15[20:16] The circle won the day at heavy cost. As they quit the field to recuperate and reassess, the battle rages around them. Having lost some of their most elite warriors and powerful monsters, the crusade's advance has halted, with the raksha unable to secure a stable beachhead in the mainland north of the city. Watch-fires burn green and violet down the length of the outer docks, and more 15[20:16] ember like ghosts on the Yellow's distant banks. As night falls, and our heroes Jai, Stranger, and Xu Sim steal underground, there's the sense that the city remains stable. [20:16] 14For now. [20:17] 14Stranger winces as the Sol Ring turns slowly behind his head like a halo. Lots of bruises. 15[20:18] As the wounded trail in before and behind them, amid the mute witness of the heroic fallen bid to rise again, that peace feels precarious. [20:19] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar's there - someone's there, anyway, a muted figure with a huge sword strapped across their back. They're muttering to themselves, but who cares about what? [20:20] 5Xu Sim, the grim. [20:20] 10Jai's physically unharmed, but he's learned a lot of hard lessons, very suddenly. Chiefly among them, that there are no easy miracles.  [20:21] 14Well, Stranger's not sure about that. Cethleann's making them look pretty easy. [20:23] 5Xu Sim lurches down the halls of the Undercity behind the stretcher that Xia Lan is laid out on. He gestures to Keldar to come closer as they walk, and he looks the Tiger of Nexus closely in the eye; inspects his Caste mark. "Keldar, show me your teeth?" 5The request is almost superfluous as Xu Sim's hands are on Keldar's head and face, feeling for... something? [20:23] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "What? Hey, old man- that's mfff thmmff-" 15[20:25] Stranger and Xu Sim are bombarded with demands on their attention as soon as they're behind the barricades. They hear reports of gains and losses - the Mask of Winters was able to all but crush the wild necromancers that fell under Cethleann's thrall, and since her defeat the civilian population's sleep has been untroubled. But both the Lookshyan army and the Dawn Guard have sustained 15[20:25] heavy casualties, which rose undead almost as quickly as they fell. [20:25] 14Stranger will throw himself back into the work, injuries or no. [20:28] "Dreadful," 5he concludes. "And the same curse that's befallen Xia Lan. This is very serious; but at least you two survived. The Dragonlord did not." 5Xu Sim listens to some of the reports. "And the Mask hasn't quit the field, then? What of... the rest of Thorns' forces?" [20:29] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar's struggling all the while, muttering stuff like "leggo-" 12and "hey-" 12but thankfully Xu Sim releases him reasonably quickly. "Then how do I fix it?" [20:29] 14Perhaps the first thing to do is reconnect with the remaining Dragonlord and get her assessment of their forces. 15[20:31] Further, there are a lot of decisions to make, about medical emergencies (some terrible magic has left many of the Dawn Guard immobile with suppurating burns) civilian peacekeeping (theft and vandalism is rife in the deepest recesses of the undercity, where the city's poor are being pushed into tighter and tighter quarters with the city's elites) and general strategy. First things 15[20:31] first, though are the two questions everyone has for Nexus's last standing Emissaries: 15[20:31] 1. Who's that new guy in the jade? 15[20:31] 2. What happened to the star? [20:32] 10Jai's in an awkward position. He hasn't been integrated into the formal command structure yet, but all the rank-and-file soldiers seem to be treating him with respect. [20:32] 14The first question, at least, is easy enough to delegate to the new guy in jade. Stranger doesn't particularly care what Jai gives as a story so long as it answers questions without raising too many new ones. [20:32] 14The second is a bit tougher. [20:36] 10After the first couple of painfully awkward questions, Jai hits on it. "I'm a battlefield intelligence analyst."11 Is that like a strategist? "Not quite. I'm more of a strategist's eyes and ears on the field." [20:37] 5Xu Sim takes a moment to glance over Stranger-Visits-Heaven. "You'll be alright, try to stay out of trouble." 