- GM’s note: Session 200 is a major milestone. I think after this session writeup I’m going to go back to abbreviated writeups once more. It takes too long to write these sessions up. 3-4 hours per writeup is just too much. Extrapolate that over 200 sessions and it’s a colossal amount of work. This session took a huge amount of time to write because it was such a complex session.
Besides, those of you who’ve read some of the session writeups have a pretty good idea how Lords of Gossamer can be run by now so surely you don’t need more to this level of detail.
In terms of generating the plot for Session 200, I used Savage Worlds, FATE Cards, some of the idea generators from the D6 West End Games version of Star Wars. I wanted conflict and combat. I wanted to introduce new characters and to see more role-playing. But there also had to be a satisfying ending.
Too often in fiction do we see the problem neatly solved and everyone goes back to being happy. Not this time. David and I talked in advance about what would be a realistic outcome and what would be a satisfying outcome. And we went with that.
- Grant thinks over what Lofwyr has said and he asks more about the different dragons which make up the ruling council. He wants to know the major players. If Lofwyr is asking him to kill a dragon to split the Empire, he needs to know much more about the factions and the personalities.
- Lofwyr tells Grant about the Dragon Emperor who has been sick for a long time, so long that people start to wonder if he is really ill, or not. Lofwyr also goes on to tell him about the five most powerful members of the ruling council. He includes himself. Then Sturmvald, Nephron, Asmadi and Arcades. Lofwyr shares information into the late evening. His attendant occasionally offers to top up their wine goblets but they are otherwise uninterrupted as they discuss the state of the Empire.
- Grant listens and asks the occasional question. Lofwyr explains that all of the Dragon Lords have considerable resources at their disposal and if there were a suitable crisis in the Empire, the factions would likely turn those ‘resources’ against one another rather than send them to hunt and kill one dragonslayer. Grant asks more about the resources that Lofwyr has at his disposal but Lofwyr politely refuses to tell Grant. He does say that he has assigned the task of hunting Lord Ethan to his advocate (referring to Abbie), suggesting to Grant that she may be holding off passing on the orders to those who would hunt Ethan. Grant assumes that Lofwyr knows that Abbie is holding back his assets and may even be counting on this, ‘keeping his powder dry’, so to speak.
- Suddenly all is quiet. Even quieter than normal when Lofwyr has just spoken and Grant finds himself reflecting upon what has been said. Everything is still except for the faint movement of shadow in the many glass walls that separate rooms on this floor of the building.
- Sensing an attack, Grant drops the goblet and gets to his feet. The goblet instantly freezes in midair and does not fall to the ground. A time stop!
- Using Umbral Sight, Grant spots a number of shadow-like forms heading in their direction. They are ignoring gravity and moving through the glass walls. They are armed with weapons made of the same shadow-stuff as their bodies. Shifting Gorgorin into staff-form, Grant moves to engage the shadows on one flank.
- The battle is fought in complete silence. Grant in ten-year old form faces against ninjas who are invisible except to Umbra Sight. They strike hard and fast and Grant fights back furiously. The elf attendant is slain but he remains motionless and does not fall. Grant throws back one flank but the ninjas on two other sides are heading directly for Lofwyr. Lofwyr is hit by a projectile in the chest.
- Grant throws off an Umbal Blast against a group of ninjas who are racing to finish Lofwyr off. The blast shatters the glass walls but the fragments do not fall. Five shadow warriors are blown through the crystal-clear fragments. But two more ninjas have reached Lofwyr’s desk.
- Leaping onto Lofwyr’s desk, Grant prevents either of the ninjas from dealing a death blow and he clobbers one of them, then the other. The rest of the shadows regroup and charge at Grant, some of them hurling projectiles which Grant deftly blocks with a sweep from Gorgorin.
- Grant attacks and parries, deflects and interposes himself as the shadows seek to kill both him and Lofwyr. Then, as suddenly as the fight started, the glass falls with a crash, the elf falls down dead and the surviving shadows are melting through the floor to escape. Only two minutes have passed but for two minutes Grant has fought off a horde of nearly invisible shadow-ninjas.
- Turning his attention to Lofwyr, the dragon lord is shocked by the attack but his shock quickly turns to anger. He is bleeding all over his immaculate suit from multiple wounds. Grant quickly counters the poison and neutralises the corrosive acids that have reached the dragon’s bloodstream.
