built by the hands of the Yozi, Ligier, in Hell itself, it is worked in copper and the black blood of the earth. It is a puissant weapon, and without a plan to defeat it, victory may be beyond our grasp..." [20:52] "...I have consulted my erymanthoi bodyguards and the literature I've had time to access, and I have uncovered a story of its hellish brethren I believe may be of value to us, for this is not the first mighty warstrider of Ligierian artifice that has assailed Creation. And its cousin, in the twilight of the Five Dragon Crusade, was destroyed, through an act of heroism and brilliant [20:52] insight." 15[20:52] "What devilry..." says Red Tien, stroking his beard. [21:01] "Alcadizaar, the Conqueror, though now barely known to history, once plagued the South, having secured through some unwholesome bargain the services of the terrifying Brass Bull of Megiddo. But, though it was powerful, once separated from its master's yoke by the daring hero Roaring Mouse, it rampaged into a box canyon, where it was immobilized by rockslides and, eventually, destroyed [21:01] by archer fire." [21:03] "The same black blood of the earth rages through the veins of Akasha. It may well be that, if we can separate it from its master Elegba, it too will rampage and allow us to destroy it." 5The audient brush, having drafted the memorandum in triplicate - for distribution to the three fronts - now floats aside. 15[21:04] Xia Lan and Stranger huddle in the generals' camp underground, seeing to the civilians and being a visible presence in the Undercity. Where do they focus their efforts? [21:05] 14Stranger wants to start with whatever medical campus has been set up just to make sure that's squared away, then move through vulnerable groups. Gentry might find it easiest to hide as children without attached parents, so seeing to the orphans first might be smart; but an overview is necessary. [21:07] 5Xu Sim: "If we see an opportunity to separate Elegba from his place within the Wailing Wall's command crown, I believe we must take it. But I also wanted to discuss with each of you your plans for the battle, to see if we could coordinate and assist one another. I usually work alone, truth be told - and I am sure each of you does as well, but anything that gives us the advantage must [21:07] be considered." [21:07] 13Xia Lan will want to ensure the food stores are being looked after appropriately, then perhaps join Stranger as... a morale booster, for the children? It's got to be a scary time for them. 15[21:08] Qaile in his tribe, as well as the allies the Ambassador recovered, disseminate information to the Solars. The terrain in the mist is changing - hills and hardpan seem to be shifting up and downstream, the rivers curve and eddy in unnatural ways, and there've been sightings of the black and yellow banner of Cethleann on all sides of the city. The advance of the northern and southern armies is hindered by the fierce antagonism of the Gray and Yellow rivers, resisting any attempts to ford or cross them. It may stall the advancing armies for hours more. [21:08] <@Ferrinus> 21Once everything, everything's squared away, Keldar checks his Codex page, wishes his fellow anathema luck, and makes his way to Nexus's east gate. He'll be heading the Dawn Guard there - first directing their fire at anything approaching the door and battlements, then bringing Terminus down on any monster stupid enough to survive the hail of boulders and arrows. [21:08] <@Ferrinus> 12Once everything, everything's squared away, Keldar checks his Codex page, wishes his fellow anathema luck, and makes his way to Nexus's east gate. He'll be heading the Dawn Guard there - first directing their fire at anything approaching the door and battlements, then bringing Terminus down on any monster stupid enough to survive the hail of boulders and arrows. [21:11] "There is one other crucial piece of business that I ask your assistance on. I have crafted a deadly vapor, to be launched by mangonel and carried on the air. It will harm friend as readily as foe, so if you see it approaching our forces, I ask that you use whatever craft you can to turn it back towards the enemy." [21:12] "You can tell it by its purplish hue, which settles to dull orange after a few minutes of oxidization." 15[21:12] Nine Storms Fiend: "Keldar's tasked us with watching the skies of the city. Keeping the city safe from your poisons won't even make me change heading." 15[21:20] Keldar's hand-molded army squares up and fortifies. The first attack comes from the sky an hour before noon, blue and red-membraned creatures skating out of the fog from above. The mists erupt with violence. The battle is joined! 