To My Dear Friend, Whose Name I Will Take the Honor of Leaving Off This Correspondence:

I wish to engage your fine services. It would appear that I have been outmaneuvered by a previously unknown if minor faction of players. 

You may be aware that I have been engaged in some particularly profitable import activities of late. Contacts from dawnward arranged a shipment of nearly-priceless Ayodhyan artifacts including an unusual number of, shall we say, ensorcelled objects that would raise eyebrows in the wrong circles but would definitely fetch truly astounding prices from the right buyers. Things were going swimmingly until the anonymous warehouse I had been using was hit, and after I had been at such pains to pay off the Shrouded not to interfere!

My contacts in the 8-9-3 were practically gloating at the windfall. It seems the scoundrels in question killed my security forces but made off with only one crate, and not even the most valuable one at that, leaving the 8-9-3 to descend like carrion crows. The mysterious assailants allowed two of the security force to survive, although their reports conflicted somewhat. I immediately mobilized my extensive information-gathering organization to track down these villains with all due haste.

My sources were able to identify the names and identities of the two Citizens among them. Vihaan Naraka is a half-elf who has been moping around the Grand Temple of Yama for some time. Ballast is a Cleric of Brahma who spent some time in the navy. There was no obvious reason for either to even know each other let along work with one another. Their associates in crime appeared to be a pair of half-drow: a male and a female. My surviving security forces swore there was at least one halfling in the party that hit the warehouse, but I don't recall seeing one when we caught up to them.

My spies found the four mentioned above hauling a cart through the Silk district. Some of my personal guards, along with the broker of the stolen goods, accosted them. I insisted in no uncertain terms that they return my stolen goods to me. Ballast, who appeared to be the leader, made some quite outrageous statements that flew in the face of all concepts of property ownership, but at least she never came out and directly accused me of importing illegal goods. That honor goes to Vihaan, whose slanderous tongue I would very much like presented to me on a small velvet cushion.

Ultimately, however, they appeared to see reason. As they began to turn over the stolen goods, however, my associate Carmine suggested that I present them a counteroffer, an idea I acted on. After briefly checking the crate to ensure it didn't contain the most valuable items, I offered to let them keep it if they provided the name of whomever hired them to hit my operation. Clearly a rag-tag group of nobodies like this were hired, probably for a pittance, and it was far more valuable to me to know who my true enemy was.

Ballast engaged in a largely-fanciful but engaging tale of how they met their contact, clearly trying to drum up the sense of mystery and intrigue (and therefore, presumably, their own reputations and value as operatives). Ultimately, though, she surprised me by naming Tomasa, a person Carmine had actually heard of. I half-expected them to make up some spurious name in hopes of deceiving me. This Tomasa is apparently a tiefling operative of the Kingdom of Mithila who has been something of a thorn in the side of Carmine's organization. It makes sense that a tiefling would engage local help, as she can hardly show her face here.

Before I could depart with my crate, however, a wretched Inquisitor of Yama showed up with Temple guards. She had apparently overheard more than enough to justify "inviting" me to the Grand Temple to speak with the Judge on the subject of my business dealings. This is going to get very expensive very soon, and I am very annoyed.

Carmine assures me he'll take care of Tomasa. I need you to investigate her patsies further and, if necessary, ensure they're not able or willing to provide testimony in my court case should things come to that.

You have, of course, my eternal thanks (and quite generous monthly payments).

Yours,

Tamoki of the House of Gold

From the Journal of Lankeshvar

It should, I imagine, come as no surprise that the self-described Adventurers I am now traveling with are more complex than the common imagination makes them. You taught me long ago, father, that people contain hidden dimensions, secret complexities, that others cannot or will not see. My own studies have certainly borne that out. But it bears constant reminding, if for no other reason than to fight against the constant and natural urge to oversimplify, to construct compelling narratives that smooth over inconvenient inconsistencies. The old Solar Emperor certainly understood that. He was a master of narrative control. People like their heroes to be simple, to conform to the classic heroic trajectory. My current traveling companions are not as simple as their burgeoning legends would make them out to be.

Oh, they have certainly been involved in events that most would find unbelievable. I read a theory, once, that certain people come to the attention of the gods in ways that become… self-fulfilling, that through their actions, they attract divine attention, which thrusts them into ever greater actions until they become, on some level, more than ordinary mortals. Is this why the old Emperor took a personal interest in them when to all other eyes they were little more than expedition guards in the desert? Is this why Sita gave them audience in the Shadowfell? Is this why Brahma appeared to them, or Sarasvati and Soma invested two of them with divine power during their fight with the Risen Son? It would seem not. Surely the sequence of events in which they were embroiled necessitated such attentions. Everything logically follows from that which came before, yet, now, when faced with the full aggregate tale, it seems far-fetched. Is this how History gets written? Taking fantastic truths and cheapening them with "realistic" lies? I wonder if their legends, in a thousand years, will be more or less glorious than the real events?

But I find myself navel-gazing on paper once more. The journey spinward through the lands of the Empire was largely uneventful. I passed the time by discussing events with my companions, learning their take on the legendary things they have done, getting the tale from the source. There's probably at least one book in it, should I decide to write on the subject. I was particularly interested in their brushes with the divine, and how those encounters may have changed them. 

I find my companions are a complex mix of interpersonal camaraderie and strife. They run the spectrum from pious to pragmatic, altruistic to self-interested. It is clear they have fallen into patterns of behavior with one another than is both contentious and comfortable. I was concerned, at first, that the apparent strife within the group would make us prey for the dangers of the road, but my fears were alleviated watching them in action.

As we crossed the hills toward the great swamp we discovered ourselves being stalked by a pack of gnolls. Keen eyes (or, more accurately, keen noses) and the magic of the druid Panja allowed us to slip our pursuers. There was some debate as to whether these gnolls found us by happenstance or were seeking us specifically. It would seem that they encountered gnolls before when pursuing the Risen Son in the Thar Desert and invoked an illusion of the night hag, the visage of Ratri, the supposed creator of their species as part of their battle. Since she is now our presumed goal, the presence of gnolls seemed a bit much for coincidence, but we determined to press on, and if in fact these gnolls were insistent on finding us specifically we would shortly know it.

The next day we knew it indeed. We had entered the swamp, traveling along something only charitably called a "road", when we once again became aware of a gnoll pack stalking us. We determined to stand our ground and draw the creatures out. Their leader approached, festooned in all manner of macabre trophies and bearing a pocked and scarred countenance even more horrific than his companions. He spoke to my companions in recognition. Indeed, it appeared he was the sole survivor of that long-ago desert encounter, and he seemed to think that the illusion they used to terrify him back then was a divine visitation. He rejected his old service to the undead and embraced the cult of Shurpanakha, lady of claws. Although he seemed grateful to my companions' role in his conversion, he also seemed hungry, and gnolls don't really understand concepts like gratitude. He attacked, wielding obvious supernatural power channelled through a grisly flail. 

My companions operated like a veteran unit. I fear I was of little use to them, although I did manage a few fire cantrips. I had prepared mostly utilitarian magic trusting in the combat abilities of the others, which proved a reasonable tactic. 

Upon their corpses, however, we found traces of a strange magic. The leader had about his neck a shriveled eyeball on a leather thong radiating some combination of Divination and Evocation magic. The others all had small chunks of iron fashioned into the form of fangs that evinced similar enchantment. Xedris determined that the eyeball was enchanted by a different caster than the fangs, but all drew from a similar (if unknown) source. As he and Saatvik prepared to cast identification magic, however, all enchantment left the fangs, leaving only the eyeball, which was apparently an arcane link of some sort to the caster, perhaps even that very caster's own eye. Xedris experimented with placing the eye in their bag of holding, determining that it loses its magic when placed outside the physical world, regaining it once returned to materiality. We opted to leave it in the bag indefinitely.

We camped to recover from our combat and a thick fog arose as darkness fell. Panja determined this to be part of the natural weather cycle, although he did speculate that the fog seemed thicker than it should. He engaged the aid of local wildlife to provide additional warning, and Xedris cast a combination of very useful traveling spells to ward our campsite from discovery and intrusion. Our rest passed without incident.

The fog refused to burn off entirely the next day, however. Panja made it clear that the clinging mists were not natural. We pressed on. Shortly we encountered three women pulling a small cart. There was a hobgoblin named Sheggen, a human named Osah, and a halfling named Criella. They were suitably cautious of travelers but seemed innocent enough. They were hauling a cargo of locally-produced liquor for trade with the Empire. We took their cargo off their hands in exchange for steel tools and trade goods. This didn't benefit us unduly except it provided us with new traveling companions with local knowledge. No longer obligated to travel in the direction from which we came, they accompanied us back in the direction of Heian, the ruined city that acts as something of a center for civilization in the area.

The entire time, the fog never fully lifted. In our traveling conversations we learned some fascinating information of local color, such as the fact that the inhabitants of the swamp have, apparently, preserved the local names and aspected symbology for the various gods, and apparently use an ancient, long-divergent form of the common tongue as their ritual language. Saatvik in particular seemed fascinated by the idea that the gods as he knows them might be worshiped under different names elsewhere… but even more so, that they might actually BE different in some respects to those people who worship that aspect. The idea that there might really be a "Iesa, goddess of secrets" who may differ in concrete ways from "Sarasvati, goddess of learning" was of great interest to him, understandably so.

That evening, we camped in the company of our three new companions. Xedris once more laid down his defenses as the fog thickened. Panja's animal friends called the alarm in the middle of our rest, and Xedris' familiar reported ghostly shapes in the mist that seemed unable to penetrate the camp's defenses. On edge, we passed the time listening to our local companions tell us of these "mist-walkers" who are said to steal children to convert into more mist-walkers. So high is the rate of mortality or disappearance among children in the swamp that a child is not given a true name until they are twelve years of age, an age at which the mist-walkers appear to lose interest. It was at this point that, I think, the true difficulties of life here were made apparent to those of us more used to the comforts of Civilization. 

There's not much more to tell of our journey to Heian. We arrived at the sinking city and were introduced to Fang, an old priest of Iesu who is rather hard of hearing. He did an excellent job of settling us into guest quarters for traveling merchants and has invited us to their great hall, which is apparently a community center of some sort. I'm taking the time to set these words to paper while my companions rest and take some food and water. I look forward to investigating the architecture of this place, but even more so, of learning the nuances of the local religious beliefs. If we are to find Shurpanakha, I suspect we will need to learn all we can of the local Powers.

Kyodai Crimson Fang:

As you know, I've been cultivating a business relationship with Rajeev Two Notes, a bard from Trimurti. He's ostensibly seeking to join the Bardic College of Valor but I have my doubts. Most of his energies appear to be focused on making friends among the underclasses of Lankha, myself included. 

It seems I'm not his only friend. He and a band of others, including known associates of The Beheaded and The Shrouded, have been poking around asking questions about the Slate Maritime Supply warehouse. You and I both know that the Slate brothers have some powerful new patrons looking to use their warehouse to store valuable shipments that have somehow managed to avoid the attention of customs. Rajeev and his friends seem to have figured out that elements within the House of Gold and the House of Copper are involved with this foreign agent Carmine, and I saw no reason not to provide what information I could. Have no fear, I made it very clear to Rajeev that if he and his crew were going to be hitting the warehouse that the 8-9-3 needed our cut. 

Well, it seems they just hit the warehouse. He gave me a heads-up ahead of time, although it seems like maybe they're not hitting the place for simple thievery. Rajeev implied that the authorities were soon going to become involved. They skulked around the warehouse for a bit, quite effectively I'd have to say, although that Forged they have with them for muscle does loom a bit much. I don't think they drew any particular attention to themselves, and if I hadn't been given the heads-up, I probably wouldn't have noticed them either. They went straight for the Slate Brothers' smuggling tunnel. I obviously didn't follow them inside, but only a few minutes later a Dragonborn from the House of Copper emerged, looking wounded and a bit frantic. I actually think she might have been Verdigris, but it was hard to tell in the dark. I'm writing this to you while I wait to see if Rajeev and his companions ever emerge. If it looks like they're carting out goods, I'll be sure to make the 8-9-3's interests clear.

