The Vision of Light (IC)

[Jade_Tarem]

The Vision of Light
Chapter 1: The Dawning Realization
Part 1: Nero's Peace

The first day of the semester is always the most awkward. Students, teachers, staff, and schedules clash in a chaotic combination of tardy appearances and lost paperwork, lacking the settled, routine organization that will establish itself over the coming days. A week from now, all will be running smoothly, with only the lingering possibility of a Terrestrial Exaltation to spice things up, but for now pandemonium reigns.

Still, like confetti brushed from a shelf, everything must settle down eventually; and one by one the students of the Blessed Isle's Spiral Academy find their way to class. So it is that the lecture hall currently devoted to a somewhat specialized History credit (History 4752: The End of the Second Age) fills within a few minutes of the true beginning of class.

Mnemon Elrit gazes out at her audience, knowing that every member of it is wondering how their sensei is going to begin. She doesn't keep them waiting long. "Good morning, everyone. At your seat you will find a copy of the syllabus. Rather than waste precious time going through it, I will trust in your reading abilities and simply begin." Though her hair is greying at the temples, the woman still projects vitality as she moves out from behind her podium. "So! Welcome to Advanced Satrap Administration, part two. If you haven't... what?" She grins at the confused buzz from her pupils. "Oh! You'd rather we talked about the Upheaval?" A consenting nod from the students who aren't busy rolling their eyes. "Are you sure? Satraps don't run themselves... oh, alright."

Elrit clears her throat and starts over. "We've tried a number of ways to teach this, but by far the students who retain it best are categorically those who are introduced to it as a narrative. Even here, in the heart of civilization, there's more rumor and innuendo than actual fact. And indeed, we've pieced parts of this together purely from witness accounts and extrapolation. We owe a great deal to the dedicated efforts of the Bureau of Divinities to even find out where this all began, but all agree that this bit of history is somewhat important." She peers over her glasses at the class. "So pay attention."

Cracking open her lecture notes, she starts off. "The beginnings of it date back to a mere five years after the disappearance of the Scarlet Empress, to a tiny kingdom in the East, named Emdar - don't bother looking for it on the map; it no longer exists for reasons we'll be covering next lecture..."

THEN

"...but Emdar itself started after a mass emigration of people from a more southern and central direction settled in, and in doing so created Zealous Vitality, who became the patron god of the burgeoning little nation. Emdar was fairly militant for its size, living within striking distance of Linowan's raiding parties and Haltan bandits. Despite this unfortunate choice of locale, it managed to carve out a niche for itself - for a while..."

"Make way! Clear the road!" The captain shouted. The percussive thunder of armored boots marching in time rattled dishes, pots, and pans all the way down the street as the inhabitants of the slums scurried away. "Out of the way, you lot!"

Just as the flight of the poor and dispossessed acted as a bow wave for the column of soldiers, questioning and alarmed whispers followed in its wake. Nero passed through it all without giving it much attention, having lost interest in the proceedings now that he'd seen the soldiers. Who knew what about the troop movements wasn't nearly as interesting as the fact that they'd actually happened, and while national military strategy might be considered outside the purview of a gang leader in the city's slums, he had no intention of staying a gang leader forever.

Or for too much longer, at that.

By late morning, he'd returned to one of the Jade Mark's hideouts at the edge of the low side. It had started as little more than a condemned docks warehouse, but a bit of TLC and a steady diet of bribes ensured that the building stayed officially and perpetually condemned while being more structurally stable than half of the housing still in active use in the slums.

He nodded to the gang's youngest member and current lookout - a twelve year old girl he'd just barely stopped from being hauled off to some Guild brothel last year. "Mornin', Nova."

"Mornin', boss!" The chipper girl had easily adapted, at least. She brushed some stray strands of dark green hair out of her eyes and peered up at him. "Some of the boys were wondering where you were. What's on for today?"

"Oh, the usual." Nero strode into the warehouse and spied the haphazard pile of blankets and pillows in the corner. "Get around town, see the sights, hit the marks..." He gave the pile a friendly kick. "...and get this clown out of bed!" Planting his foot on the pile, the grinning gang leader peers down at his best pickpocket. "Come on, Titus. I know you had a rough night, man, but we've got stuff to do!" The tall, lanky man pokes the pile again. "The big job is two nights away - we can't let you sleep 'till Calibration."

[Astro_sol]

Titus dreamed. He shouldn't have been dreaming, not with the way his sleep had been going (it hadn't), but after hours of walking around the city scoping out new marks and just thinking, he'd been ready to sleep. He didn't even remember coming into the warehouse, really.

He dreamed of walking, which wasn't too surprising. It was the worn road that took him from Emdar's main gates and past several farms, two to the right, one to the left, until you hit Janus' farm, and his technical home. The road was empty, which was odd; there was always at least a merchant caravan or small company of soldiers moving down it. Titus noticed that fact, but didn't exactly make the connection what with the brain fogginess that comes from dreaming.

The road was foggy, too. He could see a ways down the road, though; the fog seemed to mostly creep up the sides of the road. That was also odd, but again Titus just ran with it. His only thought was getting home, to old Janus, that ox-built Demetrius, those upstarts Albus and Alphonse, and sweet Victoria. He felt on his back for the fruit and bread he'd gotten with his week's cut.

They weren't there. Titus began to flail his arm around behind his back, as if expecting to find it stuck to his side. He looked around frantically. He hadn't forgotten the food; he'd never forgotten the food. Had he dropped it? No, that'd be stupid. Perhaps...was it stolen? Impossible. Titus would never allow such a shame to pass. He turned and began to run back to Emdar. He'd find out what happened.

And there she was, standing in the middle of the road dressed in simple cloth. She had short hair cut in the style of peasants working in the fields, so as not to get in the way. Her face was small, like a mouse's, yet with big doe eyes that seemed curious about everything they saw. Those eyes were staring right at Titus, yet he got the feeling they were looking past him.

He knew this woman. Her face was blank, but he remembered many different shades that it took: smiling, angry, sad, in pain, full of life. This shade of her lacked all of that. Titus was a bit unnerved, but he took a step forward and reached out his hand.

"...Mother?" he asked. Unbeknownst to him, he said that bit out loud. Then he opened his eyes. His head was just jutting out of the mass of blankets he'd commandeered in the docks warehouse. Most of him was still tangled up. The pickpocket groaned as awareness slowly returned to him, starting with every single stiff joint in his back. As he twisted to crack every fiber of his being, he noted that Nero was standing over him. As were several of the other members.

Some words crossed Titus' mind. Nero wanted him to wake up. Oh, yeah, the big job. It wouldn't be right to sleep; he had obligations. The young man rose slowly to a sitting position, grabbing at his trademark brown vest with thin yet chiseled arms. He still had his pants on from last night. As he scratched at his mat of dusty hair, it occurred to him that he needed to clean up, too, but priorities. "Sorry, sir. Long night." He yawned, blinking sleepily at the gang leader. "What do you need?"

[Jade_Tarem]

THEN

"Still with the 'sir," I see." Nero shrugs and casually makes his way to the warehouse office - the only organized part of the building. The furniture within is all deficient in some way - by high side standards, that is. An otherwise well-made desk with one leg slightly too short sits before perfectly sturdy chairs with unsightly stains on them. Cabinets marred with dings and pits contain well-sorted plans, maps, and ledgers - it was how Nero kept who owed who within the gang (and how much) under control. Best of all, an enormous map of the city was nailed to the wall behind the desk, escape routes, unexpectedly useful back-alley passages, and areas with easily avoided or bribed guards were all marked on the map in colors that weren't quite the correct pigment. Easy marks were also highlighted on the map, along with the date they'd last been hit. It was a level of organization not usually seen displayed by a nineteen year-old gang leader, but it helped explain why the Jade Marks had been able to grow to their current size without being wiped out by rivals or the guard.

Nero was also a consummate opportunist, and his third rule of scavenging was that a dump in the high side usually had more in the way of goodies than an entire city block in the low end, and enough nightly raids on that end of the city had provided most of the renovation materials for the warehouse and the gang's other two bolt-holes.

Still, at around the time he'd made all these additions, Nero had taken one thing out - most of the wall separating the office area from the main floor. He wasn't worried about theft or sabotage - any secrets of his that he wanted to keep secure, he kept in his head.

It made a great place to talk to the other Jade Marks, though. "What do I need? I need a good scoping of the Aelius estate..." Nero plops into the chair behind the desk, "...preferably without crippling anyone this time. I'm thinkin' about sending Nova with you - she's gotta start on street work at some point." He looks at the giant map. "I need to know about guards and approaches, mostly, but if they have any cute traps, tricks, or alarms, then that's all useful information. Don't worry about sneaking around the estate right now - let Nova take care of that part. Just get there, find out what you need, get back here with the news, and take the rest of the day off." Nero grins suddenly. "You'll probably need it after dealing with the new kid for the whole trip."

[Astro_sol]

Titus ignored the "sir" quip as he stood up and out of bed; sir was how you referred to superiors. He stretched his arms up until he could felt some cracks. He still had the fogginess of sleep covering the edges of his vision, and his half-lidded eyes weren't helping him see. Still, he listened intently as Nero outlined the plan to him.

The Aelius Estate? Nero was shooting higher up than usual. And he was sending the new girl along with him. Relatively new, at least, she'd been around for at least a few months, but Nero had been keeping her away from most jobs like this, until now. Titus had been keeping to himself, as per usual, and he hadn't seen as much of Nova as he had the other, older members.

As he looked at the map, he knew he was playing babysitter. He also knew why, and it was for that very reason that he and Nova were coming back from this job, safe and sound. His facial expression stayed neutral, though, as Nero explained the job. When the gang leader seemed like he was done, Titus spoke up.

"I'll try to keep the permanent damage at a minimum." It wasn't like he was trying to cripple everyone who fought him. It was just that joint breaks were one of the fastest ways to make someone "dead" for the rest of the fight. "I think I can get a good perimeter going." He cracked his fingers, still staring at the map, trying to finalize his walking plan. "You think she can handle it?" From what he understood, the girl wasn't that much older than 14. Of course, she was already older than him when he first started. Still, he couldn't help but be reminded of his sister whenever he looked at her. Had to be the height, they didn't really look anything alike.

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero raises an eyebrow. "I think she can handle the mansion-snooping part of it, yes. If someone wants to start something, well, that's what you're there for. In fact, take Horatia with you, too. Don't hesitate to hit any juicy marks on the way there or back - but stay clear of the mansion itself. We don't want them to pile up the guards right before the big job."

Horatia is a common sight to any member of the Jade Marks: the exceptionally well developed girl is the gang's main face whenever Nero isn't available - and sometimes when he is. Having personally talked or lied her way out of arrest multiple times, she's an invaluable asset to have along after everything has gone wrong. While her actual intrusion/theft/general larceny/combat skills are mediocre at best (indeed, she is not going to be part of the big job), the fact that she's not going into the mansion means that having her along won't hurt, and may come in handy.

"Sounds like fun. I was getting bored." Horatia stops leaning on the wall and glides over to Titus. "We never get enough time together anyway." She whirls around to face the office. "Anything else, fearless leader?"

Nero looks to Titus. "I dunno. Anything else, Titus?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus imitated Nero's eyebrows at Horatia walking over. If something went wrong, he'd have to cover for the both of them. Although, he'd seen Horatia talk her way out of just about everything. Titus knew that a properly applied fist could defeat words any day.

"No, sir." He laced his fingers and pushed outwards, giving a final resounding series of pops. "Let's make some money." He was aiming to, of course. His weekly visit of visiting the farm was coming up, and he wanted to make sure they had plenty of supplies. There was also the fact that filching was fun. He couldn't stop the corner of his mouth from twitching up for a few moments.

[Jade_Tarem]

NOW

"Um...!" One of the young women in the class raises her hand belatedly. Mnemon looks up. "Yes, Miss Peleps?"

"Well... what does any of this have to do with the Upheaval? We've started far ahead of it, and though I guess the fall of a city state might be important, this 'Emdar' is never mentioned in anything I've read so far. The same goes for this 'Titus' guy... why are we reading about some thief from the middle of nowhere?"

"An interesting question. I'm told that Exaltation Dynamics is a course from your previous year?" A nod in response. "Ah, then you know that Terrestrial Exaltations follow bloodlines. A scion of a noble house is far, far more likely to become one of the Dragon Blooded than any given commoner." More nods.

Elrit adjusts her glasses. "Well, every other Exaltation doesn't work like that. Especially those of the Ana- excuse me, the Celestials. Solars, Lunars, Sidereals, and the dark mirrors to the Solars... everyone in Creation might Exalt as any of them, with no real bias concerning background, and only a slight one toward humans. And since there are so many more commoners and peasants and criminals than nobles, the odds are tremendously higher that a Solar, Lunar, etc. will Exalt out of the bottom rungs of society."

The girl from house Peleps leaned forward. "You mean...?"

"Maybe! But you'll need to pay attention to be sure, won't you?"

"Yes ma'am..."

THEN

"But to answer your question more directly, it was here, in a tiny kingdom in the east, that a disturbingly high number of strong fates would collide in a very literal sense, and the pileup began with a simple act of larceny..."

With Nova bouncing along in front of Titus and Horatia strolling alongside, it's one of the more pleasant early-afternoon jobs the young thief has been on. The weather is fantastic, the wind is carrying the stench of the docks somewhere else, and before long the trio is in Hightown and making good time to the Aelius estate.

Please make a Perception + Awareness roll. You are also free to ask Nova or Horatia anything you like, go shopping, or do anything else that might be accomplished in a High Side or Low Side market.

[Astro_sol]

Titus kept silent as they moved through the Low Markets. Sometimes he decided he could pocket a few things from the Low End, but that almost felt too easy. Plus, there was the fact that everyone here was about as poor as his father, and while he could certainly steal enough to make some good coin, it was much more satisfying to pocket the higher quality items found in the High Side Market.

With that in mind, he walked silently for most of the trip, simply keeping an eye out for any marks that truly stood out in the Low Side, but paying much more attention once they reached High Side. He specifically looked for small, easily swiped goods, such as gemstones or silver jewelry. However, a dude just looking around like that without saying a word tended to draw suspicion. Heck, his clothes would draw suspicion, but he still had some coin from his last couple of jobs that would make him look legit. He nudged Horatia, nodding his head at different stalls.

"See anything you like?" he asked casually. She would know that he was eyeing around for something to pocket - Titus was only half a step away from kleptomania - and that he wanted a second opinion. But it was also an invitation for small talk. Walking silently with two girls got awkward fast.

OOC
Perception + Awareness = 6
[roll0]

[Jade_Tarem]

"Ever since we left the Low Side," Horatia elbows Titus playfully. "Oh! You meant marks. Um, what about that one? Third merchant on the left. Moneybag just kinda hanging there. Should be easy." Indeed, a young man working a stall full of, as far as Titus can tell, useless trinkets and novelty gifts has rather carelessly left his bags hanging from the stall itself, albeit in the rear of the stall.

"You wanna give it a shot?"

So! Non-reactive rolls in Exalted work a bit differently (re: backwards) to the standard RPG game. You describe the method and stylistic angles of what you do, describe everything but the result, and then roll the requisite dice plus three stunt dice (two for your heroic mortal) and I'll decide after the fact how many stunt dice apply and give you the result. It's backwards because the better description of what you're doing actually makes it easier, rather than harder like it would in, say, DnD, based on how rad the thing that you're trying to do is.

A result of one was enough to spot the careless merchant. Now you need to steal the bag. This roll is actually Difficult due to the bag's position (and I won't tell you the difficulty every time), so two successes are needed to nab it. The roll is Dexterity + Larceny, and the hit is fast enough that I'm willing to say pickpocketing applies even though you aren't really picking his pocket per se, so you've probably got this.

[Astro_sol]

I think I get it,...lemme give it a shot. I'm going to be running off the assumption that these guys will do what I say, within reason.

The only reaction Horatia got from Titus was a bemused blink from Titus. "Mm. Yes. Uh, third merchant from the left? Right. Plan." The pickpocket dredged his thoughts for an ideal way of making getting the gold. "Right. Nova!" He waited until the chattery young girl had made her way back to him. "Nova," he cut in before she could say too much, "I need a distraction. I want you to start running, make your way in between stalls, run behind them, whatever, but at some point during that run I need you to pass behind the merchant who's third from left. Don't worry about anything but running. I'll be chasing you, so don't clear off too far. You'll meet Horatia at the other end of the market, and we'll get moving post-haste, right? Right." He waited until she began to run, then broke into a sprint after her, shouting, "hey, Sis, wait up!"

Thanks to quick reflexes and around 6 years of experience with the Jade Marks, Titus could navigate a crowd with the weaves and steps of a professional. Nova, of course, had the natural advantage of being small, meaning there was less of her needed to dodge people. It was much more difficult weaving around people at a fast pace when you were 6 feet tall; Titus barely avoided tripping once or twice. Still, Nova did well, bobbing and running until she finally ran past behind the mark's stall, ignoring any sounds of protest.

Titus made his move. As he rounded the stall to run after her, he let his hand catch on a part of the back of the stall. While he was completely in control of the situation, he pretended to lose his footing. That sent his arm wide, which he brought in quickly to simulate the natural reflex of someone falling...and sending several bags, coins and trinkets, flying outward and onto the ground.

He didn't have much time. While his arm had reached out, he'd slid a small purse similar in size to the one he was targeting. His own was filled with useless coppers, his bag of spare change. It was barely enough to buy a loaf of bread, almost nothing at all, but the important thing was that it was weighty, perhaps as weighty as the bag he'd targeted. When his arm had flung out, he'd reached his fingers out for his target back, quickly bringing them back in before anyone possibly spotted the move. In the chaos of the stumbling, he also hoped that his identity might remain unknown from confusion. Whatever the case, he was moving too quickly to notice if he'd succeeded, and began to scramble forwards and to the side until he slipped back into the crowd with only a few mumbled words of apology followed by a few shouts of "wait up, sis!" He kept his posture low so as not to stand a head above the crowd. When he felt that there were enough people around, he began moving at a more calm pace, hoping that he'd remain unseen and that he'd be long gone before the man truly noticed anything was missing.

There. Hopefully didn't assume too much with that post. Assumptions are bad.

Rolling...good lord, 13 dice including the two possible stunt die.
[roll0]

[Jade_Tarem]

The young merchant actually helps Titus to his feet before the young thief runs off. Astonishingly, he doesn't even check his bags before trying to repair his stall. "All just a misunderstanding, folks!" He doesn't even seem that upset.

As the trio of Jade Marks rounds the corner, Nova tugs at the bag until Titus lets her have a look...

***

"Are you alright? That was a nasty fall." The woman was of a trim build and had an interesting tattoo pattern around her right eye, not to mention the bright green hair and dark complexion. All in all, it might mark her as a longtime citizen of Halta, but she speaks the regional dialect with ease.

"All part of the job." The young merchant dusted himself off. "I knew this would be a snap - getting here was the hard part. Bloody Oversight... I was half-convinced someone was going to sabotage the effort. Good to know I've still got it." He eyed the bag, and then turned back to the woman. "Erm, that's not my bag, Ezri. You have it, right?"

"Me? No. You assured me you had everything under control, Meander." An awkward silence ensues, until Ezri finally grins. "Well, you wanted to meet the greatest pickpocket in Emdar..."

"Oh, shut it. Let him have his fun. Tomorrow night, things get interesting..."

***

"We are..." Nova said, awed. "...the Best. Thieves. EVER!"

Indeed, the bag is not full of silvers as previously hoped, but a small pile of jade obols and even a couple of precious stones. "Nero is going to have kittens when he sees this!"

[Astro_sol]

Titus actually let out a small grin at the sight in the bag. It was much more than he'd hoped for. He'd be making a sizable cut at this rate. As well, the minor heist went by without a hitch.

"That was good work, Nova. Very convincing," he said, dropping the smile but giving her a small nod. "Half the job is making sure everything looks natural." He turned back to Horatia. "But that's enough fun for now, let's get back to work."

As they headed for the estate, Titus allowed himself a question, once again addressing the older girl. "How did you end up with the Marks, Horatia?"

While Titus usually didn't talk unless he needed to, he liked others talking. Maybe it had something to do with growing up with multiple younger, often excitable siblings.

[Jade_Tarem]

Who is London?

Horatia takes on a distant expression. "Well, it all started when I was quite a bit smaller. I was walking down the road, minding my own business, when all of a sudden a noble came shooting down the street in his carriage, shouting-"

"Out of the way, fools! This is an emergency!" Titus and company manage to duck out of the way as a full-sized carriage hurtles down the road. Titus doesn't quite catch the crest on the side, but the vehicle is decorative enough to be eye-catching and memorable - maybe a royal coach?

"Yeah. Kind of like that." Horatia says, a bit shaken. "Well, assuming we don't get run over, I'll tell you about the rest some other time - we're here."

Indeed, you can now spot the ponderously large Aelius estate. Nova lets out a tiny cheer and vanishes into the crowd, presumably to complete her mission.

Game Mechanic: Switch Character

Normally impossible in a game like this one, I'm considering allowing you (as a solo player) to switch to another character when they're doing something interesting while Titus waits.

I'm not going to force you to do it, obviously, nor will this come up with great frequency - the vast majority of this game will be Titus, but in true game-intro fashion I'm testing out all the different game mechanics and cutting away to people who aren't Titus more frequently than I otherwise would. We can skip ahead to the end of Nova's mission (or close to it) if you like.

[Astro_sol]

Aha...fixed that. London is what happens when you're updating 3 different games at once, and you start mixing up names. Fortunately, it was just the name.

As for the Character Switch mechanic...I'm not sure, either. I suppose it would be interesting to see what the other characters are doing, though, and if it helps you learn the system, I'd be happy to help. It'd be a good look into other characters, and I DID say I want strong interpersonal character interactions, and what better way to facilitate that than experience the character firsthand?

...Let's do it. Oh, and I'll add a bit of Titus below so this post won't be pure spoiler text.

Titus dusted himself off, frowning slightly. "Royals." He spat in the direction of the carriage, then turned back to Horatia. "Indeed," he replied to her statement. "Let's hope she's ok. Let's do a perimeter check, check out guard locations, possible ambush spots, yadda yadda yadda," he trailed off, starting a slow walk. "We'll meet her back here when she's done."

[Jade_Tarem]

The mansion was expansive, and built in "traditional Emdarian fashion" - a phrase that had confused Nova until she learned that it was really just three magic words that could convince a noble to pay more for something than it was worth. Emdar had been built up originally by refugees from a number of communities, and while designs had homogenized over time, every building had its quirks. That was why Nero wanted her to scout the place. Fortunately, Nero wasn't asking her to go over every square foot of the estate - he was looking for something specific. The gang leader had described it as a golden sword with a flame motif, and had said that it would shine even in the darkness. He had no idea where they'd be keeping it; it was her job to find out.

The locked gate with guards was no good as an entry point. Fortunately, Nova had never been constrained to quite the same rules as everyone else. She didn't know why - only that she could, for instance, leap nearly twenty feet straight up if she needed to.

So that's exactly what she did - an open window into a dark room facing the back of the mansion called invitingly, and after checking to be sure that no one was watching, the tiny thief sprang inside from the ground level. The room appeared to be a form of lavatory, probably for servants given the lack of decoration or ornamentation.

Nova cracked her knuckles. Here we go.

[Astro_sol]

Nova decided she needed to get moving quickly. Plus, she didn't think there'd be too many alarms in the lavatory. She hoped. She quickly located the nearest exit, keeping careful to keep out of sight and mind.

[Jade_Tarem]

The Aelius Estate's 'quirk' turned out to be that it actually was traditionally styled after the original Emdarian settlement to the south - the entire three-floor estate was hollow on the inside, a massive open-air atrium dominating the grounds. The atrium itself was well-kept, with green grass, decorative shrubs, and even a large fountain in the shape of a dolphin dominating the center of the space. Small benches and paved stones made a circular path around it, and connected to the interior space of the estate.

Each "hallway" in the interior of the toroidal building actually opened out to the atrium, a waist-high wall connected to the ceiling with decorative Doric columns. Rooms all opened inward as well. The mansion, forbidding to the outside, opened into a surprisingly quiet interior space where all was at peace.

- Except for the guards and the booby traps, of course. Fortunately, the former moved in patterns and the latter were stationary and mostly rigged to various doors and windows, rather than the moving space itself.

With Nova on the second of three floors up, she could move to any of the second floor rooms, or move down to the first floor. The mansion appears to lack clear access to the third floor, however.

[Astro_sol]

If there was one thing Nova had noticed in her stint with the Jade Marks, it was that people rarely looked up. There never really was a reason to pay any attention to what was above you, and most people only let their peripheral vision take care of it. Nero had taught her that.

She used his lessons to her full advantage as she scouted out the second floor. As she learned the guards' patterns, she used them to keep out of their main lines of sight. For the inevitable times that they criss-crossed, she would dart up one of the columns. It was easy to wrap her slender arms around it, the sheer friction of her skin keeping her from falling down. She could leap to the ceiling if need be, but that was tiring, so she tried to save her strength.

She decided to investigate several rooms, mainly looking for the sword or any clues with it. No need to make off with too much just yet, unless she could grab something on the level that Titus had found earlier. To get inside the doors, she simply pulled herself above them, without moving a muscle and keeping in with the shadows. Keeping her arms splayed out to balance herself, she would reach down a foot to slide the doors open, or even keep them from closing all the way if a guard left it. If he slammed it, she left it alone, but if it were gently closed, she would keep it slightly open and crawl through the top, sometimes sticking her head down to see if anyone were still inside.

Through all of this, though, she tried to find some way of getting to the top. She needed the perfect vantage point to leap up, as she knew it was probably going to come to that. In fact, she guessed that the sword would of course be located in the hardest-to-reach part of the mansion.

[Jade_Tarem]

It's a draining forty-five minutes, but Nova does discover a few interesting things about the estate. First, there truly is no clear entrance up to the third floor - the door is either hidden or essence driven, which means that Nero's break-in crew will have to figure out another way to get up there.

Second, the sword itself is not located on the first or second floors, although the estate's vault is, curiously, on the ground floor rather than a basement level, which apparently doesn't exist.

Third, the fountain's water supply isn't actually the same water being pumped and re-pumped, but rather an open spot in the city's aqueduct system. What use that might be, Nova has no idea, but maybe Nero or one of the others can make use of it.

Finally, the estate is apparently going to have a special visitor at the time of the break-in. Though too far away to overhear the conversation, the young thief spots a young woman in the colors of the Aelius family talking to an even younger raven-haired girl with a small crown on her head - and despite the nobility's taste in gaudy jewels, only two people in the city wear a crown - the current Voice of Zealous Vitality and the Voice-elect; the king and princess respectively.

Outside

"...so he woke up to find out that he'd been fired from the Burning Boar Inn, the two merchants had been run out of town, and the talking skull was never heard from again!" The small crowd that had gathered around Horatia burst into laughter and scattered applause and whistles. "And that's the story of why we don't have an emissary from Sijan anymore."

