BujiJournal/Session1
Key Players: Euclid, Night Caste; Zeng Gao, Zenith Caste; Unnamed, Changing Moon; Malachite, Earth Aspect.
Extras: Walker in the Mist, local folk-lore demon; Unnamed, Dragon-Blooded huntsman; Unnamed, Dragon-Blooded huntsman; Unnamed, Dragon-Blooded huntsman; 20 Extras for Wyld Hunt; Gregor Oakfield, Guild caravan master; Casius Bic, Guild Merchant Prince.
On the 14th day in the Resplendence of Wood the Guild docked in Dargon's Pier. Once a month this small harbor town bustled with all the citizens of the area eager for trade. The Guild had made it a regular stop along their route down the river. Easily set up off the docks the Guild could trade and sell from the luxuries of the boat and save vast amounts of time in the lack of loading and unloading that normally occurred in other cities along the river. The people were more relaxed here and always extending a great sense of hospitality to the Guild. For the entire middle week of the resplendent month the Guild filled the town. Rooms, pubs, brothels and streets were filled with all of the Guild's entertainers and merchants. Throughout the rest of the time Dargon's Pier awaited the next visit from the Guild becoming dependant upon their visits for their livelihood.
During these visits the locals would bring all of their wares to sell and trade. The entire region would make time to travel to Dargon's Pier in order to do business and to see what new wonders were being discovered around the world. It was a time to forget the horrors of the world, the demons that stalked the area and the growing rumors of Anathema and undead rising up from the ground everywhere one looked. The majority of the locals are farmers and miners constantly on the lookout of predators or cave-ins that constantly threaten their families’ lives, these visits from the Guild brought them security and comfort for nothing had even gone wrong while the Guild was in town. A naive notion that would quickly be shattered.
On this day, as the Guild began to fill the streets, with the festivities just begin to roll out a band of Dragon-Blooded came to town. Cutting a path through the crowds and silencing the joyous sounds as they stormed through the town they scoured the streets searching for their prey. On the other side of the pier a large explosion could be heard. The entire town fell quiet fearing the worst. All at once a group of Guild merchants started clamoring and pushing each other aside to see what had happened. It turns out the Guild had a new weapon it was showing off to the town.
The Dragon-Blooded split up throughout the crowd as they searched, their mortal foot soldiers shadowing their movements. The streets again began to fill with lively sounds as people did their best to ignore their new guests. Cautiously watching, Euclid, our unExalted Night Caste, moved his way through the crowd towards the new weapon brought to town. There amidst all the salivating merchants stood someone who he recognized from the area but did not know anything about. He was standing there with a flamewand resting over his shoulder still smoking from the discharge. Thirty feet away in the side of a large boulder were shards of crystalline jetting out in a cluster. The merchants had gathered around him to learn his secret and to persuade him to sell his goods to only them. A few answers make it out of the droning of questions, "Alabaster powder" is the only intelligible muttering that escapes the crowd. Handing the flamewand back to the merchants he calmly watches as they step on each other not only in person but in price to secure trade with him.
Seeing a firewand in person excited Euclid to no end. He had heard wonderous stories of them and what all they could do so he took advantage of this opportunity to buy one. No sooner had he laid his hands upon the brass chamber of his new prized possession did the Dragon-Blooded call out.
"Now!" Shouted the fire-aspected Dragon-Blood and with that all three Dragon-Blooded ignited their animas. A brilliant hue of red filled the area around the leader. The other two were surrounded by billowing fiery white auras depicting their earth-aspects. The streets cleared quickly as the locals ran for cover leaving Euclid standing there with weapon in hand and an innocent look on his face. Turning to the merchant he just bought the weapon from he takes a single shot for the weapon and says "I'll pay you for this shortly."
Remaining in the street is Euclid, a simple monk watching everything with an amused interest and a shadowy cloaked figure. Watching from the brothel porch stood a drunken hermit who mutters "This won't turn out well ..."
Realizing that perhaps he is overwhelmed, Euclid decides to outwit the closet earth-aspect to him. Raising the flamewand up to the Exalt's face he quietly says "I hear these things make a big mess out of someone's head."
