Editing 08/29/24 -- Operation Medusa


Operation Medusa – Knewidi 32nd, 715AR (8/29/24)

'''STARRING''': Bee, Cauda, Koilos, Margaux, Magion, Seth, The Emerald Knight

* We have all received a letter from the mysterious Material God, Magion. He asks us to meet up when we are ready to begin. One of the names, Cauda, we do not all know yet. Probably a member of the Brigade..?
** Bee takes Lorekeeper, Cauda Spymaster, Koilos takes Quartermaster.
* Marcus rolls 1D6 as the odd-man out.
** 1D6 – 2
*** Roll another 1D6 – 6
** Not the worst it could be. But it could be better. At the end of this mission, there will be a new omen that occurs. You get a random event.

* Bee decides to give up her stamina and 2HP.
* The birds, like crows with crab legs on their underbellies, look at Bee approach. Some fly away, some scuttle. A few give a snake-like hiss and begin to circle you. An overwhelming sense of exhaustion and foreboding doom overcomes you. Despite your best efforts, you cannot shake it.
* Stamina lost to this event cannot be regained via magical means.

* Bee and Cauda head to Rat Races
* Seth trains his Martial School (Builder, he heads to the Alchemist Burrow),
** MENTAL – 0
** SPIRIT – 4 Successes
** He makes steady progress along the track. A way to go before the school is done, though.
* Koilos heads to therapy, trying to prod Margaux into a private session.
** “Alright. What is going on?”
*** “I heard that, um, you and Andreas started a– therapy? Counseling? Over here. I was wondering if I could… have a session with you? If possible?”
** “Well. Yeah. Usually I do multiple people at once but… alright.”
*** “Thank you. The topic is a little, uh, sensitive. So. It probably wouldn’t be best to discuss it in a group. Other stuff sure but for this incident… I think Magion would prefer it to be quiet.”
** “Of course. What’s on your mind?”
*** “I… I let Radovan… Kill an entire village.”
** “...I see. Why did you do that?”
*** “Um, well… For one, the Brigade really needed the resources. Um. Things were so… we were really struggling and I… Knew we could get it that way. But, to be honest, I knew that Claudia needed the blood. Um. Radovan said he could get it for her and… she’s been suffering for so long in there.”
** “I see. Well. Um… Damn, an entire village?”
*** “Yeah. The thing that really gets me the most is– Margaux, if we’re in that same position again… I don’t feel like I would choose differently. And that is what really bothers me. I feel like I’m stuck in this cycle and I don’t know how to get out of it.”
** “So what are you doing here?”
*** “Trying to get out of the cycle?”
** “Mmm…. No… I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure you know how to get out of this cycle. I think you’ve done it before. I think you’ve relapsed. And now I think you’re not wanting to confront what you’ve done. So I’m sorry if you’re… if you can’t figure out how to not murder an entire village. I truly am. But, again, Ki, I don’t think that’s the problem. And for other clients I might have a bit of a gentler hand, but I know you. I know that you can say no to these choices. I know it’s not easy. But, at the end of the day, I think people like Claudia would rather you not take the easy way.”
*** “I know. I… Um. I didn’t really do it for her, did I?”
** “Let me ask you a question. When was the last time you saw Claudia?”
*** “The day before the mission. I’d been spending the nights there with her. To try and keep her company, if she can understand that still.”
** “Mm. Then you went on a mission to… help Claudia. And you haven’t seen Claudia after that mission?”
*** “I feel like I’d failed her if I didn’t have any way of helping her.”
** “It’s not a failure if your help doesn’t succeed. In a way, yes, it is, but the effort? Being there? That counts for a lot. I would also say it’s an equal failure though if you burned down the house to exorcize a ghost. Not really worth the exorcism if the place you’re trying to save is gone. I know that you like replacing things with nothing, Ki. But don’t replace all the good parts of the world with nothing in hopes of saving it.”
*** “Mm. That’s. I’ll have to remember that line. That actually hit pretty hard, um… Thank you for not holding back.”
*** Ki offers to listen if Margaux needs it.
** “Well me and Andreas talk to each other so I think I’ll keep doing that. Also, Doaa is qualified in a lot of those regards. Actually, most of the Church of Corania are certified– not mental health specialists, but they can do in a pinch. Fidelis is not one of them though you should not talk to him about these things.”
*** “Oh. Yeah. I was there with… how he talked to Anahi. Um. He has a lot of things to work through too.”
** “I was just gonna say he left before his training was completed, I guess that too?”
** Margaux cringes like she didn’t know that information.
*** “Yeah he… he means well. But in the same way that I think I mean well, sometimes. Work in progress. At least he seems to be genuinely improving, which is good.”
** Margaux offers a ward for Ki before she goes.
*** Ki asks her out to lunch tomorrow, to catch up. She is going to stay with Claudia after she gets back.
*** Ki gets up and heads out.
* Bee sets up her room for Manatee, making sure she has space to run around but also food in her cage. Manatee holds a scrap of food in her mouth and looks at her. The rat begins to hop. Later, Bee realizes this was a bribe to make her stay home.
* Spymaster recruits another spy (Luger) and places him on Propaganda. The other two stay on Supply.
** 2 Supply
* Quartermaster begins a Community Center project.
* As we approach Magions office we see a stranger outside.
