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Dynasty of Dovak	By : JohnDoe Category: +A through F > Exalted RPG Views: 4983 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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Chapter List
- 73
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Session 68 – Loose Ends – Reya (220XP 176DX, 203/143 spent; 9GP 36SP), Melody (220XP 176DX, 208/146 spent), and Ganan (220XP 176DX, 187/153 spent; 8WhP 68GP 68SP)

“Let’s go over this, one more time.”

Mnemon Phanjain drives his fist into Cynis Ganan’s naked body – his invulnerable skin long since worn off.

The interrogation room is dark, and Ganan is chained to the ceiling, spreadeagled.

****

“You chased Ragara into the Imperial manse?” Berit asks, carefully, for the seventh time.

Melody sighs. She is unaware she’s being held in the same generously appointed cell that once held Cynis Ganan, decades ago. She’s very aware that Berit’s troops stripped her of her bow and forced her in here like she was some kind of common criminal. That was two days ago.

At least Berit’s troops let her keep the rest of her gear…

****

“And though it cost us some of our best and brightest, you were actually successful in killing my brother, but not in claiming the power of the Realm Defense Grid?”

Mnemon sips her tea with a haughty air of suspicion. Bijar's journal lies under Mnemon’s other hand, and she drums her fingers on it impatiently.

Reya smiles pleasantly at her matriarch, and sips her own tea, “The manse is guarded by a powerful intelligence. A facsimile of Autochthon. I was unable to overcome it, only to convince it to help me stop Ragara.” She gestures at the Imperial Seal, “With that.”

****

Phanjain delivers another punch.

“And we’re supposed to believe that you killed Ragara.”

“If you find it so unbelievable, unchain me.” Ganan fumes and he spits in Phanjain’s face.

****

“You saw us.” Melody tells Berit, “Nula and Ganan were half-dead. Kingfisher Swift and Righteous River are dead. Stopping Ragara took everything we had. And we wouldn’t have stopped the Sidereal if it wasn’t for you being in the courtyard to help us.”

****

“Whatever your suspicions may be, my matriarch, I don’t possess the Heart of the Realm Hearthstone. I couldn’t eliminate the Ragara armies in Corin Prefecture or the Mask of Winters in Thorns. I didn’t broadcast my image across Creation declaring myself Empress. I surrendered to you. I handed over everything I had, and that I knew about the manse. If you wish to try to breach the defenses, I will render my full assistance, but believe me, after what I saw of the manse’s defenses, I never wish to set foot in there again.” Reya sets her cup down.

Mnemon sets her cup down, “Very well. How were you treated before I arrived in the City?”

“Well enough.” Reya nods, “Berit kept me under guard but agreed to allow me to surrender to you personally. I should like to see my husband and daughter – I am told they are doing well. I assume that Ragara Banoba has not surrendered: I should like to return to the field.”

Mnemon waves dismissively, “Berit has a strategy.” Her tone makes clear that she has no intention of discussing this further.

Reya inhales, “I am a little concerned matriarch, that no-one has tried to interrogate me. I’ve spent two days in a generously appointed suite, and no-one has questioned me until you summoned me here…” She forces a smile, “I fear you may have already resolved to have me killed. But I can still be of use to you.”

****

“A wiser man would beg.” Phanjain kicks Ganan hard in the tail-bone, eliciting a fierce shout.

Ganan smirks and laughs bitterly, “I’ve been hanging here for days. I’m not good with people, but I’m pretty sure you’re not going to let me go if I ask nicely. I can’t control the Realm Defense Grid, and even if I could, I’d be too big a threat to let live. So just get it over with.”

****

“You might have been better off dying in the manse.” Berit says.
Melody looks at her, this is new. Berit has come seven times now, and on each of the previous six occasions, she has asked the same questions: this is new.

“What, Mnemon was just keeping us alive in case we could hand over the Imperial Manse to her? No, if we had that kind of power, I’d have your job: Shogun Melody and Empress Reya.” She shakes her head, “If Mnemon is going to torture me to death, then do me the courtesy of a quick death. You’ve known from the start that we can’t control the manse, and Mnemon’s not had us killed yet.”

****

“No, not killed.” Mnemon puts Bijar’s journal in her lap and folds her hands over it, “Naturally, I can’t trust you in the field against Ragara Banoba. But your companions have all been questioned. Thoroughly. And your stories all match. As my brother has not made a move from inside the Imperial Manse, I am inclined to believe your story – certainly, I cannot believe that he might have survived, yet failed to kill me before I reached the capital. If you want to regain my trust, I have a simple mission for you.”

Reya nods slowly.

“Pangu Prefecture to the north. The peasants are restless. Refugees, driven from their homes in Chanos by Peleps raids, have spurred unrest. The withdrawal of House Cynis has rendered the entire Prefecture lawless, and the Mouth of Peace has done nothing to calm agitations. Abbot Cloud Lotus of the Tourmaline Monastery has roused a great rabble, and the Mouth of Peace has actually praised their little rebellion. Take your Hearth, and disperse this peasant uprising in my name.”

“Yes, my matriarch.” She does not rise, “And my daughter?”

Mnemon’s eyes cut through Reya, “On the successful completion of your mission, I’m sure that you will be able to visit her.”

****

Phanjain receives a message, and he leaves Ganan without a word. Mnemon liveried troops bring in Ganan’s war-gear and a fresh set of purple-and-gold clothing. It takes three men to carry in his tetsubo, and two to carry Aharon’s halberd. Ganan eyes them suspiciously. The mortal Fanglord informs him that he has been pardoned and releases him from his chains. Ganan dresses without a word, and checks his pack – all his raw materials are still there, only Cainan’s daiklaves are missing.