The people dispersed, a few leaving coins with Horatia. "Thank you kindly! Thank you very much! Good day." As she started to count them up, her light was suddenly blocked by a looming figure. "Don't usually see you this far uptown, Hor," he said, deliberately shortening her name in the most unfortunate way possible.

"Mrm? Oh, it's you. Blandus or something, right?" Horatia vaguely remembered him as someone Titus had claimed to have beaten earlier. Given that Titus was with her now - he'd be back from his most recent sweep at any moment - she wouldn't normally have been concerned.

The problem was that he had at least six friends behind him. That could be bad. "Something I can help you with?"

"It's Laelius, actually. I was hoping you could set me up with Titus." He grinned nastily. "Seeing as you have no choice..."

Horatia raised an eyebrow and gave him a dubious look as she got up from the barrel she'd been sitting on and pocketed her money. "I'll give it my best shot, but I don't think you're his ty- Oh! Fighting. You want me to take you to him so you can fight." Some of the toughs behind Laelius snickered. "Well, you're in luck, because Titus is coming here. Tiiiitus! You have admirers!"

[Astro_sol]

Nova

Nova grinned to herself. She was doing wonderfully for her first in-the-field mission. If she kept this up, she was certain to go places in the Jade Marks, which meant she could be of much more help to the gang. It felt good, being useful. Speaking of useful, her talent for casually disregarding the laws of gravity were about to come into play. She huffed as she realized that she couldn't for the life of her find an easy entrance to the third floor. However, she could still give it a quick scout so the others knew what they were getting into.

She found what she was looking for. A corner (or what passed as one in the toroidal interior of the building) cave her a clear leap to the next floor. What was more, she believed she could do it while the guards were out of eyeshot for a few moments. Perfect.

Nova gathered her breath and cleared her mind. Using her deep breathing technique, she ran forward, willing herself to become lighter. She bent forward before he hit the railing, pulling herself into a frontflip to land on the top of the rail, rolling forward with the momentum to launch herself forward and up, reaching for the next floor.

Titus

Oh bugger was the first thing to come to mind as Titus sauntered forward. He thought he recognized the guy standing next to Horatia. He didn't like the way the guy was smiling at his gang-mate. It promised trouble, and everything had been going so smoothly...

He kept his face impassive as he continued to walk towards Horatia. "I didn't know I was so popular," he said, whipping his head to the side so his neck could crack. He kept his hands in his pockets, sealing a fist around a handful of coins. They tended to help as he mashed people's faces to a pulp. "And you are?" he asked lazily, eyeing Laelius.

[Jade_Tarem]

In the Estate

Before long, Nova has the whole run of the place. The upper level is reserved for the Aelius family members themselves, apparently following Emdar's running theme of actual elevation equating to social elevation. The princess and the family scion continue to chat for a while, although making out the words is difficult.

Finally, though, Nova finds it. In the highest room of the estate, one that would be part of a theoretical fourth floor, Nova finds...

... a staircase back down. Following it leads to a small but well-appointed chamber, and it takes a moment for the young thief to realize that this is actually the vault. There is no side door - apparently the vault door found before is a fake. There are piles of gold in the room, to say nothing of the gems and works of art, but these pale in comparison to the room's light source: four candles illuminate a shining broadsword with a perfectly straight edge, easily four and a half feet long, resting in what appears to be a decorative stand. The blade has flame motifs etched into it, and the guard above the hilt is designed to evoke the burning wings of a Phoenix*. While it seems at first glance to be made of gold, it shimmers in a way that no gold does, and has no mark upon it - not a single smudge or notch or flaw. And though it's impossible to tell for certain, a burning light, as though a tiny sun was contained within, seems to shine through the lines in the flame motif whenever Nova isn't looking at it directly.

The blade is too heavy for Nova to carry out stealthily on her own, easily weighing thirty pounds or more - but then, that's why Nero had only told her to locate it. Now she just needed to get back...

*
Imagery for your benefit. Nova almost certainly doesn't know what a Phoenix is and would probably think it was a creature from the Wyld if she saw one.

Outside

"Titus! I'm vaguely insulted that you'd forget me this soon. Laelius? The Breaker Gang? About a month ago, outside of the Logiscae Flop House?"

Horatia shrugs. "Titus beats up lots of wimpy guys. He can't be expected to remember all of 'em."

[Astro_sol]

Titus kept his hands in his pockets as Horatia began to berate...Lallus? Laelie? Laelius, that was it. He simply shrugged his confusion at the pair, letting Horatia do her thing. However, he kept his fists ready to fight, as well as shifting his weight to prepare to knock Laelius away from Horatia, maybe buy her some time.

[Jade_Tarem]

Laelius shoots Horatia a nasty look. "I don't remember inviting you to join this conversation, Hor. You can scuttle away now."

"Wow. I could have sworn you started the conversation with me just a minute ago. Titus must have clobbered you harder than I thought for your memory to be so bad. You can't even remember that my name is Horatia."

"Does he always let you do all his talking for him?"

Horatia waves diffidently. "Only when there's nothing for him to say. He beat you like a dirty rug. He does that kind of thing all the time; it's not even interesting at this point." She shrugs and settles back down on her barrel. "I mean, most of the guys he beats up are smart enough not to come back, so that's new, I guess, but not terribly exciting."

"Well, we'll see how exciting it is when he's face down in the gutter - and we'll see how mouthy you are after we're done thrashing him."

"Maybe. But that won't give you what you really want."

"Eh?"

Horatia stands up and moves a bit closer, leaning in. "Well, you can have all your boys join in, but that won't help in the long run. Everyone will remember that when it came to a fair fight, you lost. Badly. Anyone can be tough with six other guys backing him up, so you'll just have to live with Titus's proclamation that you hit like a little girl."

One of the thugs speaks up. "I don't remember him saying anything like th-"

"Well he totally did!" Horatia waves grandly. "So that will be the legacy of the great Laelius. Any threats you make will be laughed off unless your posse here is with you. Any boasts you make will fall flat at the retort 'Oh man, I'd better clear out before your boyfriends arrive to do your fighting for you.' And there's no escaping this sad fate, unless..."

The large man's eyes narrow. "Unless?"

Horatia backs up to Titus and gestures to him, as though presenting a horse at auction. "Try him! On your own. Hell, you probably had to tell yourself and your crew all kinds of sweet, sweet lies to work up the courage to come back. That he sucker-punched you in the dark or something; that you totally would have had him in a real fight. Here's your chance to prove it!"

Laelius works his jaw around for a second. "Alright. If Big Man Titus has something to prove, we can do this your way." He adopts a vaguely martial pose as Horatia backs out of the way. "Whenever you're ready!"

[Jade_Tarem]

In a flash, Titus is able to take in his surroundings - the Laelius fan club has moved into a loose semi-circle behind their man, but the street is far too wide for them to be blocking it off. Horatia has remained on her barrel, slightly back and to the right of Titus, and has begun munching on an apple that she probably didn't pay for. The various merchants and other foot traffic, unaccustomed to violence in the streets this far into the High Side, have moved even further back than the various gang members.

The street itself is packed dirt and cobblestones - easy enough to keep one's footing on when dry - and the street continues for a good sixty or so feet in the Breakers' direction and at least thirty behind Titus. The sides are lined with market stalls, barrels, boxes, and the like, which occasionally give way to a doorway or window on the southwest side of the street. High above to the north and east, the southeast wall of the Aelius estate provides an imposing barrier, with the enormous decorative mark of the noble family hanging over the fight.

Laelius, Titus can note, is similar in frame but bulkier in most senses of the word - he's wearing a tunic and leggings that have to be too small because they show off all of his many, many muscles. While he moves with less easy grace, he has forearms the width of Titus's head. Getting hit would not be a good idea - especially since Horatia's taunting no doubt did wonders to motivate him.

And speaking of motivation, Laelius charges in right away, swinging a massive, meaty fist in an arc designed to liquify the young thief...

Tick 0

Laelius is acting, and is technically going to Flurry. However, the flurry is Move + Attack, and Move has no tick speed and no defense penalty, so really all he did was move up a few yards and attack.

He is attacking with a Punch.

Punch Accuracy Pool (Dex 3 + Martial 3 + Punch 1): [roll0]
Punch Damage (Strength 5): [roll1]

Punching has a Defense rating of +2, but attacking carries a penalty of -1, so his defense will only go up by 1 until his next action. He could punch two more times (Punch has rate 3), but that would lower his defense by two more and he remembers what happened to him last time he went crazy in a fight with Titus, so he's going to chill until he sees what he's up against.

Technically, that attack description is good for one stunt die (barely), but again, Laelius is a mortal, so no goodies for him.

Punching is a Speed 5 action. Laelius will act again in Tick 6.*

The book says you wait that many ticks, which I take to mean that you have that many blank ticks before the next action. If you can find something to contradict that, let me know.

Edit: Titus's Parry (I'm going with MA 6 + Dexterity 5 + Weapon 0 + Essence 0 = 11/2 = 5) is higher than the number of attack successes, meaning that Laelius's attack misses because Titus blocked or deflected it somehow.

Tick 1

Titus's first action...

[Astro_sol]

Titus blinked. Okay. Friend-lady to the back right, cronies behind the target, stalls and non-fighty folk to the sides. All gave him a clear shot at the big, loud crony who'd decided to make his life just a little less comfortable today.

Laelius, even though he had to have quite a bit of experience at fighting, just didn't know how to not telegraph a punch. Titus responded with a simple gesture, whipping his left arm out to caress the offending fist to the side. He'd found from trial-and-error that simply beating away attacks wasted a lot of energy; it was a lot better to see the "flow" of the attack and sort of work with it while getting it to do something he wanted, which was not hitting him.

Of course, that left Laelius open to an attack, which Titus gave quite willingly. He'd had his fists up, left out with right close in. He hooked a toe around a jutting-out cobblestone for an anchor as he kept his stance and whipped out his right fist in a sharp jab aimed at Laelius' smug face. He needed to stun the bastard before he actually did anything, anyway.

In the interests of not double posting, I shall follow your lead in posting the attack and projected damage right here. Note: Titus could also flurry, but Laelius appears to be weighing his options, which makes Titus suspicious, so he'll be careful as well.

Punch Accuracy [Dex 5 + MA 5 + Unarmed 1 + Punch 1]: [roll0]
Punch Damage [Strength 3]: [roll1]

I think that's right, anyway. So many numbers!

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus's fist connects squarely with Laelius's face, but while the hit is solid and no doubt painful, Laelius isn't as stunned as Titus was hoping for.

Instead, the large man makes a sweeping grab for the faster thief, using a tactic favoring brute strength over agility...

Tick 5

Laelius is going to attempt to Clinch. This starts the same way as a Speed 6, Accuracy +0 attack, but with some side effects. To begin with, he can use his Strength in the accuracy pool. To attack for (Strength 5 + Martial Arts 3 - Wound Penalty 1 (The two health levels of damage took him to -1 in wound penalties) + Clinch + 0) = [roll0]

Should he overcome Titus's Parry DV of 5, he will have several options available. He could break the hold by chucking Titus somewhere (and leaving him prone), try to squeeze Titus to death, in which case he does roll damage normally, or can hold. The killer, though, is that Titus's action then becomes Inactive, which is as bad as it sounds. On further turns, Laelius may have to maintain the grapple, and by flurrying he can also do other things, such as drag Titus around, do more damage, etc. That's in the future, though, and will only matter if this works...

Edit: Close, but no good. Two more successes would have been bad news for Titus, but the Parry DV beats it again. Even worse, that wound penalty applies to DVs, and Clinching has no DV bonus. Laelius will act again on Tick 11, because it turns out that I was wrong about that too, and a Speed 6 action means that you just add 6 to the current tick, and that's your next acting tick.

Tick 6

Titus's next action.

[Astro_sol]

And once again agility beat strength as Titus nimbly raised both arms to make the larger boy's grab sweep for thin air above his head.

With the larger boy slightly off balance, Titus gave him a split second once-over. Bringing one of his legs back to brace again, he pumped both fists back and slammed them both forward, aiming one for the gut and another for Laelius' face again.

He thought about taunting to throw the guy off for maybe a few seconds, but it simply wasn't his style. No, he would just keep hitting the guy until he went down. They usually did, anyway.

Dem accuracy rolls. (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=14447197#post14447197)

[Jade_Tarem]

Laelius irately sweeps aside Titus's leading punch with little effort, but the second connects to the less abused side of the big man's head. Now visibly forcing himself to focus, Laelius lets out a noise that might not be entirely human in origin, but still manages to concentrate on what he was doing - the grapple is still his best bet, and he would love nothing more than to choke the life out of the punk in front of him now...

Tick 11

Laelius can't see the stats, but he knows, as we do, that clinching still has the best chance of success of any of his options (except maybe surrender, but that's not really his idiom), and that he doesn't need to be bogging down his accuracy pool with flurry penalties at this stage.

The clinch is in! (Strength 5 + MA 3 + Clinch 0 - Wound 2) = 6

He'll need to roll quite well to beat Titus's DV, despite the fact that it dropped to its base value of 5 from the flurry.

[roll0]

Edit: Well that didn't work.

Tick 11, Continued

And now we've reached the point where Titus's faster actions have caught up in the initiative order to Laelius's. Technically, what you do happens on the same tick as the Clinch attempt that I just described. Realistically, someone had to roll first, and as Laelius started ahead of you I figured it should be him. Either way, Titus's next action occurs on tick 11.

[Astro_sol]

Titus let out a sigh. It was partially due to the fact that Laelius couldn't seem to learn that trying the same thing again and again didn't work; the other part was because it helped him focus. Punching was helping, but enough was enough; it was time to change things up. As the big man tried for another clinch, Titus brought both hands up and out while stepping forward, of all things. He looked Laelius in the eyes...and smiled.

Which was followed by the young thief pushing himself away from the bigger man into a backwards somersault, while pulling his left leg back and snapping his foot upwards in the middle of the move, trying to catch the bigger man in the chin. Maybe that'd knock some sense into him.

Titus kick! Maybe augmented with stunt!
Well, here it is without stunt dice, unless I've been supposed to roll those during the accuracy-roll stage and I've been an doofus.

Kick! [Dex 5 + MA 5 + Unarmed 1 + Kick 0]: [roll0]

[Jade_Tarem]

The rebound and flip maneuver manages to catch the dazed thug off guard, and the thief's foot connects at the apex of its arc.

The result is spectacular. A loud *Crack* resounds down the street, along with the sickening sound of his jaw breaking. The force of the kick actually lifts the huge man up and back, flinging him a solid nine or ten feet down the road, where his companions sidestep out of the way as Laelius's body crashes back down into the street. A faint trickle of blood and what were once teeth dribble from the corner of his mouth - and the large man does not move.

Laelius's cronies confer, briefly, among themselves before deciding that they want no part of the Jade Mark dental plan. Two of them hoist their fallen comrade up and carry him off while the other three follow - presumably to get aid, but possibly just to get first pick of his possessions when he shuffles off this mortal coil.

For her part, even Horatia looks a bit stunned, giving a small whistle. "Laelius... was not a joke. He probably could have pulverized anyone else on this street. How did you learn to move like that?"

"Practice!" A voice comes from above and behind.

Horatia jumps up off her barrel. "Gaaah! Nova, what are you doing up there?"

"Winning, duh. I found out what Nero wanted. Are we going back now?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus watched with a blank stare as the groupies took their oversized "leader" away. The fact that he'd thoroughly smashed Laelius registered, and was discarded. The guy chose to fight him; he had to know what would happen if he tried. Titus always went all out in a fight; that was what a fight was for, right? The adrenaline rush of facing such a stronger opponent hadn't quite faded as he turned to regard his companions.

"Practice is right," he said to Horatia. "You keep fighting, you eventually start learning how to win. Unless you're Laelius. Or you call my friends names." He turned to Nova, not waiting for Horatia to respond. "And that marks the end of an awesome job." He tugged at the sack of jade and gems at his side. "I don't think we should push our luck anymore, though. Let's hurry back to base, Nero's gonna want a report." He began to walk down the street, tucking his hands into his pockets. He needed to get his cut soon; he'd probably get a bonus. Perhaps he could pick up a treat for Victoria before his next trip home.

[Jade_Tarem]

If the Breaker Gang has any other unfinished business with Titus, they elect not to bring it up today. Pushy merchants and the occasional lesser pickpocket are the only hazards encountered on the way back to Nero's dockside hideout, and none of these manage to get their hands on today's loot.

Nero is almost angry - believing at first that you robbed the estate itself - but calms back down when Horatia and Nova explain to him about the world's unluckiest merchant. "Gods, Titus, you sure can pick 'em. I'll divvy up the rest later, but you can take your share of the loot now. Ten percent to the main man, as usual, and take a bit extra for that trouble with Laelius." He mentions that he needs to borrow Nova to finalize the plan for the Aelius Estate raid, but has nothing further for Titus to do.

More downtime. Titus only needs to be back at the Jade Masks by late Afternoon tomorrow. He certainly has time to visit his family tomorrow, or do anything else he likes. The way I see it, you can do any combination of three things:

1. Make up to three (Resource 3) purchases in the market. One of them will buy food for Titus's family for a solid month.

2. Actually visit Janus's farm.

3. OR Do anything else requiring less than 8 hours or so.

4. Return to Nero.

[Astro_sol]

Titus took his share and quickly moved to speak to Nova and Horatia.

"Hey, girls," he started, then started scratching his head. "I got a personal pickup to make, but right after that I'm gonna need help picking something out special for my sister. She's a bit younger than Nova, so I figured you two would know what to get." I coughed into his fist. "You know, being girls and all." His face expressed utter seriousness.

Plan: Combo of A: shopping for what I said in the OOC: Food, pair of Fine Cestuses with +1 Acc, and a Resource 3 goodie (or smaller goodies) for the youngest Sister. Then he'll most likely part with the gang members, wanting to go home to the farm. He'll deliver food, say hello to all the kids, give the youngest something to spoil her. Then he'll hurry back to Nero.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Well, since you insist," Horatia says, not looking all that put out, "I will indeed go with you to spend huge sums of money on amusing things. But only because you asked nicely."

Nero seems to be in the process of taking down his giant map. "I need Nova, at least for a while, but if your original errand is going to take a bit then there shouldn't be an issue."

Shopping in the high side, occasional pickpockets aside, is not so dangerous an affair, and despite odd looks at his appearance the merchants are quite happy to take his money. A suitable gift...

Of whatever you decide. Perfumes are in somewhat short supply this time of year, but there are other goods from all over the East. Petrified flame-wood jewelry from Chaya, fine cloth from the Linowan clans to the north, herbs both local and exotic, and even a few rare candies from the Realm are all available for someone willing to blow a Resource 3 purchase on them.

...is easily obtained with the dubious aid of Horatia and Nova, despite the fact that Horatia favored the silks and Nova the candies. Before long, Titus is ready to head to the farm when morning arrives...

Are you roleplaying Titus's family, or am I? As you created them, you actually have a better understanding of how they interact than I do...

Elsewhere

Meander's eyes were focused on something in the far, far distance, although his expression was unreadable. Despite his killer gambling face, Ezri could tell he was worried. "You found him."

"I did."

"Did he see you?"

"Probably."

Ezri grinned. She sometimes forgot what a silly question that was, given present company.

"Did he remember you?"

"Of course not." Meander finally returned to the here-and-now. "He's just a mortal. I watched him fight. He was good at it, and less violent and bad than some in his position would be." He looked at the hook where he'd hung his bag earlier. He'd probably overdone it, but he couldn't risk not touching Titus long enough to lay an ascending fate on him. Not with Oversight breathing down his neck. And now he had an extended assignment. That was going to be fun.

Ezri walked over and gave him a swift hug. "I sense a 'but' coming."

"But so what? People beat other people up all the time. He's going to have to go some if he wants the title."

"Then help him get there! Come on, Meander - adventure, excitement, shady characters, intrigue and upheaval! It's all out there waiting for us." Her expression turned mischievous, "Maybe I'll even get to seduce him."

Meander finally grinned back. "Unless he's not into the ladies."

"Then you'd better watch it, pretty boy." She looked around. "It's late. Time to pack up the stall."

[Astro_sol]

Titus simply nodded to Horatia and Nero's responses to his request, and it wasn't long before the trio had strolled back into the markets. While Horatia favored the fancy silks, Titus didn't think a young girl like Victoria would be into all that. When Nova suggested the rare candies from markets out West, Titus couldn't resist picking them up, even though they were quite the drain on his budget. While they would only last as long as it took her to eat them, they'd be easier to sneak to her, and much harder to detect afterwards. He thought about swiping a few up anyway, but decided that he'd used up enough of his luck that day.

He said goodbye to the girls after making the decision, with plenty of time to hit the higher class weapons and armor shops. It was a strange choice for the man who was normally obsessed with fighting with his own two fists, but he'd come close too many times to being hit by Laelius that day. Horatia had a point; Laelius was no joke. Titus wasn't, either, but he was built for speed, not getting hit. He needed to change that. The armor shops in the Upper Markets were quite extensive, and once they realized he actually had money they were quite happy to take his measurements and take up his requests. He needed something light, flexible, and strong enough to take quite a few hits. He found an appealing set of simple yet high quality chainmail, along with padding and a shirt that made it quite hard to notice. It would fit easily enough under his vest, and it would certainly help him should he ever face anyone with a blade.

After that, he gathered foodstuffs for his family, took a small wagon (it was amazing what people left lying around), and began pushing it out the gate that led to his family's farm. It was only a couple hour's walk away; soon enough he saw the path that led off the main road, and the giant wooden barn and small accompanying house at the end of it. The barn dominated the sight, a faded brown from long dried paints, and in very good condition thanks to the working hands of his father. The house itself wasn't actually that small; it was a two story affair, but it was modest compared the the barn, which stretched for several hundred feet.

He saw Albus and Alphonse walking "patrol", each carrying a large stick. When they saw him, they jumped and ran into the house. Soon enough everyone was tearing out; Victoria at the front, flanked behind by the twins. Demetrius hung back, frowning as always.

"Oh, wow, that's a lot of food!" the youngest girl shouted as he rolled up. Titus patted the side.

"I had a good haul." He left it at that; he never really got into his "business" in front of the younger ones, although he sometimes told Demetrius about the lighter jobs after dinner. That was rarer, now; he usually stayed in the city, with the occasional weekends off. He'd be needed soon, though, so he only had so long to stay. "Where's father?"

"He's finishing checking up on the horses. He'll probably be back in twenty minutes, maybe," said one of the twins. Alphonse. He had more face freckles than Albus. That and more teeth.

"Right. Be good kids and help me take this all in, will ya?" They all either nodded or gave some verbal form of affirmation as they ran around the wagon to help grab smaller sacks out of the one large sack he'd shoved them all in. When Victoria came around, he used an old sleight of hand trick to slip the candies into a pocket in her dress. They'd be a pleasant surprise.

The visit went well. When Janus came in, he'd said "hello", instead of the awkward silence while making their dinner. Victoria helped, not because she was the girl, but because none of the other boys were any good at cooking. Titus used the time to talk to Demetrius about his last hit; his memory was strangely fuzzy when it came to the merchant he actually stole from, but that didn't matter; he remembered the act of stealing itself well enough. What was important was that he'd gotten loaded quickly, and had gotten more than enough to sustain the family for a month, taxes included. The mention of taxes got a collective moan from the family, even from Janus in the kitchen.

Dinner went well. Janus continued his trend of slightly opening up to Janus. "The fields are turning up well," he said in a gruff voice. "The soldiers need food, so we're going to have a good harvest."

"That's good," Titus replied. "I brought supplies anyway, just in case things don't turn out well."

"You have any particular -" Janus struggled slightly with the word "- reason to think things won't turn out well?" Was he suspicious that he'd made some enemies that'd attack the farm?

"No," he quickly replied, his mouth still full. "No," he cleared his mouth out, "I just like to be prepared for bad luck. Like if the weather goes sour." Janus simply nodded and continued eating. His siblings, always talking among themselves during meals, had gone quiet during the short exchange, but soon started back up. Titus got kicked under the table, and looked over to see Victoria grinning and popping a candy into her mouth. He couldn't help but grin back and laugh.

Soon enough, though, it was time to make the walk back. He said his goodbyes, but it was already getting dark and he had to make it back to the hideout, which would be another few hours. He made sure he had a torch - Janus, while he didn't speak much, always left him one - and made his way back until he reached the hideout, and finding his small corner to curl up and rest until the morning came.

[Jade_Tarem]

The next afternoon, the warehouse is much more packed. In fact, it appears as though all of the Jade Marks are here in attendance, now gathering about the new and improved map of the Aelius estate and Nero's big map of Emdar, which has been tacked up against the walls outside the office for easier viewing.

Nero's plan is somewhat ambitious, to say the least. That said, it has the benefits of audacity.

"Alright. Tonight's the night, boys and girls, that we stop being thieves and bums. If we pull this off properly, you'll not only never need to commit another crime, but you might never need to actually work a day in your life again."

That starts a round of murmuring and mumbling, but Nero manages to press on. "It goes like this - the Aelius estate is one of the richest in Emdar. It's got all those jewels and fine cloths and other goodies - although we're only taking things that won't be damaged by a good dunking in the river. You'll see why in a moment." He gestures to the map. "More importantly, deep within the vaults they actually have a treasure that makes the rest of the house look like a shack in the slums. It's an Orichalcum Daiklave from the First Age."

"A what-what, from what?" Someone asks.

"A... call it a magic sword made of super golden steel from thousands of years ago, when the Anathema ruled the world. Mortals can't activate the magic in it, but an Anathema could, and then it would be incredibly powerful even by the standards of magic swords." He shrugs. "I've spent a lot of my free time lately breaking into libraries."

"So... you're going to become a warrior?"

"Hell no. I just said mortals can't use it - to me, it's just a really heavy sword. I'm going to sell it to the Guild down in Nexus. They collect rare artifacts, and with this plus the rest of the loot, we'll each have a fortune, even split thirty ways."

He lets that sink in for a moment. Someone finally asks, "How are we going to keep from getting arrested? Stealing the occasional object or purse or wallet is one thing, but looting an entire noble estate will be tough. How would we even hide that much loot?"

Nero's grin turns the slightest bit sinister. "That's the one part of the plan I can't tell you just yet. Suffice to say that I have it covered."

With that, he goes into the rest of the plan. "The Aelius estate is too well guarded for us to gain entry from the outside, and of course none of us have been invited inside. But there is one weak point; the designers were a bit cheap when it came to recycling the water in the fountain - major thanks to Nova for figuring that out, by the way - and so it's actually fed from one of the city's main aqueducts directly, rather than into an outside tank and pumped in. Now, trying to climb up into the fountain from the running aqueduct would likely rip your arms off, plus there's the whole 'breathing' issue, but we do have this." He pats the large package sitting next to him. "That's basically a giant log and alchemical adhesive that Lucius," he nods to one of the other older guys, a young man almost as large and imposing as Laelius, though not as unpleasant, "will jam into the aqueduct split up here." Nero taps the city map at the appropriate spot. "The flow of water will be cut off to the estate, of course, so it won't be long before it's noticed, but it will slow the flow down to a trickle in the duct and let us climb into the estate through the fountain..."