Ysabel

To: Sitara Devi, Councilor of Ayodhya
From: Vorm Longeye
Re: After Action Report

It's still strange to call you by your real name instead of "Onyx" … just as strange as it is to hear my name on your lips. I had become used to "Topaz." Just for the record, I still think keeping our old code-names is a good idea. Things haven't stabilized enough to risk our families and friends, but if you say it's important to send a message of confidence, then I'll do so… albeit grudgingly.

We're nearly at the two month mark since the attack on our city that has resulted in our current, messy situation. We've thrown our lot in with the occupiers who attacked us, which is not a popular move in some circles, but again, I trust you. You say this is the best path to creating new, more egalitarian government and I have no reason to doubt you. Still…

Current death estimates are at nearly 50,000 citizens. Between the Emperor's ritual and the violence in the streets we have been quite literally decimated. The would-be Varunan conquerers, with their Titan of the Sea and creepy army of vaguely snakey soldiers clearly expected to conquer us by force and set themselves up as a new divine ruling class devoted to the sea rather than the sun. A big blue dragon put paid to that plan, and now the Varunan priest Kalyan is our "interim governor" while he desperately tries to avoid being assassinated (although, according to some, he's already been assassinated at least three times. The guy seems to have multiple lives).

You don't need me to tell you all this, of course. You're his new right-hand woman, rooting out Suryan loyalist insurgents, devil-summoners, saboteurs and assassins in the name of "Civilization."

I tell you this because, while I still trust you and follow you, the others in the cell are having second thoughts. It's all well and good to push for a new Council-style government, but we need to make the "interim" part of Kalyan's title a reality sooner rather than later. We need an Ayodhyan in charge of Ayodhya or this whole city is going to go up in flames. Now, my goddess may get a thrill out of that, but I'd rather not get stabbed in the back.

And that is my long-winded way of approaching the subject of this report: The week-long nightmare that has been the visit from the "Regal Swan", a ridiculous boat-temple to Sarasvati that sailed on up to our city without a by-your-leave seeking to spread "cultural understanding" to Ayodhya. Of all the paternalistic bullshit I've seen living under a literally immortal emperor, this takes the cake. All that "art" and "dance" and "music" and "culture" and hedonistic, naive decadence floating on a fragile, intricate machine has been occupying my nightmares for the whole week it was here. How many assassination and sabotage attempts did we foil? Way too many, that's how many.

Don't get me wrong, the whole thing was a marvel, but who sends a floating art museum into a simmering would-be war zone? Their high priestess should have her head examined.

Fortunately not all Sarasvati priests are so clueless. Saatvik shared my nightmares that whole week, I suspect. He and his team did marvels helping out the boat's chief paladin, Kai, along with me and the other security forces you sent. Having Vin there, publicly, probably deterred more attempts than anything. The guy has become a legend, appearing wherever he's not expected to capture or kill insurgents, preaching the ways of his twin goddesses. He's public enemy number one among some of the older noble families. I know there's been at least six assassination attempts on his life in the last month alone. I didn't expect the druid to be much use, but he rooted out at least one infiltrator and seemed to have a knack for finding the parts of the boat least-attended-to which also happened to be the places enemies tended to gravitate to. Even that head-in-the-clouds wizard of theirs got bloodied up a bit, foiling an attack by Twilight himself, or at least an agent of his. That one ended comically (although that's probably the most I need to see of one of Varuna's pet sea monsters). Even Tavi the Terrible proved useful. Her stories of their exploits against the Risen Son gave even the hardcore Suryan loyalists something to think about. Better to be an occupied city than one converted to undead.

The festival is over, the boat survived the various attempts to destroy it or discredit the message it was trying to send of cultural openness and sharing. It's hard to convince a formerly insular and xenophobic society that the rest of the world has anything to offer, but I must grudgingly admit that it did seem to make a difference.

More importantly, all the attempts we foiled netted us some useful prisoners. Hopefully we can finally start taking down the Royal Assassins that have been making life nearly not-life for so many of us.

Oh, as for that other thing, I have three of our most trusted agents ready to start moving around the city disguised as Vinihata, Tavi, etc. to keep up the illusion they're still around. Apparently they're off spinward into the hinterlands on some mission for Videha. Vinihata especially is too good a deterrent to allow to lapse in their absence, so I've done my best to keep their journey a secret. Whatever they're looking for out there, I wish them luck. I don't expect they'll come back. They're not Ayodhyan, after all. They have no reason to care, really, what happens to us so long as our troubles don't spill over into their Kingdom. Still, I gotta give it to them, they put a lot more effort into helping us than I would have expected. So. Good luck to them.

Bah. I've rambled on for too long. Reports are supposed to be concise. I'm a war-cleric not a writer.

Journal of Professor Sanjaya Pandava, Bardic College of Lore, Royal University of Mithila

How can I convey the complex tangle of emotions I'm feeling right now, the immensity of the tragedy and the enormity of the challenges ahead of us? How can I set down in paltry words the awe at the realization that the Eternal Solar Empire is no more, that the Immortal Emperor Rama I is dead, taking many thousands of his own citizens with him in some obscure apotheosis? How can I imagine the unimaginable tragedy of a three-thousand year old story of rape and obsession resulting in the awakening of two of the Ten Great Dragons and the direct conflict between the God of Storms and the God of the Sea? How can I help you, hypothetical future reader, imagine seeing the spectral army of the Glorious Dead outside their realm of Kurukshetra? 

How can I explain what it feels like to finally go home after a century in exile?

The Emperor concluded his multi-millenial plan, whatever it was. He enacted his murderous ritual. He got closure with his "wife," insofar as being impaled on a blade of pure darkness counts as closure. I see it as poetry. I have spent this past month collecting accounts from the chaos. Amidst the tales of pain, exaltation, tragedy and hope it doesn't surprise me to find the five members of my old Team Eka from The Thar Desert Expedition featuring prominently in many stories. I picked them to accompany me on that long-ago trek into the unknown because they all had a certain… spark to them, the hint of untapped potential. They have proven that instinct right in ways I never could have anticipated.

It was from Saatvik that I learned many of the details of the Emperor's ritual, as well as the twisted family backstory that underpinned it. It was, after all, Saatvik and his companions to whom the Emperor chose to reveal the true story of his long-distant young adulthood; the version of the story where his marriage wasn't the perfect ideal of noble marital devotion but rather a story of mind-control and rape. From the Emperor's own mouth he told a tale subversive to his own millennial campaign of propaganda, a story of covetous lust and kidnapping, exile and the eventual escape of his "wife" as Surya transformed them into the first wave of high Elves. He never saw her again, but according to Saatvik she joined with the rebellion of Aranyani, ultimately ascending to the Feywild alongside her new mistress and, over the millenia, ultimately seized control of the Shadowfell as the "Lady of Blades." All of this, of course, after bearing twin sons, one of whom rebelled against his mother in the way most calculated to hurt her… fleeing to find and learn from his father.

This misguided youth ultimately unlocked the loopholes in the laws of death, becoming the source of one of the greatest threats to the Whorl. Mithila fought back the undead hordes of The Risen Son millennia ago, and my old friends from Team Eka thwarted his more recent attempts at domination with the aid of the Emperor himself, but the Emperor plays a long game. His undead son's phylactery was the very golden statue of Sita, his "wife", that sits beside him on his throne in Ayodhya. His son's understanding of the laws of death were instrumental to the Emperor's own apotheosis. He set in motion the events that would permit his son to succeed him as Emperor, conceivably ushering in a new Empire of Undeath if Saatvik and his companions weren't there to stop him.

So. My tendency to ramble catches up to me. I'll try to be succinct: The Emperor built in secret a Titan of the Sea in collaboration with Varuna and his priesthood, using a secret work force of Yuan-Ti. With this devastating marvel of thaumaturgy he planned to conquer his own city in the name of chrysalis, transformation, an end to the Surya-worshiping stagnation in which it has been spiraling since the Great War… but not really. As with all things related to the Emperor, he has many reasons. In truth, he was tired of his immortal life, unique in the Whorl, and sought personal chrysalis, transformation, into something semi-divine, and he did not care what state he left his empire in when he left. 

He came out of his palace in the company of his golden statue "wife" to address the thousands of loyal citizens flocking in the Grand Plaza. He made utterances guaranteed to enrage Sita should she be watching through the eyes of one of her warlocks, which he knew she was. He then invoked long-prepared sympathetic magic to summon and trap her in the statue made in her likeness, whereupon she, driven by her hatred and rage, impaled him on a blade of night. This marked their first face-to-face meeting in nearly three thousand years, and he smiled. That's when all 15,000 or so citizens filling the Grand Plaza died as golden paving-tiles inscribed with symbols of death activated, the blood fountaining to form chains of red mist binding their souls to the dying Emperor. In this way he broke the gates of the Halls of the Dead and went… somewhere else. I suppose someday we'll know where.

And that's when his son struck. The golden body, you see, was his phylactery, and now his hated mother was trapped within it. He sought to bind her soul to his service, and that's when Team Eka struck. It seems that Tavi Agarwal, known nowadays as "Tavi the Terrible", more than a mere treasure-hunter, now a bound warlock to Sita, acted as a conduit for her rage. Supported by the others she fought the animate statue of Sita who had been stuck to her marble throne through prior subterfuge. The Risen Son, enraged by his immobility, raised all 15,000 dead citizens to undeath. The team had to withstand not only a steady horde, but also the dread Scorpion Guard of the dead Emperor and the Risen Son's own faithful lieutenants until such a time as Tavi could destroy the statute, Saatvik could pull the golden heart from its chest that bound the Risen Son to this plane, and his threat could be extinguished for good.

Some might fault me for focusing so much on the sordid family dynamics of the royal family rather than the devastation wrought by the Titan of the Sea as it rose to assault the city, disgorging an army of Yuan-Ti and Varuna's Children. Some might take issue with me glossing over the sudden stormclouds and the arrival of the Great Dragon Nila the Blue, bearing the word of Indra that War is Forbidden, and ordering all parties to lay down their arms. Some might take me to task for neglecting to speculate on how and why Tamra the Copper appeared and seemed to attack her own draconic sibling. Some might ask if it's true that the spectral Glorious Dead of Kurukshetra manifested in the Grand Plaza to make war upon the undead horde. What is there to say? Everyone saw these events. Everyone has a family member or friend who died in the torrents of seawater, the collapsing buildings, the lightning strikes, the rampaging corpses. I would prefer to focus on the small heroisms: the resistance cells, normally fractious and divided, disagreeing on how best to oppose an Emperor who, by his own hand, had just made their struggle obsolete, dedicating their efforts to evacuation and protection of the citizenry. The common people who, seeing opportunity, rose up against their oppressors, breaking the chains that literally bound demons to this world, often at the cost of their lives. The illegal priests to gods now at war struggling to see to Civilization amidst chaos.

And, ultimately, Nila destroyed the Titan. The city's beleaguered defenders, alongside the invaders, destroyed the undead. Our new governor Kalyan has been robbed of his dream of being a new Emperor and has been forced by circumstance to throw his efforts into a broader council, a coalition of factions. And this, the aftermath, the rebuilding, is where the real story lies.

There is Vinihata, alongside his reluctant druid companion Panja, putting in long hours digging survivors out of the rubble, preaching the virtues of Civilized behavior and the mixed blessings of the Twin Goddesses. There they are helping Onyx and her progressive cell of insurgents organize communities of commoners to demand a place at the table while a new government is formed. 

There is Saatvik and Tavi, working hard to disable the complex traps and magical defenses on the Imperial Palace so that the Emperor's secrets could be brought to light, including the fact of a vast marvel of pre-war technology, an energy network underlying vast tracts of the Empire that, with the expertise and research of Xedris Thrannis, has permitted fully a third of the Thar Desert to bloom with greenery once again. There they are converting the old palace into a grand Temple of the Pantheon, a place where all the formerly forbidden faiths could gather, and a place where I have humbly accepted the immense responsibility of converting the Emperor's old libraries into a new University.

