- I was determined that Session 30 would be the Royal Ball. No further delays. No more inching towards it. I can and have created loads of NPCs for Grant to interact with, but it wasn’t advancing the plot. This is a danger with immersive RPGing that the players can’t see the wood for the trees and without an obvious plot hook, the players can be lost. It is possible to be a passive/reactive character who follows the plot, but the best Amber Diceless (and now Lords of Gossamer) games are where one is a player who creates the plot. I attempted to get David (Lurker37) to drive the plot, but he struggled to find a way forward. Hence the plot(s) caught him with him - he didn’t manage to get ahead, so the NPCs put their own plans into motion ….
Realm 15b - True Marindar (Grey Door)
Finding a Partner
- Flush with his briefing of all of the notable personages of Marindar, Grant considers meeting a number of them before realising that he will see them all at the Ball, and he has kept them waiting for months anyway. He decides that his priorities need to be finding a date for the Ball, and finding Theros (Morlan).
- Grant ponders who to take to the Ball. The considers Lady Vidaniel, Lady Messina of House Cavill, and Lady Arabelle (seen below) from House Shapiro.
* Image by Gothic Icecream on DeviantART
- In the end, Grant decides to invite Raine (GM’s note - first encountered back in Session 14!) who Grant remembers inviting out to dinner and enjoying her company. Raine is a minor noble from House Medici, and Sophia has no objection to his choice. Grant invites Raine to his residence on the pretence of a fitting for the Royal Ball, and then surprises her by asking if she would like to accompany him. She is very surprised, but joyfully accepts.
* Image by Gothic Icecream on DeviantART
An audience with Theros
- Grant wants to meet with Theros (Morlan) and mulls over the best way to communicate to him. Sorcerous ‘telephony’ is one possibly but it is considered impolite unless one is an accepted acquaintance. Sorcerous birds such as Sophia’s robins and the Queen’s bluebirds are reserved for the noble elite, and Grant does not wish to use such a device. So he sends a runner to find Morlan and request an audience.
- Morlan arrives quickly, and Sophia greets him at the door. Grant invites him into his private study (as their residence is still being shaped and Grant is one of the ‘owners’, the building is forming in accordance with his desires as well as Sophia’s - ie: this is the same as ‘Control of Contents’, but limited to the house). Grant offers Morlan refreshments - fragrant wine and chilled fruits - and explains that he believes that Morlan is someone that he can trust. He produces the dagger from the Heldonian Puzzle Box (GM’s note - from Session 24) and indicates that he has spoken to Mordecai, who referred him to Morlan. Grant explains a great deal about his conspiracy theories that the Dwimmerlaik are involved behind the scenes, and Morlan listens. However, Grant is unable to persuade Morlan to share what he knows. Grant asks Morlan about whether anyone is behaving strangely, and Morlan confesses that everyone is acting differently since Narsaug’s attack on the Marindan approach (GM’s note - from Session 18). Morlan says that a direct attack on the Marindan approach had never happened before, so it is forcing the Defenders to change tactics. Regarding Grant’s concerns, Morlan asks why Grant has not spoken to Professor Morrison to share what he knows. Morlan appears to be strongly supportive of Morrison which surprises Grant, but it reminds him of Meliander’s viewpoint that Morrison is a Marindan patriot, not a traitor. (GM’s note - from Session 23) The most that Grant is able to get from Morlan is that the Professor (Morrison) has a plan. He is not waiting for the Enemy’s next move.
At last a real challenge
- Disappointed that his conversation with Morlan was not more productive, Grant seeks out Cromwell and the Danger Room. The difficulty level has been steadily increasing over the past few days, and when he next enters the room, he finds ‘Ben’ from the Marindan Approach waiting for him (GM’s note - from Session 14) Grant quickly deduces that Cromwell has gathered enough information about him to ‘build a better opponent’ and this adversary is a significant step-up from the previous ones. Grant reminds himself that ‘Ben’ is only a construct and is not a boy as he appears to be. Intrigued, he draws steel and sees how far how he can push the programme.
* I think this image comes from Skyrim (never played it) but I found it off a Google search
- The result is far more destructive to the room, the corridors and the residence in general than any of Grant’s previous battles. ‘Ben’ is stronger, faster and a better swordsman than anyone Grant has ever met before; and to his complete surprise, ‘Ben’ is not contained by the Danger Room itself. The fight continues into the corridor, up stairs and through the arboretum. For some reason the battle is only limited to certain areas of the complex, for they never end up in important areas of the residence. But the battle continues on for some time before Grant is finally victorious over ‘Ben’. As Grant breathes heavily, the inert form of ‘Ben’ vanishes and Cromwell praises him “now we’re getting somewhere”.
Missed Opportunity
- Grant spends time with Raine on and off over the next two days in the final lead-up to the Ball. Grant finds that he has forgotten how much he enjoyed Raine’s company - whereas Sophia is kind, considerate and somewhat reserved, Raine is far more perky and vibrant. She seems to be enjoying his attention, and true to her word, she has produced superb garments for them both to wear to the Ball.