He goes on to outline a fairly systematic plan. Despite the estate's size, only a few guards were actually on patrol at any one time, and could likely be overpowered by the Jade Marks in short order. The rest of the guards would eventually arrive, and then be backed up by the City Guard, but the Jade Marks would be out of there by then.

The way out was the same as the way in - with a twist. Five minutes after Lucius put the 'cork' - as they were calling it - into the aqueduct, he would remove it, letting the water flow again. This particular aqueduct happened to empty itself into the river... across from the Jade Marks's warehouse hideout. The loot would sink immediately (Nero was insistent that no one attempt to swim with a bag of gold strapped to them), most likely, but the Marks themselves would swim - a skill that virtually all except Lucius had learned - across the more placid waters of the river and disappear into the night in the Low Side. They would fish the loot out of the river over the following days or weeks, Nero would make his deal with the Guild, and that would be that.

In theory, anyway. "I expect something to go wrong. It could be anything, really. Maybe there are more guards than we thought, maybe we can't get in as easily as we need to - follow our usual pursuit-avoidance song and dance if everything goes sour. If things really hit the fan, of course, we'll need to wing it."

"And you're sure the Aelius family won't start a city-wide witch hunt the second we leave?"

Nero grins. "Quite sure. Any other questions?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus was silent throughout the entire explanation, thinking. The plan, while a bit off kilter (to say the least), seemed solid enough. He made his way to the front of the gang, right next to the map. He knew it well, at least via the surroundings. The interior was still a bit of a mystery, but he was learning it well enough via Nero himself and the well-done map right in front of him. Still, he had a few questions. He raised a hand, his figure hunched over from quietly budging his way forward.

"Sir, how exactly is Lucius getting in? What, if anything, could go wrong on his end, and how would we deal with it? Also, is there anyone in particular in there that I should avoid beating up? Maybe like the Aelius family themselves?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"He's not going to get in. Lucius is climbing up to the aqueduct like the rest of us - but the aqueduct is outside the compound. That's our entry point, and Lucius stays behind to pull the plug when it's time for us to leave." Nero shrugs. "As for the Aelius family, I suspect they'll hide and let their guards do the fighting - that's pretty much the point of hiring a bunch of guards - but feel free to defend yourself if anyone comes for you. On that note, they'll probably be armed, Titus, so while I know you're a right badass when it comes to beating people unarmed, you should probably have a weapon of some sort on you. Even a staff would do."

He looks around. "Any other questions? No? Good."

Elsewhere

Everything was packed, Ezri was on her way, and the entire town was about to have a night it would never forget... or survive. And joy of joys, he and Ezri were going to be right in the middle of it.

Meander sighed as he leaned back against the wagon. "There are days," he said to his horses, "when I hate this job." The horses, mercifully, did not respond.

That Evening

It was, in many ways, the ideal night for this. The full moon was out, and Luna observed the world carefully as the Wyld crept in around the edges of Creation. Certain beings in certain places took a careful note of the time of the season, but for most it was merely a better illuminated evening than most.

That certainly suited the Jade Marks. It was bright enough out that they could avoid getting killed on the climb up to the aqueduct, but still dark enough to make deep shadows that could easily be hidden in. Everyone manages to make it up there without too much trouble - though 'everyone' is a bit figurative, as only the oldest and most capable Jade Marks (plus Nova) were along for this job. The rest were ready to help find hiding places and escape routes if the Marks had to flee the estate in an unplanned manner.

Lucius manages to jam the log into position, though it takes some effort. Water spills over the sides of the aqueduct and into the street, adding to the number of reasons why it would be nice to hurry - it's only a matter of time before someone reports the problem. The Marks quickly crawl through the dank, slimy passage...

Surprise and initiative are the order of the evening. Nero's plan calls for a fast and systematic looting of the Aelius estate that will end as soon as he and Nova retrieve the daiklave. The guards, where possible, are to be ganged up on and ambushed - Nero's first rule of raiding is that fair fights are for suckers. As the the first one out, Titus is indeed confronted with a pair of very surprised guards.

[Astro_sol]

At the mention of a staff, Titus brightened. "Aye, sir," he said, and quickly ran to what constituted the Jade Marks' armory. It held simple, cheap weapons, and it was easy enough to find a workable, balanced staff. He'd gotten familiar with one during his years on the farm, becoming familiar enough to at least scare off small animals. He'd see what it would do against people.

When it came time for the operation, Titus was ready. His chain shirt was on, the padding was comfortable, he had bags ready for gathering loot at his waist and in his vest, staff in hand, and his face set with grim determination. He had a job to do.

Crawling through the passage beneath the aqueduct was disgusting, but Titus made no comment. He'd do a lot of things to achieve surprise. He made sure he was at the front, as his reputation for fighting necessitated it. He'd take the initial brunt of the fight because he could, and the rest of the gang could swarm them and take them down before he got in too much trouble. Of course, Titus was always prepared for bad luck; that's why he'd learned to fight so well. And why he had the staff and chainmail.

He burst out of the aqueduct and sprang forward towards the guards, brandishing his staff in a spin that had been effective at keeping away wolves.

[Jade_Tarem]

The two guards - a man and a woman, both wearing a fancy kind of Chain Hauberk with the Aelius family imagery emblazoned on it - seem unimpressed with Titus's spin maneuver, although his double-parry gets their attention. The woman scowls. "You're trespassing, kiddo. I don't know how you got in, but you need to leave before you get hurt."

[Astro_sol]

Titus didn't even blink as the soldiers drew their swords faster than he had anticipated, but thanks to twitch reflexes developed on the street, he was able to avoid their first blows. It was awkward, fighting with an extension of his arms...well, most people thought of it as simply that. For Titus, it was simply an extension. As the guards' blades passed close to him, he deftly spun the staff in a windmill, knocking both blades to the side.

He hadn't been sure, but when the woman spoke, he scowled. Perfect. He didn't like fighting women, and this one was no exception. He'd...find a way to take care of her. For now, he ignored her comment, and tossed the staff in the air, letting his foes look confused before grabbing it as it came down and striking at the man's knee joint with a gravity assisted swipe, before twisting around, using his body to cover the movement of striking out with the staff like a spear at the man's face.

[Jade_Tarem]

The phrase has just left the woman's mouth when Titus clouts her partner twice with the staff. He doesn't go down, but does look a bit loopy. He staggers away, yelling that the estate is under attack, while the woman's look turns frosty as she lines up her next swing. "On second thought, hold still..."

Tick 6
The woman actually gets to go again on Tick 4, but she uses the Aim action on Tick 4 and 5 to build up to this hit.

She swings, but does not stunt.

Attack: [roll0]

Edit: But the dice seem to have turned against her. She does not overcome Titus's parry DV. The other guard, meanwhile, has taken the opportunity to run, but is subsequently taken down by another of the Jade Marks.

Her swing once again is stopped by the staff, and then the other guard is dropped by a sling bullet from somewhere behind Titus - more of Nero's crew is emerging from the fountain.

[Astro_sol]

"No, thank you," Titus replied dryly, easily parrying her attack. He couldn't hit her, though. It wasn't right. Was she someone's mother? But she was in his way. He had to try something.

He abruptly changed his stance, spinning his staff and lightly tossing it into her face. When she raised her hands and sword to deflect it, he took his cue, darting back and forth as he dashed under her guard and struck upwards with his hands in a pincer position. He aimed to wrap his arms around her neck, and maybe then he could choke her to submission.

Upon grabbing her, then teen pivoted his heels and hurled her behind him. "Tie her up and gag her," he whispered fiercely, picking up his staff and moving on ahead.

[Jade_Tarem]

A few sharp whacks and enough rope and cloth neutralize the other guard. Unfortunately, the shouts of the first one were clearly heard throughout the manor, and moonlight gleams off of the armor and weapons of more liveried troops rushing out from the walls of the estate.

A full dozen of them pound their way toward the Jade Marks. Of those, nearly half focus on the one immediately in front of them - Titus himself.

And here we find the one advantage of Extras over heroic mortals like Titus and Nero - there can be lots of them. There's enough of a break that I'm going to ask for a new Join Battle roll.

[Astro_sol]

The young thief let out a sigh as he counted troops start running in his direction. He didn't have to bother checking behind him to know that he still had backup, but that backup would be tied up with 6 of the guards heading their way. Titus would help them, but that would first require dealing with the other half dozen running right towards him.

He'd just been walking quickly, before, but now he broke out into a run. When he got several yards from the guards, he pulled the staff into an overhead spin, accompanying his rush with the sound of whipping air. Without a word, he shifted all of his weight to his front foot, spinning while still keeping his forward momentum. He used that momentum to bring the staff around in an extra large arc, the end of it aiming for the head of the nearest guard.

[Jade_Tarem]

The half-dozen guards charge in without hesitation, gladius-style weapons glinting. As the first three close in, Titus's massive swipe knocks two weapons aside and sends the first guard spinning and tumbling to the ground - he does not get back up.

The remaining guards fan out and simultaneously close in, determined to take their time and use their greater numbers to their advantage. Indeed, even the fastest fighter in Emdar can't guard from every direction at once...

[Astro_sol]

As the guards began to surround him, Titus took a deep breath. He was good, really good, and he was good enough to know that being surround sucked.

"Cowards!" he shouted as he realized his predicament, and took note of their movements, searching for an opening. An overextended foot, perhaps their weight shifted a bit too much, perhaps a lax sword arm -

There.

Titus focused on the guards who had come directly in front of him. They looked a bit overconfident, even if he'd just sent their companion into next week. Once again, the staff began to spin, but this time he moved forward, too, keeping the staff at around waist height while pulling into a roll. The staff rolled along his back while he still kept it spinning, rolling it first with his wrists, then his elbows, then his legs as he rolled forward. As he passed between the guards, his back to the ground, the thief kicked out, sending the staff clipping into the chin of the guard to his right. He pulled out of the spin to land just outside the cordon of guards, keeping his staff at the ready.

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus's fancy acrobatics almost pay off, but unfortunately the guards have apparently seen this trick before, and simply shift position to keep up with the young rogue. The spinning staff deflects one-two-three-four blows before the final saber crashes into his back, prevented from tearing into organs and bone by the armor he'd paid so much for. It still hurts - and bleeds - though, and the guards are still closing in...

[Astro_sol]

Two things flashed through Titus' mind.

Firstly: 'Ow. Oh, gods, ow, blades hurt, blades hurt, blades hurt!'

Secondly: Buying the chain shirt was a very, very good idea.

The pain from the stab wound was blinding, but the thief managed to keep his footing, barely. He stumbled slightly, but kept his hold on his staff, whipping it around threateningly. Then, unexpectedly, he began to fall backwards, stopping himself with his torso at a right angle. The staff had been held in front of him until he bent backwards, snapping the end at the center of the face of one of the guards behind him.

[Jade_Tarem]

The snap-attack catches the guard unaware, right between the eyes, and she crashes to the ground beside her earlier comrade.

The remaining guards, now reduced to four, circle around. Each of them steadies their attack, and though uncoordinated, their assault is still measured and deadly...

Tick 12

The guards are still keeping up with Titus, but no longer surround him. Lacking leadership, they cannot make a volley-style coordinated attack with extra dice - we'll save that trick for another day (and eventually any group of mooks taking Titus on will be using it).

In the meantime, The guard takes 3 levels of damage and falls. The remaining guards all aim for a turn (they're one tick faster than Titus) and attack.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]
[roll3]

[Astro_sol]

Titus started breathe a little more easily as the guard (a woman! It wasn't proper!) fell from his blow. He could handle 4 guys no problem. The problem with surrounding a guy like him was that they got too confident, giving him too many openings (not that he was complaining). Titus began to calmly turn around at a steady pace, whipping the staff around in calm but brutal swipes that knocked aside errant blades. He would have laughed if he hadn't been so focused on keeping track of where all the pointy objects were, as well as ignoring the pain in his back; this was all too easy.

There. One guard overextended a strike. The staff whipped out, striking his elbow, shoulder, neck. The falling guard's partner got angry and made a similar mistake, rushing forward and receiving the butt of the staff in the back of the head for his trouble. The final two guards moved to flank him, but Titus snorted and popped the man in front of him in the knee caps, whipping him with the back of the staff as he turned to confront the final guard. Unfortunately, it was a woman. He didn't have the luxury of time that he had with the one previously, so he simply said, "Sorry," and punched the staff forward into her stomach, hard enough to cause a blackout even through her armor.

He turned to check on the gang behind him; hopefully, they hadn't had any trouble, but he brought his staff up in the ready position regardless, ignoring his wound.

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus turns around in time to see the rest of the Jade Marks swarm their targets. Nero finishes the last with a flurry of blows from his tonfa before examining the courtyard. "Twelve guards instead of six. Something is already off about this." His eyes track to Titus. "Dammit, you're hurt. How bad is it?"

[Astro_sol]

The young thief checked his back with a free hand. Yeah, it still hurt.

"Well, it's fine for now, but it could get worse. I could use someone to staunch the bleeding, but just get me some bandage wraps and I'm good to go." He wasn't interested in playing it off to look cool, and a wound like that could come back to bite him later.

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero works his jaw around. "Yeah, we'll get that fixed up. Cassia..." One of the other Marks - Titus vaguely recognizes her as another pickpocket, one who typically worked areas on the other side of town due to Nero's coordination - steps up and unwinds a bandage. An alarm bell begins to clang. "Aaand, that's the start of our hourglass, kids." Nero scratches at a small cut he's picked up on the cheek. "If the city guard arrives and we're not on our way out already, we're completely screwed. So here's how this is going to work - there are more guards here than there should be, so I'm making larger groups. Just two, in fact. Nova, Aeliana, Januarius, and Livius are with me. Cassia, Maximus, and Paula are with Titus. Titus, take the east side of the estate, ascend as quickly as possible to try to find an alternate way into the vaults. My group is going west and tracing Nova's path. Don't get killed by the traps, and don't forget to do some looting on the way!"

Nero's instructions put the Jade Mark's best healer - a bit of misnomer, as her only qualification was knowing basic first aid - along with two more quick fighters into Titus's group.

Feel free to organize/order your people as you'd like, and then we'll move on to the fun part.

[Astro_sol]

Titus nodded at the instructions and turned to his group. Paula's light frame and Maximus' quick reflexes complimented each other well. Meanwhile, he wanted to keep his eyes on the girl who was their best hope at patching up on-the-go. He motioned Cassia over to him and lifted his arm so she could easily wrap the wound, while he shot out orders.

"I'm on point. Cassia, keep in the middle. Paula, Maximus, you two will guard the rear. Make sure nothing pokes me in the back. Again." When Cassia was finished, he tested his flexibility, stretching his arm near the wound. "Alright, let's move."

[Jade_Tarem]

Cassia is competent, but not a miracle worker. The wound is clean and tightly bound, but she worries that further combat or heroics could make it worse.

There's nothing to do but continue, though, and continue you do - following Nova's floorplan allows the group to avoid the traps, and the one guard that attacks from the rear is swiftly beaten down by Paula and Maximus.

Nero's crew is making headway, climbing up the path that Nova simply vaulted past the day before. For Titus's group, though, the search for another route to the third floor goes poorly... until a hidden door springs open, and a new, very tall guard steps out onto the second floor balcony that Titus's marks were exploring.

This one, however, is different for more reasons than height. For one thing, he's armed and armored to the teeth - but more importantly, he's wearing a different, fancier crest. Titus can recognize the shining holy symbol of Zealous Vitality - this towering man, built to more reasonable proportions than Laelius, is a royal guardsman.

Also unlike Laelius, he doesn't waste any time with pointless insults or posturing. He plants himself firmly in the path of the Jade Marks, and his voice booms, "Stop where you are. This assault on the Voice-Elect, Princess of Emdar, comes to an end now."

A join battle/debate roll is not yet required. I probably should ask for join debate, but while he isn't fighting just yet, he also isn't trying to convince you of anything. Titus can talk to him, though, prior to fighting (or surrendering, if that's your thing :smalltongue:) to find out what's going on here.

[Astro_sol]

Titus twisted his eyes in confusion. A Royal Guard, not too long after a fight for his life? Well, at least he wasn't outnumbered...but he didn't want to see what this guy could do to his little group. He couldn't protect everyone at once...but the Guard had said something interesting there. Assault on the Voice-Elect? Hrm.

"Ah, no," he said, stepping forward and speaking without a trace of sarcasm. He made sure he kept a solid grip on his staff without looking too threatening. "I'm afraid there's been some mistake. You see, we're just here to rob you of your valuables, not steal away valuable people. Your Princess should be just fine." He eyed his teammates, his bored face not betraying the fear he felt inside.

I hope this doesn't become a fight, but whatever the case is, I have to think of a way out of here, and fast!

[Jade_Tarem]

"An armed robbery of the Aelius family? My, that is audacious." For the barest of seconds, it sounds like the royal guard approves, but then his tone turns serious. "Nonetheless, I am charged with defending this city, and that includes the estate. If you will not surrender, then prepare to defend yourself, robber!"

[Astro_sol]

Titus did precisely that, whipping his staff around. He felt the wound in his back begin to break open as he began to dart from side to side, ready to dodge the guard's first attack. There were no words.

[Jade_Tarem]

The young rogue takes in all the scenery in a flash. The brilliant moonlight shone off the the normally colorful stones of the second floor's interior balcony. The balcony itself was barely wide enough to allow all the combatants into play, and the reflections in the aged windows showed a warped, silver dreamscape mockery of the fight. The balcony railing and support columns limit the vision of what's going on around and below, especially when all possible concentration is needed for defense...

This guardsman is more dangerous, better equipped, and more experienced. Moving more powerfully than any opponent Titus had seen in the last few days, the royal guardian swings his sword around, coming in high. Titus gets his staff in the way in time, but time itself favors the guard and his inevitable reinforcements. The rest of the Jade Marks make their own moves, and the guard defends against each with little difficulty - four are not enough to overwhelm his defenses. Worse yet, Titus feels the bandages around his torso pop, and his wound begins to bleed again.

[Astro_sol]

Crap. Wounds tended to hurt when they bled, and his stab wound was definitely bleeding. Ow, ow, ow. Ow. Owwwww.

Titus said nothing, though, as he parried the quick blow from the guardsman. This sucked; the guy was outnumbered and was pulling a Titus on him. That wouldn't do at all. Emboldened, Titus kicked off the railing, spinning his staff in a whirl above his head before swinging it in a vertical arc to crash into the Royal Guardsman's fancy helmet.

The roll for this is in the OOC. It probably sucks. I never called channeling anything, but I will try stunting.

[roll0]

That may help...

[Jade_Tarem]

The guardsman blocks Titus's fancy maneuver, still completely serious. With his attention on the young rogue, though, he never sees what happens next.

A girl, apparently a couple of years younger than Titus, swings around and down from the balcony above, tumbling to her feet in time to close with the royal guardsman and bring a heavy-looking two-handed masonry hammer to the back of his head. The guard grunts, hesitates for a moment, and collapses, by all appearances completely incapacitated.

The thing that catches the eye of the gang's most experienced pickpocket is that she's better equipped than any of the invading Jade Marks - for that matter, she might be better equipped than all of the Jade Marks put together. A green tunic that almost certainly conceals a set of armor like Titus's covers black leggings, which are themselves accented by the fur-lined but durable-looking boots and cape that are probably too warm for this time of year. Raiton-black hair hangs to her shoulders, and large eyes survey the others on the balcony. She's cute, no question, though a fair bit younger than the girls Titus would be interested in. What's more, she seems a bit shocked at her own audacity. The interloper looks up at Titus - a function of their respective heights - and stammers out, "I, um... hi."

Image
http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/jadetarem/Exalted/CaeliaFirst_zps7aa91b9b.jpg

[Astro_sol]

Titus blinked for a moment, his staff still held ready in his hands purely on reflex. Then, he slowly lowered it, eyeing the girl with a blank stare.

What.

His wound ached, bringing him back to the present moment. "Cassia, could you see to my stab wound? I think it's bleeding again, and we don't want that," he said, never taking his eyes off the girl. He motioned Cassia over, regardless of the stranger. It was best, after all, to appear calm, in all manner of situations.

"Thank you for that. I probably could have taken him, but you saved us a lot of time." He let Cassia work as he spoke to the girl. He held out a hand. "I'm Titus. These are Cassia, Paula, and Maximus. We're robbing the place." He gave a slight smile. "And what would be your name? Also, what are you doing here?" He gave off no threatening aura. He was mildly confused, though, but he was thankful for the help, and it was good to be polite.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Caelia. I'm... just Caelia." The girl takes a deep breath, and gains a bit more confidence as Cassia re-binds that stubborn back wound. "And..." She actually seems stuck on the question of what she's doing there, until she brightens. "Oh! I'm robbing the place too! I've already raided a small armory and closet. I think some of this stuff belonged to Lord Aelius's son."

[Astro_sol]

Titus grunted as Cassia re-tightened his wounds. So they had company? That was...complicating. Maybe.

"Alright, Caelia. Nice loot, and we appreciated the help, but you picked a hell of a time to hit this place. We've got people all over the mansion, and..." he trailed off, looking up at the balcony that she leaped from. "How in all manner of Creation did you get up there? Do you know a way to the third floor?" He blinked and continued before she could answer. "Also, did you come with anyone else? And have you seen a Daiklave anywhere? Because we have dibs on that."

[Jade_Tarem]

Caelia blinks. "The daiklave? Are you certain? Because believe me - that thing is really heavy." She sees the looks on the faces of the Jade Marks and quickly caves. "Oh. Well, if you're sure, then it's in the basement. You can only get to it from the third floor, though. All of the passages up there are hidden, but I know of one. It's guarded..." She pauses and looks at the comatose form of the royal guard. "Well, it was guarded. You could probably get there pretty quickly now. I'll even show you the way, on one condition - take me with you when you're done here!"

[Astro_sol]

Titus blinked. Well, the girl was obviously skilled, and she was helping them...

"Well, the decision is technically up to Nero, but he's probably going to say yes anyway, and I'll put in a good word anyways." He held out a hand. "Welcome aboard. Let's get crackin'."

[Jade_Tarem]

It was possible that there were passages upstairs fraught with danger and darkness, guarded by clever traps and vicious guardians. If so, none of those are the one Caelia takes you to. "It's over there," she says, pointing.

One misplaced rhododendron later, Titus's crew is on the third floor. You can hear the hysterical sobbing of someone - likely the lady of the house - from behind a door at the end of the hall, but Caelia directs you the opposite way, and before long you run across the sight of Nero's group taking on another guard. The fight is ending - Nero uses his curious reverse-grip on his blade and, by all appearances, a tonfa to beat down the last of the house guards on this floor. "There you are. I'm glad you made it up here - the path Nova brought us in on... isn't very good for an escape."

"Hi Titus!" Nova waves. "You made a new friend."

Nero examines the new group. "Hrm. So you did. Who's the new girl?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus couldn't help but be impressed as they made their way safely through the mansion. This was paying off rather well. It paid off in full when they came across Nero's group. He took the lead upon spotting his leader, holding the staff in one hand while giving a casual salute with the other.

"Good to see you too, sir." When Nero asked about the girl, Titus gestured to her. "She's the reason we have an escape route, then. Nero, this is Caelia. She was doing some thievery on her own, and helped us out of a tight spot." He flicked her armor lightly. "And you can see that she's already gotten a head start in the loot department. She's good."

[Jade_Tarem]

"What, you're sayin' she wants to join us?" Nero scratches his head as Caelia nods enthusiastically. "The sooner the better!"

"Well, stick with us to the end of the job and I'll certainly consider it." Nero gestures to the door. "This is it, right?"

"Right." Nova and Caelia say in unison.

"This is going to take some getting used to." Nero pushes the door open. Before long, the entire group of twelve is surrounded by the glittering treasures of the Aelius family. Nero lets out a tremendous sigh of relief at seeing the daiklave still in its stand - although slightly askew from Caelia's efforts to take it. With a grunt, he pulls the daiklave out and puts it in a long bag that he apparently brought for this exact purpose. The other Jade Marks quickly manage to stuff their bags with other non-perishables. "Alright! We've got what we came here for. We need to get out of here before the city guards show up."

The rest of the Jade Marks let out a little cheer. All that remains is to get clear of the estate...

Believe it or not, Titus has been through 4 encounters and 1 special mission (as Nova), which is enough for me to consider this session concluded. This may seem like an odd place to end the first session, but it will make sense by the end of the post.

XP time.

4xp awarded for participation (base xp)
1xp awarded for roleplaying
1xp awarded for the special Nova mission.
2xp awarded for solo game.

Solo games are tough. You can't rely on another player having the skills to cover your weak points. Note that training times are not adjusted, meaning that Titus can't really spend any of this XP now, but he now has a positive total of 8xp.

The Vision of Light
Chapter 1: The Dawning Realization
Part 2: Nero's Fiddle

Something is wrong by the time the Jade Marks make it back to the third floor. A glance out the window shows the stars and moon obscured by thick clouds of black smoke - the source of which can only be fires set within the city. Distant alarms can now be heard from every direction, and most have nothing to do with the Marks' invasion of the estate.

"No..." Nero breathes. "Not now."

His assertion goes unanswered, though - figures can now be seen, both at the riverside and on the city walls. While the details of these attackers are indistinguishable at this distance, they appear to be two separate forces.

"We need to move." Nero finally recovers his voice. "Now. Get... get outside the city, if we can. The safehouses aren't safe anymore. Cassia, take the others out the main escape, the one we were planning, but don't stop until you're far downstream. Titus, Nova, new girl... we're getting Lucius and hitting our safehouses to get the other marks out. We'll take Nova's escape route. We can make it."

Nova's escape route turns out to involve a climb up to the roof and back out onto the aqueduct. A confused Lucius agrees to follow the group, which goes smoothly until Nova straight-vaults between two buildings. Nero slings his loot across and then makes the jump himself. Then it's Titus's turn...

[Astro_sol]

Actually getting to see all the riches was quite something. Titus let out a low whistle at the sight. He gave the daiklave only a passing glance; that was Nero's. Instead, he just grabbed the shiniest things he could, stuffing his pockets, careful not to upset his wound.

When they were leaving, though, he paused as he took note of the smoke in the sky. It didn't really hit him until he saw the state of the city.

"Gods," he breathed. "Dad. Victoria. Everyone." Was his family okay? They were on the outskirts of the city, outside the walls...perhaps they'd be overlooked in the fighting? And who was fighting, and why? Nero's voice pulled him back into the present moment, and he began to focus. Of course. The other Marks. Some were quite young. And they were out in the middle of that.

He still had a job to do before he saw to his family.

Titus drew himself up. "Aye, sir," he gave in response to his orders, and set off with them, keeping close to the front with Nero in case they ran into any trouble. Roof-hopping wasn't Titus' specialty, but he was quite limber, even with his wounds, so he simply grabbed his pockets to make sure nothing slipped out as made a running start, his legs pumping as he lifted himself across the gap.