5 Doing the same to Jai - "Not a scratch. Pretty good footwork." [20:39] <@Ferrinus> 12Xu Sim feels something sharp in the small of his back. Is Orichalcum normally that cool to the touch? "I said how do I fix it." [20:39] 11But you were out there on the field, and— "Sometimes you have to get out there on the front lines yourself." 10Fake it till you make it, that's Jai's motto. But, having given himself a job to do, he actually starts to feel a lot more comfortable. [20:39] 14Stranger gives the doctor a combination nod-and-wave-off. He's already deep in discussions with some runners. [20:42] "I don't know yet," 5he answers. [20:43] "Thank you, Doctor." 10Jai offers a half-bow and makes a quick round of the infirmary. He's talready thinking about writing up an after-action report.  [20:44] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar snarls, probably. "Then figure it out. I've got a job to do." 12He's quick to storm off, looking for problems with the Dawn Guard and general lawlessness that he's still equipped to solve. [20:45] 5Xu Sim's first priority is seeing to the grievous wounds of Xia Lan. Is she even faintly conscious? 15[20:46] Unless Xu Sim directs otherwise, Xia Lan's body is taken to the infirmary warrens, where there's simply no longer any room for tents. Cries of anguish go up as people recognize her, and news spreads rapidly that the Unfettered has fallen. [20:46] 13Not again. [20:47] 13She's breathing, but shallowly, though there's moments where she coughs or stops as her lungs move a rib that oughtn't move. But she's out. 15[20:48] Xia Lan, mercifully, doesn't experience any of this. She's floating and warm, and when she opens her eyes to peer past the flames she sees a night sky thick with shooting stars. [20:52] 10Hell, Jai's own heart breaks a little at seeing the songstress of Nexus reduced to such a state. Everyone else around him feels like they're already going to pieces, though.  [20:52] 5Arriving at a rough cubby scooped out of the rock by labour (skeletal or otherwise) or Lookshyan elemental-magic, Xu Sim peers into her vacant, dreaming eyes, lifting the lids gently, before closing them again. His own wounds he ignores, for the moment, tending to the Unfettered as efficiently as he can. [20:53] 13...floating? This is new. But -- flames and the night sky...? Where is she? 15[20:54] The Dawn Guard is attempting to keep its footing despite heavy casualties, particularly among its officer corps. Tsuka is fighting tooth and nail to get back onto the field even though his right arm's in a sling. Keldar could attempt to instill some leadership here, or he could intervene in the incipient riot brewing between the youths, infirm, and those who didn't join the Dawn Guard 15[20:54] and the mercenaries serving as personal guards and security for the wealthy, the bureaucratic class, and the remaining officers of the Guild. [20:55] "Jai, Stranger -" 5he snaps before the others leave - "Find out if Seven's alright," 5the request itself is quite muted. [20:57] 14Stranger nods. [20:57] 10Jai: "Okay, I've got this." 10He thinks for a minute. "Is there anything I should tell her?" 15[20:58] Xia Lan sits up, feeling no pain, to find herself on a raft set ablaze, floating down a broad river in the night. The light of the flames and the stars above reveal an army that dwarfs anything Xia Lan has ever seen, even Cethleann's horde, waging terrible war against vague and shadowed figures in perfect silence. She wonders if she's gone deaf, but she can still hear her own heartbeat 15[20:58] and the crackle of the flames. [20:59] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar chooses both, and I'll enumerate. He needs to make sure the Guard's in capable hands before he busies himself with the only kind of hands-on work he's still suited for, and so the first thing he does is make sure that Tsuka's both alive and aware that he's in charge. The kid isn't actually Keldar's first choice to lead the Guard, but Khelendros is busy liasing with the city's [20:59] <@Ferrinus> 12other defending mercenary companies and overseeing those Apples who weren't folded into the Guard proper. "Tsuka. Hey." 12The voice is familiar, but easy to miss if you're distracted - Tsuka's what, limping at the battlefield even as his retainers desperately pull him back? [21:02] 13Can she recognize anything about the army? And how close are the flames to overcoming the raft? She starts trying to count legions before giving up after a few seconds, having gotten far enough to know it's a waste of time. [21:05] "Just that I'm fine, I guess," 5he shrugs. 