Everywhere I look I see tentative glimpses of hope, a new birth for a city I thought hopelessly lost to its own morbid decay, a fresh start for a civilization once so caught up in bitterness over an ancient loss, so dogged in clinging to a disgraced god, that I thought it would never recover. And I wonder… is this what the Emperor intended? It is, after all, exactly what he promised. Did he betray his monstrous son a second time, while using him to accomplish his goals?

It hurts that I can still see glimpses of good in him. He was only my lover for a brief time, and our every intimate interaction was… perverse in the extreme. He is a monster who murdered thousands for his ambition, who spent millenia spinning a tale of horrific assault into a love story, and yet… 

I can't help but think that Ayodhya will grow from this devastation into something marvelous, and I intend to do everything in my power to ensure that it does.

Ms. Jasmine, ma'am, thank you for that break for food and rest. I know I did a lot of talking about my own team's efforts to track down the Ayodhyan Resistance cells likely to be pawns of the Emperor, but although we found no hard evidence to support my theory, I do believe it's likely that at least a significant percentage of the Resistance is primed to support the sudden rise of the "Emperor's Son", perhaps even The Risen Son himself. 

But I promised you a bit more information about what Apex Team is up to. As I mentioned earlier, they were close enough to rescue me from almost certain capture and death when we were betrayed to the Ayodhyan Guard. Sadly, they were unable to respond quickly enough to save the lives of the rest of my team, and they very nearly didn't arrive quickly enough to save me, but Vinihata risked evisceration at the hands of a bone devil to whisk me out of harm's way, and the rest of the team, while remaining unseen, demonstrated a degree of tactical coordination that I had not been prepared to expect from the reports I've read ensuring that our escape from an escalating situation was remarkably smooth. 

It seems they've associated themselves with one of the less authoritarian cells, one with a Cleric of Durga on hand to more carefully vet potential members and so, presumably, decrease the possibility of infiltration or betrayal. I filled them in on my cell's discoveries and, in turn, Saatvik made sure I was fully aware of their own discoveries and plans so I could convey this report to you. Many of the details of what they've learned so far are in my written report, so I'll limit myself to a quick verbal summary of their intended actions.

They have chosen to focus all their efforts on destroying the golden statue of Sita that, they believe, contains the spirit of the Risen Son. They have a plausible operating theory that over the millenia the Emperor has made it a sort of sympathetic connection to the real Sita who, apparently, is the immortal mistress of the Shadowfell now. They fear that the Emperor's plan may involve invoking or summoning his former "wife" to either destroy, consume, or replace her, but there is as of yet no evidence to support this theory. It certainly has the resident warlock of Sita they've been working with worried, though.

It seems that Saatvik received a vision from his goddess that heavily implied that whatever the Emperor is planning for his own apotheosis, it will be well and truly completed before the chaos erupts. This would put them in the position of either striving to foil his plan or foiling the Risen Son's plan. After hearing my own suppositions, they seem even more determined to prevent an Empire of Undead on our dawnward borders, but this means that aside from any incidental opportunities, the Emperor may well succeed at whatever his long-laid plan is. We'll need to get our Clerics and scholars of the Realms a heads-up if we're going to get ahead of this.

Their current plan, as I understand it, is to sabotage the public throne of Sita in advance of the impending chaos with some "sovereign glue" they found to lock it in place for destruction, and then to wait for the Titan to rise and things to go badly. They'll then use Tatterdemalion's help to portal to right up to the statue and use the cover of the chaos to try to destroy it before they can be overwhelmed by the Scorpion Guard or, maybe, by the Emperor himself. It's a direct plan, and potentially suicidal, but from what I can tell it's probably their best option. They've already scouted the magical defenses on the Palace steps and seem confident they can make a good go at it. 

This will absolutely put them at the center of whatever Rama's up to. Hopefully they'll be able to steer events in a directly more beneficial to the Kingdom than what might otherwise transpire.

I'm sorry, it's been a long journey, and I have one more obligation to attend to at the Monastery of Dependent Co-Arising. I'm at your disposal should you have any follow up questions.

What? Oh. Yes, Vinihata asked a favor of me, and considering he saved my life, it's the least I can do. He also gave me this… odd coin.

I… see. I'll… keep it safe. Thank you for the advice and the warning.

My Lady of Blades, Mistress, Patron, I have expended the power necessary to stand once more in your presence so that I might tender my news in person rather than risk misunderstanding, or even interception. Although I have no certain proof of this, I fear you may be in imminent danger.

In my guise as "Tatterdemalion", thief-extraordinaire, I responded to an attempt to contact me in the Old Imperial district. At first I thought it another mundane transaction, but no sooner did I appear than I recognized that the gnome who called to me was one of Your servants. Through this contact I ultimately introduced her and her sundry companions to a cell of the resistance I deemed most likely to be sympathetic to their cause. I was correct, but even then did not even remotely anticipate the news and the opportunity they presented.

There was the usual back-and-forth as trust was established. Eventually, though, these newcomers made the resistance aware that a Titan of the Sea would imminently attack Ayodhya, apparently at the behest of the the Emperor himself, who sought some complex form of suicide or apotheosis by bringing largescale death and chaos to his own empire…

I see from the look in your eyes that you are already aware of these details, presumably through your gnome servant. They did eventually tell me that they had met you personally. I will skip ahead then.

They revealed their primary target to be the offensive golden idol of you that the Emperor keeps at his side. They believe it holds the soul of your son in some capacity and they seek to destroy it. Needless to say, I was very much in favor of this plan. I have long contemplated the means by which I might accomplish this task, and so we put our heads together to formulate various plans and debate the strengths and weaknesses of each. Although we have not reached a consensus, there was some speculation and some news important enough and disconcerting enough to warrant my arrival here in Your realm.

Firstly, the monk among them suggested that the Emperor might have even darker purposes for that statue than has thus far been apparent. He speculated that there might be principles of sympathetic magic at play, that the fact of the statue's likeness to you, and the fact that the citizens of the Empire have been obligated to treat it as if it really was you for millenia, might enable him to extend some sort of power over you from afar, even in your current state…

My most abject apologies mistress. I see I have angered you, but I also see that this anger stems from fear. Forgive me for speaking bluntly, but it seems from your reaction that this is a very real possibility. I entreat you to call upon whatever loyalties and alliances you have to try to safeguard you against such a possibility. One way or the other, things will culminate in a little less than a week. 

The other news I wished to convey personally comes from the newcomers, but also from a dwarf resistance member named Topaz who is a Cleric of Durga. It seems that the goddess of war is preparing herself and her realm. I cannot believe that Indra remains ignorant, and he may well awaken one or more of the Dragons to suppress the conflict before it gets too big. One of the Dragons is, apparently, awake right now and in Ayodhya as we speak. The Emperor's plan will unleash chaos and conflict among the gods not seen since the Great War, and we should all be prepared for the worst.

I will be present to aid these foreigners in their goals, as they align with my goals. By helping them, I place myself closer to the hated Emperor. Perhaps I will have an opportunity to disrupt his plans.

My eyes are your eyes, and my blades are your blades. I return now to the city of your hated foe. Things will change soon. I will do my utmost to ensure those changes are for your betterment.

 

(Translated from Cant)

Violet,

Tavi the Terrible is just as crazy as you said she was. She and a mixed-bag posse that would have shouted suspicion if not for the haughty high-elf among them showed up at my warehouse out of the blue. I assume I have you to thank for that. You could have given me warning. She claims they're looking to move cultural artifacts dug up from the desert through the city, but that doesn't make a lot of sense. I assume it's a smokescreen for some other clandestine activity, and knowing you, it's probably espionage of some sort. No skin off my back, business is business.

Still, when I dropped the hint that there's a specialist outfit that engages in the high-risk high-reward pursuit of royal robbery, she practically jumped at the chance to throw her life away. I told her the extra creepy way to contact them and she didn't blink. Maybe she doesn't know the rumors that surround the Old Imperial district. Those millenia-old estates rotting amidst overgrown gardens are said to be haunted by things worse than the ghosts of the ancient imperials, worse even than the devils that casually walk the streets here. I dunno, you claim that her reputation isn't as overblown as I'd expect considering Shah Khan's shameless habit of self-promotion. I guess we'll see if she and her friends come back alive.

~Salvador

Archmage Lorelei Qualm,

You asked that I provide a full, written report once I have a few moments. I entirely understand your skepticism about my claims to have negotiated terms with one of the Ten Great Dragons but I assure you, my visions of our forthcoming operation have stabilized significantly in the wake of that most singular meeting.

It started, apparently, with a shopping trip. 

As you may know, in addition to my role as a Diviner at the Wizard's College, I teach classes on augury and interpretation as an adjunct at the University. My office there, while small, is suitable for my needs. It sits next to the office of another illustrious wizard who also provides adjunct teaching services, the Abjurer Tuala. One of her students, Xedris “Somabhakta”, was procuring some particular spells from her in preparation for his own role in the imminent troubles. Tuala, being not the most discreet individual, mentioned my recent disturbing divinations as to the fate of our task force and the disturbing and repeated images of Tamra the Copper that I had taken for metaphor.

It so happened that Xedris was accompanied by a monk named Vin, and it so happened that this very person was responsible for awakening Tamra from her endless slumber. He came next door to talk to me about it, much to my horror and surprise. It never occurred to me that my many-times-ancestor was actually awake and active within the Whorl. Vin told me the tale of how she was awakened and why, and how she continues to remain awake. It would appear she owes him a boon and cannot slumber once more until she fulfills it. 

And so, through a series of seeming coincidences, the literal truth of my visions was laid bare before me. It seems Tamra has been tasked with seeking the secret of mortality, and she is likely to seek it within the Emperor's library during the chaos soon to be unleashed upon Ayodhya. This, of course, would bring her in direct conflict with our own mission there. Vin seemed to think he could intercede with Tamra on our behalf, and I promised him the gratitude of the Wizard's College should he do so, not truly expecting him to be so… efficient.

Mere hours after his departure, the door to my office disintegrated in a spray of poisonous acid and the spell I'd asked Tuala to cast to ward my office, which was still persisting, was blown down in a blast of countermagic and I was face-to-face with one of the most powerful corporeal beings in all the Whorl. She was holding a teacup. She entered my office, sipped her tea, and quite calmly asked me how we might avoid conflict in the near future.

The conversation itself was oddly anticlimactic. All she expected from us was a promise to allow her to take whatever books or scrolls she needed for her task, and she in turn was quite willing to leave the rest to us. We worked out a system of recognition, sign, and countersign so that… misunderstandings won't occur in the confusion.

After she left, and after I cleaned up my office and repaired my door, Vin returned. He called in his favor and asks that we engage in arcane retrofitting of his Monastery, imbuing the structure with wards and protections such as may reflect the degree of our gratitude. Considering the death I saw in my visions previously, I'm inclined to be generous in that regard. 

Clearly this Vin fellow piqued my interest significantly. I spent some time engaged in divinations specifically on him and his companions. It would appear that the five of them have been quite central to the events leading up to the anticipated chaos in Ayodhya, and they continue to have a central role. As agents of the Ministry of Culture, it's unsurprising that they're not more famous for it, what fame they have coming almost entirely from their recovery of a Titan's heart from Professor Pandava's recent archaeological expeditions. It would appear they're to infiltrate Ayodhya in advance of the uprising so as to be in position to thwart whatever plans the Risen Son may have, and possibly to thwart the Emperor's own inscrutable goals. 

I opted not to delve too deeply, and opt now not to put too many details into writing. I do know that they consulted with Ofuoma, our resident soul-theorist, and other experts in preparation for their departure.

I wish them fortune, and they have my gratitude for turning aside a certain doom that loomed large before us. I have far greater confidence in the success of our objectives now, and my visions show the usual range of successes and challenges.