Need to make some sort of Athletics roll, or do we assume Titus makes the jump? Unless, of course, something happens out of nowhere.

[Jade_Tarem]

A few bounces takes the group closer to street level, and there, they finally see the attackers - indeed, the streets have already devolved into a three-way free-for-all between the city guards and the two groups of invaders.

The first group is immediately recognizable. With their trademark wooden masks and banding tactics, Linowan raiders have apparently passed into the dividing river of the city and staged their attack from there. Toward the outside of the city, the second group is almost certainly Haltan raiders - their dark skin and green-hued hair rendered nearly black by the firelight. Worse yet, strange creatures of every description accompany the Haltan invaders - snakemen and hawkmen and creatures impossible to describe without a better frame of reference. Worse yet, none of the Haltans seem to have much difficulty using the rooftops for travel either. The odds of both groups assaulting Emdar on the same night are insanely tiny - either Emdar is the unluckiest nation ever, or there's something more going on here.

Eventually, though, Nero brings the group through the roof of the first safehouse - a repurposed group of apartments hollowed out for space - directing the terrified Marks there to follow Lucius on one of his many escape routes out of the city. Once the exodus is organized and on the move, he moves to the window and looks out. "****, we're too slow. The Linowan are already-"

The door bursts inward, and a group of - as luck or fate would have it - four Linowan raiders bursts into the apartments. "Hold Ground, Titus, we need to buy more time for Lucius."

[Astro_sol]

As they ran across the roofs, Titus couldn't help but think of his family. Emdar looked...well, screwed. It seemed like the world was ending; two armies at once? It was almost like it was planned for. But that kind of thinking was too complicated for him, and he simply kept up with Nero and company as they made their way to first warehouse. Upon arriving, it wasn't as difficult as Titus imagined to evacuate his fellow thieves. It helped that Nero had so many preparations in place for events like this.

But, Titus thought as the doors burst open, then again, no one could prepare for this.

Titus barely heard Nero speak over the din, but he nodded and planted his feet down, holding out his chewed-up staff like a spear. As the Linowan approached, Titus suddenly shifted his weight to his back foot and shot the staff forward at a blinding speed, aiming for a shoulder joint.

[Jade_Tarem]

The staff finds its mark, slipping over the Linowan's shield and solidly connecting hard enough to draw a grunt from the raider, but any expression is lost behind his painted wooden mask. The blow doesn't seem to slow the raider down, and the large man swings his axe with deadly speed...

The staff managed to do 1 level of damage, but this attacker isn't an extra. More damage is required before he starts taking penalties.

Titus has joined combat, so his wound re-opens. Again.

The raider's attack roll: [roll0]

The axe doesn't quite reach Titus, as the young rogue ducks beneath the swing. The rest of the group isn't doing as well - Nero seems to be in a stalemate with his raider, and Nova attempts some fancy maneuver only to be punted into a stack of crates. Caelia is, in an unfortunate twist, currently grappling with her opponent, and Nova's former foe is now looking at that melee speculatively...

[Astro_sol]

Titus eyed his teammates and noted that, unlike him, they weren't doing so well. He saw Nova get kicked, and Caelia, the little thing, was trapped in a grapple.

This wouldn't do.

"Ha!" he spat, twisting sideways to give his attacker the least amount of target to slash at. His staff was pulled into a windmill once more, whirling above his head. "Face!" he shouted, suddenly stopping the staff's momentum with his arm and slamming the pole down towards the man's feet. Before anyone could react, he hooked his other arm onto the edge of the staff, bringing the attacking end whipping up into the masked man's chin.

[Jade_Tarem]

The veteran raider sidesteps the first strike, letting the staff roll off the large wooden shield he carries, and sweeps aside the attack aimed at his face with the axe. He shouts something at Titus, but though the language is familiar, the young rogue can't decipher the dialect through the noise of combat.

Either way, immediately after the failure of the spinning staff attack, the raider steps up his game as well...

[roll0]

...and scores a hit. The heavy-ended weapon cleaves through the front of the chain shirt and leaves a long, nasty gash - but no guts spill out, no gouts of blood herald the end for the rogue. The armor has taken that kind of abuse for the second time tonight, that Titus might fight on.

And then it gets crazier. Multiple Haltan warriors, including at least one beastman, drop through the ceiling. At the same time, several city guards crash through what's left of the front door. In a short time, the apartments have gone from being a place of safety to the battleground of a four-way free-for-all.

But not for long. Nero, somehow, shouts above the din. "Titus! We're not sticking around for this! Grab the new girl and get out of here. Meet me at the river safehouse!" Nero jumps on the stack of collapsed crates, presumably to dig Nova out, as the room begins to fill with the insane melee. Caelia is still within reach, still grappling her opponent...

[Astro_sol]

Titus gritted his teeth at the blow. That was just what he needed; more blood. Then the Haltans and the city guard busted in. Which meant everything was going just perfectly. At Nero's words, the young thief stumbled back from his attacker, taking in his surroundings. His eyes settled on Caelia, who was still being grappled.

His wounds ached. His family needed him. His gang needed him.

Titus dropped the staff and stepped forward, his chest and back pounding with pain. He could hurt her if he went crazy with something that long in an area this cramped. He had to move quickly.

"Get your hands off her!" he shouted, rushing forward behind the man to hook his arms behind his neck, digging his legs around the other's so he couldn't escape.

[Jade_Tarem]

Still bleeding, Titus manages to pry the Linowan off of Caelia. Through the raider grunts and strains, Titus maintains control.

A short post, I know, but Titus now has control of the clinch, and can take any of the actions associated with that, including throwing the raider, trying to choke him, etc.

[Astro_sol]

With an exertion of effort, Titus heaved with all of his strength, hurling the Linowan at the Haltans.

[Jade_Tarem]

The Linowan crashes into the Haltan raiders with an explosion of released nationalistic animosity, starting an entirely new melee on the spot. Caelia gets back up, coughing slightly. "This is insane! We have to get out of here."

[Astro_sol]

Titus grimaced. "I know. Here." He held out his arms. "Step on my hands. I'll help launch you to the roof. I can climb up with my staff, or find my own way out."

[Jade_Tarem]

Caelia takes the offered step without hesitation, and a moment later she's sailing up through the hole in the roof. A path up is found again by scaling piles of supplies, some of which are now on fire - the Haltans are not being terribly careful about where their torches land.

A frantic dash away moves the dynamic duo to another rooftop, a good three stories high, at least. Caelia finally stops. "Wait... I have to catch my breath, and we need to find a route to the other warehouse that isn't packed with wall-to-wall enemies." She sighs and sits down, pulling out bandages when she notices Titus's injuries. "Wow. This is really it for Emdar, huh?" She says, her voice dull with shock. "Hard to imagine both groups hitting it on the same night."

[Astro_sol]

Titus didn't protest as Caelia began to rebind his injuries, using the time to look out over the city, trying to find an escape route.

"Well, yeah," he said, his voice flat as well. "This feels...arranged, yeah." But he couldn't say why. The whole situation felt weird, but that was mostly due to shock. He didn't want to think about why this was happening. That could come later. "But they're hitting it. Hitting us." He tightened his hand into a fist, knuckles popping from the pressure. "I hope everyone's okay."

[Jade_Tarem]

No safe escape route can be found - panic and destruction are everywhere.

But Titus does notice something interesting. A faint blue glow can be seen several streets over, bearing down on the riverside. It moves and flickers, but doesn't seem to spread.

[Astro_sol]

Titus peered out at the glow.

"Caelia! Do you see that?" He readied his staff. "I can't find any way out. Maybe we can get out by the river. But..." He looked around. He really didn't have another choice. At least this would be interesting. "Let's follow the light."

[Jade_Tarem]

Following the light isn't that hard. And despite how quickly it moves, catching up is terribly difficult either, due to the fact that it occasionally stops. A few more bounces brings the light into view...

The light is, in fact, a person. A woman with a bandanna, blue-black hair, deep blue armor, and an oversized weapon made out of a similar material to the armor (both shimmer, somehow). More shockingly, the air around her is lashed with a glowing blue spray of water, moving at speeds high enough to strip the grime from the cobblestones - indeed, a bloody trail of dead bodies, both Haltan and Emdarian, bordering a clean stripe in the road marks her progress through the city.

As you peer over the edge of the roof, she finishes a fight, beheading the last of the standing guards. A group of Linowan raiders rush out...

...and report to her.

Caelia stifles a gasp. "That's one of the Dragonblooded! I didn't even know there were any this far from the Realm." She keeps her voice down, but doesn't quite keep the shock from it.

[Astro_sol]

Titus peered out at the Dragonblooded. His face betrayed nothing, although someone familiar with him could see his fingers tracing his staff idly.

This was bad. Confusing, yes, but he knew it had to be bad.

"Well...crap. Can we hear what they're saying?" He strained his ears, trying to listen in. He wanted interesting? He got it. "Maybe it'll shed some light on why everyone's killing everyone."

[Jade_Tarem]

It takes a bit more maneuvering, but Titus and Caelia can get close enough to hear the Dragonblooded lady over the confusion and chaos. But before anything but odd-dialected Linowan language can be heard, they hear a bellow.

"Kaizoku! What's going on?"

Sure enough, Nero makes his way down the street, stumbling over a dead body as he does so. Nova is not with him, and the dragonborn seems to ignore him. "Kaizoku! Hey!"

The armored woman gives him a frosty glance and sighs before simply extending a finger. Her... aura... surges around her and a portion of it flings itself at Nero, hard, hitting him in the face and tossing him to the ground. "Hrm. It's you. First things first; I am generally addressed as Captain, or Ambassador Peleps Kaizoku Atarove of the house Peleps, and if you familiarize it again I'll slay you where you are. Now, was there something you wanted to ask me?"

Nero takes a moment to process that, wiping a trickle of blood from his nose as he does. "Alright, Captain. This is a bit off script, isn't it? You're not supposed to be here."

"Error number two! You're lucky I'm such a tolerant and forgiving person. I have more than one cousin that would have killed you for the first insult. Don't presume to tell me where I can and cannot be." She twirls her oversized blue-black weapon idly.

Nero shrugs and finally rises. "And there are probably fifty Haltan soldiers behind me. As anything I do is likely to get me killed at this point, may I at least ask why you're sacking a neutral city-state?"

"You may! And there are several reasons, really, but let me ask you this: why not? We get enough back talk from far-East nations, including the dear Haltans, who don't seem to realize that the reason they aren't Realm tributaries has nothing to do with their personal skills or efforts and everything to do with a large Lookshyan shield blocking our way. Since only the dear Linowans seem to have an ounce of sense - and that's a scary thought if ever there was one - it falls to me to assist them in any way I can, whether it's raiding the Haltans, raiding a semi-neutral country, or both at once, which had the virtue of novelty if nothing else. For someone who once described himself as a 'big picture' kind of guy, you seem... limited." She shrugs. "That's more explanation than you deserve, but my soldiers are having fun at the moment, and if you survive the incoming brutality, you might learn something from it." She gestures at the surrounding conflagrations. "It's really one to grow on, don't you think?"

Nero hesitates, then withdraws into the building across the street. Kaizoku laughs, but makes no move to stop him. More Linowan seem to be joining her.

Caelia whispers, shaking. "What was that? He acted like he knew her. Have you ever seen her before?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus felt his chest go cold. His hands were deathly still; his fingers normally idly danced across his staff, or played with his pockets. Now his knuckles were white from the strain of holding the scored hardwood and the rough stone of the building they were on top of.

"He knew her name. He knew her." He blinked a few times at Caelia's question. "I haven't. But I want answers. Did you see where he went?" He pointed at the building. "I'm going to follow him. You..." He shuddered. He didn't want to abandon her, but something seemed off, and he didn't need anymore women's blood on his hands, even ones as capable as Caelia's (he hadn't forgotten her hammer-move). "You should go. Find the other Marks. I'll try to find out what's going on with Nero." And what happened with Nova.

[Jade_Tarem]

Caelia blinks. "Alright. Be careful, Titus. These raiders aren't joking around, and you're hurt. No heroics, okay? Get your friends and family and get out while you can." She hesitates. "And thanks for re... supporting me back at the manor. I won't forget it." With that, she darts off.

It takes a moment for Peleps Kaizoku -

THEN

Mnemon Elrit stopped, smiling. The girl raising her hand could have simply spoken out, but old habits died hard. "Yes, Miss Peleps? I thought you'd have a question or two here."

"This Peleps Kaizoku... I've heard of her. She was the Ambassador dispatched to Linowan right before the Scarlet Empress disappeared - a former navy Captain and Wing leader, very respected. She also was posthumously disowned decades later because of something that happened in Linowan itself, with her rewards from that time revoked, but no one in my family would tell me why. Do we have new information?"

"Ahem." Elrit considered for a moment. Sometimes house politics could intrude into academia - in fact, it tended to happen quite a bit. Still, in post-secondary education, most of the students also knew that the noble houses all had some dirt under the rug, even now. "Well, I suspect you'll figure out enough to fill in the blanks in the course of the lesson, but if you have any other questions, you can ask them after class, alright?"

NOW

It takes a moment for Peleps Kaizoku to gather her raiders and move on, but Titus is eventually able to make it to ground level, across the street, and into the building Nero vanished into. From there, only snatches of hurried sound guide Titus to the docks, where it doesn't take long to find Nero himself. The Marks' leader is hoisting the loot bag over the edge of a pier where it splashes into the water. There, he slumps up against a boarding ramp, and only then can Titus see that Nero is sporting another injury. A long gash on the side of Nero's torso seeps blood, though at a slow enough rate to suggest that the older rogue has it under control. Nero does not look up at Titus as he approaches.

[Astro_sol]

Titus took a deep breath and stepped forward. He had to play this cool. He steeled himself, and...acted casual.

"Nero," he said, stopping a few yards from the Jade Marks' leader. "There you are. I got separated from the others. Last I checked, they were going to make it though." He squinted. "I lost track of Nova when we got split up. Is she okay?" Is my family okay? I have to make it through this.

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero flashes a bitter smile. "Finally stopped with the 'sir,' I see. I think Nova's okay. When I pulled her out of the rubble, she said she had someone she had to see, and I let her go. Then she jumped up, did like fifteen front flips, and landed on top of a tall building. I didn't see her after that."

[Astro_sol]

Titus returned it with his own. "That's good. You see, I was worried that Captain Peleps Kaizoku Atarove and her Linowan friends might get at her, like they did with the rest of the marks." He sniffed. "Or is it Ambassador Peleps Kaizoku Atarove? And I forgot, you must add the 'of the house Peleps' there at the end. My mistake." His tone was light, as if he didn't quite care, but his eyes were hard on Nero.

He almost didn't catch himself, if Nero hadn't pointed it out. He didn't think of Nero as "sir" anymore. He was too...wary of him. Like the cat on the farm. It looked at everything like it could be a threat, though anything that bothered to mess around in the cat's territory was a threat anyway.

Titus was eyeing Nero like his cat.

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero shrugs, suddenly looking even more tired. "Glibness isn't like you, Titus." he waves at the surrounding fires and pillaging, "Beggars can't be choosers, and we don't have time for a soliloquy in the middle of the apocalypse, here. From the look you're giving me, I'm guessing you and I are done, regardless of what comes next." He stands up slowly, looking pained and using part of the pier for support. "That leaves you with two options. Option one: you kill me here, or leave me to those fine Haltan gentlemen who are coming this way..." He nods, looking past Titus. Sure enough, some of the Haltan raiders, including more than one hawkman, are coming. "...which is basically the same thing. You would, no doubt, like to take the time to see if your family is alright. They live south of the city, outside the walls, yes? The raiders almost certainly came from the north... they might not have reached your father's farm yet. If you hurry, you might be able to get them out of danger before it's too late. The best staging area for the refugees would be the hills beneath Mount Metagalapa." He grimaces, looking over the pier railing. "Option two: you help me collect the rest of the Jade Marks, we hide out until this is over, recover the loot and skip town to Nexus. That was the plan all along. The... survivors... can still profit from tonight, bloody as it turned out. I'd have been hard-put to stop you one way or another before, and now I'm a bit too banged up to even try. So, main man, what's it going to be?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus took a deep breath.

What he wanted to do was run, right now. Janus could possibly get everyone out at the first sign of trouble, but he couldn't trust that. He had four other kids to look after. Demetrius, the oldest besides Titus, was only 12. He wouldn't be able to help protect the others. Janus was just a farmer, with barely any experience with a weapon. Titus thought he'd once been part of Emdar's militia, but that was because just about everyone of age got some training with a weapon. But that wouldn't do any good against a large, organized raiding party, let alone the battle royal that was tearing apart the city-state as he spoke.

However, he was also loyal to the Marks. While he'd never gotten particularly close with any of them, that didn't mean they weren't his comrades. He'd fought with them, stolen with them, run with them for years. And all of it was because of the kindness and smarts of the man standing before him. He'd put Nero on something of a pedestal, and that pedestal was crumbling away before him.

As he watched Nero slowly bleed, the Haltans closing in, he thought he saw his mother, lying on her deathbed, slowly fading out.

"Dammit," he muttered. "Look, Nero, I can't pretend to understand what's going on, or what you've done, but if you think I'm just going to leave you here to die so easily, you're sadly mistaken." He strapped the staff to his back. "If you still want to help the Marks...I'll help you get out of this, at least. We can make our way to the nearest hideout." He looked to the South, his hands clenching and unclenching. "I can drop you off there, go see to my family. Perhaps bring them to Nexus." He held out a hand.

"Perhaps we're done, Nero, but I'm not going to stand aside when I can still help my comrades, even a little. And I want to find out what exactly you've been doing. I can't do that with you dead."

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero takes the hand. "Crazy son of a... take the bridge. We can't chance swimming for it with the river full of Linowan boats."

[Astro_sol]

"Right," Titus confirmed, throwing Nero's arm over his shoulder and keeping them up with the staff in the other. "I wouldn't want you swimming anyway." His wounds ached; he didn't want to reopen them with the strain that swimming would bring. "We'll try to blend in with anyone still trying to make it out. Maybe they won't see us." With that, he began to drag Nero along, doing his best to keep up their speed while trying not to draw attention to himself.

[Jade_Tarem]

For a wonder, there is still an outflux of refugees and soon-to-be refugees that Titus and Nero are able to join, and the pair of rogues manage to make it as far as the southernmost safe house without being detected - "safe house," of course, being a relative term.

"Too late..."

The dockside warehouse is devastated. Several corpses litter the floor, only a few of them belonging to the Linowan - the rest are recognizable as various Jade Marks. A large blood smear covers the giant map of the city, trailing down to Horatia's body, now several minutes dead but still clutching a shortbow. Some of the furniture has been pulled into recognizable barricades - evidently the Jade Marks were prepared, but overrun nonetheless. Anything usable in the warehouse has been taken, and the rest has been smashed. The fight, it seems, is long over in this part of town.

[Astro_sol]

Titus felt his legs shake, but they held. Splinters dug into the hand clutching the staff, but he paid them no mind.

"You never did tell me the rest of that story, Horatia..." he whispered. Then, with a grunt he pushed Nero forward. "Dammit, Nero! Damn the Linowans! This is senseless, we're not soldiers!" His comrades were being slaughtered like cattle. And if the soldiers had already moved this far South...

"Nero," he said, catching his breath. "Nero, I've got to go. My family...the soldiers look like they've already passed here. I've got no more time, I...go. Or come help. I don't care." And with that, he dropped Nero's arm from his shoulders and broke into a quick trot, as fast as he could go without tearing his wounds back open.

[Jade_Tarem]

Nero shakes his head. "Yeah... go to your family, Titus. I'll..." He pauses. "...keep."

Without Nero slowing him down, Titus makes good time across and indeed out of the city. He passes other refugees, riding carts, wagons, horses, exceptionally large dogs, and just fleeing on foot with whatever they can carry. Caelia was completely correct - this is the end of Emdar, and no mistake.

The first of several grim realizations occurs when Titus notices that there's still smoke ahead of him, despite the city being behind him. The second when he notes that Janus's barn is on fire.

And the third is that, wailing and sobbing from the refugee groups aside, the roar of the flames is the only noise to be heard. The house's windows are shattered, the door splintered. Effects are strewn left and right. As with the warehouse, anything valuable was taken or smashed. There was no way that Janus would have left a few of things Titus finds - or at least, finds pieces of. Titus's family, it seems, did not escape in time.

There is one piece of good news. There are no corpses anywhere on the property, save for the farm animals. Titus is just coming to that realization when he hears a voice from the ruined doorway. "They were carted away as slaves, most likely." Turning reveals an... interesting looking woman. For one thing, she's armed - and not like the Jade Marks were "armed." She's armed properly, complete with a boiled leather hauberk over a chain shirt, a longbow, and what appears to be a worn but cared-for sword. She also has some sort of black glyphic tattoo running up the side of her face, standing out even against her dark brown skin and green hair. She looks around the trashed abode. "Both the Linowan and the Haltans are known for taking slaves and prisoners, but the Haltans haven't made it this far south yet. There's a fairly good chance that your family will soon be introduced to their new and exciting lives as slaves to a Linowan river matron."

[Astro_sol]

Titus shook his head. "That's unacceptable. I..." He put a hand to his side. He couldn't go on like this. If his family had been taken...could he take on an entire band of slavers?

"I could free the slaves...get help. I can still stop them." He hefted up his staff. "Did you see which way they went, ma'am?" He had to do it; the fact that he was sure he could do it couldn't be the delirium from everything that had happened today. He couldn't abandon his family.

[Jade_Tarem]

"They'd be headed back to the river, no doubt, and from there back to their home in Linowan." The woman actually grins. "And how were you planning to catch them, exactly? You're hurt, they're not. They have boats, and you don't." She looks out the front doorway. "And all the help is headed south, while Linowan lies to the north." She looks back to Titus. "Although... If you're serious about it being unacceptable, my employer and I may be headed in that direction. And we have a wagon. That'll work out a bit better for you than running yourself to exhaustion and then walking the rest of the way."

[Astro_sol]

Titus wanted to protest the second he heard her question him, but he let her continue talking. Then she made her offer.

He weighed his options. Go by himself, and most likely not make it. Go with the girl who he'd just met, hadn't bothered to get her name yet (he'd get to that), had no idea what her motives were, or even who she worked for. But then, she seemed to know where his family was. Even if she'd somehow helped them get captured, at the very least he could use her to get to where they were.

"That...I would very much appreciate it," he brought himself to say, staring at her with increasingly questioning eyes. He walked over, trying not show how much his wound was starting to affect him. He stuck out a hand when he reached the girl. "But I would like to know who you are before I try to take advantage of your hospitality. I'm Titus."

[Jade_Tarem]

The woman's smile turns more genuine, and she shakes Titus's hand firmly - she seems to be perfectly at ease, despite the situation. "I'm Ezri," she says, "guardswoman for the Meandering Way merchant company." Ezri shrugs as she releases the hand. "It's not as grand as that sounds. You're looking at half the company right now. But we do, as I said, have a wagon."

[Astro_sol]

"It doesn't matter. Just the wagon is enough." With that, Titus gestures for them to move on. "You're a guard?" He asked, his head hazy from...everything. He needed to keep his mind off of useless worried. "Where did you learn to fight?"

colors will come when I'm not updating from my phone.

[Jade_Tarem]

"In the army." Ezri steps outside, and begins walking down the path to the main road - toward the stream of refugees. "It looks like you've been doing some fighting yourself. Where did you learn?"

[Astro_sol]

"I learned on the streets. I was naturally good at beating people, at first," he said casually. He didn't feel like he was bragging, just telling it how it was. "The gang I was in, the Jade Marks, got in a lot of fights. I fought a lot. After a while, I just got good at it."

[Jade_Tarem]

"Learning through experience works wonders. Maybe we could swap stories on the way north."

She looks around. "This was a nice farm. I'm sorry this had to happen to it."

[Astro_sol]

"It...Janus kept it well. My father." His eyes grew distant. Were they somewhere over there, where he was looking? Probably not. "It was small, but we rarely had any trouble with crops. You wouldn't know, but he kept the place clean. I wouldn't. I wasn't here much. Mostly in the city. Came to visit the kids every week or so."

[Jade_Tarem]

"Do you think he'll rebuild the farm, or join the refugees? I - oh, here we are." The pair has rounded the last bend in the path, and now the road is before them - the stragglers from the city still streaming past, many of them in shock.

One wagon, however, pulls around to reveal none other than the merchant Titus robbed the previous afternoon - seemingly a lifetime ago. He looks right at Titus...

...and gives a cheerful wave. It seems that he genuinely doesn't recognize the young rogue - theoretically possible, given how fast Titus's theft was, but still an incredible stroke of luck. "Hey, Ezri. I see you found the kid you saw wandering off, but what are you going to do with him?"

Ezri plants her feet and offers the merchant a rakehell grin. "We're taking him with us, Meander."

"Eh?"

"Our man Titus here has a family, and that family is heading north with the Linowan. We're going to help him with a rescue!"

"Why are we doing that?"

"We're doing it because the Linowan need trade too, and will be in a buying mood after picking up so many slaves that they now have to care for. We're doing it because you're the great Meander and fear neither man nor market. We're doing it because it'll be an adventure and you love that sort of thing - or at least that was what you told me to get into my pants. But mostly we're doing it because I saw Peleps Kaizoku with the Linowan forces, and that salty witch and I have a score to settle."

Meander scratches his head. "Can't argue with that logic. Well, I can, but it would take a Ce- an act of the gods to convince you to change your mind when you use that tone. Welcome aboard... Titus, was it?" He extends a hand, partly to shake but more to help the injured Titus up into the covered wagon.

[Astro_sol]

Titus could barely contain the grimace at getting help from the man he had stolen quite a bit of money from.

"Indeed," he answered the merchant, taking the hand and pulling himself up into the wagon. "You're the 'great Meander'? I haven't heard of you. Are you famous outside of Emdar?"

At the mention of the Peleps woman, he glanced over at Ezri. "Peleps Kaizoku? Generally addressed as Captain, or Ambassador Peleps Kaizoku Atarove of the house Peleps?" He grinned. It had a nice ring to it. If he ever ran into her again, maybe he'd throw that line at her face. "I saw her before I got out of the city. She seems to have led the force that killed a lot of my friends. What'd she do to you?"

[Jade_Tarem]

Meander waves off Titus's question. "There are several kinds of greatness. I don't do much in the way of self-aggrandizement, and I have a pretty forgettable face, so it's natural that you wouldn't have heard of me."

To Titus's other question, Ezri merely makes an odd face. "She led the force that killed a lot of my friends." She doesn't elaborate, but does continue the conversation as the wagon traverses a rarely-used road that circumnavigates Emdar. She's perfectly silhouetted by the flames of the city when she asks, "So, hero boy, how much do you know about Linowan?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus leaned up against the side of the wagon. He grunted in answer to her question. "Not much. Bunch of pirates. Allies to the Realm. They really like killing Haltans. Why?"