15[21:05] Tsuka about wheels around gives Keldar a shove before he realizes who he's talking. "Who-- Keldar! Where's Xia Lan?" 15[21:05] *wheels around and; who he's talking to [21:05] 5With that, Xu Sim sets into his treatment of the Unfettered Xia Lan. This is some of his best work, now that he's got a moment of breathing room. [21:07] "You got it." 10Jai heads out into the Undercity in search of a deathknight. Somewhere along the way a familiar bundle of fur reappears, scurrying alongside his long loping stride. [21:08] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Asleep. Listen to me - we fought their queen, ran her through. But she cursed us, me and the girl both." 12He's got his daiklave resting point-first on the ground at the moment, as though he were leaning on a cane, and uses his free hand to gesture at himself. "Only way to take her down. But it's hard to explain -- and sticky. Dunno how to shuck it yet." [21:08] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "I can still fight. But I don't know that I can lead like the Guard needs, see? Need to work that one out." [21:14] 5Nearly an hour later, he takes a deep breath and steps back from Xia Lan's side. "We spend so much time like this, you and I," 5 he notes. 15[21:14] Stranger's quickly able to discern that the Council and their Offices are working around the clock on emergency administration, and seem to be just about managing, considering the circumstances. They always need more water, more bandages, more guards -- but they're competent and committed. To find Ballare, Stranger will have to go aboveground, where a fiery cannonade still lights up 15[21:14] the red-aurora night. He passes men and women, living and dead, patrolling the streets in Lookshyan armor. 15[21:16] Jai also finds his way aboveground, getting stopped and questioned by Lookshyan officers as he pushes through looking for the Scion of the Sevenfold, who is working near the front with a fevered pace to bring Cethleann's dead back to their feet to bolster the city's defense. 15[21:16] Tsuka: "Where is she?" [21:17] 14The look on his face should deter most from stopping him, though it's due as much to his bruised -- possibly cracked -- ribs as his seething anger at the Fair Folk. [21:18] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Undercity infirmary. Xu Sim's patching her up - should be up and about within the day if he's still in form." 12He kind of nods his sword forward, using the daiklave's hilt to gesture at Tsuka's arm. "What got ya?" 15[21:19] Xia Lan can readily identify the armies surrounding her as raksha, black lions and gilt-leaf outriders and a sky thick with slings and arrows. The raft she's on, stable but burning, puts her in mind of ancient funeral rites - to set the deceased on a raft, push them to the current's mercy, and set their departing body aflame. 15[21:21] "The Emissary disappeared and our left flank collapsed. Took us by surprise. I've got to get back out there--" Keldar realizes that Tsuka blew past what Keldar actually said. [21:25] <@Ferrinus> "HEY!" 12Keldar reaches out, but, of course, his fingers just slip off Tsuka's shoulder as though it were a ghost trying to grab hold. He's got something solid on hand, though, and so what brings Tsuka to a sudden stop is Terminus stabbing down through the back fringe of the poncho that the young captain's wearing to pin it to the ground. "Kid. Listen to me. One more Chosen at the [21:25] <@Ferrinus> front is not worth more than one more Chosen at the back right now. They'll listen to you." 15[21:25] Stranger pushes onto the deck of the Final Word, and Ballare crosses the deck immediately when he comes into view. "What happened to Balor?" [21:25] 10To the Lookshyans: "Official business. I'm acting under the authority of the Emissaries. And