15[21:23] Stranger and Xia Lan are tending to the orphaned, making sure they're being fed and clothed and seen to. They seem in good spirits, except... in a corner of the village of canvas huts that houses the children, there's chatter among the younger children about lazy, selfish Puya, who won't wake even when they slap him. Their eyes trace the path of points and whispers to see a small crowd of children gathered around one of the furthest tents. [21:24] 14A grim look passes over Stranger's face before a gentle smile reasserts itself. This will be it, most likely. [21:26] 14Stranger will approach with a spring in his step and a slight twirl of his parasol. "Young sirs and misses! Good morning." [21:27] <@Ferrinus> "READY!" 12Keldar thunders, Terminus scraping against the back of Royal Road as his forehead and eyes flash orange. With a ripple of gold and silver, his daiklave divides itself in two, and moments later the moonsilver face of Entreaty is glaring out from the battlements square above the main gate of Nexus. [21:28] 13Xia Lan does a little twirl and pose for the kids, just behind Stranger's back. "How are you holding up down here?" [21:32] 5White robes fluttering in the breeze, Xu Sim prepares himself for combat with a flourish. War. Something in the back of his mind tingles as the creatures break out of cloud cover. A lightning ballista would make short work of them here. Would that he had had more time, more materials.. 15[21:32] The children look up at them. "Can YOU wake up Puya?" one of them asks. [21:34] 14Stranger: "I will certainly try! But I need you all to be very strong -- and go back to the center of camp while I do." [21:35] 13Xia Lan: "C'mon, I'll take ya! Puya's in good hands." 15[21:42] Xia Lan charmingly leads the children away, while Stranger looks over Puya, who seems locked in a sweaty, fitful sleep. [21:43] 14The smile falls off his face as soon as the children are gone; he gets clinical, but he's not giving the boy a medical check up. He's looking for signs of possession, or the presence of the Fey. [21:44] 13She's kneeling down with the kids surrounding her before too long, giving an impromptu concert, answering any questions they might have, that kinda thing. She's got her idol voice on and everything, hoping some normalcy will reassure them. [21:45] 14He mutters strange words in old tongues, checks the boy's eyes under his lids brusquely, checks for ritual marks... 15[21:48] Stranger can tell that the child is not fighting for possession of his body, but of his mind. He's locked in some kind of dreaming struggle with an external supernatural force. [21:49] 14Well that narrows it down significantly -- almost specifically to the kind of creatures Strangers suspected in the first place. [21:52] 5As the beasts close in, Xu Sim leaps next to Keldar. Back to back, he turns aside a winged fiend attacking Keldar with a perfectly timed bicycle kick. [21:52] 5Xu Sim nods rapidly as one of the beasts delivers Keldar a glancing blow meant for himself. [21:53] 14He briefly considers snapping the boy's neck. That will close the loop...but for how long? It won't solve the root issue, which is whatever dream warriors the Fey are using. [21:53] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar moves in flawless tandem with Xu Sim, raising his shield as the talons of one of the creatures come whistling in. The blow hits straight on, and manages to slightly stagger the Dawn Sergeant - but Keldar catches the motion of the blow and works with it rather than against it, letting his shield be knocked aside and rejoin his sword. Now hefting a grand daiklave, he mutters [21:53] <@Ferrinus> 12"Aaalll right-" 15[21:57] Stranger, suspecting fae intrusion, has a couple options: he can try to wake the child even more forcefully, with uncertain but likely drastic effects, or he can try a more subtler containment like holding iron charms to the child's brow. [21:58] 14Certainly they'll have some of those lying around from the preparations? Stranger might even have a few on his person, given he was preparing for this sort of thing. 15[21:59] Almost certainly. [22:01] 14We'll start with that, then, and get more creative as we have to. Absent being able to jump into the dreamworld himself and help the kid out, that's the best he can do -- and the longer Kuya keeps this thing busy, no matter the outcome, the less time it has to regroup and try something else. Kid's a soldier in the army of Creation, now. [22:02] 13Pretty soon, she's got the kids singing an old tune she picked up in the south. There can be no power greater anywhere beneath the Sun, after all. [22:03] <@Ferrinus> 12A titanic, shield-bearing warrior floats above Nexus's battlements, wholly obscured by its armor and only identified by the mane of long hair that licks like flames from the back of its helmet. As Keldar charges into the horde of