****

Ledaal Ludila interrupts Berit by walking into the room. She is carrying Summer Thunder. She bends at the waist, bowing lower than protocol suggests she needs to.

“Mnemon is deploying us to Pangu Prefecture to put down the rebellion. If you’re done here?”

Berit exchanges a look with Melody, “Well, it seems that there will be no execution today.”

****

Ganan sets Aharon’s weapons in the Mnemon armory in their of the Imperial Palace before casting Invulnerable Skin of Bronze and rallying with the others. He is the last to join them on the steps leading up to the Palace.

Udi seems hard and withdrawn. Not knowing what to say, or caring what is socially appropriate, he embraces her and holds her tight against his body.

Melody and Reya are shocked by Ganan’s injuries. Despite his Invulnerable Skin, his face looks swollen, and he moves like a man who has been tortured for two days straight.

“Dragon’s breath!” Melody hisses, pulling Ganan and Udi apart as she examines him, “They haven’t done anything!” She pokes his wounds, and opens up her Satchel of Resplendent Healing, “You actually look in worse shape!” She admonishes as she sets to work treating Ganan’s wounds.

Ganan says nothing, but exchanges a look with Reya, who nods at him carefully in acknowledgment.

Melody looks up at him, “These are new wounds. Who the hell did you manage to fight locked in a palace suite?”

“Melody, just treat his wounds.” Reya interrupts, “We have a mission to get on with.”

****
They Stormwind out of the Imperial City and head north. There the city is thick with Alliance soldiers, and Reya can’t help but note that Strix Tower has been inhabited by Mnemon troops.

“We need to put down a peasant rebellion.” Reya howls over the screaming wind as Udi pilots them, “I’d like to do it with minimal violence, especially as Ganan looks like he could be knocked over by a stiff wind.”

“I might not be ready to fight Banoba, but I can crack the skulls of peasants!” Ganan bellows back.

“Great plan!” Melody yells sarcastically, “Who needs the harvest planted? And what better way to show we aren’t tyrants!”

The hours pass before finally they come out into a wide valley, expertly sculpted with artificial waterfalls and winding streams. Verdant growth spills out around the shining stone of a grand monastery, shot through with rainbow veins of tourmaline. Dozens of white-robed postulates plow and sow the fields around the central building: they look up and regard the approaching Dynasts with fear, some abandoning their tools to rush for the monastery, others huddling together for protection.

As the Hearth draws nearer, a figure of androgynous beauty walks out of the monastery, their head held high. Their head is shaved bald, but their eyebrows are a striking purple. Melody’s stomach churns as she thinks of the purple hair of her dead friend, left behind in the Imperial Manse. The abbot holds out their hand and Udi lowers the Stormwind to the ground.

Immaculate monks rank up behind the abbot, as the braver postulates form into loose mob armed with farm tools.

Ganan approaches with his hands spread wide, “Peace, Cloud Lotus, peace.”

The abbot regards him carefully, “Cynis Ganan, walking again I see?” Cloud Lotus’s voice seems full of distant wisdom, “I don’t care for the color purple on you.”

Ganan smiles easily, “I’ve been married more than two decades. This is my wife and our Hearth.” He turns to Udi, “Smart move bringing us here, Cloud Lotus will help us end this peasant uprising without violence.”

“Aww shit… he doesn’t know?” Melody curses.

Cloud Lotus responds to the confused look on Ganan’s face and speaks in a kindly tone, “Ah, I see you have yet to grow out of the impetuousness of your youth. Your companions have neglected to tell you that I am leading this ‘uprising’ against Mnemon and all that she stands for.”

Ganan takes a step backward and raises his hands, “I’m not fighting a monk. I’m out.”

Reya steps in without missing a beat, “As I tried to explain on the way here, I seek to resolve this without violence. I am Mnemon Danireya: I would hear your grievance, and attempt to resolve your dispute with my matriarch peacefully.”

Cloud Lotus gestures to the monastery, “Would you come inside Danireya, and take tea with me? I will explain our grievance against Mnemon and then we shall fight.” Cloud Lotus turns and travels back inside the monastery.

Reya makes to follow, but Ganan grabs her by the arm, “We should go.”

Reya looks at him and inclines her head, inviting him to continue.

He lets go of her arm and continues, “My grandmother’s estate is across the province, by Pangu City. I received my first instruction in martial arts by leaning over the garden wall to watch the monks training in their yard; and before I so much as draw my Second Breath I was the equal to any of them. Once a year, Cloud Lotus would make the journey from here to there, and engage the monastery in ritual combat. The entire monastery. I never saw the abbot lose. They are a being of pure spirit and matchless skill, and when they say ‘then we shall fight’ they mean it. If we go in there, this will end in violence. If you really want to end this peacefully, we should fly south. Bring the Mouth of Peace here to resolve this on our behalf. Cloud Lotus is an honorable monk, they would never go against the word of the Mouth of Peace.”

Melody blinks, “That is literally the longest I have ever heard Ganan talk for.”

Udi rolls her eyes, “Ask him to explain the differences in the pagoda roofs used by the daimyōs of the Fourth Bronze Wolverine and Copper Dolphin!”

Ganan scowls, “I can’t believe you’re still angry about that!”

“You talked for six hours! And set a five-thousand-word essay! About roof tiles!” Udi screeches at him hysterically.

Ganan blanks her and holds up a hand, “Mouth of Peace. Resolve without violence.”

Reya bites her lip and wrestles with not telling him, “The Mouth of Peace supports Cloud Lotus’s uprising.”

“Then… we should go back to the Imperial City and tell Mnemon that. Mela’s name, Reya! You could have saved us a flight!”

Udi cuts in, “Mnemon is quite aware of the Mouth of Peace’s views on this. She still wishes this rebellion crushed.”