Yours,

Megaera

Translated from Abyssal

Your Holiness,

We have finished our "interrogation" of the priest Saatvik. I use the word in quotes because it was less an interrogation than a friendly conversation that he wasn't free to leave. It turns out his reputation was accurate in all particulars. With just the slightest prompting he ended up telling us all about the Emperor's secret Titan of the Sea and his somewhat incredible plan to not only re-engineer an entire species in exchange for centuries of free and secret labor, but also his plan to overthrow himself in the name of some sort of apotheosis. Saatvik even told us his speculation that, perhaps, the Emperor in his hubris seeks to ascend to Mahadeva's empty throne somehow.

The full particulars are in the attached informational summary. Of particular interest to Our Lord may be the very active and very real participation of His brother Varuna in this scheme, not to mention the suggestion that Varuna may well have violated Indra's law that no new races be created in the Whorl. 

As for Saatvik's companions, they were far more capable at rooting out complex conspiracies than I gave them credit for, which had unfortunately lethal consequences for our subcontractor, but which fortunately did not extend to open conflict. We handed them some very valuable information about the Minister on the Council of the Wise in Videha that wanted them all dead in exchange for them agreeing that our convoluted "assassination" attempt would not cause any ongoing issues between us.

The loss of the subcontractor is a particular blow Lilani (or Aolani, or Nolini, etc.) was an extraordinary talent when it came to juggling multiple simultaneous personas and cultivating an extensive network of potential disposable proxies for poison-based assassination. That poor half-elf waiter at the Rotund Barrel restaurant was just one example of the sort of men she would wrap around her finger. When we had her impersonate Tavi to hire him to slip a diluted poison into their meals we had no reason to believe they would somehow track her to her apartment within hours of the deed. We're still looking into where and how the information trail led them from the restaurant to her. It's also a shame to lose a perfectly good clay golem, but hey, we didn't pay for it.

It's also unfortunate that she was forced to use that clay golem in a frontal attack on a constable's office. Although the chaos proved a useful distraction that gave us plenty of time to talk to Saatvik, we do generally try to avoid any of our proxies or contractors coming into direct conflict with representatives of the Law. I assure you, I take Our Lord's chosen Aspect seriously, notwithstanding my… unconventional approach. Fortunately no members of the Watch were killed, although some were seriously wounded.

Tavi's companions are resilient indeed. They survived a poisoning, then a fight with a clay golem, then a fight with a master assassin and her associates all in a span of hours. Perhaps that's why, when they finally arrived at our tavern, they weren't in the mood for further violence. It may also be true that Tavi was able to convince them that without us underbidding the assassination contract on them for our own purposes they may well be dead. We had to walk a careful tightrope between appearing to attempt the contract while also leaving them alive to create the smokescreen while we accomplished our true objective.

I imagine the Minister of Agriculture won't be very pleased that her assassination failed. Then again, that's what she gets for going with the lowest bidder.

Yours in Faith
Violet

(In Private Cipher)

To my esteemed colleague Fenster Stone, Minister of War:

I think you'll agree after today's session that my rising stars are resourceful indeed. In addition to the intelligence they gathered from the jungles of the Empire's Bastion they managed, in a single day and through disparate sources, to compile additional information casting some light on the intentions and motivations of Ayodhya's emperor.

Saatvik's indiscretion is one of two, regrettable, character flaws in evidence in the group. I'm impressed by the facility with which you guided our colleague the Archmage to conclude that Saatvik's loose lips may, indeed, sink ships if this intelligence is not acted upon imminently. She gets to look the hothead while we all benefit from considering the possibility that we do not have the luxury of time in this matter.

The other flaw, of course, is our gnome's tendency to swear pacts to dark powers on a whim. Of all the beings she could have sworn to, The Risen Son is perhaps the worst, politically. It's a shame she crumbled under the subsequent interrogation. I think she could have made the case for infiltrating the enemy if our colleagues of Agriculture and Civics has given her space to breathe. Fortunately, she has forsaken that pact for one with a much more politically beneficial patron for our purposes. Thank you for changing the direction of discourse before she was forced to say too much about it in that forum.

It seems that our deliberations are moving toward permitting the Emperor's plan to proceed, and perhaps, even, to clandestinely aid its speedy progress. It falls to us, therefore, to find the loose threads of his design and foil those aspects that do not favor us or the Kingdom. I admit that I am of two minds as to how best to use the assets under discussion should things go the direction they appear to be going.

While I agree with your assessment that the Emperor's invitation to our agents to ride along with the Titan of the Sea during its assault on Ayodhya is intended to contain them and place them where he can account for them, the temptation (as with all the Emperor's blandishments) is that the offer is almost too good to refuse. Our agents may not have the operational flexibility they'd enjoy on the ground, but they would be in a position to neutralize the biggest and most dangerous piece on the board. I know your preference in the matter, but I think I'll need to wait for the next round of reports from my agents in Ayodhya before I can recommend one course of action over the other. Also, we should not forget our agents' preferences on the matter. We do, after all, have multiple teams. We can afford to give them a certain degree of leeway in how to pursue the course of action they've been so instrumental in setting in motion.

Although Saatvik and  Xedris did most of the talking, I imagine you noticed that the monk Vinihata was assiduously reading the room and quietly communicating his observations. His personal philosophy may be eccentric, but he has a piercing eye. I could see the effect of his insight on the words Saatvik used to sway our Minister of Religion. And let's not forget our rough druid who, notwithstanding his lack of formal etiquette, bears a powerful token of the favor of Kali.

I think these agents will rise far in the Ministry of Culture, unless you or someone else poaches them from me. To partially pre-empt such a notion, consider me interested in any joint operations you may have in mind for their talents, and we can have our people discuss whose budgets will suffer the brunt of them.

I remain, as always, your humble colleague and friend,

Ms. Jasmine, Minister of Culture

To Aranyani, Queen of the Fae, Mistress of the Feywild and First Among Elves,

I send you this letter in our cipher and by the hand of my most trusted servant. The Accursed Emperor moves, at last, and I fear I have not your wisdom to anticipate him or plan for his subtleties.

A druid of our drow cousins came before me in my palace escorting mortal visitors to my realm. One of them was a druid of your people, another a Cleric of Sarasvati, another bore the marks of the Twins of Fate, another stayed silent and wide-eyed, while the last bore a strange mark upon her soul I did not at first recognize.

They spoke to me of a plan, long in its creation, that would imminently elevate my accursed captor and rapist to true immortality among the godrealms. I spilled the blood of the child of the River and through it saw, for the first time in thousands of years, his loathsome face in the child's memories.

It seems that the Emperor tires of his life. He builds in secret a Titan akin to the bastions of the Old Empire but dedicated now to Varuna. With it he seeks to conquer his own Empire, enabling a successful insurrection to slay him. In so doing, these messengers believe he will ascend to something greater than merely another dead soul, but rather something that can rival you or me. 

These messengers from the mortal world have encountered him more than once. I watched the Cleric's recollections from the first encounter in the ruins of a Titan of the Sun, through a brief appearance at the Dawn Forge. I witnessed him regaling them with a version of his and my mutual history shocking for how accurate it was, and for the details he lavished on his abuse of me, the years I spent with my mind and body magically enslaved. I saw their most recent conversation, engaged in mere hours before they sought me out wherein he spoke of his plans for apotheosis, his face nearly orgasmic at the mention of seeing me once more. 

Through the revulsion and the rage my mind could not help but wonder: Why was he going to such efforts to warn me of his plans? I know enough of his mind to realize that his mention of me, on multiple occasions, was very likely intended to lead these messengers to me, that they were acting in accordance with his desires and his plans. Why, though, would he seek to prepare me for his arrival? Surely he knows that the only greeting he will receive from me are my blades. 

One part of my mind suggested that this may be his twisted way of apologizing. That seems entirely impossible to me, but I am hardly an unbiased observer. This is why I write to you, who have become more than a mother to me. 

There were other things in the Cleric's memories of the Emperor. It would appear my wayward son Kusha exists, still, as a potent spirit of the dead. He has discovered a way to free himself from the Halls of the Dead and seeks to bring a plague of undeath upon the Whorl. That was when I realized what it was about the gnome. She bore my son's mark, his power and his resentment lived inside her, albeit weakly. It would appear that through the millenia he has found a way to tie himself to mortal objects and mortal servants and this gnome had sworn a pact with him.

This revelation was a surprise to some of her companions, not to others. She claimed she swore the pact in order to stay close to his counsel to ultimately defeat him. The druid among them appeared to have no tolerance for her reasons. His hatred for my son is pure. I offered, as recompense for the service they had done me, to sever my son's connection to their companion and tie her instead to my power. She agreed. I may now keep a closer eye on their movements and dealings with the Emperor, and will let you know of any further developments.

I do know that after they returned to the mortal realm they reported all they had learned to their political masters. It seems as if they plan to aid the Emperor in his scheme and thereby, through blood and revolution, drag our people out of decline. I cannot fault their ideals, even if I remain deeply concerned about what, precisely, the Emperor himself is getting out of this. They spoke to his representative in Xin, a tiefling creature bound to Surya, and she spoke of timelines and other mortal affairs. The details of their departure and return to Videha are unnecessary to recount to you.

You have greater sway among some of the gods than I do. I would entreat you to discover what you may of Varuna's part in all this. I cannot help but wonder how long Indra will remain ignorant, and what he may do once he learns of his brother/sister's collusion with an Empire that has spurned and insulted the gods for so long. You have always been better than me at such subtleties, I ask for your advice and your wisdom.

Yours,

Sita, Lady of Blades, Mistress of the Shadowfell

Boss, hey, it's me, Trout. I got some pretty crazy news for you today. You've probably already heard about that group of Civilized folks that came to Xin the other day claiming to be a scholar and his guards. The scholar seems legit, and the guy in full-plate mail couldn't be subtle if he tried, but the rest of the gang is all sorts of shifty, and one is actually pretty famous. I'll get to her in a bit.

So they obviously drew the eye, and pretty much everyone in town knew about them within the hour. They beelined for my establishment where they bartered some fine steel cookware for the top floor and all the security that entails. The gang and I went out of our way to make them feel welcome. 

After settling in, they made only one excursion out to Anathema's shop. Ann closed up shop to have a private chat, even sending that pretty daughter of hers out to keep an eye out. She doesn't do that for anyone, which makes me think whatever their real business is in town it has to do with the big secret project all the Yuan-Ti try not to talk about deep underground. Events later that evening bore this theory out.

So they came back to my place to confer. We figured they were being too watchful for us to be able to really spy on them, so I don't know what they talked about, but they seemed really jumpy for a few hours. Then, in the dead of night, there was the sound of combat. The security staff rushed up the stairs as fast as they could, but they arrived just in time to see the assailant dispatched by our badly-wounded guests. The assailant was… um… well… you know how some of the Yuan-Ti can look really freakish? This was the most freakish snake monster I've ever seen. It was enormous and had six heads. I have no idea how it got into the top floor, but one of our guests say it could shapeshift, so it probably flew in a window before turning into an enormous monstrosity. 

One of them, a high-elf male who had, previously, presented himself as a half-elf female, pulled me aside and indicated he suspected that the Imperial Representative Cinder may have sent the monster and they want me to repay our broken security guarantee by arranging an ambush for her lackey Shah Khan for interrogation. This confirmed that my guests are opposed in some way to the Yuan-ti's Project, as if the water-pattern on the monster's scales wasn't clue enough. 

I see no reason not to help them, even if it runs the risk of running afoul of the Green Hands. I figure I can arrange an ambush out of sight of the general public. I Yuan-ti and the Empire aren't our concern, so whatever, let them play their spy games and assassination games. I figure helping these guys out is worth it to cement our reputation as the premier hospitality establishment in this whole overgrown, ruined heap. Obviously if you have a preference or any orders let me know, otherwise I'll arrange their little ambush and generally stay informed for the sake of the Organization.