snapping lizards, daiklave held at the ready, his anima charges with him, even spins along with him as the Dawn Sergeant executes a series of brutal arcs [22:03] <@Ferrinus> 12and slashes through the monsters. It's like watching someone wind a mechanism - with each turn, the bonfire gets smaller and brighter and smaller and brighter until it's been absorbed completely into Keldar's white-hot sword. [22:04] <@Ferrinus> 12Everything holds a moment, then releases, and in a blur of burning, blood-soaked action Keldar executes the counter-stroke to every attack he's launched thus far. The Nexus battlements are littered with cloven wings and severed heads, and it's all the remaining drakes can do to flee back into the clouds. [22:05] 14Stranger will touch the Codex and call Xia Lan once he's done arranging the charms. When she answers: "Please get those children into the care of some adults and return to me. It's as we feared." 15[22:05] The rays scatter - literally. Their particles split apart by the millions in the sky, before falling as burning turquise liquid that pits metal and scars flesh! [22:06] 13She agrees quickly, and hides the helplessness she feels. For the sake of the children. Where were these kids playing before, and was there anyone around to watch them? [22:08] <@Ferrinus> 12Unfortunately, the acid blood of the dismembered monsters isn't as quick to flee as they are. It just rises, as clouds of steam from Keldar's blazing armor, but the Dawn Guard's not so lucky - armor shrivels and flesh dissolves, though the men it happens to respond, and are aided, with commendable speed. [22:08] 5Xu Sim sups on worse than whatever acid these creatures conjure up. Even his robes barely stain beneath the spray. 15[22:18] After the rain dissipates, a great shape moves in the mist. By the time it's taken full shape in the eye it's apparent that the mist itself is surging forward broad and knife-flat like a manta ray, cutting into the heart of the Dawn Guard's ranks and leaving lingering toxic mist. The Dawn Guard are shaken, but not broken. 15[22:19] The children were playing up and down among the tents, occasionally checked on by harried adults but lacking dedicated care as casualties begin to flood in from Lookshy and the Guard. [22:20] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar can see a whipcrack of fear course through the Guard, and acts immediately to suppress it. "HOLD FAST! I'VE SEEN WORSE!" [22:21] 13Then she'll have to find some caretakers. Besides, they... shouldn't be around violence like this. 15[22:29] Xia Lan finds a medic in matte white armor tending to Lookshyans with severe burns, who abruptly points her across the medical theatre to another small camp within the civilian area where families are gathered under sprinkles of dust while explosions thunder overhead. [22:30] 13She kneels before them again, pats each of them, and tells them to be safe. And remember what she told them. Then she's off like a shot to Stranger. "I'm here - sorry, camp's a bit - anyway!" [22:36] 5Xu Sim channels the winds of magic, bringing a single finger, dipped in some strange greasy black substance, before himself to carve a fiery circle in midair. A deafening fluttering sound overcomes the battlefield as the circle turns into a torrent of black, shiny, butterflies - they spill forth into battle, carving ruin and death wherever they fly. Xu Sim cackles as his brow erupts [22:36] 5into purple and golden mandalas of power. [22:37] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "HAH! Nice! Don't think I've seen one of those fuckers do more damage!" [22:38] 5Xu Sim: "Ha! Ha! Ha! PERISH!" [22:38] <@Ferrinus> 12The remaining sirens are quick to take Xu Sim's advice, especially at Keldar's insistence. 15[22:40] Stranger and Xia Lan watch the boy's fitful struggle, as the iron charms begin to smoke against his skin, though they don't burn him. His body seizes up, and his eyes fly open, violet from lid to lid. His back arches and he lifts six ilms from his cot to hang in midair. [22:40] <@Ferrinus> 12But there's no time to celebrate - not past a few rousing cheers, anyway. Keldar's immediately got his people carrying off the dead and wounded, scavenging every piece of arm or armor that's still usable and, crucially, appraising the damage to the walls. Can it be repaired? Can it be repaired fast? 15[22:41] It can be repaired, but not fast. [22:42] <@Ferrinus> 12Well, it's got to happen. In the meantime, more of the Guard is going to have to take position right around the breach, at ground level. Keldar will patrol from area to area, though at any given moment he's more likely to be found up top than down below. That's just because it's much quicker to jump down than climb up. [22:43] 14And here we go. [22:43] 14Can Stranger