“No.” Ganan says, and he folds his arms across his chest.

“No… what?” Udi asks.

“No.” Ganan repeats, “The Immaculate Order might not mean much to you, Ludila.” He looks disparagingly at his wife, “And I know exactly how much it means to you. But it means something to me. I’ll be damned before I raise arms against the Order. To hell with Mnemon.”

“Gan!” Reya reprimands, at a loss for words.

Melody wheedles uncomfortably, “I mean… he’s got a point. It’s not like we’re fighting Cathak soldiers or Iselsi assassins… these are monks Rey.” Her voice drops to a hoarse whisper, “Holy women.”

“And so you won’t even go inside and have a cup of tea?” Reya throws her arms in the air, exasperated.

“Look I’m not saying your husband is a good judge of character,” She turns to Ganan, “Because, sweetie, you’re not. Sextus Jylis must have been handing out social skills on leg day.”

(Ganan nods sagely, “I never skip leg day.”)

Melody continues, “But I’m pretty sure he’s not wrong about the Mouth of Peace.” She points at Udi, “She sold this to me as putting down a peasant uprising, and I came along because I knew that you’d find a way to do it peacefully. No-one said anything about opposing the Mouth of Peace.”

“Come. Inside. And have. Tea. You are embarrassing me in front of the peasants!” Reya spits between clenched teeth. She turns and walks inside the monastery. Udi follows without hesitation.

Melody prevaricates for a second, dancing from foot-to-foot then runs in after them.

Ganan sulks for a moment, and follows after them muttering, “I don’t even like tea.”

****

Cloud Lotus sits cross-legged on a low cushion before a kotatsu (low table), their monks flank the room. Four cushions have been set opposite the abbot, three have cups laid before them. Cloud Lotus welcomes them and pours the tea.

“What do you know of Pangu Prefecture?” The abbot asks.

Reya takes a polite sip of tea, “It is the ancestral home of House Cynis. It’s where the Guild is permitted to enter the Realm. Rich soil, with many rivers and canals, provides much of the Realms food for the legions.”

Cloud Lotus nods deeply, and takes a long draw from their own drink, “And how is that food grown?”

Reya shrugs, “I suppose that House Cynis oversees it? Are you saying that since they have withdrawn to the Threshold there’s no-one to sow the harvest?”

The abbot smiles, as an adult might smile at the silly statements of a child, “Oh, there are many people here to sow the harvest.”

“Well, slaves.” Ganan says, on reflex.

“Slaves?” Melody repeats, contempt evident In her voice.

“We – House Cynis – are not much loved by the peasantry. (They don’t have enough money to spend on luxuries.) But, this is the main trading port for the Guild. House Cynis holds the Imperial License to trade in slaves, and all Guild-bought slaves pass through Pangu. We do everything with slaves. Essentially all the meal raised for the Imperial Legions is grown by slaves.” Ganan shrugs.

Melody drives her palms into her eyes, “I could have happily lived my entire life without knowing that.”

“What you’re saying then,” Reya says carefully, “Is that the removal of House Cynis has thrown the slaves into disarray?”

Cloud Lotus takes another sip of their drink, “The slaves know their business. But, yes, without House Cynis dozens of petty overlords have tried to carve up Pangu. House Sesus’s devastating losses to House Peleps in the north-west opened the door for dozen of petty warlords: Guildsmen, Patricians, and lesser nobles. They have carved up the land, each eager for their pound of flesh.”

“Enter the Immaculate Order.” Reya says slowly.

“Your Empress has failed to keep order. Pangu has dissolved into a hot-bed of human misery: precipitated by the basic injustice of slavery.”

“Mnemon doesn’t even sit on the throne!” Reya protests.

“What’s wrong with slavery?” Ganan asks, his brow knitting.

“Seriously?!” Melody shoots a look at Ganan.

Ganan looks back at her, then to Cloud Lotus, “Do the texts not say ‘Slaves, obey your Princely masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart’? And ‘You servants must submit yourselves to your masters and show them complete respect, not only to those who are kind and considerate but also to those who are harsh’? Foreigners and mortals have taking slaves is a blight on the land, but slavery is not a ‘basic injustice’, abbot.”

Cloud Lotus makes a gesture of openness, “And do the Text’s also not tell us that ‘Hunger is felt by a slave and it is felt by a Prince’, ‘the weed of slavery grows in fertile soil’, ‘there is no male or female, neither free nor slave: from many peoples, one’, and ‘I am sent to bring liberty to the captives and to the oppressed’?” Cloud Lotus smiles, and continues, “‘You shall not give up to her mistress a slave who has escaped to you’, ‘if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity’, ‘You shall remember that we were slaves before the Dragons rose us up with their mighty claws and up-stretched arms’.” Cloud Lotus takes another sip of their drink, “Slavery is foul and base evil. It pollutes the human spirit: it wrenches mortals from their proper place in the Perfected Hierarchy and it is a sin that stains the souls of the masters. Dragon-Blooded might well be enlightened enough to bear that stain, but it is a stain, none-the-less.”

Ganan nods and broods thoughtfully.

“This isn’t a peasant uprising…” Melody realizes, “This is a slave uprising!”

Cloud Lotus laughs gently, “No, it is a peasant uprising. Those who were once slaves are now free women. I have freed them. And this is why we shall fight. Your Empress’s Realm cannot endure without slavery: we cannot endure with it.”

Melody claps her hands together then raises them into the air, “I’m out. I’m not going to help Mnemon enslave these people.” She stands up and bows to Cloud Lotus, “It was a pleasure to take tea with you, but I will not be fighting.”

Ganan rises too, “Nor I.”

“Gan!” Reya reprimands, looking up at him incredulously.