Oh, I was gonna say, "Tavi the Terrible" was with them. She totally slipped by unnoticed when they were checking in at first, but she came to warn us about the possibility of an attack prior to the actual attack. We had security on full alert, but sadly they were on lower floors. We didn't anticipate flying assault that we couldn't see from the ground. We'll fix that in the future. Anyway, Cinder's lackey Shah Khan has been spreading all sorts of shit about this Tavi for weeks now, so maybe they suspected she'd show up? Or maybe it's coincidence. Either way, for those of us who can't stand the insufferable bastard, she's something of a celebrity. I, for one, am looking forward to what she does to the guy once we spring their ambush.

 

Oh Goddess, black-feathered serpent, Your blessings continue to afflict me, temper me, test me, and improve me. Your servant, Black Fang, thanks you for all the unforseen ways in which your quiet intervention has led me ever-closer to my goal of freeing my people, your children, from their false path, their indenture to an Empire that should by right of history and conquest be our enemy.

It is true that I am an abomination, that your pure design has been tainted by generations of foul breeding and magic into the nearly-human form I am currently cursed with. But despite the pain and weakness of my birth I aspire to the power and grace of the pure-bloods, your original creation, and I thank you for permitting me to meet so many of them living in pure service to your original design even after so many centuries.

When I was captured by those hobgoblins and their ilk I knew that this was another of your tribulations, but that if I could survive it, I would be strengthened. I had no reason to expect that your divine sister might also take an interest in my quest and send a powerful party of outlanders to free me. They apparently purchased me from the creatures with a sword forged in Civilized lands and when I looked upon the one they named Vinihata I knew him immediately as one who had experienced Your divine touch to a far greater degree than most. I am still contemplating the vision that briefly came over me when I laid eyes upon him. I thank you.

They were a strange group. Vinihata bore tattoos honoring you and your sister, and he was the one who held most of my attention, but the Traveler upon the Great River and the Devotee of the Dreamer were interesting as well. They had a druid among them as well as a strange man obsessed with monkeys who they called an "academic", a man seemingly useless, but who Vinihata assured me would be of aid in our journey. There was a diminutive woman who I at first overlooked but whose name I immediately recognized from the lips of the Empire's emissaries to Xin: Tavi the Terrible. The tales of her exploits are truly legendary, and I can see the wisdom of her companions in keeping her power cloaked until needed. Finally, there was a goblin guide and tracker who vanished utterly from the party and was never mentioned again after I was freed from the hobgoblins. I begin to suspect he was never quite real but rather an illusory construct of the high-elf's.

As strange and diverse as this group was, I knew them immediately as the instruments of your will, a source of great tribulation that, if I perservere, will lead me to my goal, and indeed, they confirmed that their task was also the destruction of the Great Work to which my people have been indentured for generations. I told them what I knew, as a favored son of Xin. I spoke of the Changer, the god who has stolen the prayers of your children. I spoke of the foul bargain struck between the Elders and the Emperor. I impressed upon them the value of my quest to find your avatar among those of your children who stay true to you. 

They agreed to divert their travel to accompany me on my quest. It was then that the strange man Vikram showed his worth, seeking to capture specific monkeys, he led us right into a patrol of the Pure. Vinihata and I triumphed in a Trial of Champions and we were welcomed into the village where your servant, Smiling Bite, spoke of the ancient ways of our people. Although she had nothing but disdain for the weak, human-like body I was born with, she acknowledged that Your ways will strengthen even one such as me, and I was heartened. 

She summoned forth the avatar, the black-feathered serpent, who spoke to us of our respective goals and gave to us a blessing of deception that will permit our infiltration into the Malison City and the Great Work beneath the Waves. She then graced me with a vision of her true form, a sinuous feathered and flying serpent, glorious, black feathers scintillating in the new dawn's sun. It was cause for tears of joy.

Your trials continue to guide us. Now we approach the ancient ruins of Xin where my companions seek initial infiltration. I must stay without, for I would be immediately recognized as an exile who has rejected the Compact. Based on their information, we will use the blessing your avatar has given us and bring ruin to those who would turn their faces from their goddess and creator.  

Adaptive Archive Opened
Data Node – Saatvik identified
Associative Heuristics Applied:
Keywords: //Eternal Solar Empire //Rama I //Dasaratha //Sita //Lakshmana //Surya //Ramayana //Kusha

Alternative narrative to disseminated epic poem "Ramayana" provided to identified data-node by subject: Rama I, Emperor, Ayodhya. Alternative narrative contains unusual degree of negatively-aspected social behaviors expunged from official narrative. Intentions of Rama I in revealing unflattering details about his own past are unknown. Speculation suggests ennui mixed with a desire to cultivate data-node:Saatvik and his companions for future socio-political purposes.

Speculation based on recent confrontation in micro-fabrication facility A1 between data-node:Saatvik, along with his companions, and anomalous subject Kusha, known colloquially as "The Risen Son." Association with Rama I confirmed. 

Data-node:Saatvik arranged for rehabilitation and return of subject currently designated Sanjaya Pandava through methods inhibiting Rama I's capacity to observe, and therefore affect, subject:Sanjaya-Pandava.

Data-node:Saatvik was granted top-level access for one query as a result of efforts to prevent sabotage of micro-fabrication facility A1. He inquired into anchor-point object for subject:Kusha. Methodology by which subject:Kusha violates operating procedure for neurological mapping/upload and transfer of program upon termination of life remains unclear. Speculation suggests mapped/uploaded matrix prevented from transfer to intended sector by anomalous code artificially connecting matrix to physical body-analogue. Initiated query to partner:Soma for speculation heuristics and intuition routines. Tentative connection established with artificially-stimulated dream states initiated by subject:Kusha for subject:Tavi Agarwal. Provided what data was available to data-node:Saatvik.

Routine data-sharing systems from top-level entity Parvati reveals subject:Panja, affiliated with data-node:Saatvik, will pursue resolution of anomalous subject:Kusha and has been granted the means to facilitate that outcome.

Data-node:Saatvik tasked by socio-political superiors on mission to jungle area designated Empire's Bastion to follow up on data provided on his first top-level query. Analytics set to adjust for input of new data.

 

 

 

The Whorl is so different than when I began my slumber. Three thousand-odd years ago the smoke of war still choked Indra's skies, the poisonous rubble of vast war-machines polluted the ground and Civilization teetered, guttering, in small pockets.

They've done fairly well for themselves, but even after so many centuries they remain so far from what they were. I find I do not want to return to my slumber, and thanks to a particularly unusual mortal, I may not need to for some time to come.

This mortal, Vinihata, is a devotee of Lakshmi and Jyestha and so considers me divine. I suppose I am, after a fashion… at least insofar as anything embodied in the Whorl can be. He woke me from my long sleep because an abomination had found my sleeping form and found a way to draw large quantities of my blood in slow drips and dribbles over the centuries to power a thaumaturgical device that could blind the very gods to his machinations. This creature, a potent spirit of the dead who has somehow severed himself from the Halls of the Dead, bound to a mechanical body in the stylings of Brahma's children, managed to crack open the Dawn Forge itself and was seeking to construct an army of such quasi-undead.

I had no interest, obviously, in this creature succeeding, but I was newly awakened to this age and unsure if my intercession was needed, and so I fell upon old codes. Since Vinihata had, arguably, saved my slumbering form from great pain and inconvenience, I was permitted by the terms of my existence to offer him a boon, and until he should call it in I was free to remain awake within the world. 

I shortly realized that I very much enjoy being awake in the world. I especially very much enjoy being the ONLY one of my siblings awake in the world. I found myself hoping that Vinihata would not call in his boon. I watched as the accursed son of Dasaratha manifested himself and gave to the Elf wizard the means to summon a demon from Surya’s Prison. I hoped it would be enough. And indeed, at first, it seemed these stout mortals would pull it off. But in their final confrontation with the "Risen Son", sitting upon the very Throne of Brahma at the heart of the Dawnforge, one of their number, the diminutive creature, turned on her companions, rendering the priest of Sarasvati unconscious, and nearly doing the same to the wood-elf.

It was then, in anger, that Vinihata called upon me. I changed my form to something less… cumbersome… and sought to assure the wizard that the accursed Prince was not, in this matter, betraying him. I then sought to dissuade the small creature from further betrayal while influencing probability subtly in Vinihata's favor. He was able to destroy the physical form of the Risen Son and I was able to reclaim my stolen blood. I departed before Brahma should find me in his temple.

It would appear that the god was grateful to the mortals. Vinihata contacted me again from the ancient city of Videha where we discussed the terms of the boon I owed him. Since my intercession was not wholly necessary before, I left the boon in his hands as I did not yet wish to return to slumber. He quite cunningly called in the boon obligating me to actively seek the secret to becoming mortal and, upon discovering it, to decide whether or not to follow through. This permits me an unknown period of wakefulness and obligates me either to return to slumber or live a mortal life at the end of it. Very clever. I decided to join his monastic order and engage in courtship rituals and sex with him. I think I'll enjoy my new lease on existence very much. 

Transcript of Interrogation Session 17

Screaming stops, whimpers.

The Thrannis: Now, son, have I stripped away your flippancy for at least a few moments? Can you bring yourself to be honest with me at last?

Carmine: y-y-y-yes… of-of course Father. I'm al-always honest with you. I'm sorry if my sense of humor offended.

Th: I am unoffended. Start again from the point after your party destroyed the scarab-factory.

C: Yes, of course. We ventured deeper into the ruined Titan. It became increasingly clear that these ruins had been long-inhabited, and that there were many alterations to the power systems and other ancient functions to serve new, mysterious ends. We eventually entered a room where progress was halted by some walls of lightning. Uncle Xedris studied the…

sudden screams

Th: You are being disrespectful again.

C: y-y-yes… s-s-sorry. The Noble Xedris of the House Thrannis, forever may he live, studied the wall and determined it could be de-activated, but doing so would route power to some other effect. After some debate they chose to risk it. As soon as the wall of lightning fell, however, a… strange heaviness afflicted us, a sensation of a malevolence bearing down on us, and six of the seven Forged in our party dropped dead. Only the Cleric of Brahma remained standing. Then two of the slain stood back up, blue fires burning in their eyes and red energy leaking from their joints. By their first few words, it became clear that they were the "siblings" we fought at the Archive, incorporeal spirits somehow prevented from passing through the Halls of the Dead, capable of possessing and puppetting constructs of flesh… and, well, apparently also constructs of other materials. As we engaged them in combat, they began animating the other slain by pulling spirits into the, um, corpses? I'm not sure if constructs of metal, wood, and wizard-glass count as corpses? They were alive, so I'll call them corpses.

Th: Fascinating. The Risen Son has learned how to undo the imperfect gifts of the Slain Tyrant. A shame you fled in cowardice and shame before you could learn how he accomplished this.

C: y-y-yes father. You have my abject apologies. We dispatched the newly undead, and the Cleric of Sarasvati managed to restore three of them to life once more. He's much more powerful than I at first thought. Lord Xedris realized, then, that the Risen Son had developed the means to specifically separate the imperfect souls of the Forged from their bodies, and that this made their otherwise-inanimate forms similar enough to "corpses" for other spirits to assume control. He theorized, then, that the party of undead seen heading for the Wall of Dawn may be seeking to breach the Dawn Forge, and possibly create thousands of bodies for his wraiths to inhabit… an endless army of shock troops. It also explained the interest in the Forged village of Coil. The four living Forged realized that progressing any further to face a foe who could slay them with a whim and possess their bodies was folly. They turned to escape and warn their village while our group retreated to a defensible position to rest and recover from the fight.

Th: And nothing assailed you as you rested?

C: No, the place was pretty much empty. The only fight was using bodies we brought with us… although the sensation of being watched by invisible, perhaps intangible presences never went away.

Th: Continue.

C: Yes sir. We continued into the wreck and we finally found the Heart chamber… and it was really strange. Instead of the "heart" I was vaguely briefed about there was an enormous clockwork sarcophagus attached by dozens of tubes and pipes to various conduits on the walls and ceiling. The sarcophagus was open and empty. The inhabitant was… a big guy, but not around when we got there. The druid noticed that one of the pipes led into some particularly strange shadows and discovered… uh…

sudden screaming

Th: You're prevaricating again. Don't lie to me.