ritually ward the area around the cot to any effect with the remaining charms? He wants to denote an area of negotiation, in case this turns into that. [22:44] 14He'll have also produced his teapot from somewhere, and put on some tea. [22:44] <@Ferrinus> "You're blooded now," 12Keldar tells his troops. "Bit too literally in this case. But the things you just faced down without blinking - five times worse than a mortal army should've been, easy. They'll remember what we did on these walls." [22:51] 14Stranger, as the water heats, to Xia Lan: "We may end up having to kill the boy, if this doesn't go well. I hope that isn't the case. He is a fighter. But...you should know that up front. If possible, I will deliver the blow." 15[22:51] Stranger marks off the space as best he can, and the kettle's just started to whistle when the child slumps back to the bed. "A-a-a-aaaah," comes a voice, strained and distorted against the child's vocal cords. [22:51] "It will be my failure, after all." 14He steps back into the circle. "And here we are." [22:52] 13Xia Lan says nothing. What is there to say? 15[22:52] "I feel weak," says the child. "I'm tired." [22:58] 14Stranger: "You've had a rough past few days, I imagine. Do you drink tea?" [22:59] 13Xia Lan: "Or a favorite food? Anything we can get you?" 15[22:59] The child's voice flickers and drops like he's speaking from a wildly variable distance away. "I will if you make it," he says. He looks at Xia Lan. "You look familiar." [23:00] 13Xia Lan: "The Unfettered, at your service." 13She gives a small curtsy. [23:01] 14Stranger nods and smiles. He looks at the boy, but sort of speaks...past him? Through him? "Kuya, you're a very strong boy. Impossibly strong. I need you to fight for as long as you can." 14Then his eyes more directly focus again as he pours the tea. "And what might your name be?" 15[23:01] To Xia Lan: "You drank with Elegba. He told me about you." [23:01] 13I see. 15[23:01] To Stranger: "I am the Throne." [23:04] 14Stranger doesn't pause in his pour, and sets the tea down a respectful distance from the boy's body. "You're a long way from your armies, Duchess Primrose. But then, I suspect, not so much." [23:04] 14He pours his own cup second. 15[23:06] Puya rubs his cheek idly. "A tired boy. A dreaming boy." 15[23:06] He looks at Xia Lan again. "Almost the first." [23:06] 13She stands straight up. "Almost." 15[23:07] Puya takes a sip of the tea, and then closes his eyes. "Mmm..." 15[23:07] "I see my father, who sold me under sin rather than lose me." [23:08] 14Stranger: "I've met half your, ah, cardinals now. I suppose Brokkr truly won't be joining us. 15[23:08] "Brokkr is broken." [23:09] 14He nods in some understanding. "We are our names." 15[23:10] Puya opens his pupilless violet eyes. "I see my lover, who could not save me and cannot be saved." [23:11] 14Behind his carefully-composed face, he's furiously trying to figure out if he knows who her father and lover are, or if they're more archetypes for storytelling. [23:13] 14If he'd known it was Cethleann behind the boy's eyes, he'd likely have gone ahead and snapped his neck then. [23:13] <@Ferrinus> 12One thing Keldar's going to do, besides hurry the contractors repairing the walls along, is send a couple scouts out to see if they can make contact with the original Emissary and see if the guy's nearby or expecting the eastern defense force to see to his plans. 15[23:18] Xu Sim sees the flares of pitched battle on both the north and south banks. To the north is the bleak miasma of undeath pushing against the encroaching fog. To the south is a titanic figure wreathed in flame raining down on the battlefield. He has to do a double take to realize he recognizes her. He saw her corpse unadorned as it was borne to Nessun Dorma in contrition. Run through with vines and wicked wings, something like the Judge Zuniga splits the sky against Lookshy. [23:19] 5Xu Sim gawks. "Keldar...!" 15[23:20] Keldar no sooner gives the thought voice than he feels a sickly pressure in his chest, like a bubble of air pressing against his throat that he can't dislodge. "The stink is overpowering." 