Faster than he can recognize the earth-aspect snatches him off his feet and holds him in the air by his neck. "Listen ... boy. We are here to slay a monster that is in the area. We don't have time to deal with the likes of you."
Tossing back her cloak, the shadowy figure stands up and says "Release him!" as she shifts her body into a were-panther and faces down the Dragon-Blooded. The Dragon-Blooded all smile as they have flushed out their prey. The hunt would almost be a challenge if they didn't care so much for the lesser beings populating the earth. The smile on their faces is soon washed away though as the adrenaline pulsing through Euclid soon rages beyond anything he has ever felt. The fiery anima of the earth-aspect begins to mute and then is overwhlemed by the aura of the Night Caste. Slowly turning his head he realizes exactly what he is holding onto as the blazing sigil of the Night shines from his forehead ... he never sees the Lunar strike him.
The drunken hermit calls out to the fire-aspect "It's best time you kids go home before someone gets hurt."
Turning from the fight he looks at the old man and retorts "Dodderish old man, we ARE what keeps you from being hurt."
"Wrong," as he stands up straight "I am what keeps this town safe!" as he explodes into full anima.
Seeing his fellow Terrestrials in trouble he motions for the mortal foot soldiers to dispatch the rogue Dragon-Blooded. "You should have remembered your alligence to the Realm." he calls out as he rushes into attack the Celestial Exalts.
Euclid in an attempt to escape had climbed up and wrapped himself around the arm of the earth-aspect who held him. The earth-aspect maneuvered to avoid being cut open by the Lunar's tiger fork and waiting for assistance in the fight. As the struggles and fighting surged throughout the street and the porch of the brothel the lone monk stood in the street in a trance. Then with a single tear rolling down his cheek exploded into full iconic glory shifting the tides of the battle immensely against the Wyld Hunt.
"I am here to reclaim what you have taken from my Lord!" With that he leapt into the fray.
The Lunar and fire-aspect went round and round stirring up the dust in the street and spilling each others blood nearly with each blow. Euclid continued to dodge away from the earth-aspect who pursued him and led him into attacks from his brethren. Flurries of knives flying from Euclid pierced the Dragon-Blood whose armor absorbed most of the killing blow. Landing on the head of a foot soldier the monk flipped over the head of Euclid's attacker wrapping his seven-section staff around his neck and throwing him across the street landing solidly upon his back. From there he leapt again through the air and seeing an opportunity to land on the fire-aspect who was just knocked across the pier and on his back by the Lunar. Landing with a resounding thump upon his groin, the monk brought his staff down across the face of the fire-aspect and then flipped off onto his next victim.
Meanwhile the drunken hermit continued to toss about the foot soldiers and wrapping a large group of them together he slammed their heads into the ground. Finishing off the standing foot soldiers he moved to the fire-aspect. The Lunar, using her tiger fork, vaulted up into the air. Curling her body into a tight ball she spun towards her target unfolding at the last moment with her tiger fork to drop her foe. Euclid using his unnatural agility ran up a wall to higher elevation and rained down knives against his targets. Within a minute of its beginning the fight had ended. The rogue Dragon-Blooded stood over the beaten and groggy fire-aspect. As he picked up his foe's fallen weapon he said, "I told you to take you axe and go ...", and buried the polearm into the fallen Dragon-Blooded.
The Guild had remained armed and ready the whole time, patiently watching to see with whom they would have the pleasure of assuring trade relations with. Upon their victory the monk declared this town his in the name of the Unconquered Sun, vowing to extinguish any Dragon-Blooded who stood in his way. The drunken hermit shook his head and walked back into the brothel but was not as warmly received as he once was. Euclid rummaged through the bodies to loot the goods and the Lunar shifted back into her true form revealing to everyone who she was. Many of the townsfolk looked in shock unsure and disbelieving their eyes, the girl that had died three years ago in the fog had returned. So what happened to the demon?
Jump to Part 2 of the Spirits of the Dying Court.
Comments
Next game scheduled for 23rd March, update the week following. -Buji