my superiors—they've got a real short fuse right now. You know how it is." [21:26] 13Is this what being dead's like? Just - watching your killers as they overrun what you died for? [21:26] 14Stranger: "I was headed here to ask you the same. Cethleann took the field herself and it cost us the girl to make her quit it. We haven't had time for assessing anything else." [21:27] 10Jai flashes a fancy-looking seal. It's real, but he could probably copy it in his sleep if need be. 15[21:30] Ballare: "They're fielding as many Chosen as we are, maybe more. Every one of ours goes down goes underground. Every one of their goes down rises for Thorns. Half a dozen hungry ghosts and half our dead. The Mask has an army again." [21:30] 14When did we notice as a group that the red star was gone from the sky? Stranger simply recalls looking up after the fight and noting it was gone. 15[21:30] That was when people noticed, it can't have gone down much earlier than that. [21:31] 14Stranger: "The star left the sky as we downed Cethleann, or very, very shortly after. I doubt that's coincidence." 15[21:31] Jai's admitted passage and reaches Seven, who seems oblivious to his presence as she continues her dark intonations and blasphemous rites. [21:35] 10Jai wrinkles his nose at the scent of corruption, but after being posted to Thorns for a while it's about par for the course. All cities stink of osmething or other, anyway. 15[21:35] Tsuka's frozen in place, first in alarm, then in anger. "...where do you need me?" [21:38] 5Xu Sim's eyes scan through the needy, wounded people. He brushes past a wounded man tugging on the hem of his robe, and stalks out from the imfirmary, disappearing into the crowds of people milling here and there. 15[21:38] Ballare: "Our position should be stable. Their vanguard and much of their leadership was destroyed. We're weakened, but the lines of attack are even worse." [21:39] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Central command. You need to see to the big picture stuff til I'm cured or tell you otherwise. Otherwise it'll all shake itself apart." 12He looks back, over his shoulder, then to Tsuka again. "You need to see to injuries and morale together. Start by shifting the..." 12It's hard to follow what Keldar says next, and he seems to lose track of it himself after a few moments. [21:39] <@Ferrinus> 12"You'll figure out right, okay? I'm counting on you, here." [21:39] 13Xia Lan finally looks around the burning raft - is there anything here with her? Can she - I don't know, steer it? Or is it designed to just carry her to sea? [21:40] 14Stranger: "So we're going to have significant problems getting them off our shores even with the help of the undead, and I'm uncertain how much longer we'll be able to count on that. The Mask mainly appears to be enjoying himself out here; I'm concerned what's going to happen as soon that stops." [21:40] 10He waits for a break in the ritual. "Lady Seven? Xu Sim sent me. He told me to tell you he's unharmed. Should I tell him you're…" 10Jai indicates the necromantic workshop with a wave. "Occupied?" 15[21:42] There's another body, Xia Lan comes to realize. A thin man, well-kept and dressed like a dandy, hands folded over his heart. Xia Lan stares down at Elegba's prone form before he faintly singsongs, "let me go, boys, let me go, boys..." 15[21:42] I guess technically he's supine rather than prone. 15[21:44] The corpse Seven is puppeteering falls to the ground, staggering to stand on one good leg as she abandons her efforts. "Where is he?" [21:46] "Sure you don't need to finish that?" 10Jai feels almost sorry for the poor thing. "He's in the infirmary ward of the Undercity. He's got a patient with a very delicate condition, though." 15[21:47] Xu Sim is gone before the first person who needs him realizes he's missing. Where has he gone? [21:47] 13She knows the tune. "Let me go down in the mud where the river's all run dry," 13she sings. "Elegba." [21:47] 5Xu Sim heads up from the Undercity, looking for whatever signs he can of the Star's fall in the heavens themselves, but he turns southeast, towards Firewander. [21:47] "We've got to stop meeting like this." 15[21:48] "Alas, our fates are entwined. I held your heart in my hands, my dear! That doesn't wash off." Elegba's eyes snap open, but he doesn't rise. "It looks prettier in memory." [21:48] "And by delicate I mean 'run through with a direlance.' I think he's going to be tied up for a while." 