15[23:20] The Emissary has appeared behind him. [23:21] <@Ferrinus> 12The mercenary screws his eyes shut for a second while his mailed fist clangs against his breastplate. Then he turns. "Ah. Ahem. There you go, I guess." [23:21] <@Ferrinus> 12Then he gestures gateward. "Took down a shitload of their guys there - but I'm guessing that's not what you're looking for, or at least not enough of it." 15[23:23] The Emissary: "You fought well. The way a man will only fight for his own property." [23:26] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Too bad someone else's is nearly as good a motivator." [23:27] 14The brand on Stranger's forehead glows. "I see a child who went to sleep and has yet to wake up. Both of us see a great many things." [23:29] 13Xia Lan puts a hand on his shoulder and squeezes. Cethleann isn't the boy. Please let there be a way out of this with him living. [23:31] 5High above Nexus, Xu Sim grits his teeth and speaks into the Codex. "Keldar, the Judge Zuniga is back. And she's buttering the bread of the Lookshyans." [23:33] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar blinks, gives the Emissary an apologetic wave and half spins to touch two fingers to the side of his helmet. "What?! That's on them, if they didn't dispose of that body right--" [23:34] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar shakes his head to himself. "How bad a rinsing are we talking, here? Do I need to go crosstown?" 12He casts a skeptical look at the mist through the still-huge gaps in the eastern wall. [23:36] 14Stranger calmly touches the Codex and says, without bothering to mask his voice for Cethleann's benefit: "Keldar, Xu Sim: Zuniga is compromised specifically by Cethleann herself." [23:36] "Be very wary." [23:37] 14To creature inside the boy: "My condolences. How long had you been together?" [23:38] 14He takes some slight satisfaction every time he asks one of them about measurements of time or space. A reminder of which world they're in. 15[23:38] Puya groans. "Beyond counting." [23:40] 13Xia Lan: "Zu - Sun, Almighty." 13She levels a glare at poor Puya. Cethleann. The two of them. [23:40] 5Xu Sim grits his teeth and wheels south. "I'm heading in." [23:40] "'The heart wants what it wants,'"  [23:40] 14Stranger says. "First Age curse." [23:41] 5Xu Sim offers an unwholesome prayer for the victory of the northern front, and dives precipitously, wind whipping his hair and robes. [23:42] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Stay frosty, and tell me how bad they need backup." [23:42] 5Xu Sim: "Get a report from the northern front. Find a fly and ask how it's doing." [23:43] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "What?" 12Once Xu Sim repeats himself, Keldar'll do just that. [23:44] 5Xu Sim: "Like, a housefly. Whisper to it. I can't do it while I'm moving." [23:44] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Alright, but you're going to pay for it if this is some kind of prank." 'Fortunately', flies are not in short supply on battlefields. [23:44] <@Ferrinus> 12That last part should be blue 15[23:44] Puya: "A curse? Do you mean me ill?" [23:45] 14Stranger: "They call it lovesick for a reason." 15[23:47] Xu Sim veers south, shielding his eyes against intermittent blasts of light from elemental energy and Lookshyan artillery. Zuniga, or something like her, fights the assembled might of Lookshy to a standstill... until a meteor rises from within the earth, spraying water in a fountain as it breaks the surface of the river, to crash into the behemoth with searing white light. The earth trembles as Nessun Dorma's hammer rises and falls and the two of them plummet to the far bank, where raksha swarm the melee. [23:48] 13Xia Lan: "That bad, hmm?" 15[23:48] Keldar, looking ridiculous, whispers to a fly. Keldar, feeling ridiculous, gets a whisper back. "We're well in hand here, holding the line. This is far from the army's full strength. How fares the east?" [23:49] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar mouths 'the fuck' to himself before answering in earnest. "Wall's breached but holding, and the enemy's pulled back into the fog. Sounds like south's getting the worst of it." [23:50] 5Xu Sim folds his arms across his chest and beelines for the swarm of raksha, a streak of purple light trailing a whirlwind of golden sparks. 15[23:50] Puya: "Are you afraid?" 15[23:50] "I am." [23:51] 14Stranger: "I am afraid for Puya." [23:51] 14Stranger: "I'm afraid for the other children down here; their mothers and their fathers; the lives that will be cut short; the things that will be made impermanent." [23:52] "For myself, I am enjoying my tea." 15[23:52] Puya: "All things are impermanent." [23:52] 13Xia Lan: "Impermanence isn't - that's..." [23:52] 14Stranger: "Is your fear?" 15[23:53] Puya: "Yes. Soon I will have peace." [23:53] 14Stranger: "Peace is not your way." 15[23:54] "It's hard." 15[23:54] Puya lies down. "I'm tired." [23:54] 14Stranger: "It's the most difficult thing there is. But I don't think you lack trying." [23:54] 14He nods, and pours himself another cup. "Then I will sit here awhile." [23:55] "Unfettered, please go see who else is falling asleep and not waking up, if you would." [23:55] 13Xia Lan: "...will do." 13Another squeeze to his shoulder, then she leaves the tent. Where to even begin...? 15[23:58] Puya drifts off to sleep, peacefully this time. 15[23:58] NEXT TIME: The Siege of Nexus