AlaronChildrenOfTheRealm/SchoolStoryIdeas

The story begins with the players being transferred to a new school after budget cuts closed their old ones. The setting is a bit more doom-and-gloom than the canon. War is not mentioned yet openly but everyone knows it is imminent in the realm. Corruption and embezzlement in the wake of the Empress' disappearance are rife and known. The peasants are suffering from starvation and disease, and the number of disenfranchised has skyrocketed due to lack of money for the increasing taxes.

The students arrive mid-term during the second week of Ascending air. They are new, untrusted and generally disliked by the class. The dominie places them all in a shared room for the first month while gender-segregated rooms are prepared. I have guided them through character creation to ensure their characters are compatible with one another.

After an initial warming period in which the characters will have time to get to know one another and learn a bit about the named NPCs. They will make allies and enemies, and spend a few sessions simply doing the schoolkid thing.

The first "Story", and the trigger for following stories, begins with the characters noticing the constant alienation of Peleps Ramse Jonen, the paraplegic girl. It is evident that this bullying has been happening for some time, and that Ramse doesn't have any true friends (Although Mnemon Tak considers herself a friend).

Soon after, the evening tea that all Dynast schools allow their students to enjoy will feature an uncharacteristically sweet tea, with a bitter tang to it. This tea is in fact concentrated maiden tea, heavily sweetened to make it palatable and desirable to the children. The PCs will be mysteriously warned not to drink the tea, normally by Anita (Although among my PCs is a semi-autistic character with "Unbidden Oracle", so I might use that instead..).

The other children in their year will mostly drink their fill of this rare dessert, barring Ramse, who will plead illness, and Sesus Arianna, who will arrive late and will exclaim publicly after taking a sip: "This is maiden tea!"

The immediate consequence is, of course, sickness, vomiting and genital pain for those who drank more than half a cup. Many of the students are feared to have become infertile, and despite attempts to cover up the event news of the fiasco will reach the parents. Hordes of furious parents and guardians will descend on the school, demanding blood. Any students known to have abstained from the evening tea will be investigated (interrogated) by the school staff and the Dominie personally. A sizable portion of the year will be removed and relocated by their parents from the school.

With a little luck, the players can trace the plot back to Ramse, whose mother orchestrated the plan. Ramse herself did not like the idea, but saw an element of justice in it anyway. Whatever they choose to do about it, the reputation of the school is destroyed. Cutbacks lead to less comfortable rooms, understaffing, removal of personal room attendants etc.

The next story follows the longer term consequences from the eyes of the characters. Between the plot and the revelation (If there was one) that Ramse's mother was the culprit, fingers were pointed and comments thrown. The powerful parents of the students at the school flared into action, blaming old enemies, polarising with allies and generally creating a stir. These revived enemities now become obvious in the school, as students recieve letters warning them of other students. Packages arrive for some, containing small weapons and even artifacts for their protection. Personal bodyguards become a more common sight.

In the midst of this mistrust, the PCs are encouraged not to trust one another by their parents, and have to weather their friendship through paranoia and witch hunts. Anyone who bought Artifact at character creation might recieve them now if the ST chose to postpone their arrival.

This "story" continues until the beginning of the next one. During it, the players recieve word and rumour of a massing army on the shores of the nearest Shadowlands to the city (Thorns, for example, if the school were near the Imperial manse). Word has it that the Deathlord (Whomever he may be) has sensed the weakness of the Realm and prepares an assault, although there are no movements of the Legions to guard the shore (Such movements could be construed as the controlling force attempting to consolidate power, especially if the city is near the imperial manse).

The next story begins with word that a minor attack by sea has taken place on an adjecent town, but that the forces of the realm threw it back with minimal casualty. In fact, and rumours in the city attest to this, the attack was as minor as stated but rampaged virtually unchecked in the city for a time before dispersing into the countryside when local militia arrived. Word has it that anathema led the assault and reports of attacks and raids on the roads by undead and hungry ghosts abound.

The Houses agree to allow an imperial legion to be diverted to the affected city, and a lockdown ensues to maintain the cover story of an effective and overwhelming defense. No-one is allowed in or out of the city, and the Deliberative announces that the Deathlord in question issued an apology and sued for peace after seeing the might of the unified Realm.

What began as paranoia progresses to panic. The parents start withdrawing their students from the region and moving them, or home-schooling them. The dominie, in desperation, announces that she is tripling the guard on the school and that the students are only allowed to certain destinations outside the school and always with an armed guard. The students are still technically not allowed arms although the school authorities overlook the rule to give the parents peace of mind.

At some stage an incursion by a band of hungry ghosts or zombies occurs in a public place in the city or even in the school grounds. The PCs see the horror and the fear in their classmates, even the dragonblooded children (Who were previously built up through description as being amazingly powerful). This incursion is put down with great loss of life in a gruesome fashion by the city or school guard.

The state of alarm escalates with word that another attack may be imminent, or that the dispersed original army may be preparing to strike their city next. It culminates in (You guessed it) a full attack on the city and school by the aforementioned army and a minor naval attack. The city is razed around the children and the death of known classmates and perhaps favoured teachers brings the real certainty of death to the PCs. As all hope seems lost, Anita appears, bypassing the school guard (or invaders) and guiding the players and perhaps two other children out of the school through one of many hidden passages in the school. It opens in a small cave with a jetty, where a boat waits to take them away.

They escape the violence with a grand view of the burning city and the sounds of screaming in their ears. The last memory of their school is a smell of burning flesh drifting out to sea.

After this comes the round-the-world trip taken by Anita, where she shows them (or tries) that the Anathema are not evil, and that the true threat lies within the Realm and from the Deathlords. Her intent is that they will Exalt, and that the Loyal Dragonbloods allied with her can help her do something no Solar can: Destroy a Monstrance of Celestial Portion belonging to Mask of Winters, freeing the Deathknights under his command. It is up to the ST how she goes about this, but I will write my (hopefully) version of events under PostSchoolIdeas.