- Lofwyr gets to his feet, casting defensive spells as he does so. He sees the remaining ninjas melting through the floor and names them as ‘Shadowmasters’ (assassins). Lofwyr tells Grant that he will contact security as he wants one ‘alive’. Lofwyr sounds very angry. He tells Grant to talk to Lord Sturmvald and he marches out of the room. Grant doesn’t interrupt him further. He follows while Lofwyr casts other spells. He tells Grant that he has confirmed that Lady Abigail (Abbie) is safe. He asks if Grant requires healing and within a few seconds, an elven healer has arrived in a flash of orange light. Lofwyr’s regeneration is swift. He is back to normal in under a minute. Another spell is cast and Lofwyr is gone, leaving Grant with the healer. The healer offers the same healing to Grant and his bruises are swiftly removed.
- Surveying the wreckage around him, Grant decides to check with Lady Sophia to see if she is okay. The Icon contact finds her perturbed. She is painting a landscape scene in the Arcadian forests and the light is fading quicker than she can finish what she had planned. She confesses that she will need to stay another day in Arcadia. Grant is relieved by this and asks that his regards be passed to the Queen.
- A clean-up crew arrives and Grant is given an armed escort. The assigned security detail looks like an experienced crew.
- Grant decides that he needs to freshen up. He decides not to ask Lofwyr’s crew but instead accepts their escort as he goes to find a local six-star hotel. He finds the Gilded Lily about a kilometre from Lofwyr’s tower. He has no problems booking a room and he drops Lofwyr’s name as he is signing in. He is given a good room with marble floors, gold trims, fine crystal chandeliers and a personal concierge. He orders room service and then uses his Icon for Drake while he is waiting for the food to be brought up.
- Drake accepts the contact. When Grant reports the attack on Lofwyr, Drake is immediately suspicious. Drake didn’t know that Grant had a relationship with one of the Dragon Lords. Drake is stern and explains that Lady Vala is attempting to diplomatically resolve the current problem directly with the Dragon Emperor. She is currently awaiting an audience. Drake warns Grant not to do anything which might complicate matters.
- Grant asks what else is going on and Drake tells Grant that the omens are not good. Skadi (his frost giantess soothsayer) is warning that something is brewing. He has put multiple teams on stand-by. Whilst there is no obvious threat, it is sensible to be prepared.
- After the contact, Grant settles back to enjoy an immersive sim-sense: Neil the orc barbarian.
- Grant loses track of time playing the game. Five minutes more ends up being five hours more. (Grant is still finding it hard not to be a ten-year old) Eventually he decides to pause the game and contact Ethan via Icon. He figures that he should tell him about the attack on Lofwyr and that Abbie is okay.
- Ethan1 answers the contact. He thanks Grant for the information that he gathered from Lofwyr and the news that Abbie is safe. Ethan1 also says that he and the other Ethan came under attack whilst in Drake’s care. They were well trained, and they were fast. They managed to infiltrate Drake’s own guards but didn’t manage to injure either of the Ethans. Ethan1 postulates that it may have been a feint or a probing attack. Either way, some of Drake’s men weren’t as loyal as Drake thought they were, which is concerning. He and the other Ethan have gone with Isabelle to a place that she knows about which is by ‘Invitation Only’. Ethan explains that the place is called Abele, and it’s a nice island with plenty of fruit trees. He’d like to go back to Millennium to get his body back but has been advised not to (Ethan1 sounds a lot like a kid). Ethan explains that even though Abele is ‘By Invitation Only’ so no one should be able to hunt him down here, he wants to invite Grant just in case.
- With the call done, Grant returns to his sim-sense and the adventures of Neil the orc barbarian. He plays right through the night until he feels that he really should have breakfast. Ordering a big fry-up, he decides to contact Vala to let her know what is going on. Vala assures Grant that she will talk to the Dragon Emperor shortly and that Drake had passed on his news that Lofwyr has been attacked. When Grant offers to assist her, she tells him that ‘your time will come’. Grant gets the distinct impression that Vala is with someone else and is unwilling to speak further. He wonders who. Someone from the Draconian Empire, or Drake, or perhaps Lucien?