10No, Jai isn't aware of any cosmic irony at all, in this moment. [21:53] 13Xia Lan: "Most things do, in my experience." 15[21:57] Tsuka draws in a deep breath and nods. He's off to lead. Where does Keldar go next? [21:58] <@Ferrinus> 12That's only half of Keldar's job. If there's unrest, even violence, in the undercity, it needs to stop before the armies of Nexus discover that they've been defending a ruin or abbatoir. He heads underground, to wherever this crime wave or almost-riot is coming to a head. 15[21:59] Ballare: "He won't make a deal." [21:59] 14Stranger sighs. "No, he won't." 15[22:00] Seven: "Where is the star?" [22:01] 14Stranger: "I might have to go out and talk to him. Again. And this time I'm not certain I'll be coming back." 15[22:03] Xu Sim explores Firewander, more vacant and haunting than ever as the aurora bleeds the sky. The deeper he gets, the more echoes fill the alleys, sounds of cracking stone and splintering wood moving in a steady track from west to east across the district. His eardrums pop. 15[22:04] Elegba: "Not everything. Would you like to know a secret?" [22:05] 10Jai: "It's gone. Keldar did a real number on the raksha queen. She melted away like so much snow and when we looked up, it was gone." 10Jai hesitates for a moment. "What is it, anyway? Balor's star. I know the story of the Crusade, but…" [22:06] 5Xu Sim creeps as soundlessly and discreetly as a cat towards the ancient Deliberative building at the heart of old Hollow. The hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he wonders if the Emissary is as close as he sounds to be. Best to keep moving, quietly, ever so quietly, the kind of quiet none of those other fools - well-meaning bulls in a porcelain shop - could manage. [22:06] 13Xia Lan: "Of course." 13She crouches in the light of the fire on the raft, trying to see if she can warm her hands. Morbid, maybe, but when will she have another chance? 15[22:08] Seven: "His eye. His heart. His soul. His essence. I don't-- we don't know what it is, exactly. Cethleann is gone? Who leads the army now?" 15[22:11] The deliberative hall itself is gone, the great golden dome ripped from the city when Nogare fled with the bulk of his armies after his betrayal. What remains is a vast stone courtyard gutted like a quarry, exposed basements and sub-basements barely visible in that shadowed pit. 15[22:14] Keldar makes his way to the deepest and safest recesses of the undercity, where tensions run high. The Dawn Guard have interspersed themselves with mixed success between a raucous and angry mob of Nexus citizens and the clean and uniformed mercenaries guarding the city's leaders and Guildsmen. There are weapons drawn on all sides, and hurled obscenities. [22:15] 5Xu Sim scans back and forth for a clever path inside. The Dawn Guard was disciplined enough to scour the place clean in the aftermath of what happened, but Xu Sim suspects that this place holds older secrets... it stands to reason that its oldest and newest secret would be in the same place. [22:16] <@Ferrinus> 12BOOM! BOOM! Keldar crashes a grand daiklave against the stone floor to get at least some of the crowd's attention. "I'm here. What's the trouble." 15[22:16] Ballare: "We just need one good chance. The Word can complete a fusillade in half a minute. If you could draw him somewhere out in the open..." 15[22:17] Elegba unfolds his hands just a crack, and brilliant red light spills out from between his fingers, as if it was burning a hole through his chest. [22:17] 14Stranger: "That I can do." [22:20] 10Jai shakes his head. "No idea. Everyone got messed up pretty bad, except for me. Keldar and Xia Lan got hit with some kind of curse, Stranger nearly lost it out there, and Xu Sim looked like he was ready to lock himself in the infirmary." 10Jai sighs. "Is he always like that?" [22:20] 14He pauses. "...Unless the Sol Ring can help somehow..." [22:21] 10Jai: "Guess that's the next step, though, huh? Go find out who's in charge over in Rakshatown." 