“I’m not fighting against the Immaculate Order.” Ganan reiterates, “And… the stuff about slavery makes sense when it’s a monk saying it.”

“No-one is fighting against the Immaculate Order.” Reya says firmly, motioning for Melody and Ganan to sit back down, “Pangu Prefecture stands in opposition to Mnemon: first under the leadership of the usurpers of House Cynis and now under your rebellion. Mnemon should be reprimanding you for allowing the Guild to flout our laws and letting mortals ‘stain their souls’ by owning slaves. I cannot promise you that Mnemon will outlaw slavery, but we will end this injustice and restore order to Pangu. You have my word.”

Cloud Lotus speaks firmly, “What you call an ‘injustice’ is only a symptom. So long as slavery exists on the Blessed Isle, so too will injustice.”

Reya takes a deep breath, “When House Cynis withdrew from Pangu, the prefecture fractured as dozens of warlords tried to carve out their slice. The same is happening to the entire Blessed Isle. Without the Empress to hold us steady, we will fall apart. Your rebellion here might well be for a noble cause, but every Patrician snatching fields out there thinks the same thing.”

Cloud Lotus considers for a moment, “Perhaps. But if we are doomed, we shall be doomed for a righteous cause.”

“But it’s not a righteous cause!” Reya shoots back, “You cannot sit there and say that to be a slave in Pangu is an injustice but to be a slave in Nexus is fine! The Realm needs an Empress and Creation needs the Realm. We do not have the luxury of allowing the greatest empire in existence to collapse in on itself – not if you want to stop slavery. If you allow the Realm to tear itself apart, the Guild and the Fair Folk will run unchecked. You’d save hundreds here and condemn millions. Join us: your voice and your wisdom could help us save everyone.”

“I will save those I can save.” Cloud Lotus’s body seems to tense, ready to strike.

“So will I.” Reya locks eyes with the abbot, “We will not fight you.” She rises.

“But Danireya-!” Udi starts, but Reya silences her with a gesture.
Reya rises and walks out of the monastery, the others follow behind her, blinking in the sunlight. The freed slaves working the monastery’s field stare at them as they leave the building and Reya raises her voice to address them.

“Free people! Were you all field slaves? For in this place you work the fields. Your abbot decides what clothes you wear. He tells you to shave your heads. No doubt he sets your curfews. You might not wear fetters, but you are chained more thoroughly here than you ever were beyond this valley.”

Cloud Lotus walks out into the light. Reya points, accusatorially at them lighting starting to dance around her, “He wants his crops planted. He wants a loyal flock of slaves, hanging on his every word. He wants you to die here, for his own vainglory, fighting against Mnemon. Mnemon, the only woman strong enough to control the Guild who enslaved you. Mnemon, the only woman able to defeat House Cynis once and for all. Mnemon, the rightful Empress.”

A murmur passes through the slaves, as more come out to listen to Reya. Some of them set down their tools.

“These monks can ‘protect’ you from the likes of me, to be sure. But Mnemon commands legions. Tens of thousands of troops could pour into this valley and put you all to the sword. She shows her mercy because she knows you have been misled by the honeyed words of this charlatan. She is a wise and just ruler: she sees no need for you to die for your mistakes. But you stand here today in direct opposition to her will, in open rebellion. She is merciful: not weak. Persist in this rebellion and you will all die. Do not follow this man to your graves.”

Cloud Lotus advances on Reya, their fists cracking with fire essence, and then suddenly is looking up at the sky. Reya turns in time to see Ganan sweeping out the abbot’s legs. Trained monks rank up outside of the monastery.

“We’re leaving abbot.” Ganan says firmly, stepping back to let them up.

Reya drops her voice and addresses Cloud Lotus, “If these people aren’t your slaves, you’ll let them leave with us.”

Cloud Lotus stays on the ground, “You have no-where to lead these people save back into slavery.”

Reya throws a hand toward Cloud Lotus, and raises her voice to address the crowd again, “That’s what your abbot thinks of you. If you think you have a place that isn’t as a slave, you belong with us. Do not run from the world. Join Mnemon and fight for a better one.”

A cheer goes up from the crowd and they begin to chant Mnemon’s name.

Melody shuffles next to Reya and hisses at her, “And what exactly are we going to do with hundreds of slaves, Reya?”

“For starters, there’s your Free Company. But there are also opportunities rebuilding and planting, or whatever trades these people held before becoming slaves.”

Melody sets her tongue in cheek, “Uh-huh. And how exactly are we going to transport these people out of here?”

“I’ll stay.” Ganan says, “I know the land, I can lead them to the river and we can ferry them across to Dragon’s Mouth at our leisure. You three return Mnemon and let her know what’s happened here. The tale of what happened here will spread: this revolt is over.”

Udi interrupts, “Mnemon isn’t going to accept someone with the family name ‘Cynis’ leading an army of slaves raised in revolt against her. I’ll lead them.”

“And as soon as we’re out of sight, what stops these monks killing you?” Melody shakes her head.

Ganan sighs, “They’re not going to kill her. They might not help, but they know they’re beaten.”

“I agree.” Reya nods, “We’ll stop in Dragon’s Mouth and arrange passage.”

****

They leave Udi behind to make preparations and race forward, arranging ferries for the former slaves.

“Well, those boats will be ready for when Udi gets here,” Reya says, dusting off her hands with a job well done. She smiles, then turns serious, “We need to talk about the Immaculate Order.”

“Here we go.” Ganan rolls his eyes.

“What about the Immaculate Order?” Melody says carefully, flicking her eyes between Reya and Ganan.

Reya motions for them down-river a bit to talk, and once they are clear of the bustle of the port, “The Order is a problem for us. Chejop Kejak has been the Mouth of Peace’s secretary my whole life whispering to her. He declared himself for Cainan. He fought us in the field. And now the Immaculate Order is leading revolts against Mnemon.”