- Grant feels the beginning of another Icon contact whilst talking to Vala (this hasn’t happened before – receiving a call whilst on another call). Grant ends the contact with Vala and accepts the new call. It is Abbie. She asks if he is okay and he confirms that he is. He explains that he is still in his ten-year old form which limits how much ‘fun’ he can have – ie: no beer. Abbie opens up a little and explains that she can’t help criminals (as Ethan has been marked) but she can listen to requests and perhaps even provide information or support to Lord Grant where appropriate. She says that Lofwyr believes that Grant and he have some shared goals and hence she will assist where she can. Grant gets the impression that this is not a social call – she is operating within the guidance that she has been given.
- Grant asks if it is possible to continue the conversation with Lofwyr but Abbie says that Lord Lofwyr is currently unavailable although he greatly appreciates Lord Grant’s efforts to date. Again, she offers to help him where she can.
- Grant asks if she can tell him more about Lord Sturmvald and even to set up an introduction. Abbie has never met Sturmvald in person but she has heard him to be an honourable dragon and much respected. He has a large army and it is unlikely that he would stoop to assassination (or attacking Lofwyr as the Shadowmasters have done). However, Sturmvald called for the mark against Ethan so he seems to be a stickler for the rules. She has also heard that he doesn’t like time-wasters. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly.
- Abbie agrees to arrange for a meeting with Sturmvald and asks Grant to stand by. Grant waits happily in the Gilded Leaf. In the meantime he organises a tailored suit (for a ten-year old) and a thick overcoat (given that he has been told that Sturmvald’s world of Turien is very cold). Four hours later, Abbie contacts him again – she has organised an appointment. Grant brings her through. She is dressed formally and she wears an insignia brooch which marks her as representing Lord Lofwyr. She expresses no visible surprise at Grant’s ten-year old form. She is all business. She has a talisman that will take them to Turien and they are expected in two hours’ time.
- In the next two hours Abbie fills Grant in on etiquette and what to expect, on Sturmvald and his relationship to Lofwyr. They are not friends, but they are not enemies either. They respect each other even if they don’t always agree. Sturmvald seems to be the Drake of the Draconian Empire. He didn’t like Bolas but didn’t stand up to him. Neither did Lofwyr. Abbie doesn’t mention Ethan once. She gives Grant the impression that she is operating under instructions. She explains that she will do most of the talking, but Grant was an eye-witness in the attack on Lofwyr and Lord Sturmvald will pay particular attention when Grant speaks.
- Grant asks Abbie what they expect to gain from this exchange and Abbie says that an attack on Lofwyr will be seen as an attack on the Empire itself. Grant is assisting Lofwyr in rallying support which could be useful later. She points out that Lofwyr repays his debts and having a Dragon Lord owe Grant is a powerful position to be in. Grant wonders aloud how this will all help Ethan. Abbie stiffens at this and says that she presumes that Lofwyr is relying upon them to rule out a suspect and perhaps shed more light behind who is behind this. Grant points out critically that Lofwyr probably already knows who his enemy or enemies are. He just wants Sturmvald to see the same things that he does. Abbie grimly accepts this as a possibility.
- Two hours pass then Grant and Abbie head to a guarded room which is used for arrivals and departures. This room in the Gilded Lily is strongly defended as it is the most obvious place to launch an attack from. Abbie uses the talisman and a sorcerous teleport is triggered. The world around them melts away, revealing a very similar chamber, heavily defended but with hanging tapestries of silver and blue. The soldiers here are both human and dragonborn.
- Abbie and Grant are greeted by Sturmvald’s advocate and her associate. Sturmvald’s advocate is a blue haired lady who calls herself Irina. Grant can tell that she is a Warden of the Stair. She speaks with a heavy accent and she quickly pairs up with Abbie, making small talk as they walk. (GM’s note – yes, we are finally introducing The Blue Widow, one of the official characters from No Beast So Fierce)
* Image from Lords of Gossamer. This one is the Blue Widow. Official character – yay!
- Irina’s associate is a large dragonborn mage named Borvangar. Borvangar nods when introduced but does not speak. He follows the group as they walk through the corridors. Grant sizes them both up – they both seem pretty dangerous.
- As they travel, Abbie explains what she knows of the attack on Lofwyr. Irina and Borvangar listen to the account. Both are interested when Abbie explains that Lord Grant was a witness and he probably saved Lord Lofwyr’s life.
- They leave one cold facility to journey to another via an antigravity transport. Traveling across a world of ice, snow and rock, Grant notes that the sun here burns with a cold, blue light. It seems that the people here of Turien use both magic and science, just like the people of Lofwyr’s world. Their transport is taken into a huge mountain fortress with large numbers of soldiers and defensive weaponry. Grant has no doubt that they have been taken on this route to give them a glimpse of what Lord Sturmvald has at his disposal. It is all set up to impress.