15[22:22] Ballare: "I don't know what that thing is capable of." [22:23] 14Stranger: "That is very much our problem, yes. We've only had the thing for about ten hours, and the first time we tested it we had no idea what it would do." [22:26] 13Xia Lan gawps openly at him. "How'd-- what?" 15[22:27] Keldar gets the relevant attention once everyone sees a dude with a sword the size of a door in front of them. "We caught some looters--" "BullSHIT! Youse guys are just tryin to crack skulls!" "Disease-spreading thieves--" "Never miss a chance to put a boot to the working man--" 15[22:28] Elegba: "I made arrangements to negotiate a surrender but your people stood me up. I decided to take the initiative." [22:29] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar frowns and looks around. He addresses the nearest Guardsman. "What've we seen? Evidence either way?" 15[22:32] Xu Sim steals into the depths of the old Deliberative, while the eerie distortion of Wyld energies that suffuse the neighborhood leave him hearing voices and footsteps as he explores that he has to double-check to confirm are fictitious. Judging from the way the foundations are built out, there are definitely greater depths to the complex, but here now in the dark it's very hard to 15[22:32] find a point of access. The sounds of destruction draw closer. 15[22:32] Seven: "Alone?" [22:34] 10Jai: "I managed to get past the raksha once, but I'd rather not bet on twice, if I don't have to." [22:34] "Why? You want to come with?" 15[22:36] The evidence presented to Keldar is this: a group of boys, aged 12 to 15, were caught sneaking into the rich section of the refugee zone and coming out with loose or hastily-secured valuables. The mercenary guard caught and intended to make an example of the boys - well within their legal rights - but some older laborers - one with a son among the thieves - are attempting to intervene, 15[22:36] drawing weapons, and vowing retribution. [22:38] <@Ferrinus> 12Remind me, do the local Civilities allow taking hands or taking heads? [22:39] 13Xia Lan: "...that's one way to force the issue," 13she finally says, after a long silence. "So. What happens now?" 15[22:40] It depends on the assessed value of the stolen goods, damage incurred, etc. Broadly, the Civilities allow for "minor maiming and deformity" in virtually all cases of theft or attempted theft, but as long as the crime wasn't totally falsified, Keldar can't recall anyone ever getting in legal trouble for just killing a would-be thief. 15[22:40] The correct thing would be to take hands and call it good. 15[22:42] Elegba: "I don't know... I can't say. I can't take it outside the city. So I'm hiding right now. In your dream, mostly. I hope you'll forgive me for intruding, but in the circumstances I didn't have time to wait for an invitation." 15[22:43] Seven: "No. Absolutely not. But take this," she offers Jai a chunk of flesh in a tiny glass jar buzzing with feeding flies. "So we can find your body if you die." [22:45] 10Jai: "Thanks for the vote of confidence." 10He pockets the 'gift'. "You want me to carry a message back?" [22:45] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar draws a thumb across his stubble once. "All right. I'll take 'em." 12He pauses for half a beat to let people begin to ask what he means. "Not in position to waste hands right now. Or bodies, that matter. I'm arresting and conscripting these layabouts - they can work off the interest they owe the Guild by carrying bandages and such. Everyone's made whole and stays whole." [22:46] "I can nail it to his door or something, if he won't come out." 15[22:47] Despite the size of Keldar's sword, one of the mercenaries seems uncowed by Keldar's proclamation. "The fuck you are! This ain't a problem for the guard. We already caught the damn thief. We're in our rights here!" [22:50] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar narrows his eyes. "So'm I. I'm the Dawn Sergeant, we're under siege, and waste down here's criminal." 15[22:51] The mercenary juts his chin out defiantly. 