[Jade_Tarem]

Ezri raises an eyebrow, but it's hard to see under the light of the distant blaze. "Well, Linowan isn't all river pirates, any more than all the Dragon-Blooded are incomparable warriors or all Chiaroscurans are merchants or nomads. That's just the popular image - and the most visible part of their society."

Meander nods. "For that matter, Linowan isn't one big happy family - necessarily. They're all banded together to fight Halta because Halta is a common enemy, but what most people outside of the giant sprawl of map marked 'Linowan' don't realize is that it's actually a whole bunch of boat clans operating under a loose alliance. Their spat with Halta started long, long ago with a dispute between their respective patron deities and hasn't let up since." He smiles sardonically. "It's a holy war."

Ezri picks up smoothly as Meander starts trying to coax the horses through a treacherous-looking stream - the road has suffered in this area, and the group isn't to the big bridge over the Shining River yet. "And that holy war shapes quite a bit of their culture and decision making. Many of their decisions are made to counter Halta's moves in their perpetual conflict. For instance, Halta recruited a certain Icewalker Barbarian Anathema named the Bull of the North to be their ally, so the Linowan made a deal with the Realm." Ezri's gaze wanders off into the distance. "They had a big Essence bash that looked pretty even - Anathema are scary, but Tepet Arada is no slouch, and he had some of the best offices and legions behind him - until the Scarlett Empress vanished and their reinforcements dried up. The Tepet legions got stomped, and now it's looking like Halta might be making some real progress for the first time in a hundred years." The horses finally take the plunge, and one light-soaking later, everyone is through the stream as the wagon moves on.

"That's why they're going to welcome us. Outsiders who do business in Linowan territories are suddenly looking for excuses to be elsewhere, just in case the Bull of the North or his spell-casting ally take a detachment of Haltans and come rolling through. The outlying settlements will likely be hurting by now, and we have all the stuff they need." Meander adjusts his glasses. "Which brings me to my next point - Ezri here might have a thing for injured, good looking young men, but I need to know if there's anything you can do to help with the business. I mean, we are feeding you and everything, not to mention participating in your rescue effort. It seems only fair."

[Astro_sol]

Titus listened intently as the pair informed him on the nature of the Linowans and the war. Obviously he had some reading to do. It hurt him that he only wished to learn more of current events when it started to affect him. He needed to better prepare himself. He needed to be stronger, not only in body but in mind. He needed strategy.

Strategy failed him when Meander asked him about what he was good at. By the gods, this could get awkward. "I'm skilled in unarmed fighting;
I didn't get my wounds running from anyone. As well...I'm good with my hands." He thought about what he'd just said and blushed. "I mean, I'm a thief. Not so good at sneaking, but I'm good at, well, picking pockets. I'd demonstrate, but I'm not sure starting things off by stealing from you would go well. I assure you that I only did it because of the group I was associated with, and I'm presently independent and not interested in stealing from my benefactors." He smiled; he was a thief, but he was an honest thief.

colors to come when not updating from my phone. Sorry for the wait.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Yes, starting this whole thing off with you stealing from me would be pretty awkward." Meander laughs for what seems like entirely too long. "Well, you work with what you have. I suppose you could help with manual labor and guarding - you can never have enough guards in this day and age. First, though, we'll need to get you healed up. Ezri here is an excellent healer - the best you'll find for a hundred miles, did you know that?"

"I'm... alright."

"She's entirely too modest about it. You'll be feeling like yourself in no time. She also knows the Linowan dialect - you may want to learn it yourself before we're actually in their territory." The next few minutes pass in silence, before the merchant pauses the horses for a moment. "Ah, here we are, the main road North." He nods to the right, where Emdar can still be seen merrily burning. "This is the last you'll be seeing of Emdar, I'm afraid." He directs the horses forward and left, and the cart begins its journey to Linowan. "Daring rescue awaits! Don't worry - those Linowan raiders have to make the same journey we do, albeit by boat. Your family will only be in captivity for a week or two at the most before we arrive - but it's a six week trip, so you'd best get comfortable. Aaand, we're off!"

[Jade_Tarem]

NOW

Hadassi Fast-Rapids was an old man, though he didn't look much past middle age. He had seen a lot of changes in his time, and his time was longer than most. Few were the Dragon-Blooded who simply elected to retire, but he had done exactly that - an outcaste Dragon-Blooded to begin with, he had few ties to the Realm or the new heavenly order that had changed things in Yu-Shan. True, an... uneasy peace had settled in between Halta and Linowan, and the Fair Folk hadn't invaded in some time, but these were events far from his current concern.

These days, he loved to tell stories whenever he wasn't fishing. And that was what he'd be doing soon. He was no great playwright or poet, but his village loved to hear him spin a good one - or even a true one, if it came to that. He didn't know what story would be requested of him tonight, but he'd be ready.

One by one and two by two they trickled into the little tavern. It wasn't the only place to get a drink, even in a village as small as this one, but it was the most popular. Soon enough, the room was full, and the group started offering suggestions.

"Tell us one about the Radiant Night King, Hadassi."

"You're sure?" The Terrestrial scratched his chin. "Well, then..."

THEN

Tsunami Rider looked through her spyglass at the Realm fleet, which was even now closing in on the Medias Res. "Before we die," she said, in an aside to Titus, "I just want to make it clear that this is entirely your fault."

"How is it his fault?" Caelia asked hotly, "We don't know that they're here to avenge Peleps Kaizoku. I mean, for gods' sake, you just-"

NOW

A chorus of groans erupted from the tavern. "No, no, no..." Someone said, "You've told us that one a thousand times."

"Tough crowd," muttered Hadassi. He noticed a small child near the front, looking contemplative - well, more contemplative than most children that age should look, anyway. "What is it, little one?"

"A girl from the Whitecrest clan told me that our clan had to move because we fought the Radiant Night King once and lost. Is that true?"

Hadassi leaned back as the tavern went silent. "Would it surprise you if I said yes and no? It's true that our clan met him, yes, but the story is always more complicated than anyone trying to use it would have you believe." He looked around, noting that he now had the room's attention properly. "I think, then, I will tell you the story of how Titus arrived in Linowan, and what happened when he got here. It began in the month of Resplendent Fire, in the 768th year of the Realm. Emdar's ashes had not yet cooled..."

THEN

...and the young rogue - for he was nothing but a young rogue yet - was only now beginning to learn about the power of raw Essence...

Meander keeps the wagon moving well into the dawn, and then past it, his explanation being that he wants to get away from possible bandit ambush points - and to avoid crossing paths with the Linowan or the Haltans so soon after the raid on Emdar.

His reasoning is proven valid and his precautions futile when, early in the day, an honest-to-goodness spear *thunks* into the side of the wagon - a rough male voice from the woods calls for the wagon to halt. Meander and Ezri exchange a glance, and then Meander abruptly pushes the horses to a full gallop (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SeV93iqXEo). More spears fly from the trees, each striking a sturdy part of the wagon and sticking in - even those that seem at first to be on target somehow miss. "Terrible accuracy." Meander says, winking at Ezri. "Perhaps you should show them how it's done."

"This is taking Titus's training a bit out of order, isn't it?" Ezri grimaces, looking out the back of the covered wagon. Several riders emerge from the trees, all of them carrying more spears, and they seem rather upset that Meander hasn't elected to behave.

"He'd learn sooner or later." The merchant shrugs. "Titus, fetch her bow for her, please." As Titus reaches for the compound longbow propped up near the bench, Meander stops him. "No no, her real bow. It's under the loose board in the bottom there - yes, that one."

Prying up the loose floorboard reveals a bow unlike any Titus has seen before. Not an expert on bows by any means, Titus still cannot fathom how this particular longbow - which appears to be made out of some sort of greenish stone - could even be bent, let alone fired.

Nonetheless, Ezri takes it, and easily stands up in the moving wagon. "Alright, Titus, you'll want to move up onto the bench with Meander."

The merchant nods and scoots to the right. "Yes, you'll not want to be too close to Ezri when she's done. I don't even want to think about what this will do to the merchandise."

"Calm down. The valuable stuff is in the metal boxes, right? It will be fine." Ezri moves to the back of the wagon, draws and sets an arrow, and nods up to Meander. For his part, the Merchant draws down the covering on the wagon, leaving the entire thing open to the sky. Seeing their opportunity, the raiders throw their spears again.

This time, the spears don't miss - but only because they never reach the wagon. Moving almost faster than Titus can see, Ezri fires her arrows at and through the incoming projectiles - a feat of archery that Titus has never heard of, let alone witnessed. Nor does the supernal fighting end there - Ezri dodges more of the spears, at one point cartwheeling, bow in hand, to the other side of the rocking wagon.

As she dodges and shoots down more of the projectiles, the woman starts to take on an unearthly green glow. Razor-sharp leaves and thorns swirl about her and occasionally lash out at the surrounding air and Meander's boxes, and wherever they hit, a sweet-smelling amber liquid bleeds from the cut.

More riders emerge, and at last Meander shouts to Ezri that all of the Bandits have appeared. Ezri gives him a nod in return, and finally opens fire on the bandits themselves. Each arrow strikes its mark, and then explodes into a cloud of razor-sharp foot-long thorns. Within moments, the battle is over.

Ezri twirls her bow and sits down at the far corner of the wagon, her aura of leafy doom still running strong. She smiles past green-glowing eyes at Titus. "So... I'm sure you have questions."

[Astro_sol]

"Y...yeah," Titus managed after a few moments to process the battle, if you wanted to call it one. What he'd just seen was impossible; at least, impossible through any normal means. Ezri's strange, leafy aura and her unerring accuracy with that now... "Yeah," he said again, this time with a small smile, "but only a few."

Sure, the situation was weird, but none of what he'd seen changed the fact that these people were helping him rescue his family. Having comrades with super powers could mean a lot of things, but as far as he was concerned, they could help his quest much more than ordinary people would.

"What kind of bow is that, and why is it special?" he began, raising a finger to help himself count off, still smiling. "How could you shoot like that?" Another finger raised, along with his other hand cupping under his chin in his thinking pose. "Although I suppose that ties in with my next questions. What are you, and why did you make a leaf storm?" He angled his head back at Meander with a toothy grin. "I don't suppose you'll be telling me next that he's the god of commerce in disguise. But seriously, what are you? And is Meander...well, special?" he asked, for lack of a better word. He chose not to voice his own guesses, but Ezri was either a god or an Exalt of some sort. He didn't remember enough of the stories to say anything more specific.

He decided right then and there that he didn't even care if they were demons. As long as he rescued his family.

to be fixed when not updated from my phone. Sorry for lateness

[Jade_Tarem]

Ezri actually beams at some of Titus's questions. "I'm going to take those a bit out of order." She leans the bow up against the back of the cart. "First, my name really is Ezri, but it's not the only name I've ever had. Before that, I was known as Bandit Queen Ezri... and before that, I was known as Commander V'neef Ezri - of house V'neef, of course - and I led the Ninth Flight serving under General Cathak Gerava of the Sage Legion. As I told you, I learned to fight in the army - the Realm's army. And if that string of titles sounds a bit familiar, yes - like Peleps Kaizoku, I am one of the Dragon-Blooded."

She indicates the swirling leaves and thorns, still glowing with power. "But as I mentioned before, not all Dragon-Blooded are alike. A human becomes a Dragon-Blooded - also known as the Terrestrial Exalted, along with many other sobriquets - by, well, almost random chance. That chance is passed down among bloodlines from long ago, when the great Immaculate Dragons of old infused some of their power into humans. The Scarlet Dynasty is composed of the Great Houses, like Peleps and V'neef, all of which lay claim to having the Dragon's Blood flowing through their family trees. Are you with me so far? Good." She shifts her position, apparently a bit uncomfortable in the back of the wagon - but to move any closer to the front would bring Titus and Meander into her aura. "Now, Exaltation comes with quite a few benefits. You become faster, tougher, stronger, and sometimes even smarter and prettier. You live longer - I bet you'd never guess by looking at me that I'm one hundred and thirty three? And I've got centuries left to go before I croak of old age. But most importantly, you gain the ability to channel Essence."

She waits for a beat. "I see that didn't ring a bell with you. Essence is... call it the fuel that keeps everything working. It's the invisible framework that shapes reality, that gives everything definition and purpose. It flows around and through the environment, in every rock, stream, creature, and person. Most go their entire lives without ever truly seeing it or touching it... but the Terrestrial Exalted have a surplus of it. When their Dragon's Blood awakens, they gain the ability to absorb more of that Essence from the environment than they normally could, and then they can use that to produce spectacular effects - ah, but not just any effects. There are five Immaculate Dragons, and five kinds of Dragon-Blooded - Air, Earth, Fire, Water, and Wood. I don't know if you saw Kaizoku in action... you did? Then you know she's a Water-Aspect, and I..." She gestures at the thorns and leaves, "...am a Wood-Aspect. Each is good at certain things, but every Exaltation is different. In theory, any Dragon-Blooded can learn any technique used by any other Dragon-Blooded. In practice, most tend to stick with what they're good at, whether it's due to their Aspect or personal talents. Many Wood-Aspects are supernaturally good archers, for instance. You saw a demonstration of that a minute ago - shooting down the enemy spears, causing arrows to explode on impact, shooting super-fast... all of those are Charms that I know." She hesitates before elaborating. "Charms are... special techniques that Exalted can do using their Essence."

She shifts again, the aura finally dying down, if only a bit. "You asked why I made a leaf storm. The truth is that I didn't do it deliberately - although I could if I wanted to. I may have a bit of the blood of an immortal Dragon-god flowing in me, but it's only a bit. That piece of divinity is fused to a very mortal woman, and when I use Essence, some of it leaks out into the environment. This, in the Dragon-Blooded, is called our Anima Flux. It's pretty standard among Dragon-Blooded of the same Aspect. In other words, every Wood-Aspect does this when they use their powers. Every Fire-Aspect creates an aura of flame around them when they start using a lot of Essence... you get it. The same principle applies to our very bodies - our appearance changes to reflect our aspect as we grow older and stronger. I look deeply tanned now, and have green hair - that's standard coloration for a Haltan, but I started life on the Blessed Isle with fair skin and titanium blonde hair." The aura - her flux, apparently, dies down a bit more. "What else did you ask me about? Oh, the bow. There are several different magical materials in the world. The magic in them is dormant, but an Essence User can force some of their channeled Essence into an item or weapon made of such materials to awaken the magic within it. That's called attunement, by the way. What's more, every magical material corresponds to a kind of Exalted. The bow, there, is made of green jade - I attuned to it, so now it's a magical bow that hits more accurately and drains Essence from the people it hits for me to use."

She sighs. "And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There are other kinds of Exalted beyond the Terrestrials, but we'll cover those another time. The Dragon-Blooded are the most common, but that isn't saying much - only ten thousand or so exist in the world, compared to the few hundred of each other kind." She moves to the front as her aura finally fades away completely. "And yes, Meander is special, but your assignment is to be on the lookout for clues about what he is. It isn't a god, though - I'll give you that hint." She settles in. "In the meantime, I know I just dropped a lot of new vocabulary on you, but it's a bigger world you're looking at now. In the meantime, we need to do something about your injuries. Take off your shirt."

[Astro_sol]

Titus listened intently throughout the explanation, only interjecting intermittently. Mostly, his thoughts lay with what the hell he was going to do if he ever ran into Peleps Kaizoku or one of her ilk. And Ezri was 103 years old? He looked at her face, specifically at where there really should have been wrinkles. That was...amazing information. Honestly, all of it was, and it was a lot to take in. So he just rolled with it.

After the introduction into the idea of Essence, Titus spoke up. "I don't suppose I could possibly learn how to use...Essence? I'm guessing it's something incredibly difficult to do, or I'd be seeing a lot more Essence users in Emdar. And, uh, what happens if you run out? Could a mortal take you down if you couldn't use your, uh, Charms, you called them?" He paused. "Actually, is it possible for a mortal to take you down at all?"

As she told him of her eventual fate, he frowned. Slowly turning into wood, or at least looking like it, didn't exactly mesh with his idea of fun. "So, if you've just got green hair and dark skin now, are you going to die as a tree?" It was a joke, but he really wanted to know what happened when she got older, and said as much if she didn't elaborate.

When she told him to take his shirt off, he did so. "Oh, no worries. I didn't think this would be a cake-walk." Still, though, he frowned: he had to figure out what Meander was? Well, he knew now for sure that he wasn't a human. That was too easy, and it just didn't fit. What all did he know about Meander? Well, for one, he was cool enough to hang around with an Exalt. That told him nothing. Second, Meander seemed to be a bit well to do. He didn't seem to be obviously hurting from the copious amount of money that he'd stolen from him before, and Ezri had said he was quite the merchant, so he had a lot of skill at money-making. That also told him jack-diddly. Third...well, there wasn't a third. Meander seemed to be a well-to-do mortal.

He pouted in frustration as Ezri got to work on his wounds, which had long since become an easy-to-ignore itch.

[Jade_Tarem]

After the introduction into the idea of Essence, Titus spoke up. "I don't suppose I could possibly learn how to use...Essence? I'm guessing it's something incredibly difficult to do, or I'd be seeing a lot more Essence users in Emdar. And, uh, what happens if you run out? Could a mortal take you down if you couldn't use your, uh, Charms, you called them?" He paused. "Actually, is it possible for a mortal to take you down at all?"

Ezri shrugs. "Certainly, running out of Essence is a problem, though there are ways to regain it a bit at a time, even in the middle of a fight. Even without it, the Exalted - of all kinds - are faster, stronger, tougher, etc. Those changes don't go away no matter how depleted I get - but don't get the idea that I'm invincible. I still die if I take a spear to the face or fall into a volcano or something. And of course, all of those Charms don't do me any good if I don't know when to use them." She considers for a moment. "As for a mortal taking me out... it could happen, I suppose, but a lot of the standard strategies aren't nearly as effective. You say you're a good martial artist, but do you think you could beat me to death through a cloud of razors and poison? I doubt it. Usually when mortals are trying to take down Essence users, or when Essence users are trying to take down more powerful Essence users, they use mass fire, fancy group tactics, or something unorthodox."

"Of course," Meander chimes in, "Given just how many charms have been developed throughout the ages, it can be difficult to say what 'unorthodox techniques' will be effective. Poison, for instance, might kill a Terrestrial Exalt, but more than one Dragon-Blooded has been drugged or poisoned as a prelude to an ambush, only for the attackers to discover that said Dragon-Blooded had learned a Charm to protect them from such tactics and had never had the courtesy to make that public knowledge. Needless to say, the evening generally goes downhill from there."

"Buuut on topic, the bottom line for Essence users is that you generally have to walk a line between using enough Essence to be a consistently lethal threat, while not wasting a large amount of Essence on an attack that might not be effective." She pauses. "We've spent a lot of time talking about combat, but I'd like to point out that Charms take many forms, aiding in all things - athletics, transportation, giving speeches, writing letters, even in putting on performances or seducing people."

"You also asked if you could learn to wield Essence. The answer is a qualified yes - mortals have done it before, but as you surmised, it is extremely difficult and frequently takes years of training. There is, sadly, no way around the fact that the fastest way to access Essence is to Exalt."


As she told him of her eventual fate, he frowned. Slowly turning into wood, or at least looking like it, didn't exactly mesh with his idea of fun. "So, if you've just got green hair and dark skin now, are you going to die as a tree?" It was a joke, but he really wanted to know what happened when she got older, and said as much if she didn't elaborate.

Ezri laughs. "It never gets to be quite that extreme. As I unlock more of my potential, I imagine that my skin will get a bit browner, and my hair and eyes might change color with the seasons. Should I be so lucky as to reach old age, my flesh may start to take on a grain pattern and feel a bit more like fresh-cut wood than skin, but I'm in no danger of sprouting branches or taking root."

At this point, Ezri tends to Titus's wounds, if you can call it that. "Do you remember a minute ago, when I said that there were many kinds of Charms? Some also apply to healing." She hands Titus a thick rag. "Here, bite this."

With that, she tears off the bandages, reopening the wounds in the process. "Mrm. Not terribly bad. Now, normally it would take a week for you to heal something like this, but with a bit of Essence..."

She simply places a hand on Titus's chest, and a greenish light flares out of the injuries. One flash of pain later, the lacerations are gone, replaced instead with nasty bruises. "There. The healing of several days, done in an instant. By tonight, even the bruises will have faded."

Titus's badass status aside, it takes up to a week for a Mortal to heal their -1 health boxes, so those injuries are still a bit more severe than "itchy." Upside: Ezri's Wound Closing Touch Charm has converted those Lethal damage levels into Bashing levels, which will heal in a matter of hours - long before Titus gets into combat again.

[Astro_sol]

"Oh," Titus replied to the pair's words on taking down Essence users. "Well, I guess I'll just have to hope that I don't run into one of them. Uh, ever. Did you say speeches? Seducing? So they can magic me into, uh, liking them?" He shuddered. "That's awful." But having that sort of power would be...useful. "You said you were a Terrestrial? So you're born into it? How would you know? I don't think you'd be born in a leaf storm. It'd be terrible for the mother." He grinned in spite of the dark humor.

When she magic'd his wound, he marveled at the remaining bruises. "Oh, gods, that's useful." And it got him thinking. Essence was just...useful. It was scary, yeah, but so were regular doctors. You could use Essence to, from what it sounded like, override people's free will, but you could also use it to help people. Kind of like his fighting skills, come to think of it. If he'd wanted to, back in Emdar, he could have just beaten anyone he felt like on the street. But that sort of thing didn't feel right. He liked a good fight, one where you measured your skill against someone else's. It was like communicating, in a way.

He looked back up at Ezri, his eyes determined. "So, that's Essence. It's scary, but so is everything else in the world. What's next on the agenda?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"You're born with a chance of becoming a Dragon-Blooded, but you don't know until you Exalt. Other kinds of Exalted are different. A specific event, coupled with totally random chance, causes the Exaltation, no fancy bloodline necessary - and believe me, when an Exaltation of any kind is happening, everyone in the general vicinity knows it. As for what's next... training!" Ezri's tone is much too enthusiastic. "In some of those unorthodox techniques we mentioned. You can't count on not running into Essence users. They have a bad habit of popping up even when all the odds are against it."

"Also, 'the odds' are continually being tampered with. Trust me on that."

"So we're going to be working on your stealth, and teaching you how to talk like a Linowan at the same time. Because if Peleps Kaizoku Atarove of the Multitudinous Titles or her pet boat clan can see us coming, rescuing your family will be problematic no matter how awesome I am. So, the first thing about Linowan speech patterns that you might have noticed is..."

The Vision of Light
Chapter 1: The Dawning Realization
Part 3: Nero's Way

That session was a bit shorter, but you'll find that it still composed a good 4 encounters, plus downtime. The xp breakdown is as follows.

4xp awarded for participation (base xp)
1xp awarded for roleplaying (lack of metagaming greatly appreciated)
1xp awarded for third-option chutzpah, back with Nero at the docks (hidden opportunity found)
2xp awarded for solo game

8xp awarded in total, bringing Titus's total to 10xp unspent. Unfortunately, all 6 weeks of the trip are taken up with Stealth 1 and the Linowan Dialect specialty. The good news is that there's more travel time to go, plus Titus will wind up with a comparatively large stretch of downtime after Exaltation that will let you clean out your proverbial bank account if you so choose, so there's no problem with building up more than you can spend right now.

NOW

Hadassi's silhouette jumped and wavered against the wall as the fire in the hearth danced. "For six weeks, the cart traveled north, always north, along some of the poorest roads in the East. Meander was a skilled navigator, though, and kept them from getting lost even as Titus became acquainted with a secondhand account of our culture, and a firsthand account of our language and our dialects, delivered by none other than the Bandit Queen Ezri herself."

"By the time they arrived, he had learned much of both and stealth besides, for he was a swift learner even before the Upheaval began. Six weeks after their journey began, they reached the Netted Lands, where the rivers merge, split, and re-merge again, and here something rather interesting happened..."

THEN

Meander brought the wagon to a halt as the two Linowan guards waved him down. "Something the matter, sirs?" He, just like Ezri, had shifted to speaking almost exclusively in the Linowan dialect over the past few days. While frustrating, it had helped Titus get accustomed to it in a hurry. Some of his own intonation and phrasings still carried through.

"We're stopping all traffic from the south. The city of Emdar was raided recently, and Haltans were found defending it."

Meander gives them both a sardonic look. "Were they? I'm afraid I left before the fighting began."

"Be that as it may, we're still on the lookout for any potential intruders and... ah..." the guard trails off (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJiOf_sld3k) as Ezri emerges from the back, from behind the short curtain that can hang from the wagon cover - but not in her usual armor, or even her normal day-outfit (made from a number of rather comfortable-looking sewn furs and leathers that she insists breathes better than one would think) that Titus is used to. No, Ezri has swapped these out for something out of local legend, a set of leather armor that seems to be considerably more form-fitting than armor really should be, not to mention more abbreviated. For instance, Titus is reasonably certain that - flexibility be damned - armor is supposed to cover the midriff, and the layered leather straps composing the armored skirt really ought to extend farther than mid thigh. And as for-

NOW

"We get it, you old perv! Move on!" Most of the tavern laughed, though several of the children looked confused.

Hadassi threw up his hands. "Fine. Spoil my fun! The most remarkable thing about Ezri's appearance was..."

THEN

...that her skin had, somehow, lightened in shade, almost to that of a native Emdarian. Her hair, likewise, had undergone a transformation from green to a natural-looking brown. All of these changes were courtesy of Meander's 'special supplies' - a term Titus had learned meant that Meander seemed to always have what was needed at any given time. Rarity was no issue, only quantity. Wagon's cotter pin broken when the merchant hit a bump too hard? Meander had a spare in his 'special supplies.' Titus stung by a rare insect? Meander had the perfect ointment for that in his 'special supplies.' By the third week of travel, Titus could practically hear the implicit air quotes whenever the 'special supplies' were mentioned.

And those supplies had taken another hit when the wagon had reached a day's distance from Shadowholt, the southernmost permanent Linowan settlement. Ezri had pointed out that she looked a lot like the Linowan people's hated Haltan enemies. They could no doubt prove that she was, instead, a Dragon-Blooded, but that would attract more attention than the group wanted. Meander - of course - had a sufficient disguise ready.

The guard eventually managed to find his voice again. "And the, uh... the purpose of your visit?"

"Business!" Meander chirps cheerfully. "We heard it was a seller's market, but I'm going to try to beat the bow wave of Guild representatives and see what some of the more northeastern clans have to offer."

"Plus, I love the northern air!" Ezri added, taking a deep breath. "It always smells cleaner, somehow."

"Right. I see. Well, be on the lookout for the usual Haltan threats. Dark skin, green hair, exceptionally intelligent animals. And try not to get suckered by the Guild. And if you're looking for a place to stay..."

"We're not!" Meander interjects, still chipper. "Thank you sirs, I hope to see you at the market." With that, he starts the wagon moving again. Once the guards are out of earshot, he snickers. "Love that northern air, do you? That's really reaching for an excuse to inhale deeply."