- It occurs to Grant as he steps out of the vehicle into the arrival hall that he has never seen Lofwyr in dragon form, only ever in human form. The arrival hall is full of thousands of soldiers, all standing to attention. There are infantry, anti-gravity tanks, flying creatures and metallic giants. Irina ushers them through the arrival hall to a great chamber beyond which serves as an audience hall.
- There, they see a very large, silver skinned dragon who has a distinct molten appearance. He is surrounded by advisors, mages and soldiers. This is not a private audience. It is very public.
* Image is of an Archwing Dragon from Magic the Gathering
- Lady Abigail (Abbie) and Lord Grant are formally introduced. As Lofwyr’s representative, Abbie leads the dialogue. She details the attack and how Lofwyr’s security failed. She explains that the attack might have succeeded if it were not for Grant’s presence. She does not explain Grant’s immunity to the sorcerous ‘time stop’ except to say that Grant was the only one free to act when the assassins attacked. She then introduces Grant to give an eyewitness account, which he does.
- Stormvald listens patiently. Grant feels uncomfortable to be standing in the dragon’s presence but he maintains his cool. Once Grant completes his explanation, Sturmvald thanks him for the information and for defending his fellow Dragon Lord. He muses briefly that any attack on a dragon of Lofwyr’s stature would surely be futile and wonders openly why anyone would attempt something ‘so silly’. He seems dismissive that the assassins actually got close to killing Lofwyr – Grant wonders whether Sturmvald understands the situation or whether he has an inflated opinion of their strength. Sturmvald concludes by asking what Lord Lofwyr requires in terms of assistance.
- Abbie says that no assistance is required but that an attack on one is an attack on all. Sturmvald senses that Grant wants to ask something privately and so he establishes a private mind-to-mind link (GM’s note – we just hand-waved that dragons can do this sort of stuff).
- Grant asks Sturmvald why he singled Ethan out to be marked as a dragonslayer. After a pause, Sturmvald says that there are many answers to that layered question. He says that Lofwyr proposed it and that he agreed to it on a point of principle. Surprised that Lofwyr would suggest this in the first place given the impact that this would have on his advocate, Grant asks a further question. He asks why the dragons would want to remove Ethan. Sturmvald says that Lord Ethan is known for having a gift for healing. He says that some would wish him not to use it. Before Grant can answer a further question, Sturmvald says cryptically: Who can understand the mind of a dragon? And then he answers: Few can.
- The conversation ends. Sturmvald thanks both Abbie and Grant for their consideration and asks Abbie to convey his regards to Lord Lofwyr. Dismissed, they leave the dragon lord’s presence but then have further conversations with Irina and Borvangar to go over more details as to what happened so that they might learn from it. (GM’s note – we didn’t want to roleplay through this conversation. We decided to park it and run it as a flashback in the future) The conversation is positive and Grant is left with the opinion that Sturmvald is a fair ruler.
- Leaving Turien, Abbie and Grant return to Essen and the Gilded Leaf hotel. There they part to make separate reports. Grant contacts Drake. Drake asks if Grant is safe and tells him that Lady Vala wants to talk with him, Grant then contact Vala. After the normal pleasantries, Vala tells Grant that she has spoken directly to the Dragon Emperor. The Emperor advised her that he has been poisoned and is dying. Vala offered to help remove the poison but the Emperor refused. The Emperor is more concerned about which of the dragon lords has stooped to using poison to kill him. The Emperor wants the individual found because whoever poisoned him must never become Emperor. Effectively the Lords of Gossamer are being asked to find out which of the dragon lords is a traitor…..
- Grant thinks about what Vala has said. It sounds increasingly likely that there will be conflict in the Empire. Shortly, Abbie returns. She says that she briefed Lofwyr. They talk a little. Grant is disappointed. He was hoping for more from Sturmvald – a lead of some kind. Abbie says plainly that she didn’t expect Sturmvald to have any answers but it was important for him to talk to someone who was actually there and hence for this story to be believed. The role that Grant played was very important. She remarks that if there is going to be conflict, Sturmvald is an important ally to have.