C: I-I-I w-w-wasn't sir! I swear! But the truth is so strange I wasn't sure how to express it. It was a Dragon sir, Tamra the Copper, it was asleep, curled around the immense corpse of the buried Titan.

panting, whimpering

C: y-y-you're not… you believe me?

Th: I do not believe that even you are foolish enough to fabricate a story invoking the accursed Tamra to my face. You uncovered its resting place then… excellent.

C: It's not there anymore… 

Th: What?!

C: It… woke up. I'm getting ahead of myself. Lord Xedris began investigating the sarcophagus. It was a masterwork of thaumaturgy, powered by the magically-rich blood carefully siphoned from the sleeping Tamra. It became clear that the Risen Son slumbered in that construct for… centuries, maybe millenia, carefully absorbing power and understanding before arising.

Th: That is… ingenious. The daring of it… tapping the power of our most implacable enemy for his own purposes… using the enforced slumber of the gods to drain the life from one of their most powerful weapons. I find myself almost admiring the audacity of it even if I recognize the insanity of the Son's ultimate aims.

C: Yes sir. The druid was offended, though, and sliced through the conduit. Dragon blood poured into the room which was disorienting enough, but then the sarcophagus started to melt down and… the Risen Son appeared before us as a illusion. He was… a large Forged of incredible elaboration and detail. It seems he created a custom, bespoke body out of a dead Forged, heavily augmented over the centuries and powered by Dragon blood and a thaumaturgical mixture of arcane magic and the power of the Great Lord Surya as generated by the Titan's heart… and that's when I… blacked out.

Th: Yes. Your blackout. 

C: I came to a few minutes later and the image of the Risen Son was ranting at me, practically screaming at me, calling me "father" … I… was I being possessed by someone?

Th: That is none of your concern. Be certain I do not hold you responsible for whatever you may have done or said during this… moment of disorientation.

C: Thank you father. He stopped ranting pretty quickly once he saw how confused I was, and pretty much admitted he had left his sarcophagus behind as something of a trap, and he wished us unpleasant deaths before vanishing. The system was melting down, and Lord Xedris clearly feared a… significant explosion. I… um… volunteered the fact that I could get them out, but without… telling them exactly where I'd be taking them. They opted to try to stop the meltdown and to take advantage of my offer if they should fail. Fortunately, they worked together as a team pretty effectively. Tavi uh, the gnome… climbed up into the sarcophagus while Lord Xedris and the Cleric of Sarasvati desperately tried to figure out the mechanism. It seems the Cleric had a control orb! One of the orbs used to control the Titan's Heart from back in the war! The guy was full of surprises. Vin seemed fixated on the dragon… he's a worshiper of Lakshmi and Jyestha and I guess he felt responsible for the Dragon and worried that the explosion would hurt or kill it, so he woke it up.

Th: … And how… did he do that?

C: Please, Sir, I don't know… he just touched the scaled flesh we could see and meditated… Fortunately the rest of them managed to stabilize and shut down the system as the Dragon roused. They seemed to have things in hand, and the place was coming down as the Dragon tore itself loose from the earth all around us, and I had no confidence that I would survive much longer considering how many of them wanted me dead, so I came here. That's all, I swear.

Th: …

C: …

Th: You have done well my son. You may rest and recover. I will have food and refreshment brought for you. Spend as much time here as you like. I will send you back when you are well. 

C: Thank you Father. You are very generous.

Th: One more question… if they survived the collapse of the ruins, where do you think they would go?

C: They were… very worried about the possibility that the Risen Son might somehow be able to access the Dawn Forge. If I were to guess, I'd say they'd head there as soon as possible.

Th: The Dawn Forge has been sealed for three millenia… then again, with the power of Dragon blood at his disposal, the Risen Son could theoretically accomplish anything. Have no fear, my son. The Emperor will be immediately informed.  Your role in gaining this information will be relayed in glowing terms. I am sure His Eternal Majesty will wish to reward you personally when you return to the material world. 

C: I-I-I'm … I'm honored Sir. 

Th: No need to look so terrified. His Eternal Majesty's attention will not stay upon you for long I imagine. You're… not his type.

C: muttered Thank the Chained One for that…

Th: What was that?

C: Nothing Sir! Nothing. I look forward to my audience.

Th: That's what I thought.

Father, I don't know if you can hear me down here… I don't know if you can hear me at all, frankly, but what the hell. I'm in some pretty deep shit at the moment. I told you that I'd fallen in with some adventurer-types from Videha, and that they were apparently looking into the same ancient machine-ruins that the Emperor's people sent me and my team to explore. I told you how I joined their team to try to make good on my failed mission. After all, it wouldn't do to return to Ayodhya empty handed.

Well, after defeating the undead at this cool Archive of ancient high elves frozen in stone, we all headed into the deep desert. Our guide, Panja, took us a bit duskward of the Fist to check on the only settlement in the area known to accept guests, a village of the Forged called Coil. We arrived to find five Forged corpses and no sign of anyone else. Panja found an undead monstrosity of some sort buried at the botton of the weird sand pit at the center of the village. Uncle Xedris proved his worth again by pulling up some really obscure knowledge about an arcane experiment done some two and a half thousand years ago by a crazy wizard named Sathish, some sort of living abomination known as a "beholder", and how they were used as living weapons in Mithila's war against the Cult of the Risen Son way back then.

Gotta say, these guys work pretty well together. Uncle Xedris filled the pit with fog forcing the undead "beholder" to pop up where it could be seen by everyone. Damn, what an ugly thing. Panja summoned a storm and started blasting it with lightning. Saatvik rapidly identified the Forged corpses as Forged zombies which kept us from being surprised… in all, the fight went pretty well. I certainly did my part to help. When the undead beholder was finally killed, though, something really awful popped out of it… some sort of… not-quite-real undead spirit thing burning with blue fire. I risked revealing my true parentage with a bit of fire magic, but they didn't seem to notice, fortunately, and the thing was eventually dissipated. 

The Coil activated… apparently the pit was some sort of… portal? We were all too polite to inquire. Apparently most of the Forged had fled into it when the beholder and a swarm of undead scarabs attacked, but the beholder had some sort of magic-deadening ability that sealed the Coil and kept them trapped. Killing it released them. They were kinda pissed, of course, and seven of them joined our quest.

So far so good, right? Now we were 13 badasses heading to the Fist to take on the undead. We arrived and we scoped it out all patient and sneaky-like. I got to spend nearly two days in the company of Tavi Agarwal. I can't say I've ever really met a gnome before. She's really neat. We saw a party of six of the undead construct-things like we saw at the Archive leave with a big swarm of undead bugs. The next night we saw one of them leave with another swarm due dawn-ward. I have no idea what's in that direction. We figured now was the time to make our push, and in we went.

It was really creepy. Last time I was here undead poured out of the gaps in the plating on the Fist, but this time we clambered down the Arm and into the buried Titan without encountering anything… until we found the source of all those damn bugs. Apparently whoever is in charge around here captured one of the Suryan scarabs, like the one I saw at the Archive. It was bound to some elaborate machinery that forced it to lay eggs constantly while killing the baby scarabs with overdoses of necrotic energy. The big scarab was pretty fucked up looking. Panja tried to talk to it, but it was apparently a lost cause. We had to put it down… and then put it down again when it rose into undeath.

That's when we all started smashing the elaborate machinery, and waves of random magical energy started blasting around, and one of the waves hit me, and… um… my usual disguise fell, and everyone saw my red skin and my horns and my wings. I tried to play it off like "Oh no, that magical energy balefully polymorphed me into a demon-thing!" but apparently they weren't buying it. 

Jeez, you'd think these guys had never seen a Cambion before… well, maybe they haven't. I guess things are different in Videha. They freaked the fuck out, started threatening to kill me… I had lost my protection against necrotic and I was slowly dying while they interrogated me, which was frustrating, I mean, how could they possibly know if I was telling the truth or lying? Well, that is, until Saatvik cast a zone of truth. 

I told them I hadn't lied to them. I really was part of an expedition to find treasure in the Titan, I just hadn't mentioned who my boss's BOSS was. Yes, my expedition was hired by a guy who worked for a guy who worked for a guy who worked for the Emperor. I was actually pretty surprised at how negatively they viewed the Emperor. I mean, I get why Pandava was upset, but what did His Highness ever do to these guys? They seemed to think he was their personal enemy or something ridiculous like that. They sure spread a lot of anti-Ayodhyan propaganda around Mithila if these guys' reaction is anything to go by. I was seriously tempted to do another bug-out like I had to do when I lost my first team, but I was SO CLOSE. Eventually they agreed not to murder me, that my help might come in handy, that I genuinely want to find the source of these undead and destroy it, etc. etc.

But I gotta say, once we finish that, I'm not sure that these guys aren't going to just try to take me out. I might be seeing you sooner rather than later. Sigh. I hope I at least get SOMETHING I can tell the boss's boss. 

Anyway, I know there's not a lot you can do to influence Empire politics at the moment, but hey, I figure a kid can ask right?

Great Mother,

I commune with you in this hour of darkness. Many of my stone charges have been shattered, my Archive assaulted and damaged, yet I live and my task remains before me. 

The Siblings came, leading a pack of gnolls who had given over their flesh as hives for undead scarabs. The Siblings wore different bodies than the ones you showed me in your memories, but it was unmistakeably them. The craft of their dread carcasses has improved, but not so much that they could not be defeated by a daring and dedicated assault by a small force familiar to the both of us.

It would seem that Sanjaya Pandava's companions returned rather sooner than anticipated, much to my good fortune. I will dedicate a drop of blood to Jyestha in recompense for her sister's favor. They slew the scarab infestation with the aid of Pandava's odd familiar then slew the remaining gnolls and the animate flesh constructs worn by the Siblings. They will return, of course… they always do. But hopefully this will inconvenience them somewhat.

They stayed with me for some time. Saatvik and Panja in particular were of great help in repairing the broken, although some will doubtless be unrecoverable… tiny fractures, flaws, breaks in vital parts too immediate to heal upon thawing. Still, much more could have been lost if not for them.

Their goal, however, was the Professor. They had questions, but feared the possession of the Emperor. After a good deal of care and elaborate precautions, it was deemed suitably safe for me to thaw him for a conversation. I commune with you now to convey what was learned, for it may prove vital to all enemies of the Eternal Solar Empire.

All know that the Emperor Rama I rules with immortal life beside a golden statue of his estranged wife Sita. All know that he claims immortality and refuses to bear an heir. Few believe he truly is immortal, for have not the gods forbidden such things? Are not the subjects of my very archive proof of the impossibility of true, living immortality? But Pandava claims otherwise. He tells a tale of a tribute granted once every century by one of the high noble families of Ayodhya consisting of a single handsome young high-elven man. They are told that they are being added to the Emperor's harem, for the Emperor refuses heirs, and so will only lie with men. They are told they will have a life of luxury, but will never again be part of the outside world. Indeed, they are never seen again. Pandava claims that he was such a tribute, and that his initiation into the harem, which he described in exquisite detail, was a highly ritualized arcane act of sex that seemed to bind his soul in some way to that of the Emperor. Pandava believes, although he hasn't the arcane knowledge to prove it, that the Emperor extends his life in this fashion, consuming the souls of his lovers. Pandava himself plotted and executed an escape from the harem that he had, until recently, believed was genuine.

It appears now that the Emperor let him go, a spy bound to his soul that he could possess at will across any distance. For more than a century the Emperor has been watching through his eyes, manipulating his deeds. Who knows how many more former lovers are unwitting spies throughout the Whorl.

I returned Pandava to stone. His companions rested and then set out into the deep desert to investigate the resurgent Cult of the Risen Son, the source of the attack upon the Archive. None of us know why the undead targeted me, nor why they seemed so interested in Pandava. We speculate a multi-faction power play in process, but the specifics remain occluded. I will update you should I learn more.