- Raine and Grant go out for dinner one evening and Raine introduces him where the Marindans go to dance and be merry (GM’s note - it is effectively the classical equivalent of where young people go to spend their evenings - a dance/nightclub) Grant finds himself swept away in the experience. The fragrant smells of delicate incense, the lure of the soft music and the soft fabric of Raine’s dress makes him lose all sense of time and perspective. Grant and Raine make love in one of the parlour rooms. Fade to black.
- The next morning Grant meets Sophia back at the house and she is relaxed and professional. Grant knows that she knows that he has been out overnight with Raine and yet Sophia gives no indication that she is jealous or upset. Nevertheless, Grant does glean that Professor Morrison visited the residence while he was out, but that he asked to see Sophia, not Grant. Sophia does not share why Morrison wanted to see her, and Grant feels uncomfortable pressing her for information. As such, the opportunity to find out what is going on, is missed….
The Royal Ball
- The Royal Ball is held at the palace. Grant attends with Lady Raine, who is dressed splendidly and practically glides across the marble floors. Most of the nobles that Grant was briefed on are in attendance, although Heimloch (of House Hyndrake) is late. Grant is polite and converses with many of the noble lords.
- As time goes by, Grant notes that there are no representatives from Arcadia at the Ball. He considers this odd. He also notes that Sophia is accompanied by a gentleman that he does not recognise (GM’s note - I need to find an appropriate picture of this character at some future date). Finally, Turadok, the other Lord of Gossamer (GM’s note - from Session 16 Part 1), is in attendance with two ladies, one on each arm. Grant greets Turadok warmly and asks how he is faring. Turadok says that he likes this place - that the Marindans have been kind to him, they feed him and there are many beautiful places to visit.
- Grant notes that Kim and her Guards are on edge, as if they are expecting trouble.
- After about 2 hours into the Royal Ball, Galatea shows up. She is dressed in her normal garb, complete with her red cape, and makes a beeline for Sophia who is talking with her old friend Vidaniel. Galatea interrupts them, she talks briefly with Sophia and then leaves. Grant notes that she takes to the air as soon as she is outside the palace building, and he hears the boom as she breaches the sound barrier.
* Image by Portohle on DeviantART
- The Ball continues and Vico of House Shapiro asks politely if he may dance with Raine. She obliges and Grant has a chance to look more closely at the crowd. He uses Umbral Sight to spot the sorcerous enchantments in play - many are using sorcery to augment their appearances; Sophia has an active sorcerous communication going (but it is not clear who she is talking to, or waiting to talk to); Kim has a number of defensive wards upon her; and Jasla has a small arsenal of racked spells floating around her like small ‘weapons of mass destruction’. Grant doesn’t see anything unusual. He also does not see any serious decay or imperfection (as this is a strong Eidolon realm) except for Cromwell who is aged and physically decrepit.
- Occasionally he catches a glimpse of Sophia and he realises that she is keeping tabs on him. He becomes quickly convinced that there is something in motion.
The Breakout and the Invasion
- Sophia introduces Grant to her partner for the evening, and then asks him to fetch them both a suitable drink. As soon as they have a moment alone, Sophia asks Grant bluntly where Ethan is. Grant is not expecting this question and is unsure as to why she is asking. Sophia tells Grant that Galatea asked her for the Arcadian Key (which is at their residence) and that she would only do so if she thought Ethan was there. Grant’s mind quickly joins the dots and he realises that the Defenders must know that there is no Arcadian delegation at the Royal Ball, and they would also know that Ethan was ambushed on his way to the Arcadian Door (GM’s note - as per Session 24). Hence he surmises that Galatea has decided that Ethan is in danger and has decided to open the Door herself, using the Arcadian Key that is in Sophia’s possession.
- Before Grant can inquire further, Sophia tells him that Narsaug, the Warglord, has escaped the undersea facility (GM’s note - as seen in Session 21). Sophia explains that this was part of Morrison’s plan, to present Narsaug’s allies with an opportunity for him to be broken out - and the Enemy has taken the bait. Narsaug and his accomplices are on their way to Central and they are being tracked by the Defenders. It is assumed that they are heading for one of the Doors in order to escape. However, the opening of the Arcadian Door has complicated matters - there is something coming through from the other side and the guards are trying to hold the Door.
- Grant’s puts the pieces together quickly, realising that either there is one coordinated plot, or two separate plots which have coincided. He decides that Galatea is a pawn, and she has been manipulated into opening the Door; to what end he does not know. He remembers that Ethan told him that a strange meteor had arrived (GM’s note - as per Session 26) but Grant has no idea how close the impact was to the Door. He realises that it could be very close - it could be part of the plot. He discusses the situation with Kim, waits a few minutes for more information to understand whether the Arcadian Door is holding, and when advised that there are creatures getting past the defenders into the city, he decides to take action.
- Apologising politely to Raine, he requests an air car from Kim to return to his residence and don his armour. He is quickly hurtling across the sky towards Central; he dives into the house in hawk-form, then returns to the air car. His driver takes him quickly to the Arcadian Door, which lies in one of the floating octahedral constructs above the city. There are flashes of light as the guards continue fighting off the invaders.
…. and with that, we leave Session 30 with Grant about to spring into action.