- Grant wonders what they should do next. Abbie plans to use divination to try to determine the next steps. She said she learnt from the best, a reference to Ethan. She tries a number of divinations but the responses are hazy, suggesting interference. She expects this but she keeps posing different questions, explaining that whatever wishes to remain hidden can’t block every one of her inquiries. After about two hours, she gets a lead. The next strike will be …. home.
- But whose home? Grant’s or Abbie’s. It is very inconclusive. Disappointed, Abbie says that she has no plans to return home in the near future. Grant asks where her home is and Abbie gives him a stern look and says that she has no intention of telling him. (GM’s note – Abbie has a safe realm which she considers home that I have not yet introduced into the game narrative) After thinking for a while, Abbie says that she’s going to give the next steps some further thought. She thanks Grant for his help and leaves him.
- Grant decides to go wayfinding for a clue as to the next step. He heads back onto the Stair and wanders. This is the worst kind of wayfinding when you don’t know quite what you are looking for - he feels like he is wandering aimlessly. He feels like he is heading in the direction of the Agora but it is still a vague feeling even after two hours. Grant is interrupted by an Icon contact from Lady Sophia.
- Accepting, Sophia explains that a representative from the Draconian Empire has arrived to see him. The representative, a draconian named Virn, has been in residence for just over a day but only now has asked for an audience. Grant decides to go and find out what this representative has to say. He goes through the Icon contact and joins Sophia on Marindar.
- Still in his ten-year-old form but wearing semi-formal clothes, he decides that he is presentable enough to meet with Virn. They meet in diplomatic chambers with glass windows on one side looking out over Central. Virn is a large draconian, standing almost eight feet tall, but he greets Grant heartily and speaks in rhyming couplets.
- Virn is lavish in his praise of Lord Grant and his hospitality. He says that he represents the Dragon Highlord Arcades, whom Grant knows is something of a strategist. Virn talks in such a strange way that Grant finds himself doing mental gymnastics trying to keep up with the wordplay and Virn’s riddling style. Virn muses from time to time, posturing, seeking input. It is a strange dance that Virn weaves. He has a quick mind and he appears to be trying to take the measure of Grant.
- Grant is quite enjoying the unusual conversation when he suddenly feels a sharp pain in his chest. He feels speared. Stabbed through the chest. Gasping, he brings the Umbra to mind and staggers. He is under some sort of attack.
- A shot rings out and Grant feels himself falling. Something feels odd as his world seems turned upside. He feels something missing and at some conscious level he knows he’s under attack and has been seriously hurt. His subconscious is already tapped into Umbral shapeshifting.
- Grant has been hit by a large calibre round. Part of his head has just been vaporised and the wall is splattered with his blood, skull and brains. The shot has gone clean through the reinforced window, taken out a good part of his head and the force of the impact has thrown him off his chair.
- On the floor, Umbral energy ripples through his body and he melts through the wall. At a primal level, his body has chosen to Flee. He leaves the building as a black blur, moving blindingly fast (GM’s note – he has Engine speed). He doesn’t know where he is going. The Umbra takes him to a random location well outside Central’s city limits and there, he broods like a wounded animal and licks his wounds.
- Time passes. It takes a little while before he has regenerated enough of himself to regain coherent thought. Night falls. At a subconscious level, his mind has registered that his ten-year-old shape has been badly injured. He regenerates into his nineteen-year-old form. The same form that he first stepped onto the Stair with (GM’s note – all the way back in Session 1)
- He contacts Sophia via Icon. She is relieved to hear that he is okay – she hasn’t been able to contact him for hours (Umbral defences prevent Icon contacts). She gives him the rundown as to what has happened since the attack and he agrees to come back home.
- Stepping through, Sophia embraces Grant. She knows that he was alive but she still feared for him. She explains that there were four assassins, all Dwimmerlaik. They had been in Central for weeks as part of Lord Morla’s entourage. Lord Morla is apparently horrified by this as he brought them to Marindar as part of his security detail.
- Of the four assassins, one of them had some sort of voodoo-magic powers which enabled them to immobilise Grant. A second assassin had a sniper’s lance weapon. A third was using magic to gain supernatural speed. A fourth has the ability to petrify a target like Gorgon’s stare. Of the four, three were killed and only the fourth was captured. Three Marindan Defenders have been slain.
- Grant takes in the situation and goes to see the scene of the attack. Virn is still standing in the audience room where Grant was meeting with him. He stands motionless. Grant looks over Virn’s petrified form and thinks that he might be able to break the effect with Umbra, but he decides instead to interrogate the Dwimmerlaik and force him to reverse the spell.