“Then maybe,” Melody hisses, “That means Mnemon is in the wrong.”

“Or,” Reya counters, “It means the Mouth of Peace, the entire Immaculate Order, has been compromised by the Anathema.”

“By the Sidereals!” Melody shoots back, her fingers twitching for her bow.

Reya holds Melody’s gaze as they stare venomously at one another. Ganan places himself between the two women, “That’s enough.”

Reya spreads her palms, she takes a step backward and Melody does the same, “The Immaculate Order was founded during the Shogunate. What survives today has undergone hundreds of years of drift away from what our ancestors intended. And who can say how long Chejop and his ilk have been turning our faith to their own purposes? The Mouth of Peace is not infallible.”

“Yes, she is!” Spits Melody, “That’s the point! She’s the person above this… muck.”

Reya takes another step back, “She’s a woman, no wiser than you or I.”

“No!” Melody’s denial is hard-nosed, “No, I’ve seen you pray. You believe in the Immaculate way. You might joke about playing cards, but I know you – you believe.” She gestures to herself and Ganan, “As we believe.”

Ganan exhales heavily and looks at the ground but says nothing.

Reya nods slowly, “I believe, but not as you believe. I hold to a… purer interpretation of Immaculacy. Our ancestors permitted icons. They did not believe themselves worthy simply for being Exalted, but rather they believed that being Exalted was a chance to prove one’s worth. And they did not think the Mouth of Peace to be the ultimate spiritual authority in Creation.”

“Then they were heretics!” Melody raves, “There’s nothing wrong with nudie playing cards, but you can’t just… plot against the Mouth of Peace!”

“They founded our faith. And that Faith is still practiced today by those who can separate politics from religion. That is what we need to do now. The proper role of the Mouth of Peace is simply to call for peace, yet it is a role the Anathema have perverted to harbor assassins and start revolts. Gan, tell her.”

Ganan doesn’t look up, but talks at his feet, “Certainly scripture doesn’t actually state that the Mouth of Peace is infallible.”

Melody looks at Ganan, “But you’re still worried about Rey’s soul.”

“The Immaculate Faith is an anachronism: what they practice in Lookshy is not the same as what our ancestors believed.” Ganan says without looking up, “But… she might have a point. The Immaculate Order is a political vessel, and elements of it have been turned against us. Given what we know about the Mouth of Peace’s secretary, we would be naive not to consider the possibility of the Order being compromised. Even if that means bearing that on our souls.”

Melody folds her arms over her chest, “Well I’m not fighting the Mouth of Peace.”

Reya spreads her palms, “I’m not asking you to. But we might need to save her from Chejop Kejak.”

****

They fly back to the Imperial City as evening falls. Troops parade out of the City, once more it seems the entire capital is preparing for war. Berit meets them outside of the Palace.
“Ledaal Ludila sent word ahead of you.” She explains, “A creative solution to bring our enemies to our banner and swell our forces. Not, precisely, the demonstration of loyalty Mnemon wanted, but V’neef and I agree this is better.”

“I should like to see my daughter.” Reya states simply.

Berit gives her a short nod, “Of course, you know we are all on the same side. Your daughter is practically my grandniece.” She gestures and Aline comes forward with baby Lezabe.

Ganan smiles at the baby and Reya checks them over quickly.
“I meant my other daughter. I want to see Nula.” Reya says.

“You weren’t specific.” Berit’s voice isn’t cruel, just matter-of-fact, “She’s already marched south against Ragara Banoba.” Her face is unreadable.

“Has she,” Ganan states, his voice suspicious and angry.

Berit regards them carefully, “You all four told the same story. You eagerly went out to prove your loyalty. Mnemon was satisfied. So am I.”

“She was wounded.” Ganan says, his voice clipped.

“As were you.” Berit gestures at Ganan, who is still carrying obvious wounds, “Please, rest awhile in the City. With all that you have done for the Realm you deserve a respite.”

“General, if it’s all the same to you, I think we’d all rather join the attack on Banoba,” Melody says quickly before Reya or Ganan says something they might regret.

“The strategy has already been formulated.” Berit waves dismissively and turns to Reya, “There isn’t a role for you. But if you are ready for another mission, then your daughter is attached to some auxiliaries using experimental firewands. I have just, within this hour, learned of a potential threat to their firedust supplies: an aide can give you the details if you wanted a valid reason for going South – but you will be miles from the front, and I shouldn’t expect Mnemon Alinos Nula to attend you until the battle is done.”

Berit pulls her helmet on, and salutes them, making to leave for the front. An aide in Berit’s colors approach.

“Princes of the Earth,” She bows, “An artificer of House Mnemon developed a new form of firewand, unfortunately, a small strike-force circled past our lines and killed her. We believe that same strike-force is now trying to destroy her legacy. Our intelligence in this entire war has been… lacking, since the destruction of the Sesus legions, but the enemy seems to have an encyclopedic knowledge of our weaknesses. The firedust depot is well behind our main battle-line, but because of this, it is lightly defended. When we learned of the potential threat, Berit was resigned to simply sacrifice it – but if you can deploy quickly enough, you might be able to head them off.”

“What’s so special about these firewands?” Ganan grumps as he folds his arms across his chest.

The aide smiles at him, “They have three-times the normal range. There are… side-effects, the weapons use a vast amount of firedust on every shot, and each barrel must be expertly wrought by a master artisan. Attempts to recreate the weapons since the loss of their inventor have been… unsuccessful.”

Ganan’s face took on a dreamy, far-off look at the idea of “triple range”, and it is not evident how much else he’s heard.

“And this strike-team?” Melody asks.