15[22:52] Seven: "Make sure he doesn't lose perspective. We need him." [22:54] 13Xia Lan: "You're forgiven, though I'm not sure how you're doing that... or what you do when I wake up." [22:55] 5In the depths of the ancient Deliberative, Xu Sim summons some of his last reserves of strength and casts his mystic third eye forth to sense what before he could not. [22:56] 10Jai: "Got it. Umm… keep up the good work." 10And he's out. 10Deathknights. What're you going to do?10 But the idea of going to scout out the raksha's host isn't a bad one at all. [23:01] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar: "Listen, pal. This is a delicate situation, you understand me? If I'm not the one to do justice here then that's gonna lead to wanton violence and that's gonna lead to obstruction of trade and you really don't want to see what I'd do then. Leave these morons' punishment to the Guard and we all end up richer for it." 12It's kind of hard to make out the Dawn Sergeant's [23:01] <@Ferrinus> 12face as he talks, but if the merc simply glances sideways he'll find that Keldar's visage somehow reflects flawlessly in the flat of Terminus's blade. 15[23:06] The merc's jaw works as everyone holds their breath. Finally Keldar gets a derisive "Whatever you say, chief," before the kids are forcefully remanded to his custody. [23:10] <@Ferrinus> 12Keldar nods calmly to himself, instructing a nearby attendant to begin a ledger. Multiply the value of the would-be stolen goods by the usual percentages, cross reference that with the wages the Guard pays its child laborers, and the little tykes are going to be feeding silver to the Guild for a while yet - with their next of kin assuming the debt, of course, should some danger strike [23:10] <@Ferrinus> 12in the course of work. [23:12] <@Ferrinus> 12That, of course, is how Nexus holds together - a missing percentage probably adds up to more than a missing hand when all's said and done, but breeds cold dread rather than hot fury. After giving some likely-not-followed advice on guard emplacements in the refugee camps, Keldar moves on. If there's no other outstanding issue, he'll return to headquarters and try to rest up. 15[23:14] Xu Sim sees with sight beyond sight, letting the constant pulse of the world's essence guide him. He's able to see past the stone, following contrails of power that run through the exposed corridors, evaporating as he approaches them, eventually disappearing into a solid wall. Once knows exactly where to look, meticulous experimentation reveals the pressure points in the geomancy where 15[23:14] the careful application of essence will serve to undo a catch buried in the stone. With a scrape barely audible against the explosions now nearly overheard, Xu Sim sneaks into a hidden chamber, once lined with scrolls and books but long since ransacked. 15[23:15] Following the trails of energy Xu Sim comes upon a body in the darkness, perfectly still, its heart a blazon of crimson power he recognizes all too well. It was well-hidden, here, in what would have once been an emergency bunker for the Deliberative in case of invasion. 15[23:17] Jai's able to find Stranger easily enough, and assuming Stranger vouches for him, Jai is led up to the top deck of the final word with the Lookshyan commander, covered head to toe in red and blue jade. [23:18] 14That he does. [23:19] 10Jai: "Hey. Reporting mission successful. But, umm… Xu Sim's gone missing now." 10What's worse, no one appears to have seen him go. Not that Jai can say very much on that topic, but it bugs him that he misread the doctor. He left a note on a wax tablet before hunting up Stranger. [23:19] 5 Xu Sim looms in the darkness. Asleep? Dead? He takes another step with a spider's delicacy, wondering if he should strangle whoever lies here and take this power - a power he can make his own, not some hand-me-down from great stupid Theion or even the great lazy Sun... [23:20] 5 Anyone he recognizes? 15[23:21] Why, that seems to be Elegba, the raksha lord. He isn't breathing, but he's not cold either. [23:21] 10Jai: "On the bright side, Xia Lan's looking better. Less imminently on the brink of death. Oh, and speaking of, they're hard at work raising new corpses over in the Mask's camp." [23:22] 14Stranger shakes his head at both pieces of news. "The situation is very delicate right now. Very delicate. Hopefully Xu Sim knows what he's doing." 