- For the rest of the night, Grant works on the Dwimmerlaik and forces him to reverse the petrification effect. He also forces him to reveal his lineage and where he took his orders from – a Lord Yarloc. (GM’s note – this information is stored for the future and was not followed up in this session)
- Grant is angry and pissed off. He listens to Lord Morla’s apologies and excuses that he knew nothing about this. He sees this as a stain on his honour and promises to investigate how this happened. Grant pushes him to follow through or it will undo everything that has been accomplished so far.
- During this time, Ethan contacts Grant via Icon. He was concerned that something might have happened to him given that he felt ‘blocked’ before. Ethan tells Grant that even though they thought they were safe on Abele, they still came under attack by a group of fey assassins that bypassed the need to be ‘Invited’ to the island. Isabelle was hurt in the attack but she’ll recover. Ethan explains that Eric and Macavity were on the island too. It was a hard-fought battle as the fey used some strange abilities. Ethan warns Grant about the fey and is surprised that the attack on Grant was by Dwimmerlaik, not fey. Ethan explains that they plan to move on to another location but that they enlisted Liliana’s help to talk to one of the dead fey to compel the departed spirit to tell them who had hired them. The contact is ended. (GM’s note – more on who hired them in a subsequent session)
- Reversing the petrification effect, Virn is restored to flesh, bone and blood. After accepting that Grant has changed his form, Grant brings him up to speed and gets him to explain what he is offering. Grant wants answers and wants to go after the assassins. Virn presents Grant with a talisman which will take him to Lord Arcades, his master. He suggests that Arcades will have some of the answers that Grant is seeking as he likes to gather information and esoteric knowledge.
- Virn activates the talisman. He and Grant are bathed in golden light and transported to a futuristic setting which looks strangely familiar. It is reminiscent of a transporter room from Star Trek [i](GM’s note – yes, yes, finally we have a Star Trek reference after 200 sessions.)[/i] Virn is greeted on the transporter ‘pad’ by a uniformed officer who says that His Lordship is waiting for Grant. He was expected some time ago. Virn comments that they were ‘delayed’.
- Escorted through the vessel, Grant passes many races, most uniformed in Star Trek fleet colours (GM’s note – Next Generation of course, none of this Enterprise, Discovery etc, reimagining of the original generation rubbish) He is taken a room which seems to be a diplomatic lounge. There, the dragon is waiting for him in dragon-form. He is large, but nowhere near as large as Sturmvald.
* Image is of Arcades the Strategist from Magic the Gathering
- The dragon welcomes Grant to his ship. He offers Grant a drink. He chooses tea whilst Arcades chooses vodka. They talk for a while (the dragonlord is quite talkative) and Arcades explains he is shocked by the attack on Lofwyr. He knows that most of the dragonlords have covert teams of their own, or at least access to specialists. If Grant is interested in finding assassins, then Arcades knows where one of the ‘nests’ is.
- Grant asks how far away the ‘nest’ is and Arcades explains that they have already arrived at Alpha station. Grant asks how much Arcades knows about what is going on between the dragons and, like Sturmvald, he answers cryptically saying: More than a little but never too much.
- Arcades talks about Alpha station being a collection of many worlds, but there is a ‘dark spot’ called Terreli which is a sort of training ground for the Black Hand, a loose affiliation of assassins used by at least two of the dragonlords. It is Arcades’ belief that they will find some answers on Terreli. When asked how he knows this, Arcades explains that he is highly proficient in augury.
* Image sourced from Google Images but I believe this one is from the movie Valerian
- Grant asks more questions of Arcades about the state of the Empire and who could be behind these attacks. Arcades believes it is either Nephron or Asmadi. Possibly both of them. Nephron is a dragon warlord who would very much like to be in control of the Empire. Asmadi is a dragon-sorcerer, ruinous and destructive. Arcades speculates that it will be chaos if the Emperor dies.
- Grant is transported onto Alpha Station and he goes hunting for Terreli, the part of Alpha Station which is ‘off the map’. He uses wayfinding to assist in his search. This is Grant’s element and he is an expert hunter. He uses his shapeshifting to appear like one of the aliens here.