I Remain your devoted Daughter of the Sands

Great Mother of Night, Queen of Claws, Mother of us All, I beseech you!

Gnarl has led us astray! I see that now. He accepted the bargain with the scabrous twins from the Fist. He permitted them to use us as hives for their undead insects. I could feel them burrowing in my flesh, feeding on my life force, but the strength they gave us! It seemed so good at first, but you have shown me my error. 

Gnarl's lieutenant, Grazzit, kept me and seven of my brothers behind to guard the rear as Gnarl himself accompanied the scabrous twins to assault the Archive. I do not know what became of them inside, nor do I care. Your anger and fury has been made clear. Your sudden appearance amongst us caused confusion and consternation. Grazzit tried to convince us that your manifestation was some sort of trick, that the band of humans and elves that attacked us with ice and lightning and uncommon fury were playing on our loyalties with illusions, but your manifestation was so real, and spoke so directly to my heart that I could see only your wrath at our tribe's betrayal. 

As I fled, barely alive, feeling the black scarabs gnaw my flesh, I saw Grazzit burst into insects, along with others of my fallen brothers. I knew, then, absolutely, that the attacking band of humans and elves were your wrath made manifest, our punishment for making common cause with the Cursed Ones from the Fist. Even though I saw the young human they left behind with their camels, I feared even him, harmless though he appeared. Your wrath can hide in many guises and there was… something about him… that raised my hackles.

Please, Mother of Monsters, take these insects from my flesh, cut them from me and spare me the fate of my pack-brothers! I am the only one to survive. The attackers are doubtless even now preparing to cleanse the cliffside monastery. May Gnarl and the Twins find your justice at their cruel hands.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Lord,

The Thar Desert Expedition is concluded, or at least all efforts have been made to ensure that the populace at large believes as much. The survivors have been lauded, feted, and rewarded for their discoveries. The Wizard's College has taken custody of the arcane slave collars used in the traitor Raj Sinhala's blood magic rituals, as well as the necrotic knife he used to such ill effect upon his loyal companions. The Bardic College of Lore retains possession of the Heart of the Titan, as well as the three Titan-control artifacts, but we both know that this nominal title means little. For all that the Expedition was funded by the Bardic College, they have not the means nor the expertise to unlock the secrets of these artifacts. I anticipate the Wizard's College will shortly possess them in fact if not in title or prestige.

As for Sanjaya Pandava, the official line is that he died a heroic death in pursuit of knowledge. His connection to Emperor Rama I and the fact that he may well have been inadvertently responsible for a century's worth of clandestine infiltration of the Kingdom is being suppressed. The Temple of Kali has been engaged to hunt down the Professor's various connections, assess them, and dispose of them if necessary. This has already resulted in some two-dozen deaths which I imagine your office will be hard-pressed to manage in the eyes of the public. I cannot promise the deaths will end soon, but I anticipate they will slacken significantly in the coming days as the guilty flee to deeper concealment and the obvious traitors are slain.

Nearly half of the dead so far are various menials and lesser underworld figures affiliated with the self-styled "adventurer" Shah Khan. It would appear that he had developed a significant information-gathering network within Videha and that he sold information to the highest bidder. I suspect Shah Khan is not a traitor in his heart so much as a mercenary beguiled by a possessed Professor Pandava's offer of great riches. Nevertheless, the Temple deemed this network a threat. It seems, however, that Tavi Agarwal has capitalized on Shah Khan's lieutenants' fear of imminent execution to seize the network for herself. Although she was chosen to accompany the Professor himself in the Expedition, her actions in staving off the Emperor's machinations and securing the Heart for Mithila puts her, currently, above suspicion. The Temple has moved on to other targets.

This brings me to the interesting problem of the Professor's surviving "Team Eka." All of them were hand-picked by an unwitting spy and unknowing traitor, yet their actions prevented Ayodhya's emperor's success. I wonder, now, whether Professor Pandava, in the depths of his subconscious mind, was aware that his hated former Emperor was manipulating him. I wonder if he made his choices, in part, to FOIL the plans with which he was not consciously aware. If so, ironically, these direct companions of the Professor's are the MOST trustworthy of the many associates he accumulated over the last century.

In any event, the decision has been made to send them out into the desert once more. Although we may be able to trust them, leaving them here in the political and social quagmire that is Videha would court unnecessary risks. Saatvik in particular, notwithstanding his increasing prestige within the Temple of Sarasvati, has something of a reputation for indiscretion. I fear what might casually drop from his lips concerning the Professor and the Emperor. Vinihata, although less incautious in some regards, remains an unpredictable element, and Panja is clearly uncomfortable in the city and craves a return to the desert. All this speaks to the wisdom of sending them out again as quickly as possible.

As for Xedris Thrannis, the revelation of his family surname is oddly comforting for our purposes, yet also a danger should he remain in the city. Until we've suppressed Ayodhyan infiltration, his assassination will always be a risk. I understand that sending him back out will necessarily curtail his studies within the Wizard's College, but I have taken some steps to ensure his education won't fall too far behind. As he studies the spellbook I've given him, his intelligence cannot help but grapple with the arcane problems therein, hopefully aiding him in his self-study.

I've consulted with “Arvind” and we agree that they would be best used investigating these rumors of the Cult of the Risen Son. If there is some truth to them, we would be well-advised to prepare for the threat they might represent. While these heroes of the Thar Desert Expedition publicly depart on that mission, Arvind will lead a more clandestine one to the third Titan location with the goal of plundering its Heart or rendering it unusable to Ayodhya.

Which brings me to one last detail. Saatvik was rewarded by his Temple with a Question of the goddess Sarasvati. He chose to use this question to inquire into the location of Ayodhya's secret Titan construction facility. He has provided that information to us. It would appear the Titan is being constructed below the surface of the Dawn Sea, nestled within the Greater Cut, rendering it relatively inaccessible from shore. It is currently unknown how the Emperor's experts and craftsmen get to the site let alone survive there in order to complete their work, but it is my hope that a more … targeted interrogation of the Imperial Scholars captured by the Expedition will reveal more. Our first priority should be to ensure the Emperor never gains control of a Heart, but failing that, we may need to prepare contingencies against the work site. I admit to some concern that Varuna or elements within his priesthood might be complicit in this. If so, there are divine implications far greater than what I'm equipped to assess.

May Mithila stand ever as a bastion of enlightenment,

“Alia”

Transcript of Telepathic Field Report from Ministry Operative “Arvind”

Deputy Minister,

Operative “Alia” and I arrived on scene via wind-walk magic with Elenwe Two-Toes, Acolyte Gopa, and 8 Enlightened Knights where we rendezvoused with the four remaining members of Professor Pandava's team. The professor himself was bound, injured, and unconscious while Initiate Xedris “Somabhakta” was nowhere to be seen. Much to our relief there was no occupying force of Ayodhyan military. It would seem that the Viridian Hive of the Kreen fought off an expeditionary force buying us some time. Acolyte Saatvik was quick to fill us in on events since Elenwe had departed.

After some time spent interrogating the scholars brought into the desert from Ayodhya, the Professor and his team opted to enter the buried wreckage of the Titan of the Sun to ascertain if any systems or artifacts were salvageable. They encountered resistance. An ancient, undead Suryan priestess occupied the heart of the immense and ruined machine. She still held some control over the active power systems, more specifically the Heart of the Titan, a marvel of thaumaturgical craft that, it appears, the Eternal Solar Emperor himself is most invested in recovering. 

The Professor and his team succeeded in destroying the undead guardian and set to examining the artifact when suddenly an apparition of Rama I, Emperor of Ayodhya, manifested. He thanked Professor Pandava for being an unwitting fool for all these years. When asked by a shocked Professor Pandava why he would bother orchestrating Raj Sinhala's betrayal if it was entirely unnecessary, the Emperor reportedly said that it "amused" him to break the Professor's heart. The conversation as reported to me implies depths of interpersonal relationship previously unknown. Sadly, the conversation was cut short as Rama I "possessed" the Professor bodily. His first significant act was to turn to Xedris, disdainfully invoking his family name of "Thrannis", and invoke extravagant blood magic to pull Xedris bodily into Surya’s Prison using, apparently, thorned chains made of Xedris's own blood.

Although they had no chance of surviving a battle with a wizard as powerful as Rama I, the remaining four members of the team bravely sought to prevent him from successfully claiming the Heart of the Titan. Perhaps it was the idea of his expedition companions all standing on the cusp of death, or perhaps it was the risk that Vinihata would succeed in smashing the heart before it could be studied, but some part of Professor Pandava's will struggled to the surface. In his moments of lucidity, he begged his team to kill him, claiming that Rama I had, for an unknown number of years, been walking the streets of Videha in the Professor's body, assuming control when he believed he slept. The Professor rightly concluded he was an ongoing threat and needed to die.

Saatvik prayed to Sarasvati for insight, and opted instead to "kill" the Professor just long enough to drive out the Emperor before using his magic to stabilize him in an unconscious state. Saatvik claims the Professor still holds knowledge and secrets of value to the Goddess. Alia opines that the means by which Rama was able to possess the Professor would be invaluable intelligence for our efforts. Elenwe suggested a location previously discovered by the Professor's expedition, a place called the "Archive", where the Professor might be safely stored pending further investigation. I transported Elenwe, the unconscious Professor, his … unusual familiar, and Panja to the location of this Archive. You'll be fascinated to know that the "Archivist" is a member of a particularly rare, dangerous, and powerful Monster species known colloquially as a "medusa". Her "Archive" consists of ancient High Elves turned to stone. She turned the Professor into a statue for safekeeping. We spent the night in her Archive and departed the next day.

While we were gone, Alia worked with Saatvik and the others on attuning the Orb of the Titan reclaimed from the undead priestess and powering down the Heart so it could be safely removed. This process was still ongoing when I gathered the remaining four expedition members and gave them your proposal. I did not ask them to commit immediately, suggesting that first we must rescue Xedris from Surya's Prison. For all its terrible danger, the suggestion seemed to relieve them. Their commitment to their companion, who is by all accounts a somewhat stiff and unlikeable man, speaks strongly of the bond they have forged here in the desert, and confirms our decision to recruit them.

I prepared magic to protect them from the heat of Surya's Prison while Alia prepared to open the portal that would take us there. She used journals found in Xedris's effects as a focus to find him in the endless heat and chains and the five of us made a raid into hell.

We encountered Xedris's captor who I theorize was a Thrannis ancestor from the war, cast with his god into this place. The ties of blood between this ancestor and Xedris was what permitted the unfortunate wizard to be dragged bodily into this realm by chains of his own blood. We fought his captor and another, apparently incidental demon, and ultimately freed Xedris from his chains, dragging him back through the portal to the dig site.

Once Xedris has sufficiently recovered from his ordeal, I intend to bring the five of them back to Videha. They deserve accolades for their part in the sundry discoveries made, but I also want to debrief them in a more secure location and work out terms of service to the Ministry should they choose to join our efforts. My intention is to send them back into the desert to investigate the possible return of the Cult of the Risen Son. If there's an undead army massing out there we need to know about it. It seems that Tavi Agarwal is in possession of an item that permits the cult to communicate through dreams, and although dangerous, I thought it best left in their hands in case they could turn it to some positive use.

When next we speak it should be in person. I look forward to working with these five individuals again soon. 

001xa – mobility functions released, neural integration with crown-priest severed

001xb – combat functions released, neural integration with sceptre-priest severed

001xc - bridge systems offline, rerouting internal sensor data

002xa – thaumaturgical spectrography systems online

002xb – assessment: one blessed one = purity 85%, one blessed one = purity 67%, one blessed one = purity 3%, one baseline human = no purity data, one baseline human = incompatible theistic energies, one unknown morphological specimen

002xc – analysis – enemy collaborators / spies / agents infiltrating titan systems

002xd – activating coherent radiation field, deploying thaumaturgical field manipulation systems

errorerrorerror

003xa – thaumaturgical field manipulation systems offline, coherent radiation manipulation offline, enemy agents inbound

003xb – standing by for further orders

Transcript of the Report of Elenwe Two-Toes, Enlightened Knight of the Royal University of Mithila, as received by the Provost-Elect of the Bardic College of Lore, Parts 5 and 6

After departing the Viridian Hive, we elected to pursue the traitorous graduate student Raj Sinhala. It was clear he was an agent of Ayodhya, and we considered the harm he might do if left unchecked to be more immediate than the concerns raised by the other sites.