15[23:22] Elegba: "Oh, it's quite simple to enter the mind of another. Much harder to resist that connection, but so many people are clenched so tight that pulling away is second nature to them. Very boring without company." [23:24] 10Jai puffs a breath up, fluttering his bangs for a moment. "Me too. Lady Seven did point out a hole in our intelligence I'd like to remedy, if there's nothing more pressing I'm needed for." 15[23:25] Ballare: "Every body we lose -- every body they lose -- adds to his army. Our positions get worse but his only gets better. We have to act quickly." 15[23:25] "What hole?" [23:25] 13Xia Lan: "Well, hopefully the next time I keep you company, I don't have to nearly die for it. Or actu- wait, no, you're here. Same as last time." 13She lets out a sigh of relief she didn't realize she was holding. "Second question, then. What happens when people find out?" [23:25] 10Jai: "Namely: how badly injured is Cethleann? Who's in charge of the raksha host right now?" [23:26] "And, if she is incapacitated, is there some way to use that for our advantage?" 15[23:27] Ballare: "How?" 15[23:30] Elegba: "I'm hoping to have come up with a plan before then. Any ideas?" [23:32] 10Jai: "There's no way to make a solid plan unless we know what the situation in their camp is. Otherwise, we'll just be on the back foot waiting for their next move." 15[23:32] Ballare: "How are you getting across?" [23:36] 10Jai shrugs. "I waltzed under the Mask of Winters' own bony nose to get here. Slipping by a few raksha shouldn't be a problem." [23:37] "Especially not while they're recovering from the attack." 15[23:38] Ballare: "...we can probably commit to a distraction." [23:39] 10Jai grins. "Thank you, sir. I won't let the city down." 15[23:46] Ballare, to Stranger: "You're okay with this?" [23:47] 13Xia Lan: "You're going to have a lot of people very angry with you if they find out. And, um, probably also with me. So... make sure they don't? And point it away from the city if you have to use it?" 13She sighs. "The Sol Ring and the Balor's Eye in the same city. If anything but rubble's here when this is over it'll be a miracle." [23:49] 14Stranger: "We need to be making progress against the raksha even as we plan what to do with the Mask. Having seen Jai work, I trust him with this matter." [23:49] 10Jai: "I know when to cut and run if things get hairy. And that, in itself, will at least be some intel." 15[23:49] Ballare: "We've got a plan now, at least." [23:49] "Whew. What a relief. Lady Seven said she looked forward to picking over my corpse." 15[23:50] Ballare: "A typical Thorns greeting." [23:51] "Yeah, well. That's Thorns for you. The deathknights aren't all bad… but it takes some getting used to." [23:54] 10And he's off again to pack his gear. Things are so much easier when you have a clear goal in front of you. None of this "wait for further instructions" nonsense. [00:06] 5Xu Sim looks down at the sleeping Elegba. Had this been Cethleann, he would not have hesitated to strike her down, even if he would die trying. But doubt seized him and his fear overcame his hatred. Slipping his hand past the sleeping Raksha's own, he seized the Eye of Balor, summoned his Stormwind Rider, and with a gigantic whoosh of ancient dust and pebbles, went screaming and [00:06] 5cackling out into the halls of the ruined Deliberative. His triumph! His alone! 15[00:08] Xia Lan realizes the Eye is gone before Elegba does, as the light dies behind his fingers. [00:08] 13Xia Lan: "...did you do that?" 15[00:11] Elsewhere, Xu Sim tears screaming out of the Deliberative Halls, sending blood-red shockwaves in his wake as the stolen power of the raksha king courses through him. As he reaches the open air, pain throbs behind his eyes as if a great fist had reached into his skull to squeeze. It's excruciating, but not debilitating. After a moment he can focus enough to look behind him and see, 15[00:11] white-cloaked and silver-masked, the old Emissary giving chase through the air, with chunks of cobbled street appearing in the sky with crack after sickening crack cutting a path for the Emissary to run after the wayward whirlwind bearing his stolen Eye. 15[00:11] Elegba looks down. "...oh, dear." 15[00:11] NEXT TIME: The Terrible Gaze