- Along the way, Grant feels that approaching a nest of assassins by himself may not be prudent. He stops short and decides to contact Oscar, figuring that even if he doesn’t want to assist, he will have some comment to make about Grant’s recent brush with death. Oscar accepts the call. He shows more interest in talking to Grant this time around, especially when Grant quips that he got his head ‘blown off’ but ‘got better’. Oscar chuckles and asks if this was his ‘first time’ and ‘how it happened’. Listening to Grant’s explanation, Oscar remarks that messing in the affairs of dragons can be a tricky business. Grant asks for his insights about the Draconian Empire and is bluntly told that the universe would be better off without them. The conversation then changes and Grant asks for his help. Surprisingly, Oscar agrees and they both assume shapes that will blend in amongst the many aliens races that can be found on Alpha Station.
- They make their way to the Terreli ‘dark spot’ without incident, even though it takes them a little while to find a way into the place.
- Terreli appears as a mountain-side bathed in snow. Thick snow is falling in this place and there is a temple high on the mountain side. Oscar and Grant make their way to the temple and are attacked by many assassins – more than twenty of them. They come from many different races – some are elves, some Dwimmerlaik, some orcish, some human. All use martial arts but they use a mix of weaponry. Oscar and Grant make short work of them all – they are up against students, not masters.
- In the temple, they meet a long-haired man who looks to be at peace. He remarks that all of his students have been beaten and when asked, he discloses that he is the only master in residence, implying that all of the other masters are out ‘on assignment’.
- The man opens his eyes and they are red. Grant knows who this is – it’s a manifestation of the Red-Eyed Dwimmerlaik. He’s never met him before but he knows of him from Ethan. Waving Oscar back, Grant engages him in combat.
- Even though the R.E.D. is clearly puppeteering this man, he appears to be a highly skilled combatant. Furthermore, R.E.D. likes to talk and Grant wants to listen. The R.E.D. boasts that the Emperor is already dead and that a ‘house divided cannot stand’, implying that the death of the Emperor will lead to some sort of collapse in the Draconian Empire.
- They fight for some time and Grant finally scores a hit on the R.E.D, but the R.E.D. shrugs off the blow as if it were nothing. Redoubling his effort, the R.E.D. scores blows on Grant not just once but twice, something that hasn’t happened in a long time. R.E.D. remains chatty as Grant asks what will happen if the Emperor dies. The R.E.D. says that at least two of the Dragon Lords will want the throne and remarks that they will be far too busy to chase poor dragonmarked Ethan.
- Grant is knocked down a third time. As the R.E.D. gloats, Grant realises that he’s fighting at a disadvantage. The R.E.D. has his Truename and this is providing him with an edge.
- They continue fighting on the temple roof with the snow falling and making the tiles slippery. Grant uses Umbra as a focus, figuring that it must be hard for R.E.D. to keep fighting at this level for very long. He resolves to tire the R.E.D. He still feels strong and only his pride is injured. They duel on the rooftop, and finally Grant scores two blows and then a kick which throws the R.E.D. from the roof into the snow-covered courtyard below.
- Knowing that he has won, Grant tries to coax some answers out of the R.E.D. The master assassin’s body is broken but still the R.E.D’s presence is there. The R.E.D. tells Grant that Nephron poisoned the Emperor but that the knowledge will do him little good. Then the red eyes fade…..
- The snow keeps falling and Grant feels empty. He has new information but it doesn’t help him. Oscar encourages Grant to raze Terreli with Umbra, and he does so.
- Grant decides to return to Arcades to tell him what he has learnt. Oscar opts out at this point, saying that he’s met Arcades before and doesn’t wish to do so again. They part amicably.
- On the way back to Aracdes’ ship, Grant receives an Icon contact from Vala. She tells him that the Dragon Emperor is dead. He died suddenly, and Umbra was used. After the initial shock, Grant asks if there have been any moves from the others and Vala tells him that all is quiet for the moment. The call is quickly ended.
- Returning to Arcades, Grant tells him what happened and what the Red-Eyed Dwimmerlaik said – that Nephron poisoned the Emperor. Somehow, Arcades seems to already know that the Emperor is dead. Arcades seems somewhat disappointed. He suggests faintly that perhaps he should have taken action sooner. Grant elects to leave and finds a Door to return back to the Stair.
- Grant thinks to himself that what Vala warned him of has come to pass. The Empire will split, and the dragons will turn upon each other.
- GM’s note: And that’s that – no happy ending. But no immediate civil war either. The universe holds its breath, waiting for the inevitable conflict between the Dragonlords.
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