General Summary
Intercutting Scene 1: Core of the island
We hear someone bawling their eyes out.
With some searching, we find Mana-Tui has shrunk from crying.
Mana-Tui explains he is an earth elemental.
Mana-Tui is the patron spirit of the mountain as far as the Terrestrial Bureaucracy is concerned but the elemental seems to be somewhat out of his depth.
He fears that if he gets too close to the ground, he won’t be able to raise the mountain again.
Stelsor consoles Mana-Tui and tells the creature it doesn’t have to lower the island.
Intercutting Scene 2: heading to the Ar-Duke
We head to the pyramid and the Ar-Duke’s people let us in. Strangely no one else seems to be inside.
We begin looking by trying to find the highest area and find the Ar-Duke’s quarters.
We knock on the door and a servant lets us in once we identify ourselves.
The Ar-Duke was in the middle of a bath when the earthquake happened.
Ar-Duke guides us to a large terrace where he sort of surveys the island and the horizon.
Rohen asks how well the Ar-Duke knows Mana-Tui.
Apparently Mana-Tui has been sort of the “acting” deity of the mountain because Yu-Shan’s has neglected to appoint a proper replacement.
Flying Eiderdown aka Seline, chosen of Jupiter is a fairly high up in Yu-Shan and might be able to fix this.
Just then, in the distance, we notice a pair of flying objects.
The Ar-Duke orders Mana-Tui to bring the island lower to evade them.
We considered bringing Little Cloud to bear, but it is then that we remember that the ship was miniaturized and left with Seline.
Scene: Cutting back to Mana-Tui’s cavern
Mana-Tui relates to Stelsor et al. that the Ar-Duke mentions adversaries coming closer.
Stelsor and company return to the surface and send an infallible messenger to meet up with Seline.
Scene: back on the terrace.
Rohen notices the Ar-Duke keeps bees on the terrace.
The Ar-Duke mentions these aren’t regular bees, but rather the Bees of heaven who make ambrosia.
He explains that these creatures help sustain Mana-Tui.
The Ar-Duke had to work the system to get the bees and even more to get someone to embed the sorcery to permit the bees to surive outside Yu-Shan.
Stelsor and Seline see no other way to collect the other folks except to reveal the ship and herself to the Ar-Duke.
Seline unpacks Little Cloud and flies it to the terrace to collect everyone.
the Ar-Duke generally suspects Sidereals of being assassins, but puts that aside for the moment.
Rohen brings Malka Stormstep and a detachment of his warriors.
Scene: aboard Little Cloud
Seline is at the helm and Rohen’s troops are spread out as support crew for now because each of the turrets and batteries need an Essence-user.
The vehicles in the distance are from Prasad and are technically within their territory.
Stelsor messages the other vessels. “We are pursuing fugitives and requesting to cross above their land. Please stand aside.”
They respond with laughter and refusal.
We discuss whether to make the first attack, but reason instead that they probably won’t want to actually risk their First Age ships.
Interestingly, the Prasad ships don’t fire on us as we pass.
Passing over the settlement of Rockship, we are nearing Kamthahar and decide to confer with Ar-Duke on how he wants to proceed.
We might encounter even more of these forces and maybe shouldn’t bring a mountain that had been sieging Point Sunder close to their imperial capital.
Scene: Planning with the Ar-Duke
We discuss how to enter the city and how to approach those in power when we do.
RoS pushes for us to try to push the empire to lay off of Y’dana.
Stelsor asks the Ar-Duke what we should do if we capture Deathrose and if he has somewhere to hold her.
The Ar-Duke says he merely wants her to meet justice, but doesn’t require it come from him.
We decide to enter under the guise of Rohen's caravan.
Scene: entering Kamthahar
Rohen leads the caravan to the gates.
When the guards ask where he is traveling from, and we say Y’dana.
The guards hear Y’dana and wave us through because it is part of their empire. (RoS probably grumbles at this.)
Not very far in, another group of guards stop us.
These are in the livery of Clan Burano; the ones earlier were Clan Ophris.
Rohen lets these guards know about Clan Ophris hassling people at the gate. Apparently, Clan Burano is supposed to be in charge.
The guards pause and question Fortifier about what sort of being he is.
-- Fortifier claims to be the elemental servitor of
Scurrilous Minx the sorcerer.
Minx haughtily backs up this improvisation and, since Dragon-blooded are sacred here, the guards back off.
Rohen leads the caravan to the marketplace and we discuss where to go from there.
Fortifier suspects we should look for a cemetery or somewhere else “close to the dead”.
Another option is to trust Dreamflower’s intuitions.
We ask around for rumors
There were some transparent people who have been new in town.
The transparent people were dealing with the spirit court.
We’re directed to a large manse in the city where the spirit court is known to assemble.
Scene: Manse of the Fecund Court
We arrive as some beings are in heated debate.
A peacock god, a giant with a beard made of clouds, a many-limbed jungle elemental, and a small cat-faced god.
As they talk, they keep gesturing to a solid door behind them.
Rohen strides forward, with Malka at his side, to offer his expertise as a mediator.
Beautiful-Eyes turns down the offer.
Rohen invokes Esteemed Guest, his Eclipse Caste Active Anima effect.
The gods welcome Rohen and the entire entourage.
As the sun sets, the door the spirits were arguing in front of opens.
Beautiful-Eyes says this will be a suitable test for this mediator.
6 Ghosts step forward: Dreamflower recognizes them from what her spell (Shadows of the Forgotten Past) showed her at Miribadi's.
Fortifier whispers to Rohen that these are the undead we have been tracking.
Beautiful-Eyes calls for refreshments for all, undead included.
Deathrose holds a masquerade mask to her face, as if it could be anyone but her.
Deathrose recognizes Stelsor and points him out as someone who is always digging up dirt about her lady.
Rohen respectfully points out that this falls outside the present discussion.
Deathrose claims that she had already negotiated safe passage for herself and any other agents of the Lover.
Beautiful-Eyes admits he apparently swore this oath, but didn’t realize what it entailed at the time.
Beautiful-Eyes asks to speak to Rohen in private.
Beautiful-Eyes wasn’t aware that “their kind” could sanctify oaths like the Eclipse Caste until it was too late. Now he wants Rohen to help shield him from this mistake.
Rohen promises that Beautiful-Eyes will honors the agreement, but with an additional condition.
Agents of the Lover may pass if they identify themselves and not attack Prasad.
Deathrose is willing to agree to this.
Rohen uses his Eclipse power to seal the agreement, right as Deathrose seals with her version.
After we explain who the captives Deathrose took, Rohen asks Deathrose about why she took each of these people.
Tiaden Starwhisper the Bard, is a Solar and was impertinent.
Azrael Deathbringer was overly involved with the Tang Zen, which became a problem for them.
The Mordant of Waning Shades pledged herself to the The Lover Clad in the Raiment of Tears and thus belongs to the Deathlord.
Beautiful-Eyes intervenes to suggest that if these hostages are in Kamthahar, they should be entrusted to the custody of the Fecund Court while these claims are hammered out.
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