** Man, curly blonde hair and pale grey eyes. Battle ax on the back, 6’3” noticeably hunched. Simple clothing. Wrapped around his neck and shoulders is a black-purple eel. It is chilling. Its eyes are a similar grey to the man. He has a flat, stoney expression.
* Bee and Ki greet Cauda. Cauda signs a hello, and Bee wiggles her fingers at him meaninglessly.
** “Can you… um, hear us okay? Are you just mute or are you also deaf?”
*** He nods and signs that he can hear.
** Ki introduces herself. Cauda introduces himself and his eel, Remy.
** Bee introduces herself.
** None of us use Sign and therefore cannot really determine what Cauda is saying.
* Bee enters the room and is smashed in the chest by a magical trap. She loses an AB.
* “I’ll be quite frank with all of you. The Brigade is vulnerable. I wish to shore up some of those vulnerabilities by enlisting your help.”
** “If these tasks are completed, we will have safety finally. We will be able to protect ourselves. No more deaths. No more losing people. This is the goal.”
** “The first task I wish for you to complete is to begin to transcribe these books.”
*** He pulls out stack after stack after stack of Martial treatises.
** “I have written a cipher comprising of multiple different languages, I would like you to transcribe these books into.”
*** He pulls out a long metallic cylinder with many different letters from 2-3 different alphabets.
** “Additionally, for these books I would like them transcribed onto special paper.”
*** He pulls out what appears to be regular paper with a silvery tint to it. This paper is made out of silver and enchanted to have the qualities of paper. He sets down multiple stacks in front of us.
** “I don’t need all the extra additions or commentaries in the treatises. Just forms, battle tactics, and the like.”
** When we are finished, we are to meet him in room 37D. If we don’t knock we will be blown up again.
* Bee doesn’t know how to write. Ki takes a moment to show her how to write some letters so he has the ability to copy them, even if she doesn’t understand it. Bee asks if she was assigned to this as a punishment. Ki tries to convince her that Magion probably trusts her more than most people here. She doesn’t believe her.
* Ki does her best to teach the other three how to write. She teaches us how to identify certain letters.
** Ki exclusively knows Common.
* Seth is able to recognize some of the letters here as Dwarvish. Sentences cannot end in Dwarvish F or X. The cipher requires a bit more translation here and there. Everyone else repeats afterward what the template is behind. They are about Martial Schools of some kind. Land School is there. Spirit School is written in Common and Dwarvish.
* We all make MENTAL checks to see how fast we can get all of this done. We complete the skill challenge, though Seth invokes Magnet for Trouble.
* Bee stacks up the books they used nicely on the table. We head toward room 37D.
* As we enter inside, in this room there are piles of chalk, a large blackboard, and a heavy book set on a table with chairs all around the room. There is also what appears to be a crappy suit of armor with marks all around it, seeming to indicate where things would be placed into it.
** “You translated it this quickly?”
*** “Well… it was a little bit of a struggle. Only a few of us know how to write, and only Seth can read Dwarvish.”
** “In that case, I am incredibly pleased. Good job all of you. For this… I am passing over more intellectual duties onto all of you as you have proven that you can surf through the schools. I have gotten my thoughts on what the Soldiers of the Brigade need, but now I have decided that it is better to leave it in your hands. For this next matter, I require you to, at this moment, help to create more magical suits of armor. This book is the product of many long hours consulting with the smiths and artificers of the Brigade in order to give us an understanding of what we can and cannot accomplish in the creation of this new armor. This is supposed to be our maximum prototype. Therefore, I want all of you to build the best set of armor that you can. And that is the goal. All of your intelligence, all of your skill, create for me armor which could withstand the wrath of Titans. Bring all your magic and talents to bear. That is the task, simple as that.”
** He leaves us alone.
* We have 10 build points to spend. Essentially, what he is telling us, is to make our own set of armor.
* Seth invokes his Student school utilizing his smithing toolset. For this, it helps identify what can and cannot be done. Magion will also assign the top smiths and artificers to make your dreams reality.
** Storm Charge, Lightning Rebuke, The Fortifieds, Replace with Nothing, Armor Regeneration, and Greater Sheer III are added to the armor, along with an Aetheric signature reader.
* Bee runs to grab Magion. He returns, commenting that the armor is very inspired. He likes it.