“We have very little intel on them. They’re led by some kind of pirate reaver – possibly House Peleps, possibly an Outcaste. She has some Immaculate training and fights with wicked claws. The big danger is her lieutenant, I have a sketch…” He hands out a drawing of a fearsome-looking bald-man, the Cathak Mon proudly displayed on his armor, a long, thin beard, and a massive two-handed Direlance, “Fire Aspect, if not a Cathak then a damn good impression of one. He’s a headsman. Literally. Chops the heads off his enemies, a real nasty piece of work.”

Ganan knits his brow, “Just two of them?”

Berit’s aide shuffles uncomfortably, “There might be a pair of Anathema aiding them.” She drops her voice almost imperceptibly low and leans in, “Lunars.” She straightens up, and resumes her normal volume, speaking somewhat more quickly, “Of course nothing is confirmed. But they’ve been seen in the presence of mortals – merchants, peasants, naval marines, children – and they’ve been seen in the presence of V’neef’s, Tepet’s, even a Mnemon. Either they have a vast network of traitors… or a pair of shape-changers.”

“You want to send us against two Anathema?” Reya leers at Berit’s aide, who shifts uncomfortably under her gaze.

“A-a-as I said… Berit was resolved to losing the depot… until you said you wanted to join the war effort.” The aide stammers.

“Join the effort. Not get killed.” Ganan says, “We need to redirect forces from the main battle-line.”

The aide shakes her head, “Ragara Banoba’s force is vast, but it’s fractured. He doesn’t command the respect that Cainan did: no powerful matriarch, no throne, no Imperial Navy. But he has a vast array of mercenaries. He needs to strike now before his coalition falls apart. This would suit us: we can’t govern with an army encamped in the middle of the Blessed Isle, but with House Nellens on the other side of the Isle, and House Sesus all but destroyed, we are badly outnumbered. And to make matters worse, the enemy seems to know our moves before we make them, they are always one step ahead.”

“What about Mnemon’s-” Ganan begins before Reya shuts him up by hitting him in the ribs.

“The Thousand-Forged Dragons?” The aide intuits, “Mnemon sent one against Banoba’s forces. No-one is sure how, but somehow he was able to take command of it. It remains unclear whether the second will be vulnerable. Mnemon is still sore about the loss: it’s not wise to talk about it, especially if you’re out of favor with her.”

“So… no reinforcements then?” Melody says.

The aide looks ashamed, “I’m sure Berit wouldn’t mind if you just… stayed here?”

Reya glares at him, “Where is this depot?”

****

The sun is setting as they Stormwind into the camp, twenty miles north of Incas (and a little way inland). A Scale of Mnemon liveried soldiers march in Fangs of five around the camp, securing the borders.

Reya gives the correct authorizations, and the lead mortal shows them to a crude, wooden, munitions building. It’s stacked with carefully packed firedust crates. Ganan makes his way through the room, and spotting an oilcloth he unwraps one of the prototype weapons.

“Is this it?” He asks, examining the breach-loader. It is superbly wrought and fashioned into the likeness of a serpentine dragon.

Reya comes up behind him as he turns the weapon in his hands, “That good.”

Ganan nods, mutely, considering. “This was assembled by a master artisan. The artistic flourishes complement the design – which is precise. A savant with unparalleled attention to detail created this.”

“Can you recreate it?” She asks.

Ganan considers for a moment longer before nodding again, “The experimental process might be… explosive.”

Reya nods back, “Can you rig this building to explode?” (-10SP: 9GP, 4SP)

****

“Are you sure they’re here?” A woman’s voice, calm and professional as her team moves under the cover of darkness.

“They’re here, and we need to get them back before Mnemon uses them to do any more damage.” Another woman, clearly frustrated, perhaps a little scared.

A gruff man snorts, “I am still not convinced that it’s worth all this effort.”

A child’s voice, “That’s the last of the guards.”

“Are they-?” The second woman again.

“They’ll live.” The child replies.

“I preferred it when I didn’t realize how dangerous you are tea-master.” The gruff man intones, “This building?”

He hauls the doors to the building open and is greeted with a massive fireball.

Ganan, Reya, and Melody leap from the shadows: they burst from concealment, Melody on the back of her phantom mount.

The Cathak Headsman picks himself up from the ground, head ringing, and he moves to defend the Peleps Reaver.

Ganan crosses the distance between them, already lying in wait as a body of shadow, sitting in Earth Dragon Form. The Headsman catches sight of the immaterial shadow in the glint of his weapon’s steel and he twists at the last moment to block Ganan’s tetsubo as Ganan’s kiai rends the barrier between the material and immaterial. Ganan’s blow connects and sends the Headsman reeling.

The Boy is already on his feet. He sees Melody aiming at the Reaver and rushes at her. He slashes her with a needle, and Melody’s head rushes as colors swirl before her eyes.

The Reaver sees her Headsman fighting an invisible foe. She struggles to her feet and settles into a fighting position.

Melody takes her eyes off the Reaver to snap a shot at the Boy attacking her. Her anima storms to its full brilliance as the arrow glances off the Boy, smashing against his skin as it if were hardened steel. The boy staggers back, and Melody rears her steed away from him as he reels.

Reya speaks the Burning Name and sends a jet of flame at the Reaver. She recedes with the practice movements of Water Dragon Style, but her anima is clearly Earth Aspected as it rises around her.

The Inventor levels a firewand at Melody riding her charger rides through the melee. A great whoosh of flame flashes between her and her mount, and continues for a clear thirty yards behind her. Her firewand has maybe four times the range of a standard weapon.

The flames of the burning armory flicker as Ganan closes in on his prone foe. He punts the Headsman into the burning building and turns to close in with the Reaver.

