Routed!

3544 AA (The Artificial Age)

"Come to inquire about the letter?"   Stafford Polk, the Head of the Customs and Investigations House in Minuba, sits surrounded by stacks of paper work. There is a scent of ink in the air. The letter is set apart from his work, placed on a red pillow on a table.   In bold black on the front reads 'confidential.'   Stafford says, "Take it and go. I have other appointments."   Half an hour and a block later you have read the letter. It came with dire predictions. And a promise.   "In time, you will come to understand my motives."   It has been two years since the Darcassian Empire conquered the land of Minuba. Imperial citizens begin replacing the Minuban natives even as resistance gathers around the fortress city of Miztulan.   Tensions flare between the occupying Imperial Vennacti and the Minuban people. Blood flows in the gutters. Conspiracy and gossip fills the air. There is the seductive hiss of black powder.   Far above it all the God Kings of Zarmuda and the Martocrat of the Darcassian Empire remain locked in a cold war. Only a spark is needed to set the world aflame.