Matt City

 
There was magic in this world once, but they stole it all away.
 
The brothers collected the entrapped souls from the pyramid, they would go through the test of brotherhood and in time some would probably become brothers. They also collected the high priestess of Amon-Re, with hopes of turning her to their cause with the help of the very fancy ornate gilded Amon-Re book they had found shortly into the pyramid.
 
The brothers decided to stash some of the more. . obvious loot from the dead Yuan-Ti with the Bravo Brothers, so they would not have to answer any more difficult questions than needed when reporting back to the Sultan. They ran across the Paladin once again, who proclaimed: “Oh you’ve gotten rid of the evil people!” and they group looked at Tage for a moment, before pressing on to offer a chance to return to the sultanate of Peshemi. The brothers escorted their eighteen recruits out of the pyramid. Recruits of note were of course the Lady Robby Margot, her horse Friday, and the Secret Wizard Kiss-Kiss. When asked about the apparently immortal wizard, the high priestess indicated rumors that the head priest of Amon-Re was not immortal. Something about no longer having a heart, performing a dark ritual.
 
The caravan started making its way back to the Sultanate, and the Brothers slightly wished they had in fact taken their land boat to the pyramid after all. Half a day into their trek, they were set upon by a purple worm! They braced themselves for a battle, and their recruits would be tested even sooner than they had thought.
 
John sipped some refreshing beverages, and stepped near the beast. Kiss-Kiss hurled a fireball, slightly singing the creature. Tage disappeared in a puff of smoke after tossing a shuriken, and Koric charged at the beast and was immediately swallowed. The bandits shot a volley of ineffectual arrows, and one broke his bow. The worm swallowed John as well, and the pair of brothers worked to escape the stomach.
 
In short order, they had cut their way out of the beast. John extracted some vital organs, and they searched for other recent occupants of the stomach before pressing on. Inside the gullet was a sack of emeralds, which the brothers secured before making camp in the carcass for the night.
 
They set watches, and John gave a rousing inspirational speech to the potential brothers to hopefully prevent desertion or betrayal: the penalty would be swift, and the opportunity to be a brother was not one to be passed up easily.
 
During the first watch, the priestess made some moves on the gentleman and ninja. The ninja noticed a flying object above, but could not make anything more out. They warned the second watch (John and Yuttosk) about the flying thing before heading to their own sleep. They mentioned an almost inaudible hum. Curious. John remarked that it did not remind him of the vessels he had seen in the corporate service. The vessel did not return, and the group set out to continue their travels the next day.
 
On the next day, three riders approached the caravan. They seemed familiar, and the brothers remembered that they had seen three riders on their approach to the pyramid. They indicated that they were on their way back to the sultanate, and had been quite successful in their delving into the Pyramid of Amon-Re. When asked of news of the state of things, they seemed a bit askance: Suggesting that the sultans advisor was making more and more decisions. An unfortunate turn of events, which perhaps the brothers would work to rectify.
 
That night nothing of interest occurred, but Tage asked his stone what it was that had flown overhead. The response was: “An Airship”. What a strange occurrence!
 
On the final day of travel, in their pathway was a standing pharoah, pointing towards the sultanate. The spectral mirage faded and the brothers trekked onwards.
 
As the brothers arrived, John moved to purchase a warehouse to use as a base of operations for the region. The Bravo Brothers reunited and gave a status report on the situation in the Sultanate. Hug-Hug was especially glad they had returned in one piece. The warehouse was better than the inn they had been slumming at.
 
The Gith presence was greater than it had been when the brothers left, and it seemed their influence had definitely grown politically as well. Apparently they were moving around in airships, probably the same sort that had passed overhead in the night a few days prior.
 
Shortly they received another missive:
 
The Sultan would be happy to meet “Brotherhood” tomorrow, at two in the afternoon.
 
The Alpha Brothers moved to meet with the Sultan while the Bravo brothers and new recruits sorted out the new headquarters: Purchasing supplies, reinforcing exits, checking for secret tunnels, making an escape tunnel, commissioning a fancy monocle etc.
 
Meeting with the sultanate, they explained most of what had happened. He claimed that the Gith were aiding with military might and expansion of the sultanates land. The Gith were not pleased that the two they had dispatched did not return.
 
As a gesture of good will, the brothers engraved the silver sword of the betrayer with:
 
A gift from the Bandolier Brothers.
 
And returned it to the Gith in court with the sultan watching. Their reaction was one of pleasant surprise. When they unsheathed the scabbard later, their surprise would be even greater.
 
The sultan was so glad at the turn of events, he declared an immediate feast in the Brotherhoods honor. What a delight for everyone involved! The brothers were invited to stay for the night, and the Gith were quite dismayed by this.
 
In the gardens, a meeting took place. The situation with the Gith was discussed with the underground contact. Apparently the Gith had their very own wing now, the Eastern wing. Later that night, the brothers retired to their western wing: Everyone except for Tage enjoyed a delightful bath in the communal spa area, taking a much needed break from adventuring for a few hours of pampering with the assistance of very helpful palace aids. Tage refused the services of the aids, ensuring his solitude for the evening and sending them to Jack. After checking to see if they were secure and safe from secret entrances, traps, nests of Giant Centipedes, assassins, etcetera.
 
John decided that one of these days he would definitely have to show Yuttosk the joys of being a mammal, though perhaps not in a time where the brothers were most likely to be assassinated by a very angry Gith.
 
A dwarf arrived at Tages room, offering a delicious bowl of fresh fruit. Wrapped in a floor plan of the East Wing. Interestingly enough, an underground tunnel connected into the West Wing from the gardens. Half of the brothers would sneak in, and poke around, while others created a distraction. .
 
John and Tage successfully snuck to the tunnel, while Yuttosk, Koric, and Thy’lek all wandered to the gardens to go for a stroll. They had to pay for the privilege: Corrupt guards insisted that Yuttosk wouldn’t eat the flowers and pay double the fee. Annoyedly, they paid up and also paid a bit extra for some floozies.
 
The two sneaking brothers crept into the Gith filled wing, Tages ears temporarily gained the strength of generations, and he listened to the covert speech of Gith: Seeking assignment elsewhere, despite being stuck here. Nothing of especial import. Stepping from shadow to shadow, Tages alchemically enhanced stealth proved a match for the less-than-vigilant Gith guards.
 
Tage caught them saying to “Do what needed to be done”, and inferring that meant an attempt on the life of the sultan he thought quickly to order them to “Make haste to the pyramid, for trouble has arisen!” He returned to John, informed him of the turn of events: Less guards in the wing, and they decided the time had come to strike. John drank the elixir he had prepared to show Yuttosk the delights of mammalian life, and snuck through learning of the commanders fury with what had happened to the blade.
 
Bluffing their way into the commander's room, he immediately saw through the invisibility of Tage. John closed the door as they entered, hoping the two guards would attempt to evade the fury of the commander which had very clearly been invoked. He turned Tage into a rabbit, while John played the idiot recent transfer to downplay the situation. Tage teleported out the window, and John remarked about how amazing a wizard he must have been. The commander was not pleased that he had ‘unknowingly’ let in a would-be assassin. He made his hasty exit, and returned to the brothers in the garden letting them know things had not gone quite as planned.