"You said you wanted a distraction. Want me to be doing stretches when you're selling goods tomorrow, or is that too much?"

"That's probably a bit much. We don't want the customers confused about what I'm selling." Meander states flatly. "When I said that maybe we should be giving Titus a social education, this wasn't exactly what I meant. I'm surprised you didn't ask him for help with the disguise oil."

"Why Meander! You make it sound as though I'm some kind of shameless showoff and flirt. I'll have you know that I am way more humble than most Terrestrials. I'm also smarter and prettier."

The merchant elects not to grace that with a response, instead stage whispering to Titus, "Remember when she was all 'I'm alright, I guess' back in Emdar? She was worried about making a good first impression. This is her true, evil form."

"And more flexi-"

"Alright! We're here." Meander appears to have stopped at a Guild-Run inn. "It's not really sundown yet, but it's too late to set up shop. Titus? I'm cutting you loose. Shadowholt is something of a hybrid town. It's a Linowan settlement, but they see it as bad luck - plus there's a lot of foreign influence." He waves at the impressively-sized harbor visible to the west. "The Guild's influence being the biggest. The raiders we're following didn't have to stop through here, but I'm betting that Kaizoku would have asked it of them - this is one of the easiest ways for her to get news from the Realm, after all. Just remember to stick to our story, don't abuse the local hospitality rules, and you'll be fine. I'm your employer, not your father, so I'm not going to set a curfew - just be ready to do some moving and lifting tomorrow morning, bright and early."

"Also remember that metals tend to be a luxury in Linowan. The staff is fine, but be sure to keep that chain shirt covered." Ezri grins, "And please, no Wood Aspect puns. I've heard them all."

[Astro_sol]

Throughout the experience, Titus simply watched, not trusting himself to open his mouth. As well, he didn't want to interrupt the "learning experience", although he didn't see how Ezri's techniques would ever be able to help him, besides giving him something to look out for should he ever be a guard.

Oh wait, that's right, he sort of was.

He kept his eyes on Ezri, intently watching her every move. He needed to know exactly what kind of strategies women would employ should they ever be hiding something, like his present group most certainly was. Anything she did that didn't seem natural - which seemed to be everything she was doing at the moment - was something he needed to remember. He made a note to be suspicious of any woman wearing "armor" that didn't cover the stomach. Or thighs.

The second Meander spoke, indirectly letting them know that it was safe to act casual, Titus relaxed, drawing his back straight and dropping down to walk next to the wagon. He blinked at the oil joke, and simply nodded with a blank face at Meander's aside.


"Alright! We're here." Meander appears to have stopped at a Guild-Run inn. "It's not really sundown yet, but it's too late to set up shop. Titus? I'm cutting you loose. Shadowholt is something of a hybrid town. It's a Linowan settlement, but they see it as bad luck - plus there's a lot of foreign influence." He waves at the impressively-sized harbor visible to the west. "The Guild's influence being the biggest. The raiders we're following didn't have to stop through here, but I'm betting that Kaizoku would have asked it of them - this is one of the easiest ways for her to get news from the Realm, after all. Just remember to stick to our story, don't abuse the local hospitality rules, and you'll be fine. I'm your employer, not your father, so I'm not going to set a curfew - just be ready to do some moving and lifting tomorrow morning, bright and early."

"Also remember that metals tend to be a luxury in Linowan. The staff is fine, but be sure to keep that chain shirt covered." Ezri grins, "And please, no Wood Aspect puns. I've heard them all."

Titus tipped his staff to his forehead in salute to Meander. "Right, boss," he said, his usual "sir" not really fitting his new employer, not after Nero. He turned his head to Ezri, raising an eyebrow. "Please. I would never dream of it," he said, putting absolutely no emphasis on the suspect word. He didn't change his facial expression as he turned and began to march off in a random direction, following his instincts to find the local market. He always felt comfy where there was a lot of gold changing hands, gold that could easily slip into his own.

Old habits were hard to break.

[Jade_Tarem]

The market is much like Titus would expect - except for the lack of towering architecture and metal goods, that is. Shadowholt is much smaller than Emdar, despite the size of the nearby harbor facility.

But for all that, the first thing Titus notes is the music. Someone is singing, somewhere in the marketplace, a melody with words he can't quite make out. It seems to synchronize with the haggling, the clink of coins, the motion of the horses and animals, and yet overpowers them at the same time. Nor is that the only curiosity: Guild representatives and merchants - a somewhat rare sight in Emdar - are here in force. From the way their stalls and wares tend to clump together, it seems as though they aren't the most popular group in Shadowholt, though no overt explanation is given.

It's only as Titus takes it all in, and only because his habitual pickpocket's mark-finding eye is scanning so closely for details, that he spots her - a young girl, very young, with green hair and eyes. The otherwise unmistakable Nova is drifting through the crowd in time with the music.

[Astro_sol]

Titus weaved through the crowd, always finding a path through the amorphous crowd. He tapped his staff on the dirt to the singing as he walked, his eyes darting between rich furs, finely crafted wooden merchandise, but he was finding it hard without the telltale glint of expensive metals. But there were some rich folks there, some Guild jerks over there, a mess of green hair on a sprightly little girl, and a person of undefinable gender who nee...he paused.

Nova? A rush of thoughts blitzed through him. Nero had said she'd run off by herself. What was she doing here? Had the Marks unintentionally followed him? Where was Nero? Was he here, too?

He found his legs pulling him forward, his previous wanderings forgotten. He followed her from the side, quickly pushing between people until he slid a few yard in front of her, tilting his staff to tap the side of his forehead in a salute.

"'lo, Nova," he said, his original dialect slipping out, along with a small toothless grin.

[Jade_Tarem]

As Titus closes in, he can hear Nova singing softly along with the music; words he hadn't recognized until now.

"...nothing of gods, nothing of fate,
weighty affairs will just have to wait...

Nova turns as Titus approaches, and smiles gently as he speaks, though the expression doesn't reach her eyes. In fact, there's something just the slightest bit odd about her eyes that Titus can't quite place. "Hello, Titus. It's good that you're here." For that matter, the bouncy Nova from Emdar is different as well - this is the most serene the waifish girl has ever been.

[Astro_sol]

Titus smiled, but he didn't quite feel it. Not quite. "It's good that you're here too. I think." He frowned again. "Are you with the Marks? Did they make it to Nexus?" He crouched until he was around eye level with Nova. "Are you alright?"

What was wrong with her? It made no sense that she was here. And the fact that she wasn't bouncing and being energetic was doing absolutely nothing to settle his nerves. Still, he tried his best not to show it; no need to worry Nova.

[Jade_Tarem]

"I'm not with the Masks, and they won't make it to Nexus. In fact, they've begun to scatter across the East even now." Nova considers for a moment. "I'm fine, Titus. I'm not the one in danger, here: you are."

[Astro_sol]

"Wha...wait, what? What do you mean? Do you know about Nero, then? And what he did?" At the mention of danger, the pickpocket simply blinked a few times, not bothering to move as people made their way past the two. "And how might I be in more danger, Nova?"

[Jade_Tarem]

Nova's expression turns dull, and more than a bit sad. "I know about Nero, yes. He didn't make it, if you were wondering, and neither did the new girl. The Haltans caught up to both of them shortly after your departure and took them prisoner - possibly to give over to the fae for food or sport. There won't be much left of either of them after that." The not-smile returns. "Your family, however, is still alive and moving north and east with their captors, as your new friends suspect already, and their injuries are very minor. Your littlest one, Victoria, still holds out hope that you'll rescue them."

She takes a deep breath. "Beyond that, though, Titus, I can't give you a straight answer. Not anymore. Something has... changed. I don't care if you understand it now. I need you to understand it later." She reaches out, gripping Titus's hand with a surprising amount of strength. Looking directly into his eyes, Titus's world convulses as she recites:

Once there was a new-made Maiden,
One who was with burdens laden,
Waiting for the day when she would wait on others' time.

To a future undecided,
From the past and present guided,
Waiting in a hall of mirrors for the ending chime.

The future's not decided by a simple roll of dice.

Breaking cycles yet unbroken,
Speaking words as yet unspoken,
Tokens rain an oaken reign upon the woken stone.

Shields made of naught but lies,
Shatter upon dayless skies,
A dawn and dawning night shall rise and raze prisons of bone.

We all can author Fate but we must pay the author's price.

When words fade and the world returns to normal, Nova is nowhere to be seen. The only thing left is a lingering, faint half-memory of her whispering, "Titus... I'm so sorry." But Titus is certain that he'll remember the words to the odd poem, no matter how bizarre, for as long as he lives.

And only once she leaves does Titus realize something else...

Nova was older. All grown up, really - the little girl had been replaced by a young woman. She hadn't been much taller, and... something had prevented him from realizing it before, but he knew it now.

Ezri's words may take on a new significance. Something either altered reality itself, or was in Titus's head. The young rogue is sure of it.

[Astro_sol]

Titus' head wobbled. Nova...what? What happened? His head felt...off. Or did reality feel off?

Nova wasn't who he thought she was. Gods, if she'd been...well, lying was really the only word he could come up with. But she didn't seem like she meant him harm. But she knew about his family...

His family. Nero. New girl...did she mean Caelia? He gritted his teeth...but there was nothing he could do for them. His family came first. If he lost them, like he lost his mother...

He held a hand to his head and began to stumble back to the wagons. He needed to talk to Meander, or Ezri; both would be best. His head pounded, the words of the - well, it certainly sounded like a prophecy of some sort - echoing in his head. He had no idea what to make of it at the moment.

As he began to hurry back, his face cupped down into his palm, he still wondered about one thing.

What in Creation was going on?

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus makes it about three steps before running solidly into someone. The unfortunate traffic victim barely budges from the collision, reaching out to steady Titus. "Whoa, hey, are you alright?"

Looking up reveals a youngish-looking woman, probably somewhere around twenty, with fair skin and jet-black hair held partly in check with a headband. Despite her striking features, her choice of clothing draws even more looks - but rejects the ex-V'neef Ezri method of grabbing attention. There are several layers to the outfit, and each of them is a different riotously bright color. Her headband, belt, knee-high boots, and some sort of bandolier-like sash are all a deep, well-polished leather-brown. Her leggings manage to be deep blue and also garishly bright at the same time, and the shirt poking out from the v-neck of her tunic is an eye-hurting cyan. The tunic itself is done in bright green with a red trim to it, and is surmounted by an indigo, fine coat that the woman has left hanging open. Over it all is a hooded cloak of brilliant white - with gold, indigo, and silver striping adorning the hem and cuffs. The ensemble does absolutely nothing to ease Titus's headache, and how she isn't sweating bolts in it is no doubt one of the great mysteries of the age.

Nonetheless, the smile she turns on Titus is pleasant enough, especially when she notes that he seems unhurt. "You need to be more careful. Sometimes there are pickpockets in the market." She tilts her head a bit. "Hrm. I know just about everyone in this town, but I don't recognize you. Are you new here?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus nearly groaned aloud. Just what he needed: more mysteries. He returned the woman's smile with an apologetic frown.

"Sorry, I'm just, er, having one of those days," he gave as an apology. "I'm Titus. And new here, yeah, I'm with one of the merchants passing through." He tried not to grin at her pickpocket comment, but failed just a bit. "I'm not worried about pickpockets. They're easy to spot if you know where to find them," he continued, trying to pass the smile off as confidence, as opposed to irony. "And you are...?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"My name is Locke! I'm a traveling performer - stories, music, poetry, dancing... I do pretty much everything, though I'm best at the stories and music. In some places they call me Locke of Fables for it - you might have heard me playing a bit ago." And indeed, the music has stopped.

She looks up for a moment. It's still too early for sunset, but the sky has taken on that distinct late-afternoon look, where the nasty heat of the day is finally wearing off but it's still bright out. "Dinnertime. Since I clocked you pretty good there, could I get you something to eat? Boost the local economy, maybe? It sure could use it..."

[Astro_sol]

"Ah, that was you playing the music? It was nice." At the offer of dinner, Titus bit his lip. He was still confused from what had happened, and he suspected that it was Essence shenanigans (which was going to be his catch-all term for anything he couldn't explain). Ezri could maybe help him there...

*grumble*

Well, there was the fact that he was hungry. "Heh, alright," he said, his mouth curving back upwards at his rebellious stomach. He twirled his staff in a circle at his side, bringing it to his shoulder with a smack. "What do you have in mind?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"Ah! There's actually a small tavern at the south end of the docks with the most amazing fish - and some pretty good drinks, to boot! Does that sound alright?" Without waiting for approval, she starts leading him by the hand, still talking while moving quickly. "I've been here about two weeks now. I don't know what the Linowan have against this place - everyone's been pretty great to me. There's so much traffic for such a small town! Plus they have a huge number of little merchant boats going upriver - you can't see it from here, but you will when we get to the dockside." She slows her pace for just a moment. "Oh, sometimes I sorta lose track of my surroundings, if I get excited about an idea for a song or a story. Let me know if you see any gentlemen or ladies in fancy colorful armor, okay?"

Titus does not, strictly speaking, have to let her lead him anywhere. This post can be rewritten if he'd like to interrupt. Just let me know!

[Astro_sol]

"Well, that sounds pretty goo-oof," Titus managed as she pulled him along. She was quite the excitable one. He kept his face neutral as he pulled himself forward to keep pace with her, using observational skills gained from his years with the Marks to keep from running into her when she slowed down. At the mention of the colored armor, he spoke up. "Ah, friends of yours? I suppose they wouldn't be too hard to find. Er, what's with that armor, anyway? It's very...well, distinct."

[Jade_Tarem]

"It's some fancy jade plate. They, uh... might be dragon-blooded. Look, I'm not asking you to defend my honor, here, just let me know if you see them." Though she remains chipper throughout, Locke quickly changes the subject. "So! What brings you to Shadowholt?"

[Astro_sol]

"Dragon-blooded...?" he trailed off as she verbally sidestepped. He shrugged as he kept up the pace, keeping his features stoic. "Well, I'm employed under one of the travelling merchants, Meander. I'm...I've been looking for my family. Did you hear about Emdar?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Well, I heard the guards talking about it, so I figure you probably heard. That was my home. Well, long story short, my friends are dead or scattered, my family was taken by Linowan slavers, and I'm just trying to take back what I have left." He nodded. "I think that about covers it." He scratched the back of his head. "Gods, it sounds a lot worse when I say it out loud. Sorry, I'm not exactly the best story teller. I'm a lot better at surviving than talking about it."

It occurred to him that he was spilling all of this to a complete stranger. At least he was too confused from everything with Nova to feel too down; she'd told him that his sister was waiting for him. They were all waiting for him.

[Jade_Tarem]

Locke shrugs as she walks through the doors to a tavern, helpfully named "The Redwood Roast." She simply walks in and picks a table, indicating that Titus should take the other seat, and orders 'the usual.'

After Titus has made his order - something he'd not had much chance to do in Emdar - she leans forward with a semi-sly look. "Y'know, I've usually found that people who aren't good storytellers just aren't getting the right prompting. Can you fill me in a bit on the fall of Emdar? Most of what I get out here is speculation and rumor... with a healthy dose of Linowan propaganda mixed in."

[Astro_sol]

Titus ordered just some bread and water, defaulting to necessities as he'd never really bothered going into anything like a tavern before (or at least bothered going in with legal intentions).

"Well, I don't know where to start, really. It all happened so quickly. I..." He hesitated. He'd been forthcoming with Meander, but that had been different. Hadn't it? Locke had been nothing but nice, if a bit inquisitive. He bit his lip...but this stuff had been festering for weeks. He had to get it out.

"I used to be a thief. Ran with a group called the Jade Marks. People called me the best pickpocket in town, for what it was worth. I was - am - pretty good at fighting, too. All of that meant I was perfect for this big heist our leader, Nero, had planned for this mansion. He wanted some fancy sword. I just wanted the excitement. Everything was going great, until we heard some noises, looked out the window, and suddenly everything was either on fire, dying, or both. Linowans, Haltans, everyone was pouring in from all sides. It was a massacre. We got separated, I tried to make it out with a friend, but we had to split up, too. My family was just outside the city, and I had to get to them as soon as I could, but I wanted to save everyone I could...our leader, by the way, Nero, betrayed us. He was in league with a Dragonblood, one Peleps Kaizoku, and she had something to do with...everything. I confronted him, but he was dying, and he still wanted to save who he could, so I helped him...but we were too late. Most of the safe houses we had set up through the city for emergencies...they were completely overrun."

He glanced up, realizing he had been staring at the table. "I lost a lot of friends that day. My family got taken by Linowan slavers before I could reach them, and I've spent the last few weeks tailing them, trying to take back what I can. They're all I've got." He blinked a few times; he'd gotten a bit angry there at the end. "Sorry about that, the memories are still fresh. Anything else you want to know?"

Sorry about the wait! She can interrupt anytime, of course.

[Jade_Tarem]

Locke blinks. "All of this was over a fancy sword? Just how fancy are we talking, here?"

[Astro_sol]

"Fancy enough. It was an Orichalcum daiklave. Something for an Exalt, though, I think I remember Nero saying none of us could really wield it."

[Jade_Tarem]

"I see." Locke leans back. "Well, it's pretty impressive that you survived all of that. In fact, if you head to Nexus after you're done rescuing your family, you might be able to find me there - I typically hang out at the Wrong Note Inn... just ask the guards at the north gate where it is." She grins mischievously. "I'm tracking down an artifact myself, but it's a bit bigger than a sword... in more ways than one, and I need all the help I can get. It's not like you're going to be with the crew that brought you here forever, right? What do you say?"

After agonizing over the ramifications of this meeting for a bit, Locke's spiel was shorter than I expected. The rest of the delay was making sure I had the rules right.

Locke's been building up her case by lending a sympathetic ear to Titus for the last few minutes, effectively taking a Social Aim action for three long ticks. Now she's making her offer, taking advantage of her raw Charisma, higher effective appearance, and Presence. The effect that she's going for is Building an Intimacy (Positive Friendship: Locke).

The roll is: [roll0]

Edit: That will hit, unless Titus can come up with a specialty to deflect it. If he cannot, then he will either have to spend a point of Willpower to resist, or... he can always just accept it. If he does not resist, he will gain 1/4 of a positive intimacy toward Locke (she has to do this four times to actually create a fully operational intimacy, because 4 is Titus's Conviction score). It is, of course, up to you as to whether or not resisting it is worth it.

Edit2: I forgot to factor in the 3 rounds spent aiming. Assuming average rolls, she now has 7-8 successes.

[Astro_sol]

Titus paused in his thoughts. This Locke girl seemed nice enough. He realized just how much he'd ranted out. The stresses of finding his family were getting to him.

"Well, you must understand, I don't know how long this will take me. Or if I'll be heading to Nexus at all after this is all said and done." He'd honestly never given what he'd do after saving his family much thought. All he cared about was getting them away from the Linowans. He'd originally planned on heading to Nexus, but with Nova's words of how the Marks had been spread out echoing in his mind, he wasn't too sure anymore. And this sounded interesting...as well, Locke didn't seem that bad at all. Quite nice, really, even if her armor hurt his eyes if he looked at it for too long. "But if I am...you're right. I wasn't really planning on being a merchant's bodyguard for the rest of my life." He hadn't exactly planned past that, either. "What the heck," he shrugged with a small smile, "alright. After I get something set up for them, I'll come find you." He stuck out a hand for a shake, repeating her words in his head until he at least had "Nexus", "Wrong Note Inn" and "ask at the North Gate" and "Locke" tucked away securely.

I don't think resisting is worth the expenditure at all, at least in this case. Locke makes a convincing argument, and she's (perhaps unknowingly, perhaps not) caught Titus at a good moment, since he never really gave the future much thought, and this gives him something to work towards.

Also I believe she'd eventually get him to do it anyway.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Awesome!" Locke shakes Titus's hand vigorously, and then spots something over his shoulder. "Aaaaand now it's time for me to go. Thanksitwasnicetomeetyoubye." A brief glance behind shows a pair of armored figures dimly silhouetted in the doorway, backlit by the sunset - one in sky-blue heavy plate, and another in a massive white set of full plate armor - the giant man was more siege weapon than warrior. A quick look back at Locke proves useless - she's already gone.

The one in the blue removes his helmet and strides further into the room. From this new position, more detail is visible. The armor is highly ornate at the joints, creases, and buckles, though the actual plates themselves are simple and plain. The helmet is completely face-concealing, with only a small visor to see through. The man himself is fair skinned with white-blonde hair. "Good afternoon," he says in Realm-accented Forest-tongue, "We'd like to speak to anyone who made it into town in the last twenty-four hours."

Total, hostile silence greets him. "Oh come now, you're not in trouble. We just want to talk."

[Astro_sol]

Titus frowned. Perfect. Just what I needed today. And things were going so well. No, wait, they were confusing. This entire day is just weird.

The bright armor told him...Dragonblooded? He couldn't afford to talk to these guys. Could he just play a mute? Or should he try to blend in with the crowd?

It was worth a shot. He slouched his head forward, drooping his arms, but keeping an ear out, his body inclined to listen to the men. It would hopefully keep him from seeming too interesting; perhaps they would say what they had to say, and hopefully move on. But he sounded just like someone they'd be looking for. Were they looking for people from Emdar?

Hiding hiding hiding, using that 1 Stealth.

Dexterity (5) + Stealth (1), stunt die (3) for good measure, [rollv]9d10[rollv]

EDIT: How the...

[Jade_Tarem]

The man in blue waits a few more seconds. "Well, on to the next one?"

"Let's get something to eat, first. We've been at this all day."

Which is exactly what the pair of them do. They get a small table near Titus, the chair under the big man creaking as he sits down. The white-armored man's helmet comes off to reveal a face no less hard than the helm that covered it - dark skinned, bald, and subject to many fights that he had apparently won with endurance rather than grace, he wouldn't be winning any beauty contests anytime soon. But while his voice is slow and measured, his speech shows insight that belies him being a simple thug - these men are both much more dangerous than someone like Laelius could ever hope to be.

Their conversation is quiet, but years of waiting to hear one distracted voice in a crowd allow Titus to hear it anyway. "This isn't working, Sky. She's either figured out how to get around the time delay, or else no one has arrived recently."

"It has to be the first one." 'Sky' answers as the pair receive their drinks. Based on what Ezri had said during the last three weeks, Dragon-Blooded had their regular name, and most had some kind of title as well. Their friends and confidants might know them by any part of either the name or the title, which was why formal introductions were so important. "I read Peleps Kaizoku's attack plan. The sacking of a city-state like Emdar should have scattered refugees in every direction. Some of them have to have passed through here by now."

"Linowan was one of the attacking groups. Why would they flee toward their enemies?"

"Because not all of those fleeing Emdar are actually Emdarian. It was a regional trade hub... sort of. My point is that enough merchants should have gone north... I dunno, Dunes, am I missing something?"

'Dunes' leans back, his chair groaning with effort. "The Haltans? You never saw their attack plan. If they were all north of the city, that would have prompted the vast majority of the refugees to flee south, even if that was the original point of the Linowan attack."

"Mrm. That puts us in a bind, though. Locke is dangerous, and these people have no idea."

"Is she?" The big man queries as their food arrives.

"Eh?"

"Locke. Yes, I know, spooky Anathema and all that, but she doesn't seem to be out to ruin the Realm. She isn't fomenting rebellion, raiding tributaries, and we can't even prove that she's ever met the Bull of the North, let alone that she's working for him."

Sky spears something green and crunchy on his plate. "Irrelevant - mostly. She's been in this town for two weeks and everyone already loves her. Why? Solar tricks. She hasn't done anything to earn it - it's just a subversion of free will."

"Horsecrap. Fire aspects - and others - do that all the time. It's the only reason Cathak Jania hasn't had her throat cut."

"Granted, but one of the Blasphemers will default to their true nature eventually. Sooner or later she'll come to blows with the Immaculates and then we'll have a real problem."

"There are worse problems."

Both pause and go silent for a moment. "That's a bit of a dangerous thing to say, Dunes. There are places where you'd be killed for it."

The bigger man smiles. "Are you going to turn me in?"

"I? No. You've had my back too many times for that. Just be careful."

"I always am."

"Now, about this Locke girl. As I was saying, sooner or later she's going to confront the Immaculate monks. At that point they'll capture her, and then her world will become a private hell. No, Dunes, it's our job to kill her quickly for the Realm's sake... and hers."

"I suppose you're right." Neither of them had bought a large meal. They finish quickly, pay, and leave without another word.

[Astro_sol]

Titus sat silently as the Dragonblooded spoke. He continued to sit like that for about a solid minute after they left, too.

Locke was an Anathema? An Essence-user? She'd been so nice...could that have been magic, making him think that way? But the Dragonblooded said that even they had users that did similar acts, so it wasn't as if they had the moral high-ground.

Plus, in his mind, the Dragonblooded were somehow responsible for this mess. Peleps Kaizoku couldn't have been the only one in on it, even if she was really all he had to go off of. And when he thought about it...Locke hadn't gotten any sort of swear out of him. She hadn't been trying to use him, it seemed like. She seemed like she cared. She listened to him.

The Immaculates, he only knew bits and pieces about. He needed to start learning more about this stuff. All he knew in regards to their stance against Anathema was that they were demons who needed to die, and he felt like even that was a faulty interpretation of what they actually did. But what Locke didn't seem like any demon...

Dammit, if that was magic, then he couldn't see anything wrong with Locke, at least. But he still wanted to know more about her. And that didn't mean he wouldn't bring it up if he met her again, and he had the distinct feeling that he would.

With that in mind, and dead set on not betraying his newest friend, he got up, paying for his small meal, intent on getting back to Meander and talking to either him or Ezri, especially the latter. Maybe one of them would know more about Locke, or at least the magic she used.

Locke didn't pay for hers, did she? If not, Titus'll cover it.

[Jade_Tarem]

It seems the day has exhausted its supply of unexpected turns, because Titus finds Ezri and Meander exactly where they said they would be - in an inn not far from the main market square. By now, it is genuinely dark, the hot and humid air still lingering from the day even as armor-piercing mosquitoes take to the sky.

Inside, in the common area, a small crowd has gathered around Ezri for more than the obvious reasons. She appears to be reaching the end of a highly entertaining tale. "...so after the fire was put out and the children had stopped crying, everyone sober enough to stand was gathered into what was left of the common room. There, Cathak Lysoto had everyone sit at the scorched table, and spent a good thirty minutes explaining how my murderer had to have been the Wysterium Imperial Governor - and that was when I got back from the powder room." A round of laughter bursts out from the crowd. "And that's the story of how I Exalted."

More laughter and applause. The crowd drifts apart as it dies away, and Ezri spies Titus. "Ah! How did your day go?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus, his face calm, as if he hadn't just had the strangest day ever, simply whistled as he found a wall to lean against.