Melody’s mouth goes numb as she lines up another shot on the Boy. For a moment she feels a mother’s pang of conscience. Then she puts it from her mind. Drawing on her most lethal trainings, she looses on the Boy. Her arrow explodes into thorns as it catches him in the throat and he drops to his knees, clutching at the wound as he bleeds between his fingers. Melody looks away and tries to hold back the tears.

The Reaver can’t see Ganan. She circles warily, dropping into a full guard.

The Inventor reloads her firewand, pouring a vast amount of firedust into the mouth of her weapon as she rushes to the Reaver’s flank.

The Boy, slick with blood, seems to merge into the shadows. The burning armory building casts an eerie light over the battlefield as he slips from view.

The bonfire seems to grow as the Headsman rises from the burning wreckage of the building. Flames lick around him sinisterly as he eyes the battlefield.

Ganan aims the Reaver, wanting every advantage for his next blow and allowing his energies to rebuild.

The Reaver slams back-to-back with the Inventor, shouting a quick warning about an invisible foe.
The Inventor nods grimly, sighting Melody (as she blinks tears and smoke from her eyes). She fires an impressive blast of flame that knocks Melody from the back of her horse. Melody lies on the ground, winded. Her phantom steed, an extension of her will, does not bolt, but it does ride on a few steps before it realizes it has lost its rider and can arrest its momentum.

Reya throws another blast of flame at the Reaver. Her target’s claws slice through the air, cutting the stream of fire in half.

The Boy appears out of the shadows lashing out with his poison needles. Reya dodges, barely, forced on the defensive by a flurry of blows delivered with honed precision as she’s driven backward.

Melody picks herself off of the ground, shaking her head to clear it. It’s been a long time since she has been forced off of a horse. Her anima rages around her as her powers recover.

The Headsman barrels towards Ganan. He slices through the air, guessing at Ganan’s position with his own spirit rending shout. His mighty blade rings out against Ganan’s Invulnerable Skin, scuffing him slightly off-balance.

Ganan staggers back under the hit. His shadow form slips behind the Reaver and he smashes forward with his tetsubo. There is a satisfying crunch as his Earth Aspected foe is thrown forwards into the burning building, face-first.

Reaver pulls herself out of the burning building and sees Melody on foot. She sprints towards her, slashing out with her claws. Melody ducks and dodges as this new onslaught wrong-foots her and sets her back.

The Boy feints and drops under Reya’s guard. He drives a poison needle into her leg, and Reya’s world goes blurry. She draws the aegis of her shield to protect her body from the poison.

The Inventor waits for the perfect moment between the Reaver’s strikes to join her blow to her companions. Flames leap out, burning Melody’s side badly.

Needing breathing room, Melody ducks under her attacker’s swings and bolts for the shadows, easily escaping as she shakes off the last of the poison.

Reya smashes forward with her shield, hammering her child-like foe with a slab of solid jade. The sudden, furious assault catches the Boy off-guard and bludgeons him unconscious.

The Headsman’s massive weapon transcribes a deadly arc where Ganan’s head should be. It rings out against Ganan’s Invulnerable Neck, but the force of the blow still bruises his windpipe, forcing the wind out of him. The Headsman follows his attack up with a body blow. His mystic weapon hammer’s Ganan’s already battered body, sending him staggering back.

The Headsman lines up for a decapitating blow and strikes again. Ganan’s Invulnerable Skin explodes outward under the impact, the magic ameliorating the blow.

The Reaver crosses to Reya as the Boy goes down. She leaps at her, slashing out with her tiger claws. Reya interposes her shield as steel strikes jade, but the flurry of blows causes her to lose her footing, leaving her wide open for a deadly attack.

Melody fires an arrow at Reya’s attacker. The Reaver leaps back, buying Reya just a fraction of breathing space.

The Inventor pours more firedust into her weapon, her eyes frantically trying to find Ganan’s invisible form.

Ganan barrels into the Headsman, knocking him to the ground once more. The Headsman lands badly as Ganan surges over him: he doesn’t let him recover his footing, bringing his tetsubo down again to smash the Headsman’s face in.

“Zhao!” The Inventor cries as Ganan’s shadow flickers over the body.

Reya recovers her footing, speaking the Burning Name to drive her foe back another step.

Melody fires on the Reaver again, keeping the pressure on. She continues to recede like the tide before the onslaught.

Reya tucks in behind her shield and throws herself forward like a bullet, bludgeoning the Reaver under the solid weight of her body. She rolls with the blow and passes Reya off to the side, but has to wrench herself awkwardly to do it.

The Inventor fires on Reya, flames licking her jade shield and splitting her focus. And then Ganan is upon her, smashing her to the ground with his tetsubo.

The Reaver surges forward, slashing at Reya even as she takes a defensive position. Between the firewand and the tiger claws, Reya is thoroughly buffeted.

Ganan fights through the biting wind of the Inventor’s Air Anima as he smashes her downed form with a back-breaking blow. She blacks out underneath him.

Melody puts an arrow into the Reaver. It impacts her shoulder with a sickening thud.

Reya speaks the Burning Name a final time and the Reaver is ignited, going up in a pillar of flame. She screams for a moment before falling in a heap on the ground.

Ganan becomes solid again, walks round to the Boy, and batters his brains over the rocks. The corpse takes the shape of a grown man. Then he walks to the Headsman and slips a knife between his ribs.

“Don’t even start!” He tells Reya as he makes his way over to the burnt remains of the Reaver to make sure she’s dead.

Reya collapses her arms by her sides and lays on the ground looking up at the sky. Melody quietly makes her way over to the Inventor and slips out her healing tools.
After dealing with the Reaver, Ganan calls out to Melody, “You got that one?”