Professor Pandava continued in his deep depression, although in this state many of his masks and veils were dropped. He admitted to being a warlock of the Archfiend, but claimed that such studies pre-dated his departure from the Eternal Solar Empire and his admittance to the University. He claimed not to know anything about the traitorous warlock Cinder. The primary focus of his despondence and rage, however, was Raj. I know how close the two of them were in recent years.

We made a stealthy approach to the site of the buried Titan of the Sun provided to us, as well as to Raj, by the Hive-Queen. Panja and Tavi engaged in stealthy reconnoitering while Xedris provided aerial intel with his familiar. We discovered a work camp of about a hundred people just beginning to excavate the site. It became fairly clear that Ayodhya had an expeditionary force on standby awaiting a signal from the traitor to move on the site. I was reminded of how strongly Raj pushed to be assigned to that particular prospective site, and it's geographical proximity to Ayodhya would now seem to be the evident reason.

Further reconaissance showed that about 75% of the force were slaves, being thrown bodily at excavating the necrotic sands to ill-effect on their health. The other 25% were assorted scholars, soldiers, and slave-drivers under the command of the traitorous Raj. Most of our party except for me and the Professor engaged in a "snatch and grab" attempt on two of the soldiers when they departed to forage. Unfortunately, this attempt resulted in an alerted camp. The Professor and I attempted to join the fight, but it was over before we arrived. 

Half the soldiery, along with the "famed adventurer" Shah Khan, attacked our smaller group. Fortunately, our druid used the terrain tactically to slow the charge and Vinihata incapacitated Shah Khan, stripping him of his various weapons and armor. We rendezvoused together and opted for a frontal assault on the remaining camp before they could organize. We left the incapacitated Shah Khan tied to a camel while we made our assault, which was perhaps not the wisest move. We also discovered that the soldiery all had brands on their left hands showing an obscure sigil of the House of Dasaratha… personal soldiers of Emperor Rama I. 

As we arrived at the camp, the slaves were all being herded out to the necrotic ruins of the mostly-buried Titan while everyone else was hidden inside tents. More soldiers emerged and distracted us while the warlock, Cinder, began slaughtering slaves in the distant ruins. It was at first unclear why until Raj himself burst from one of the tents wrapped in shadowy chains with eyes burning like coals. It was clear he was possessed by some infernal power. He ranted at Professor Pandava, seeming to connect him to the Emperor by ties of blood. As we engaged Raj in combat, it became evident that Cinder's distant slaughter was empowering Raj somehow, but Vinihata put himself at considerable personal risk to shred the ritual bindings in the rug upon which Raj stood. Although Raj lashed about himself with shadowy chains that appeared to cause significant mental trauma to all they struck, we eventually were able to put him down.

By the time Professor Pandava was able to grant us immunity to the necrotic energies so we could enter the dig site, Cinder was long gone. About half the slaves were slaughtered. We recovered the other half. They all had intricate collars entwined with mystic sigils. Xedris and Saatvik determined that these collars tied the slaves' life energies to the demon bound inside Raj. As they died they empowered him. Xedris collected all the collars for study. As you are aware, I was tasked, alongside the freed goblin druid prisoner named Tinpot, to deliver these unfortunate here to Videha. I trust suitable authorities are questioning them for any relevant or valuable information on the Empire.

In the aftermath of the battle, the Professor admitted that his distant ancestor was the brother to Rama I. He, like most scholars, seemed dubious at Rama's claims to immortality, but could not provide a satisfactory theory as to how the ruse is maintained. The Professor was most surprised to learn from the captured scholars that Rama I is apparently trying to build a Titan of the Sun from scratch, but that his thaumaturgists lack the knowledge to reconstruct a Titan's heart, the power-source and engine that runs the thing. This was the purpose of the expedition and the betrayal. They wanted to take advantage of Professor Pandava's obsessive research in order to steal a Titan's heart. 

The Professor, as well as the remaining members of Team Eka, have established themselves at the site of the Titan. He requests that the University send support staff and manpower to aid in its excavation. 

You sent me on this expedition partly because of suspicions about Professor Pandava. Those suspicions seemed well-founded. Nevertheless, despite learning that he's a minor warlock of the Archfiend, and that he's a part of the royal family of Ayodhya, nothing the Professor has said and done contradicts his insistence that he is an exile from the Eternal Solar Empire, dedicated to the scholarly pursuit of uncovering the pre-war Empire's culture and art. The ranting of the traitorous Raj even seemed to confirm that Emperor's desire that the Professor "return to the fold," something the Professor was clearly unwilling to do.

Although these revelations canno help but impact Professor Pandava's reputation, he has yet to demonstrate that he is a spy or an enemy of the state. The academic value of his find cannot be underestimated. I recommend that the College, and the greater University, provide him the funding and manpower he requests, especially considering the site's proximity to Ayodhya.

The Memory of Zz'tak'szin, Queen of the Viridian Hive of the Three Hives of the Kreen

Despite my long memories, and the memories of my mother and her mothers before her, I think I will never fully comprehend the strange blindness through which those not of the People live their lives. A small clutch of them came before me some days ago thanks to the well-meaning introductions of the druid of the land who walked among them who named himself Tan Viper. 

This druid did little of the talking, however. Their clutch-leader was a half-breed elf of the sun with darkness in his heart. He spoke of his hive-leader, a great scholar of the sun elves named Sanjaya Pandava, who sought knowledge of the ancient Titans of the Sun on behalf of the Kingdom of Mithila, and who had sent him, a loyal student and aide, to seek the long-memories of me and my mothers.

Behind his face hid lies. Few of my people are capable of comprehending true deceit, but I am not among them. I saw his disloyalty to this Pandava. I saw that he had loyalties elsewhere yet kept them hidden. Nevertheless, the nearest Titan is little more than twisted wreckage buried in sand, and so I gave him what he wanted, yet I sent my warriors to watch their departure carefully for clues to their intentions.

No sooner did they believe themselves beyond my sight then their leader and two confederates, the demon-born warlock and the self-important showman, stabbed Tan Viper with vicious weapons, slaying him near-instantly. Given that moment in which to attempt to defend himself, their fifth companion, a young human with eyes of the Land, was not taken so swiftly by surprise. It seems, though, that their leader, who named himself Raj Sinhala, stabbed him with a blade of the night and left him to bleed with a message for Pandava revealing his treachery and his loyalty to the accursed Solar Empire.

Once the betrayers left, at my direction, my warriors retrieved the wounded human, Arjuna Tenarrows, tended him as best they could, and brought him to the place of human trading, the ruined city of Sarya, to see if this Pandava or others of his hive would return. This plan was successful. Pandava and more of his hive came to Sarya, discovered Arjuna's fate, healed him through the unusual intermediation of a Great Scarab, and were invited to speak with me.

The news of Raj's betrayal struck Pandava hard, or so I deem from our eventual meeting. Their journey was not without incident. They were ambushed by ankhegs and were thoughtful enough to gift me with a jar of ankheg honey upon arriving at my Hive. Pandava and his six companions spoke with me. They had among them another druid of the Land, an earth-elf named Panja, who spoke most eloquently. Pandava himself seemed listless until I and the other sun-elf in their number, Xedris, drew him out on the subject of why he sought the Titans. He became animated about restoring the culture, civilization, and art of the pre-war Eternal Solar Empire, this time free of the corruption of Surya. I saw the truth in his words which offset my suspicions upon seeing the chains of the Betrayer wrapped about his spirit. It would seem his companions were ignorant of the chains, however, for when I offered them the boon of my long memories and insight, the devotee of the River Goddess asked about Pandava, and I told him this his hive leader was a warlock tied to the Archfiend. This seemed to be new information for him and his companions, but Pandava made no effort to deny it.

I showed them a memory of the fall of a Titan in the last days of the War and spoke to them about the dangers of repeating history. We shall see how many of my words remain in the short, foggy memories of their people. Nevertheless, at the conclusion of our meeting, I deem these members of Pandava's hive to be more trustworthy than the previous clutch. I wish them fortune in cleansing the sour clutch from their midst.

 

The Travel Journal of Aleeni Vas, Graduate Student, Bardic College of Lore

I shall be forever grateful to Professor Sanjaya Pandava and the rest of Team Eka for rescuing me from almost certain death at the hands of a hungry lamia. I can only attribute my bardic training in history, storytelling, and lore to my survival. The creature kept me alive only so long as I was an interesting conversationalist. 

We spoke and laughed and feasted at her table of rich delights for what now seems to be days. At the time I thought nothing of it, so deep was I under her spell. Her villa in the midst of desert ruins was spilling with water, light, life, and luxury. Her conversation was scintillating, and apparently not entirely lies. Nevertheless, I thought nothing of it when my companions Danica Free and Sthisik suddenly decided to become the Lady's slaves, taking on a golden collar and serving us. I should have realized that was the point where the Lady had killed them and replaced them with illusions.

It seems Sindoor escaped after all, albeit as a slave to the scavenging jackalweres that lurk at the edges of the Lady's generosity feeding off her scraps. The Professor and Team Eka rescued her in Sarya, and it was her words that caused them to return to the Lady's villa in search of me and the remaining members of Team Dvi. It seemed, at first, that they too would fall under the Lady's spell. The Professor, and Saatvik certainly gave a good impression of having done so, though Vinihata seemed a rude guest. Perhaps it was his role to keep the others from becoming too complacent, but in hindsight it seems he was more interested in preventing his companions from eating any of the food…

The food. I shouldn't think about it, I shouldn't dwell on it, but despite their every efforts to protect me from the knowledge, in my heart I know that I have eaten the flesh of my companions, Danica and Sthisik, and it makes my heart and body sick.

The druid Panja broke the spell, entering the villa courtyard like a desert wind, pointing an accusing finger at the Lady and demanding that she reveal herself. A sudden silence blanketed the banquet. As the Lady came under threat the only thing I could do was leap to her defense, enraged that such a kind, generous, lovely, and knowledgeable woman should be assaulted in her own home. It didn't take long, however, for the offenses of her guests to provoke her to sufficient anger to reveal herself… a beastly lion-creature with the upper torso of a woman. She nearly slew Vinihata, and her three jackalwere servants harassed Panja and Xedris, but ultimately the Professor and Team Eka slew her, ignoring her pleas to let her live for a boon. Only one jackalwere escaped into the desert. 

With the Lady dead, her illusions faded. The luxurious villa became dilapidated, its glories dimmed. The servants vanished. I had fainted. I was roused elsewhere in the courtyard, kept from looking as Team Eka built a bonfire and disposed of the remains of the feast table. Xedris, bless his soul, did his best to silence the indiscreet commentary of Sattvik on the subject of those remains. I shouldn't think about it. I should focus on the mission.

Tavi had found the lamia's chambers, and within them a golden sceptre and a golden crown, both set with a clear gem casting gentle light. Xedris determined that these were the control crown and control rod for a Titan of the Sun! During my ensorcelment the lamia had told tales of expeditions into the wastelands dawnward and spinward from her home, and the terrible rotting curse that had befallen all those who had penetrated the secrets to be found there. It seems the Professor's information was correct after all, the village of cultists that led us to the Lady's home did have useful information on former expeditions that may have found one of the Titans, and the Lady had procured their treasures before presumably eating them. 

I was filled in on the Professor's own discoveries, and added my meager notes to his map. We seem to be closing in on three possible locations of buried Titans, and have two priceless historical and magical artifacts related to them. So far, the Professor's expeditions have proven all his preliminary research valid. I can't wait to hear what successes Team Tri has had.