"Oh, nothing much," he said, almost too casually. "Just found out that my young friend Nova - one of my old mates in the Jade Marks - wasn't so young. And she told me...something. I'm usually none too good with poems and such, but I can't really forget it." He told it to her in its entirety, keeping his voice low. "And I also, uh, met an, uh," he whispered, "Anathema." He raised his voice back up to normal. "Or at least that's what the Dragonbloods were calling her. Her name was Locke. I thought she was nice, but those Dragonguys would probably think she used that Essence stuff on my head. All she did was listen to my problems, though. Anyways, she's off looking for something and offered me a possible job when this all blows over. And Nova...said my family was still okay. I can make it."

[Jade_Tarem]

Ezri listens patiently, although she plants her face into her open palm when Titus states that all Locke did was listen to his problems. "Right. We... can't discuss this here, though I'm glad you knew to keep your voice down. Upstairs, maybe?"

Assuming Titus has no objections, she takes a short path through the crowd, exchanging well-wishes with those who liked her story, trading verbal barbs with the bartender, and finally vanishing up the stairs.

A few twists and turns takes the pair to her room, and a moment later Meander appears, seemingly from nowhere. The door is shut, but neither Ezri nor Meander says anything as the latter pulls out a small strip of paper and tosses it into the air -

- where it hangs, unmoving. A moment later it catches fire and begins slooooowly burning - Titus has seen shorter-lived candles. Even the flames flicker in slow motion. After a moment more, Meander states "We're clear." At the young rogue's inquisitive look, he grins. "That's a hint, now, for your assignment."

Ezri wastes no time starting in after that. "Alright. Let's start with what we might know something about. Meander, Titus says he met Locke. Why is she here? You told me she was among the Haslanti."

"I told you that she said she was going North to talk to the Haslanti. She could have changed her mind for any number of reasons."

Ezri raises an eyebrow. "And she didn't tell us because...?"

"Because she doesn't know where we are." Meander replies evenly.

The dragonborn shakes her head to clear it. "Fine. Something changed her travel plans. Any idea what?"

"Fate. Has to be. Something..." He looks at Titus, and the young rogue can see the wheels turning. "Something big is coming. Soon. I can hear the strains of Essence in discord. Multiple fates are about to clash and only one will survive to become reality, and that fate will become central to all reality after it." He ponders a second longer. "The strain on the fabric of the current reality is too much, and Essence is being drawn to the flashpoint - like gravity, but tugging on probability instead of mass. In layman's terms, random chance is being skewed to favor a certain set of events, even though no particular Essence user is responsible. I'll wager we see several important Exaltations in the next few weeks, assuming they haven't begun already."

"Okay, so Locke isn't just screwing with us, something was likely to mess up her trip north."

"Right, so now we have Dragonblooded pursuing her more closely than she'd like, so she has to turn south again, into the depths of the Scavenger Lands. Odds are good that these Terrestrials only made it this far through an incredible stroke of luck."

Ezri leans back, though still remains upright on the bed. "Alright. Fate is wacky right now. Let's move to the prophecy. You're going to have to help us out with this one, Titus. You said that your friend Nova wasn't so young after all. Was this a discovery that she'd been hiding her true age all along, or has she actually aged a few years in the past three weeks?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus blinked as he took everything in. The hint...he didn't know what to make of it. But he stored "slowly burning paper stuck in the air" into the back of his mind for future thought. As for now, he simply tried to follow Meander and Ezri's conversation.

He realized he didn't know a thing about Locke. She'd been less than forthcoming, and what he was hearing sounded important, but vague, at least to him. All he knew was that she was involved with "wacky Fate", which was affecting all of them.

He blinked, bringing himself out of his thoughts to answer Ezri's question. "That second one. She was just a kid back in Emdar, but now she's all grown up. I didn't realize it until she left, though."

[Jade_Tarem]

The pair of entrepreneurs exchange a look. "Huh." Meander says, helpfully. "Yeah, I've got nothing."

"That's new."

"First time for everything, my dear!" Meander ponders a bit longer, then shrugs. "Titus, I will explain Locke once we are on the road again. Both she and the Anathema in general are, as topics, too dangerous to discuss here. The poem... likewise. Is there anything else you'd like to know about?"

Travel begins anew after Titus's response.

[Astro_sol]

Titus shook his head. "No, sir. That about covers the ever-growing pile of mysteries." Except even with the weirdly burning paper, he still had no idea what Meander was.

Why couldn't things just be simple again? He'd pick pockets, his family would farm, and everyone would have been fine, albeit bored.

[Jade_Tarem]

NOW

Hadassi looked up as someone in the back of the room made an odd noise. "Wait, that didn't resolve anything. Why was Nova older? What was Locke up to? What happened to that Wyld Hunt?"

The storyteller gazed at the young man evenly. "Nothing was resolved that day. The story of the Radiant Night King is a long one, and parts of it still don't make sense, at least not to those of us bound to Creation. Indeed, Titus did not find the answers to any of those three questions before he Exalted and the Upheaval began." He grinned. "Come see me another night, perhaps you'll find out then. I'm not going to spoil it for the little ones in the audience who haven't heard it before."

"Anyway, Meander's little group sold some goods, resupplied, and departed Shadowholt quickly. The mysterious merchant and his dragonblooded companion had found out that Peleps Kaizoku's group had elected to travel northeast along the Silver River, and they hurried to follow. But even rapid travel takes time, and it was there, on a stretch of highway in the middle of nowhere between Shadowholt and Lake Sanazala, that Titus first learned of the Anathema..."

THEN

"So... I think we're clear enough now, Titus. What did you want to know about the Anathema?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus shrugged. "Well, I guess the only ones I really know about are the Dragonbloods, and Locke never really struck me as one. What different kinds are there? How many of them are there? Ezri said there were several thousand Dragonbloods...and I guess I want to know what Locke is. Did she do something to my head?" She still seemed friendly enough to him. He couldn't get over that. "I mean, like I said before, she just seemed nice, but after what the Dragonbloods were talking about...I dunno. I'm just curious as to what all they can do. I know that the Immaculates think they're demons, or something, but that just doesn't seem right."

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus's traveling companions exchange one of their trademark looks. "It's... kind of a big topic-" Ezri starts.

"Big doesn't begin to describe it. I can say, without hyperbole, that one can study the Anathema - also known as the Exalted - for a hundred mortal lifetimes and still not know all there is to know about them. It's an ever-changing field, you see."

"But we can give you an overview." Ezri settles into the back of the wagon. "Let's start with the recent bits. The Immaculate Order is effectively the state religion of the Scarlet Empire. The Realm's Immaculate Dogma teaches that the Anathema are mortals who are possessed by evil spirits, gifted with tremendous and dark power by demons from beyond the world. Their doctrine holds that the Anathema once ruled Creation, keeping it in their terrible thrall with their powers. That it was a world crushed by their invincible armies, sinister magics, and cults of blasphemy and wickedness. They say that the armies of the Dragon Blooded rose up and overthrew these dark masters, banishing them. But Anathema are never truly gone - the possessing spirit will find another body to infest, and must be put down for the good of all. That is the purpose of the Wyld Hunts, so named because the Anathema frequently flee all the way to the Wyld to avoid the wrath of the righteous Ten Thousand."

"It's a robust doctrine." Meander adds. "Every fact in it is true except one - that the Anathema are inherently evil. Everything else is a twisted interpretation of events that more or less happened, all built upon that one lie."

"In reality, the Anathema are better known as the Celestial Exalted. There's a long, long history behind what happened in the past and why they were overthrown, but the short version is that these Exalted are each infused with a fraction of the power of one of the Incarnae - the extremely powerful gods known to you, perhaps, as the Five Maidens, Luna, and Sol - or the Unconquered Sun. Each Exaltation is indeed an individual spirit that binds with a mortal at a given moment - so unlike the Dragon blooded, Celestial Exalted are two souls inhabiting the same body, fused together into one super-being."

Meander nods while Ezri takes a drink from her canteen. "As you surmise, there are several kinds. Those bonded with a spirit formed from the power of one of the Maidens is known as a Sidereal. They understand and manipulate Fate on a level unknown to virtually all of creation and Heaven. Their past is... complicated. And secret. They rule Creation even now from the shadows, as manipulators and deck-stackers. Just knowing they exist puts you into a very exclusive group, as even Anathema and longtime Immaculate Monks are typically kept ignorant of their existence."

Ezri nods. "The next group are those who host a portion of Luna's divine Essence. They are known as Lunars, and their powers are fantastic and extremely versatile. They can shift their forms into various animals, even into other people, and possess a variety of ways to enhance their own prodigious natural talents. Each of them takes on the aspect of an animal, and makes that form part of their very being." She gives a momentary shiver. "These are the type of Anathema most often pursued by the Wyld Hunt - and the type that have killed more Dragon Blooded than any other."

"The last, and most powerful by far, are the Solars. The Solars are infused with the Essence of the Unconquered Sun. They are peerless innovators, masters, generals, creators, and rulers. They may lack the subtle, manipulative mastery of the Sidereals, or the wildly diverse array of talents that the Lunars boast, but they have no equals when it comes to their chosen forms of expression, whether it be combat, politics, invention, or even art." Meander frowns. "Except... for another group. You may have heard of the Deathknights? These appear to be twisted versions of the Solars in question. They had no analogue in ages past, so very little is known about them. The Realm doesn't care - these Deathknights are Anathema like any other to them - but there's an important difference."

Ezri finishes her drink. "It gets better. Each of those kinds of Exalted has five castes - except for the Lunars who used to have five..." she looks at Meander for confirmation and gets a nod, "and now have three. Each caste is a... call it a general indicator of what sorts of things the Exalt will be naturally good at. Like the Dragon-Blooded aspects we talked about before, really - No Moon Caste Lunars, for instance, are almost always good at mental pursuits. Locke is a Zenith Caste Solar, potentially one of the most powerful - they served as priests and champions of the Unconquered Sun, ages ago, and tend to excel at survival and performance arts while being bastions of physical and mental durability." She smiles as she gives Titus time to absorb that. "But just as with the Dragon Blooded Aspects, caste isn't everything. There are Zenith Caste Solars who are mighty warriors, and others that wouldn't know what to do with a sword if you gave them one. Not-" she clarifies, "that they have to remain ignorant forever. One thing that marks all of the Celestial Exalted is their absurdly long lifespans and the completely unfair speed at which they master new skills and Charms."

"No doubt you're wondering where this dizzying array of types and castes has been all of your life." Meander offers his own humorless grin from the front of the wagon. "That brings us to numbers. You see, there are only seven hundred Celestial Exalted in total - and with them spread out more or less randomly across all of Creation, you can see why spotting one might be difficult, especially since there's no guarantee that all of them will be alive at the same time. When an Exalted dies, the Exaltation finds a new host... but not necessarily right away. Between that and their low starting numbers, most people can go their entire lives without ever seeing one."

"As for Locke messing with your head, that's... a gray area. Let me ask you a question." Ezri leans forward abruptly. "Yesterday, when I put on my 'special' armor to distract the guards, did you find me attractive? Sexy, even? Be honest, now."

[Astro_sol]

Titus kept a respectful silence as his companions enlightened him.

He understood the world was big, much bigger than he'd ever really considered after living his entire life in just one city. Even now, travelling with Meander and Ezri, he was only just beginning to see just how big the world was. And even then, 700 Celestial Exalts? And he'd met one? It threw him for a loop. He considered himself nothing but a thief who happened to throw a good punch.

He didn't much care for the Immaculate philosophy. It hadn't really affected him back in Emdar, and it didn't seem to make a difference to him now. Even those Dragonblooded had said that their own members pulled the same magic as the Anathema. And he'd seen some pretty nasty people, ordinary people, in his time. Perhaps the Anathema were like that, only with more magic.

He still had many questions, but speaking of Anathema magic...he thought about Ezri's point. Had she seemed sexy? Well, she certainly wasn't unattractive ordinarily.

"Do you mean more so than usually?" he asked, not really thinking about what he was saying. "I definitely, er, noticed you, yes. I thought that was just armor and some makeup, though."

[Jade_Tarem]

Ezri leans forward, challenging grin on her face. "It was just armor and makeup, and that's kind of my point. I didn't do anything to you - you simply found me attractive based on what I'd done to myself. You didn't have a choice in your perceptions, only in how you reacted to them, but the perceptions shape the reaction. What Locke does... is like that, but as with all Solars, it's taken up an order of magnitude or two. She has Charms that make her natural Charisma pack a bigger punch. She's a very pretty and personable girl as it is, and those Charms make her seem more so, and spread her reputation for being reasonable and likeable across an area much faster than an image might normally take hold in an area. It's why everyone in Shadowholt acts like she's done them a personal favor, even though most of them have barely met her." The Terrestrial shrugs. "Which isn't to say she can't mess with people's heads. Locke's got a number of tricks, many of them designed with manipulating people and groups in mind. Talk to her for long enough, and she can probably convince you to do anything at all that isn't directly contrary to your very nature - because some Solars can just do that." She becomes more serious. "It's entirely possible that she simply walked into town and just decided to be popular - a surge of Essence later, bam, now she's buddies with everyone. Scary stuff, but then, it's a woman wielding the unfiltered Essence of the Unconquered Sun. Even if there's no explosion, the effect is going to be striking."

[Astro_sol]

Titus bit his lip. Some of what Ezri was saying was striking a bit close to home. "Well...she did kind of convince me to at least consider joining her crew after I get all this business with my family taken care of." He'd been thinking about this. "I mean, it's not like I'm dead set on helping her look for her artifact, or whatever, but..."

Ezri's words made sense. And while he still felt like his head had been jumbled up a bit, he still couldn't help feeling like Locke wasn't trying to hurt him in any way. And there was the bit that Ezri said about doing stuff 'that isn't directly contrary to your very nature'...and the fact that Essence seemed to 'amplify' things. So if everyone was convinced that Locke was a nice person, even if she hadn't met them, didn't that kind of mean she was a nice person? At least, that's how Ezri seemed to put it. His mind just kept trying to accept that idea.

But what if someone who wasn't Locke tried the same thing? He shuddered.

"I have a feeling I would give it a shot anyway, even if she weren't a Zenith, or whatever she is. I think if she did anything to me, she wasn't trying to hurt me. But you're right. It is scary stuff. Is there any way to counter it, besides avoiding Solars and Terrestrials and whatever? There's got to be something I can do, or other regular people. Does it help if you know about the effect, or Charms?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"Sometimes." Meander shrugs. "It depends on the Charm. More importantly, no, there doesn't 'have to' be something that regular people can do to counter it. Creation wasn't designed with fairness or balance in mind - only reality." He catches Ezri's confused look and waves that statement away. "Anyway, there is one built in defense mechanism against that sort of manipulation - call it Convictions, or Willpower, or both... but people with their own strong personality will be more difficult for even an Exalt to influence in a permanent fashion - just as with mortals. Mind you, if such a person spends enough time conversing with our good girl Locke, she can convince them anyway, but sometimes the resistance is enough. It's like the old joke about the two men running away from the bear - you don't have to be impossible to influence, just more difficult than the next guy."

"The other tricky aspect to this is that only the most powerful - and difficult to resist - Charms are going to come with flashing blatant alarm bells going 'SUBMIT AND KNEEL BEFORE ME, WORM!' The other benefit of what Locke and those like her can do is that it's subtle. Like I said, everyone in Shadowholt likes her and odds are that not one of them has ever questioned why." Ezri grins. "But don't panic just yet. Like I said, the subtle stuff has limits, and it helps if you're trying to convince someone of something they might have done anyway. Like you said, there was a chance you would have accepted Locke's offer regardless, but Locke, I think, made it much more certain. And she couldn't convince you to drop your quest for your family because you would never do something to hurt them."

"Which is well and good, but mortals always have an inflated sense of what they would never do." The merchant turns the wagon right at a fork in the road and adjusts his glasses. "Nothing is easier than hypothetical virtue, after all. Many would say 'I would never kill someone,' but most would if pushed far enough. That's why Solars frequently diversify - and they are masters at getting what they want. An experienced Solar can, in seconds, determine the right combination of facts, lies, and circumstances to reduce the list of what a given person would never do down to one or two items."

"So there you have it. It really is as dangerous as it sounds, but falls a bit short of direct mind control - most of the time." The Terrestrial winks. "As for Locke herself, I'd say go ahead and help her if you want, although I find it amusing that she's trying to recruit you of all people. Just remember that just because she's pretty and charming doesn't mean she's nice. Locke is a very pragmatic individual, and a bit on the flaky side. She rarely stays in one place long enough to make meaningful friendships and usually travels alone, so I can't really tell you how loyal she is to her companions."

"And one other thing - remember what we said about Solars mastering things quickly. Don't assume that Locke is helpless in combat just because she's a master manipulator. Like I said, the world wasn't built for fairness and it only takes a small handful of Solar Charms to be able to devastate a battalion of trained soldiers. "

[Astro_sol]

Titus shook his head, mesmerized by it all. The perfection of the Solars, and the fact that he could do almost nothing if one decided to ruin his day. Or, from what it sounded like, it'd be just as bad if the Solar decided to ruin someone else's day within a few miles of him. There were only 700 of the Celestials, and he'd met one.

He wanted to join her just for that. But Ezri's words...the mention of a possible flaky behavior put him on hold. That was unacceptable. One never abandoned their friends. He hadn't abandoned his, and only escaped when it was the last thing he could do.

He shook his head. Dark thoughts for what amounted to hearsay. He'd judge her when he met her. He smirked. If he met her. Had to remember the if.

"Okay," he said. "Right, so, be careful around Locke, and watch for lots of people liking someone new to town. Watch out for one man taking on a battalion. Got it." He turned to Ezri. "I wasn't prepared with Locke, but I have to thank you for your warning. I think I can hold my own next time I get questioned by someone. Just gotta remember not to stay too long, I guess." He scratched his head. "I...think that means I need to be careful with you," he said with a flat expression. "I mean, how many Charms like that do you know? I know you're Wood Caste, or something, but the Dragonblooded guys in the fancy armor said something about there being Terrestrial Charms with similar effects."

He shrugged. "Whatever the answer...anything else I need to know about Solars? Or any of the others? It honestly sounds like it would have been in my best interest if my life had gone on without any Exalts in it." He laughed, a short series of short, guttural sounds. He was only partially joking. "They tip the scales too much. It's like all my work in fighting is all for naught in the face of something like that. Reality can eat it, though. If it comes down to it, I'll take on anything if it means saving my family." He couldn't deal with losing someone again. Not after his mother.

[Jade_Tarem]

Meander and Ezri both grin. In unison. It's kind of creepy, actually. "Perfect. I'm glad you're getting the hang of it. Yes - don't think for a moment than an Exalt paying attention to you doesn't have an ulterior motive. Now, let's review that Linowan dialect training again..."

"Three more weeks passed, and the group continued to travel, following the paths upstream until at last they were traveling alongside the mighty Silver River. They followed it until at last they stared across the river at...

"...Galdtern. This is getting toward the very Eastern edge of Linowan territory." Meander squints at the distant town. "I'm glad we didn't have to go to Rubylak. It would have been nigh-impossible getting your family out of the capitol."

"Galdtern is still going to be a tough nut to crack, though." Ezri scratches her head. "This pins down Kaizoku's pet boat clan as the Mouth of Many, although a few other clans operate out of here as well. They see a lot of fighting with the Haltans here, and lots of little warrior bands pass through on their way up to Halta or back down from a raid." The dragonblooded takes a deep breath. "I'm going to need my makeup again. I'd have been imprisoned in Shadowholt for looking like a Haltan - here they're likely to attack on sight."

Meander nods, and starts the wagon moving up toward the docks at this end of the river - the group would be taking Meander's wagon over on one of the many huge rafts that sprawled across the mouth of Lake Sanazala. "Get yourself situated, Ezri. Titus, we're going to be taking advantage of the local hospitality customs to get settled in. Your family will likely be here, and just getting into the swing of things as slaves to Matriarch Arissa - they wouldn't give the slaves over to non-royalty. Knowing that is only the first part of freeing them, however..." The merchant pauses. "Alright, we'll need to get organized right away once we have lodging. That means finding out how we might stage a rescue, when we want to do it, and how we get away afterward when our transportation is slightly slower than a raiding party's canoes."

"And most importantly - what is Kaizoku up to out here, anyway? As Ambassador, she should be in Rubylak."

"Alright, Titus. Time to test that Linowan dialect. Up there is the man we're getting the boat from. See if you can convince him of our story and get him to let us rent the boat - we're traders passing northward from Emdar, and this is the last stop on our route before we head west."

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/jadetarem/Exalted/LinnowanDock.jpg

The docks are more ornate than usual for a Linowan structure, showing a bit of Realm influence in the construction. At the docks stands a Linowan man, middle aged, with the beginnings of a gut beginning to form and no mask. He seems cheerful enough, though, and Titus can see a single boat still moored at the dock that's big enough to haul Meander's wagon.

[Astro_sol]

Titus nodded at Meander's command, although he wondered why they didn't just have Ezri walk up and do her "make-up and flirt" routine. It had always been effective before, but it did seem a bit heavy handed. He broke ahead of the wagon and took a moment to appreciate the design of the Linowan dock. Emdar didn't have anything like the weird roof that it boasted, with its splayed out edges.

However, the exotic looks of the dock did nothing to ease the fears of his family's safety. Meander had seemed assured with himself at the seeming fact that they were now slaves of royalty, which could mean that they were being treated well, but the fact of the matter was that they were still slaves, and could very possibly think he was dead. He hated to think of what that would do to his brothers and sister, let alone his father.

He let none of those thoughts play out on his face as he approached the older-looking boat master. He waved out a hand in greeting, prepping himself for the lies he was about to tell. "Hello, sir," he said, opting for one of the more casual Linowan greetings. No need to be weirdly formal, but he avoided being too friendly. Meander had been sure to teach him how to interact with merchants of any sort. "You're the master of this boat, I take it? My companions and I need a boat to get across the lake." He gave a short run until he stood directly across from the man. He stuck out a hand for a shake. "We're bound for the West, but we still need some Linowan spices and other goods, and my employer thought your boat looked perfect for transport." He gave an exaggerated glance out at the docks. "Well, it is the only one still here capable of carrying the wagon, but he wants to be bound for Cherak as soon as possible, and he mentioned a few other places along the coast that are spice-crazy. He's insistent on quality, though, and he trusted the look of your ship. It looks well taken care of." He was stretching his vocabulary at the end, there, but he thought he said everything pretty smoothly. He kept a small grin going, which was hard, considering his default expression was a slight frown. And he was only partially lying about the ship; the truth was that all ships looked the same to his untrained eye, but a little ego-buttering wouldn't hurt, as long as he didn't go too overboard.

[Jade_Tarem]

The dock master smiles. "That she is. 40 feet, hand-carved, all Redwood. Not the sleekest, but your wagon will be fine." He scratches his head. "What are your plans for Calibration, exactly? It starts tomorrow, you know - you don't want to be traveling when it hits."

A short post, but at least this way I won't lose momentum.

[Astro_sol]

Titus didn't let his eyes widen. He'd almost lost track of the time, what with studiously learning the intricacies of the Linowan dialect. Back in Embdar, it was always a time when Nero would pull all the Marks from their respective duties, for fear of roaming spirits. Nothing truly eventful ever happened, though, from what he remembered. "You can tell that to my employer. I doubt even an erupting volcano would stop him. I'm just the guard, mind you, but he assures me that we have countermeasures for any rogue spirits or the like, but if we stop for too long, he won't make it in time to the Western cities before the more fragile merchandise spoils." He shrugged. "I try not to look too far into it. We've been fine so far against bandit parties, at least," with Ezri popping into his mind, so his casual reaction wasn't really fake. "We'll of course be extra careful, of course."

Standard bs answer. Sorry for wait, I seem to have come down with a sinus infection. I'm post-worthy now.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Rogue spirits?" The man chuckles as he begins preparing the boat. "Up here, kid, we get rogue weather. Blizzards, storms, locusts... back in '61 we had a storm made out of locusts, with each of the little bugs containing a miniature blizzard - swat one and poof! You're standing in three feet of snow. People mistook it for a Wyld surge at first, but it blew over in two nights and no one turned into a faerie critter, so we got lucky with just property damage." He scratches idly, shouting for a very young boy named Hadassi to quit hiding among the crates and barrels and to bring him some more rope. "Yeah, your employer is taking a gamble, here. Most of us stay indoors during Calibration - shoot, even the Haltan spies take a holiday, but if there's a patch of clear weather, you can bet everyone will come pouring out to buy whatever they couldn't stock up on ahead of time. They might even trade spices away at a discount in exchange for necessities... there could be a solid profit there, I suppose." By now, he's finished his check of the boat and has dropped the loading ramp. "I guess we'll find out, huh? What did you say your name was, again?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus only smiled at the worries of the shipmaster. He seemed kindly enough. The younger boy didn't have the heart (or the stupidity) to tell him that he was pretty sure Meander was a bit more than human, and Ezri had Terrestrial powers. They'd probably be fine, come fair weather or harsh storms. He stuck out a hand to the man. "Titus, son of Janus, sir. And yours?"

[Jade_Tarem]

"Dassus of the Many," the man shakes Titus's offered hand. "And as a responsible clan family, what's our duty, Hadassi?" He calls out to the boy. With the boy now visible, the child clearly takes after Dassus, and is most likely his son. The boy responds quickly and evenly, with the tone of a child who knows he's being quizzed and reciting an answer he learned by rote. "Offer the three sacred days of hospitality?"

"That's right. I thought you looked a little sleepy the last time we went over that. Glad to see that it stuck." He turns back to Titus as Meander brings the cart up - apparently the merchant interpreted the handshake as a sign that the deal was sealed. "There you have it Titus, an offer for three days of food and lodging for your group, one of our oldest traditions. Typically it would be my wife's place to make it, but she just got back from a raid, and she's sleeping off all that rowing back at home."*

"That sounds fan-"

NOW

An older woman in the crowd rolled her eyes. "The Radiant Night King did not sleep in your house. You always try to slip that in."

"Eheh. Busted. Alright..."

THEN

Titus could only let his smile fade just a bit as he shook his head at the offer. "I appreciate that, sir, but we're on a tight enough schedule as is." Memories of his family had flooded back the moment he saw the two interact. They got along so well; Janus had demanded respect from his household, and that they all give each other the same respect.

"...Very true! Though it's kind of you to offer." Meander cuts in. "How much for the ferry?"

"Hrm. Mid-size wagon... I'd say three silvers?"

"Is that all?" Meander's tone makes it impossible to tell whether or not he's being sarcastic. Maybe he'll teach that trick to Titus sometime.

"I'm not going to be using the boat for anything else. Pure profit, as far as I'm concerned. Besides, Calibration always ruins me, heh."

"Well then, three silvers it is." Meander digs around in his pouch while Dassus raises an eyebrow. Perhaps he expected the merchant to haggle? He takes the silvers without a fuss, however, and moves around to finish preparing the boat for launch.

The horses are, perhaps understandably, not thrilled to get onto the glorified raft, but Meander manages to coax them up the short ramp without serious incident. Dassus and Hadassi hop onto the boat - Dassus grabs a long-shafted oar while his son grabs a curious-looking rudder. While the boat launches gamely, the size of Lake Sanazala promises a slow trip. Fortunately, Dassus is an endless wellspring of gossip, rumor, and amusing anecdote, and Ezri, in her full "I'm an Emdarian, no really," makeup and her regular, more practical clothing, has no trouble keeping him going.