“Uh-huh!” Melody calls as she works on stabilizing the Inventor.
“Well don’t go through her pockets!” Ganan calls, “That’s just nasty.” He walks over to Reya and sits on the floor next to her. “She’s healing her, isn’t she?”

“I don’t care.” Reya sighs, her ears still ringing from the explosion. She lies there for a while, not moving, then pushes herself up into a sitting position. “‘Back’.” She sighs and wanders over to Melody. Ganan doesn’t bother to follow after, moving back around the bodies to strip them.

“‘Back.’” Melody says as Reya walks over.

“Yes, I heard her too.” Reya squats awkwardly, “Melody, is there anything good that can come of this?”

Melody looks at her, “You might be ready to side with Mnemon against the Mouth of Peace, but I’m not. I married into your crazy family, but that doesn’t mean I support Mnemon no matter what. This woman designed these weapons – and I’m willing to bet her family name is ‘Mnemon’.”

Reya just stares at her.

Melody puts her tools away, “You get that she’s you right? The golden child, favorite daughter? Right up to the point where she’s no longer useful and now she’s a threat to be removed. We are sitting firmly in ‘threat’ territory right now, and I’m not convinced that Mnemon on the throne is still the best option for us.”

A new voice, weak and bruised, “It’s not.” The Inventor coughs and struggles to draw breath as she comes to.

Ganan plods over, carrying one of the experimental firewands (and a bundle containing the looted artifacts), “Impressive design. Your work?”

The Inventor turns her head to look at him, “Yes.” She admits, the word sounds tortured.

Melody hands Ganan the Inventor’s weapon, and he examines it.

“This is even better.” Ganan nods, “Do you have a name?”

The Inventor turns her face away, “You can call me ‘Issa’.”

Melody takes Issa’s hand, “And would your mother have attached, ‘Mnemon’ to that?”

A single tear rolls down Issa’s face, and she nods slightly, “You do not understand what she will do with my weapons.”

Reya folds her arms, “Well if you’re awake and chatting, perhaps you’d like to tell us?”

“Is my Hearth dead?” Issa asks, not looking at her.

“Yes.” Ganan says bluntly, “I killed them, these two like to take Dynasts alive, but your Anathema Boy left me no choice.”

“Then why would I help you?” Issa says.

Reya stands and looms over her, “I am Mnemon Alinos Danireya. I sieged the Imperial Palace and killed Cathak Cainan. I ventured into the Imperial Manse and I killed Ragara. As things stand, I’m going to drag you in chains back to Mnemon and throw you at her feet. So by all means, stay truculent.”

“I was there. When Mnemon took Jiara. She used explosives I designed to blow open the city gates. Then we used firewands to burn out the rebel Prince from the mining town she fled to. Fire swept through the city. I can still smell the bodies. That is the great victory that she flouts as proof of her right to rule: a massacre perpetrated with my weapons. And that’s what she promises for the Blessed Isle. Her enemies will burn. And then the Threshold will burn.”

****

Correspondence between Mnemon Alinos Danireya and Mnemon:

*

4th Day of Ascending Water

Her Royal Highness Mnemon,

As per my previous correspondence, the rebellion in Pangu has been resolved. The smallfolk chant your name and now march under your banner. I remain concerned by the hold the Immaculate Order has in the region, given recent revelations.

Responding to the threat identified by Berit’s military intelligence, the Peleps-Cathak infiltrators and their Anathema ally have been stopped, with extreme prejudice. I have taken a quite unexpected prize, that I would deliver to you in person, yet Berit has asked that we hold this position.

I long to fight at your side in the coming battles, and in so doing prove my loyalty and re-earn your favor.

Your Faithful Servant,
Mnemon Alinos Danireya

*

5th Day of Ascending Water

Mnemon Alinos Danireya,

Hold position. What prize?

Mnemon-Denka

*

6th Day of Ascending Water

Her Royal Highness Mnemon,

I am wary of committing too much to the page, your Exalted Greatness, but it would appear that the inventor of your new firewand weapons was merely abducted by our enemies and not killed as initially believed. She has suffered great mental torture – no doubt the work of the Anathema – but we have successfully liberated her. I have separated her from the fighting women, and I am keeping her under constant guard. (For her own protection, of course.)

My husband works tirelessly on reproducing the improved firewands, and I have every confidence that he will be able to reproduce their secrets.

I beg that you simply give me the chance to prove myself: there is more I can do in your service if only you would make use of me.

Your Humble and Obedient Servant,
Mnemon Alinos Danireya

*

Reply sent the same day

My dear, my very dear, Great Granddaughter,

My poppet, my pigsnie, please put from your head this notion that I am in any way displeased with your conduct. I take full responsibility, of course. That Berit met with you outside of the Imperial Palace was only because of the great haste required to head-off Ragara Banoba’s forces, sweet child. Had circumstances allowed it, I would have been overjoyed to receive you personally in my chambers. Likewise, if my previous letter seemed at all… ‘distant’, then, be assured my precious daughter, that this is only because of those same time pressures. Were it not for this damnedable war, I should have more time for my beloved family. I do not expect old heads on young shoulders: with your recent triumphs, it is hard to recall just how young you are. Put all thoughts of ‘favor’ and ‘proving oneself’ aside: I am very proud of you. (I shall be calling upon you in the coming months for your aid in claiming my mother’s manse.)

I am most pleased to hear that you have managed to recover your lost cousin. She is no doubt… troubled by her experience. Hold your course. Should you be able to return her to a state of usefulness, this would be desirable, but no blame will be attached to you should she prove a lost cause.

On review of Berit’s tactical information, I believe it is no longer necessary to have you relegated to some distant camp, and my personal presence on the front is no longer required. Attend me presently in the Imperial City.

Your Affectionate Grand Daimother,
Mnemon
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Dynasty of Dovak