Then he says, "You've come at an interesting time, my friends. We've got the Realm's own ambassador here... Kaizoku, she's called, of the Realm-clan Peleps. Says she's got a plan to get us a leg up on the Haltans. Don't suppose you've heard of her?"

*Interrupt point. Titus can politely reject Dassus's offer before Meander gets there.

Status: ACCEPTED

[Astro_sol]

Titus could only let his smile fade just a bit as he shook his head at the offer. "I appreciate that, sir, but we're on a tight enough schedule as is." Memories of his family had flooded back the moment he saw the two interact. They got along so well; Janus had demanded respect from his household, and that they all give each other the same respect.

The memories didn't fade as Meander haggled, or rather didn't. By the time they'd gotten the wagon on the boat, though, he'd thought that they had faded enough that he could have a clear mind the rest of the journey.

Then Dassus just had to mention Kaizoku. Titus couldn't help letting a grimace escape, which he played off as a sudden cramp, rubbing at the back of his neck. He decided to tell a bit of truth. "I've heard bits and pieces. Mostly that she was the one that led a recent raid on Emdar. Heard all about it in one of the last towns we were in. Is that part of some big strategy she's got going?" He tried not to sound too interested, casual. Like Meander seemed all the bloody time.

[Jade_Tarem]

If Dassus notices Titus's reaction, he doesn't react himself. Given that he was facing Galdtern, though, odds are that he didn't. "Well, that's not the sort of thing that she'd share with everybody, is it? I know she goes on raids, and she doesn't seem the type to let someone else do all the thinking, you know? A bit stuck up, if you ask me, but she's done wonders for the Clans." He frowns, slightly. "Probably just trying to build up supplies after that debacle vs. the Bull of the North. Although... no one is really sure why she's moved here from Rubylak." He perks up. "Ah! We're almost there."

The boat is maneuvered into position, and Meander takes the wagon back onto dry land. Before long, Hadassi and Dassus are rowing away, both waving as they go.

Meander stops the cart and rubs his hands together, scanning the small town - one thing Titus has noticed is that the Linowan just aren't that big on permanent structures, nothing here matches the kind of built-up infrastructure and engineering that Emdar boasted. Ezri had mentioned that it was an artifact of Linowan culture rather than a lack of ability - the clans would rather build more boats than spend time building up cities. "Alright. Galdtern. Standard Linowan rules apply, so far as we know, but this is the place of our objective. Titus, I know you're likely eager to meet with your family, but we need Ezri to hit the Matriarch's... residence." There was one building that managed to move past two stories - the large royal residence in the middle of Galdtern managed to approach the size, if not the ostentatious decoration, of the Aelius estate. Still, the understated but masterful craftsmanship, and the small canal that ran up to a private dock holding the most graceful looking riverboat Titus has ever seen made the whole place look somehow richer. The fact that, at the right angle, the entire thing had been reflected off the surface of Lake Sanazala on the group's approach didn't hurt its effect, either. "Security will be tightest there, at the barracks, and at the docks where raiding parties head in and out. If you want to hit the markets area, fine, but no stealing this time - I'm not questioning your skills, but with what we found in Shadowholt, I'd say that this is one town we can't afford to be run out of. Focus instead on gathering information, and finding us a place to stay. Even this deep into Linowan territory, there has to be an inn, a flophouse, somewhere we can meet and plan. The wagon's too open."

For perhaps the first time, Meander appears to be a bit nervous. His gaze keeps flickering to the northern horizon, where a number of dark, nasty clouds seem to have appeared since the group landed, spoiling the glorious sunset coming from the west. "Do not engage Kaizoku, even if you see her and the perfect opportunity presents itself. I know you blame her - not entirely unfairly - for destroying Emdar, but you're unlikely to surprise her and you can't take her in a straight fight. Think Ezri, but with a sword and possibly some sorcery." He takes a deep breath. "I have something to do at the edge of town. We'll meet back here in an hour, alright?"

[Astro_sol]

Meander's words took very quickly. Titus had had enough of an explanation from Ezri before that he knew that he couldn't tangle with Kaizoku, not directly. As much as it pained him to admit it, this was someone he just couldn't go toe to toe with. But his family meant more to him than pride. He'd just have to get creative.

He set out, ignoring the pleasant view of the lake contrasted with the dark clouds signalling nothing so nice. He simply kept his eyes open, keeping his gaze slightly above the crowd. If he just blended in and avoided looking at faces, he could avoid seeing anyone who'd make him react too much. His eyes, trained for years to spot marks to pickpocket, darted from sign to sign, looking for anything that looked like an inn. He kept his ears open as well, remembering drilling the Linowan words into his head, and listened for "inn" or "beds", even "sleep".

Rolling Awareness. 3 Awareness, 3 stunt
[roll0]

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus quickly finds out that the inns in town are mostly empty, owing to the apparent storm brewing. Travelers have moved on, merchants have packed it in, and everyone else is staying home.

One extra interesting tidbit that he picks up is that, during calibration, boats are moored wherever they can be - at sunset tonight, any craft still out will make landfall at the nearest dry point, rather than returning to the docks. Better still, the boats remain largely unguarded, probably due to the fact that taking one out would be considered suicidal... but Meander may have a way around that.

Returning to the merchant is an option at this point, but the Galdtern Royal Residence isn't too far, and there's still more than an hour until sundown...

[Astro_sol]

The inner thief in Titus was almost gibbering at the fact that there were boats filled with...well, just about anything during the upcoming days. Of course, it was useful information regardless, but it was also interesting. He'd been told not to steal anything, but that was for now. He'd just have to wait and see what Meander had to say about later on. Old habits died hard.

One of his habits was keeping up with his family. He frowned. Meander had said not to hit the Galdtern Royal Residence. That was Ezri's job, pure and simple.

...but he'd never said he couldn't go look at it. Intently. From various angles, all of which would be perfectly natural for a tourist.

...

Titus turned a corner and began to weave his way through the crowd, intent on making his way to the place, milling about and keeping his eyes wandering quite naturally. It was easy, copying how foreigners had always acted in Emdar. Just play the ignorant tourist.

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus's precautions pay off - while some Linowan warriors who are obviously guarding the residence do notice him, his perpetual distance from the estate ensure that none of them make a move to accost him. Still, there's only so much the rogue can learn from staring at the outside of the palace - how big the inside could be, the contours the walls, the (unfortunately thorough) guard patrols... until he notes the slaves moving about the grounds.

As brand-new slaves, many of them probably still fantasizing about daring escapes, they're under heavy guard, but they *are* let off the grounds from time to time. Titus is surprised to note that, all things considered, they don't look that bad for slaves - he's seen worse in the sort of place that Nero rescued Nova from back in Emdar. Then again, Ezri had mentioned that slaves were royal property only... no doubt the Linowan put at least a little effort into caring for them.

Finally, though, he gets the true payout - Victoria comes into view, carrying a pail and a broom, and sets to work on the flagstones of a small courtyard area...

[Astro_sol]

Titus froze, which was definitely not ignorant tourist behavior. He'd been travelling for weeks, miles upon miles, and there was evidence that his family was actually alive. Not just hearsay, but alive. He struggled to keep his train of thought straight. He couldn't just rush over there and let her know he was there. Honestly, there really wasn't anything he could feasibly do. He didn't trust his ability to sneak past such a well-trained pack of guards, having only started learning the ability to blend in with crowds, and the grounds were wide open, perfect for surveillance. And that was if he made it past those guards, and judging by their attire, they were well-trained and well-equipped. The last time he'd run into trouble like that, he'd run into one guard, and he'd needed someone else to help him take care of it. If he ran in, he was begging to be arrested or killed, and either way left little to no chance of seeing his family ever again.

The thief began to raise a hand in greeting, but it fell short. He couldn't just shout her name. It would draw too much attention, and he couldn't afford to even be noticed. Even if he got away, they'd recognize his face, which might ruin any plan Meander had.

He realized he was putting a lot of trust into the mysterious merchant, but the man and his companion had done a lot for him, accompanying him, paying him, and helping him learn the skills necessary to save his family. There was more to winning than just running in and punching everyone in the face. And that was a sad revelation, indeed.

He let himself take one last, lingering look at Victoria, and turned around, intent on making it back to Meander to discuss options for where to stay for the night. It killed him to turn away, but staying would only erode at his self-control. He told himself he would see her and the others very soon. He decided he'd keep this little visit to himself. No need to worry Meander.

Victoria's face was stuck in his mind's eye as he walked. He didn't look behind him.

[Jade_Tarem]

Titus finds Meander and Ezri right where he left them, and they take their pick of inns, choosing one fairly near to the royal residence itself. Meander's seemingly inexhaustible supply of nearly every form of currency lands them a room with no trouble, and before long the three are cozily ensconced in what appears to be a homey suite-like collection of rooms, decorated with animal furs, a fully operational fireplace and chimney, cozy beds, and astonishingly detailed wood-carved decorations - and the occasional metal inlay. It was the kind of place that nobles occasionally bragged of setting up for 'summer homes' back in Emdar.

Meander wastes no time settling in, shooting Ezri a look. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

Ezri shakes her head. "You first. The way we do this depends entirely on what happens with the weather over the next few days."

"Alright." The merchant sits down in one of the room's fine seats. "Tomorrow? Heat wave, a lot of thunder and noise, but nothing happens. The next day is blizzard. I mean we're talking several feet of snow. Nothing is going to move. Not the wagon, not the guards... and probably not us. Third day? Hurricane."

"You're joking."

"Nope, at least for most of the day. And we're getting the worst of it. The eye of the hurricane is right out over the middle of the lake there. In the late afternoon, it all clears up and we get perfect wood-season weather the rest of the day and into the night." He paused. "After that, I couldn't get a reading."

Ezri blinked at him. "As in... there's... no more weather?"

Meander shrugged. "Maybe. More likely we've hit a point of infinite divergence in this time thread, where the weather itself is staked to what happens on the third day." He sighed. "I was hoping to have our pick of conditions, but it seems that we're limited to making a go of this on the third morning."

"Maybe." The dragon-blooded turned to Titus. "What did you find out when you were scoping out the Royal residence?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus managed not to grimace at getting caught. After all, he'd mostly been expecting it, so he answered it in stride.

"That they have a very thoroughly placed, well-paid, well-equipped force of guards. They have pretty much every angle covered." He paused. "...I also saw my sister. Victoria." His eyes grew downcast for a moment, but he soon brought his eyes back up to Meander. "How do you know all that about the weather? I won't pretend to understand that time thread nonsense. Unless it has to do with that."

[Jade_Tarem]

Oddly, neither of his companions scolds Titus for deviating from the plan. Instead, Meander speaks. "It is related to that. The future is... hard to explain, really." He sighs, apparently ready to take a stab at it. "There are all sorts of mortal theories about the future, and most of them are wrong. Some say that the future is immutable and cannot be changed. That is a laugh and a half, a nasty rumor created by those who are too lazy or unfortunate to alter their own destinies. You and I have changed the future in a thousand tiny ways since breakfast. Now, it can be difficult to make a meaningful change to the future, but that's more due to inertia than anything else. Making a significant change to the future is about as hard as making a significant change to the present. It's all about effort and opportunity."

The merchant gets up and begins pacing. As he does so, Titus catches the slightest hint of something on Meander's forehead - a yellow symbol of some kind, perhaps? - that glints for a moment before disappearing. "Some say the future is decided by the gods, which is true only by inclusion. The future is decided by everything, of which the gods are a part. But the closest mortals have ever come to sorting out the future is their talk of parallel realities. Those who favor that theory say that each decision spawns multiple new realities, the one in which the decision was made, and one for each way the decision could have been made differently. An infinite binary digression -" He catches Titus's look. "Basically, time splits, producing one future that belongs to you, and another that belongs to a theoretical you that took the other option and thinks that you're the hypothetical one, and this happens over and over again."

He pauses. "Which is a great theory, but also backwards. Our reality is constructed of multiple threads of space and time, each governing how pieces of the universe begin, end, and interact with all of the others. These threads begin divergent and are woven together as time progresses forward, which necessitates the creation of even more threads to govern the new interactions between existing threads. The resulting 'tapestry,' if you will, is recognizable to you as history, and the point of confluence for all of those threads is the 'present.' In Yu-Shan, the city of the gods, there is an incredible machine, constructed long before the legends that you think of as ancient, that is governed by extremely powerful entities whose purpose is to monitor the weave and watch for errors, incoming disasters, snarls in the fabric of space and time... and correct them, if possible. The machine is extremely difficult to use, but those who have put in the effort can, sometimes, look along the diverse threads to see the future of some aspect of reality here on Creation. And I... can get access to that information. And that is another clue to you about what I am." It's the greatest claim to power Meander has made yet, and he appears appropriately grave when making it. "But the information is never perfect. Like I said, enough effort and opportunity can change the way those threads combine to create a different present, and sometimes the weaving itself gets in the way of seeing what's going to happen. That's what occurs on the third day - the weather for the next three days is difficult enough to change that I can say with some certainty what it will be - but after that, something more easily changed will, itself, change the weather, so I can no longer see what it will be - most likely, our own actions are somehow obfuscating the most obvious future."

He sighs again and stops pacing. "Did that make... any sense?"

[Astro_sol]

Titus stayed silent for several moments.

It wasn't to say that he hadn't been listening. Of course he'd been listening. It was just that this stuff was so far over his head that it wasn't even funny.

"Uh, you could have just said 'time thread junk'," he replied, holding a palm to his face. He raised a hand. "Kidding. But let me see if I got this straight. So...reality is like a sweater that's constantly being knit, right? So, uh, I don't think I get what the threads are. People? Events? I don't think I even get why there are threads at all. That theory that you said was backwards I could maybe see happening." Yeah, and the creepiness of Titus clones being everywhere sure was easier to swallow than...whatever Meander had talked about. "But I just don't see why there have to be different threads that do all of this." A big machine? That, he could handle. Sort of. Just label it gods' business and leave it at that. But he couldn't just shoulder off everything to the "set aside for now, consider it later" pile of thoughts. "And what would happen if someone tampered with this tapestry-thing, like they wanted to change something at the source? Could they change the future with it, or even the past?" he added as an afterthought.

One thing that did stick with him was change. He could change things. It didn't matter that Meander saw an upcoming hurricane. He could work with that. He didn't really care what happened, as long as he could return to living with his family. He'd found it hard to stomach Locke's abilities before. Hearing that anyone could change the future was somehow comforting.

"At least I can do something," he muttered.

[Jade_Tarem]

"Mrm. You've got a better handle on it than I would have expected, for someone hearing this for the first time." Meander sits back down and scratches his chin. "Well, what threads are... is essentially nouns. People, places, objects, events, and even ideas all correspond to these 'threads.' The threads themselves begin and end where the people, objects, and ideas do. Even now, at this very moment, the thread representing your improved understanding of time is being woven into your personal thread." Meander grins. "As to the 'why' - that has to do with the nature of reality, which is a long story that I will tell you soon, but not tonight. And yes, someone can theoretically manipulate the threads at the source - the Loom of Fate, if I didn't mention that earlier - but doing so requires an incredibly precise understanding of what something is, and where it is, and when it is, and all of the things that it does. As you can imagine, getting exactly the result you want out of such manipulation can be next to impossible, especially once something as complex as a person is brought into play, so most beings - even powerful Celestial Exalted and gods, tend to spend their time learning to better decipher the Loom and then leave the threads alone, acting in real life to bring about the changes they want. In fact, the Loom is mostly used for detecting where reality is beginning to unravel - it does require maintenance - and then dispatching agents from Heaven to fix the problem."

He drops the grin and gives Titus an inscrutable look. "And yes. The future can always be changed. Sometimes the past, too. There is always something that can be done, though it may not be obvious at the time. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

[Astro_sol]

"Ah," Titus breathed, "right. Well. Let's hope it won't unravel here, then. And I never plan on letting anyone tell me otherwise. No one can tell me what to do once I've set my mind on something." He didn't raise his voice, but something in it turned to steel. Locke came to mind, and even her and her magic charisma couldn't break through his will to save his family. He still had that.

He sat himself down on a barrel. "So. What did Ezri find out about the Royal Estate? You don't really have to get into how. Magic stuff and all." He wiggled his fingers in the air with a straight face.

[Jade_Tarem]

(SRMM: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bivdxuY2dAQ)

"The Royal Estate isn't that big, as far as, well, royal estates go, but it's going to be chock full of guards, recovering warriors, the royal family, and whoever the Matriarch has advising her - likely a shaman who may or many not be a mortal Essence user. They'll retreat inside when the storm hits and batten down the hatches, which makes the first challenge..."

THREE DAYS LATER - ROYAL ESTATE

...getting in. High winds and heavy rain lashed the rooftop of the Royal Residence. Only a fool would go out on a night like this. A fool, or Titus and his new friends. "Is it too late to change my mind about the plan?" Ezri shouted to her companions.

"Patience." Meander said, somehow not at all affected by the storm, although it blew his coat about - indeed, while Ezri had switched back to her natural coloration and her 'special' longbow - and a suit of armor to match - Meander was dressed like something from another time and place entirely. A black longcoat with yellow trim adorned him, placed over odd-looking fine black trousers, nice shoes, and a yellow shirt. His signature glasses were still in place, though, and water ran off of every part of the ensemble without seeming to soak it. "The storm will pull something up eventually; we just have to wait."

A moment later, his prediction came true - an uprooted sapling comes sailing through the air and crashes into the slanted roof, tearing off a chunk of it. "And that's our way in," he said, dropping down and waiting for Titus and Ezri to do the same.

Titus didn't even bother gritting his teeth in the cold. It was cold and wet, and that was that. He'd just have to work with it. Thus, he waited until thunder roared to take a running leap, planning for the slickness of the wrecked roof, using it to slide the momentum into a forward direction while keeping his signature staff balanced across his back. He skidded forward, intent on sliding through the opening, thunder roaring around him.

Titus slid through the opening, avoiding the jagged edges, and dropped into an expert roll on the slick, polished wood of the floor below. A moment later, Ezri followed, landing more heavily due to her armor, but with the same lack of incident.

THREE DAYS AGO - THE INN

"The slaves are normally housed on the outskirts of the estate, but during the storm, they'll probably be moved into the house and locked into the servant's quarters. Since neither Meander nor I know what your family looks like, that means that it's going to be up to you to spring them while the two of us draw off the guards." Ezri looked out the window at the estate. "That won't be too hard, as I'll look a lot like a Haltan at the time. Just..."

PRESENTLY - THE ROYAL ESTATE

"...watch yourself, Titus. Wait for the shouts before making you move, then head down to the ground floor."

With that, she and Meander sped off, and mere moments after that startled servants and guards began shouting about Haltan intruders.

Titus raised his feet until he'd properly shifted his weight, then began to look around. He edged his way around the furniture, all of which looked incredibly expensive, and everything on them set off his thief instincts to maximum. He honestly felt like pawning off just about everything in the house, just because.

But he had a goal. He started looking for something like stairs, keeping himself in constant motion as he searched. He was sure to keep near something to hide at all times, ready to even spring up the wall if he had to.

As Titus approached the bottom of the stairs, he spotted something odd about some of the carvings - the culture and language may be different, but Titus knew a "stash" when he saw one. Unfortunately, the hidden safe was locked...

Titus cracked his knuckles and pulled out a trusty bit of metal. It had been a simple hairpin for some noble lady back in Emdar, but now it was a part of the miscellaneous little thieves tools he kept with him. Just little ordinary objects. He began to work it into the grooves of the carving, searching for a leverage point, or a latch. It might have been small, but there had to be something there in the cracks to open the stash.

Unfortunately, the fiddling is of no use, and Titus gave up on the stubborn thing, moving on to the servant area. There, there's good news and bad news. The good news was that all but one of the guards had been led away by Ezri and Meander's shenanigans. The bad news was that the hallway is virtually bare and very well lit, with nowhere to hide, and the guard appeared to be the equal - in terms of physique and equipment - of any of the Linowan warriors Titus encountered in Emdar. The thief would almost certainly be spotted as soon as he attempted to enter the corridor.

Titus let out a silent groan, his palm on his face. This wasn't something he should go in doing like usual. He could certainly try taking this guy alone, but that would make all sorts of racket that he couldn't afford doing. He had to start getting creative.

An idea occurred to him.

He began making his way back until he was a good distance from the door. Then he started making noise, breathing heavily, knocking a few things over. "I've been stabbed!" he said in a strained voice, his staff ready in hand. Hopefully he timed this so that he would meet the guard as he exited the door. If he fell for it. He made sure to make his voice sound lower and gruff. "Help! Someone! Intruders on the second level! I need help!"

The guard emerged from the doorway with shield and axe already out, apparently not sold on the deception. He blocked Titus's surprise attack with a sweep of his axe, but the young rogue still had initiative.

Titus grinned humorlessly, holding the staff in the crook of his right arm. He feinted with his leg, acting like he would forward kick, but changed direction during the snap, using the extra momentum of his leg to catch the staff on his foot and whip it into the man's head.

(SRMM: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMWnoJhBNF8)

The guard, an experienced warrior, rolls with the hit, the wooden mask on his face cracking slightly but with no other visible damage showing. Letting out a grunt of anger, he moves in on Titus, swinging down with his axe with a pair of vicious chops as lighting flashes in through the windows.

Titus barely got his staff up in time, grasping it with both hands to deflect the axe blows just out of reach. This time, he gave a small exhalation before his next attack. This time, he took his cue from the Linowan, waiting for his last swing to pass the point where it would have connected before lowering the staff to point at his neck. The weapon struck forward like a snake, hitting twice in the space under the mask.

The guard took the hit as a bruising glance against the space just below his throat, bringing his shield around to ensure that the attack didn't crush his windpipe. His measured counterattack is once again stopped by Titus's increasingly abused staff.

Titus grit his teeth and gripped the coarse wood until his knuckles showed white. This guy was good, scary good, and the only way he could get anything done was if he made sure his blows connected with something vital. The man had too much experience and armor for just wild flailing. Thus, he weaved back and forth, waiting for the other to make a move - then struck, aiming this time for the man's right knee.

The move not only popped something in the man's knee, but on his way down, the guard's head struck the wall with an unfortunate amount of force. He does not get back up. No keys are evident in the corridor behind him, but a quick search of the Guard's possessions reveals a keyring and a small pouch of Linowan currency.

Titus pocketed both and the keyring and the money and paid him no more mind besides a small bow. After all, it was a good fight. He darted across the corridor, his eyes open for his family. Or really anything that moved.

***

The city of Yu-Shan knew splendor like no other. It was the Calibration festival, a time of feasting, gaming, and settling old scores. A time of tradition and renewal, where the tone for one year would end and the tone for a new year would be set.

Among those traditions was the competition.

Once a year, every year, at this feast, Saturn and the Unconquered Sun would have themselves a little contest. It was a contest that those in the know watched with baited breath. No significance had ever been attached to it, but that didn't mean that no significance existed. Saturn ends all things one day, and Sol was no different. He had never lost their little challenge yet... but every year was a new year.

Now, the pair strode on their walk through the festivities, their hangars on and spectators wondering what die would be cast this year...

***

(SRMM: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx6YVAUY620)

THREE DAYS AGO - THE INN

Ezri turned back to Titus. "Once you're in the corridor, go ahead and release all the slaves. The more chaos the merrier. When you find your family, go ahead and set off the escapee alarm. That will be our signal for Meander and I to get back to you and make our escape properly."

PRESENTLY - THE ROYAL ESTATE

It took a number of tries, but in the last cell, Titus finds them, his whole family. All but little Victoria are shocked to see him. She leaped into his arms. "Titus!"

Titus stood stock still as Victoria leaped into him, the other slaves around him becoming nobodies in a flash. There was Demetrius, with the same brown hair as himself. The 12 year old was smiling, usually stoic, like his brother. "Titus..." the boy whispered. He didn't take anymore steps forward, but Titus could see the boy's brown eyes shining. Albus and Alphonse began chattering as well.

"Titus, you're here, you're here! Did you beat up that man outside?"

"Titus Titus Titus Titus!"

And there was Janus in the back, looking none the worse for wear. Ezri was right, and seeing Victoria had seemingly confirmed the notion that the Estate took care of its slaves, but seeing Janus...

Titus smiled, the warmest smile he'd had for weeks. Since he'd had a home. "Hey, Dad. Good to see you." The man looked him up and down, gave a huff...and ran forward, pulling him and the rest of the family into a tight embrace.

"It's been a while, Titus," his father whispered. Then he held him out at arm's length. "You haven't been stealing, have you, boy?"

Titus ducked his head. "No, father." Not for a lack of trying. "I've been traveling with an honest merchant. I'm his bodyguard."

"You'll get your bloody fool self killed," Janus said with a huff, but he grinned in spite of it. There was a first time for everything, Titus guessed. He pushed his family away, except for Victoria.

"We don't have much time, guys. That merchant is helping me bust you guys. No time to explain, but I've trusted him for weeks, and he's...he's special. You'll see, but we have to go, now."

The family was quiet for a moment before nodding sporadically, Victoria last. He put her down, and beckoned for them to follow. He quickly moved to the bell and rang it. "Now or never," he whispered. "Let's go!"

The far door exploded inward, a guard stumbling backwards through it. He snarled and started to charge, but took an arrow to the face before he could get more than two steps forward. As he drops, he revealed a visibly glowing Ezri. "Alright, Titus, this way to the egress!"

The run to the private dock is a short one, but Meander and Ezri get Titus and his family there with little difficulty - the escaping slaves and general chaos covering them even more thoroughly than Ezri's nasty arrows. They pick a war-canoe at random and take it out on the lake, the attack coinciding with the drop-off of the hurricane. What was once howling wind and pouring rain is now reduced to mere rainfall.

The launch of the boat goes without incident - Meander was, apparently, more than content to leave the whole wagon behind in Galdtern. Within minutes, the group is out on the lake and rowing fast.

"Titus." Janus breathes. "Where exactly are they taking us, boy?"

"A safe place," Titus said, "somewhere away from all of this."

"We're bound for the other end of the lake." Meander says. "But something seems a bit off..."

"Meander..." Ezri says.

"We've just had a torrential rainfall, not to mention the blizzard. The banks of the lake should be overflowing."

"Meander! The royal warship is launching!" Indeed, the large ship moored next to the Royal Residence is in motion, fully crewed, no less. On it, making an appearance at last, is Peleps Kaizoku Atarove, visible as the rain slackens off and the evening sun starts to emerge. A tense chase almost begins.

Almost, because the water level in the lake is now visibly dropping.

By the time the sun has fully come out from behind the clouds, the stunned parties of both boats are now at the bottom of a waterfall-filled basin, and looking upon an incredible sight...

http://i1121.photobucket.com/albums/l511/jadetarem/Exalted/ManseoftheHiddenVictory_zps13d6d55a.jpg