** “Yes… okay. Hm. Think I can rush a prototype of this. I… Would like one last thing from all of you. Tomorrow morning. Dawn. Likely we should be able to get a working prototype. I would like all of you to come and test it. All of you have considerable combat strength, just taking your best shot at a target so we can see how much the armor can withstand. Otherwise with this armor we should be able to help put a shield around the Brigade.”
*** “Do you think applying my Torvian to the armor… I just put it down there as an idea– how would that work?”
** “Mm. Can I have a part of your hand? Some skin, perhaps?”
*** Bee hopes she isn’t going to cut off another finger. Magion doesn’t want this to happen either. He just wants a little skin to try and copy the effect.
*** “Okay. Where would the suit draw its power from to do all of this?”
** “Umm… The energy around it. And, if necessary, we would add in other power sources. Perhaps something akin to a battery. You’ve put much into the suit, so it might require it, but we have good artificers.”
*** Ki allows Magion to take a sample of her Torvian hand. He takes a small square out of her palm.
*** “And the Aether signature? We were worried that somebody's aether signature could change on its own… will that hold up okay?”
** Magion doesn't think it’ll be a problem.
*** Bee asks if they can show Lavatera. When it is finished, Magion will take her to see Lavatera. She has his word.
** “There is always a chance [it could be used against us]. Mainly that will depend on all of you. You are a factor that I cannot account for. Given everything on my end, this will only be used to aid the Brigade and the Cosmic Stack itself.”
** “I will see all of you tomorrow morning.”
* Bee tells Manatee that she made cool armor and learned how to write. She runs around the room and nibbles on food.
* We are in a different room of the Command Center. A training room. Toward one end is a large black box seemingly made of obsidian with arcane symbols and runes carved into it that all feed toward a center point. Magion is there, waiting for us. 
** “Good morning. Glad all of you were able to get up at this hour. We do have a prototype ready, not fully there yet– still have a few more factors to put in, but, the large big ticket items we have been able to install within the suit. Of course the fortification of the physical, mental, and psychological side of the armor and the aetheric signature, the regeneration of the suit itself… all that was not too difficult. Now though we just need to run some final tests. And that is where all of you come in. I would like you to take your best shot with whatever power or ability you have at the box. It will amplify it 10-fold and send it to the box within.”
* Seth goes first, using his Minotaur Ax.
** Seth gets into a sprinters stance, rushing the box. He invokes the Spirit School.
** PHYS B1 – 4 Successes
*** 360 Damage to the Armor
*** There is resistance to the ax, all of the kinetic energy is centered on one point. There is a small explosion within. Magion stops for a moment. He closes his eyes, and you see a shimmering effect start to go across the cube.
* “Ahh. Yes. A sure hit. I believe it’s held though. Very nice.”
* Bee steps up to go next. Ki wonders what is in the box, or rather Who is in the box wearing the armor.
* Magion snaps his fingers. The box begins to open as a knight in emerald armor begins to step out. There is a hole in the chest where the strike landed, but the armor is beginning to heal over at the moment. Magion looks to them.
** “Please, remove the helm.”
* As the wearer of the Armor does so, all of you see the Maiden’s face come out from under the helm.
* “Judging by recent tests I’ve been running, due to her emotional state having altered her regenerative abilities have returned to her. Therefore, we have access to our best warrior once again. At least one who will never tire, and now has armor that all of you custom built for her in order to fight back against our enemies.”
** “The Maiden doesn’t have the ability to consent to any of this!”
*** “Corpses don’t consent, Koilos.”
*** “I would make the argument that the Maiden died long ago. Maybe even before the event at Widowstone. But when Ishin returned she died. And she was most certainly resurrected by Lavateras potion. At the moment she is a corpse. Little more than a zombie.”
*** “Now. She is the best weapon we have, a skilled fighter with a powerful Aether Realm inside a suit that I’ve added more protections to so she cannot be manipulated.”
* Bee approaches the Maiden and asks if it hurt. She says yes. Bee hugs her. The Maiden does not respond to this.
** Bee tells Magion he is very mean. He wishes he didn’t have to. But he could say the same for us. He isn’t the one who put the bolt through her head, he found the body already dead.
* “If she is a corpse like you said– we are not honoring the dead!”
** “We don’t have time to honor the dead. If I had more necromancers here they would be resurrecting every corpse we have. And if I die I hope you do the same for me. Now I need you to sharpen your sword, put on your big girl boots, and do this. We will run these tests. We will get this done. When we present our new defender to our soldiers, to the citizens we have left, morale will skyrocket. Our community will come closer together.”
*** “One day when the Maiden returns to her former self, she will not forgive you for this.”
** “You don’t have to forgive me. And if we get to the point where we can revive her then I will certainly accept the consequences.”
** “We’ve gotten close, far too close to being found. The Maiden in this armor, she will be able to buy us time. A chance.”
*** “What are you doing to Lavatera?”
** “I’m holding her. In a cell.”
*** “And what else? If you’re willing to do this to the Maiden, you’re not one to let resources lie in a cell.”
** “When we have use for Lavatera, I go and I talk to her. Otherwise the best thing that we can do is keep her there to prevent other instances like some in the Brigade taking Radovan Raze on a jaunt outside the Keep. Where the Umber Prince killed an entire village. Lavatera knew full well what would happen. And she allowed it. Now, the soldiers of the Brigade, they’re young. Malleable. Manipulatable. Lavatera knew better. Her punishment fits the crime.”
*** “And we’re seeing her after this?”
** “If you would like, yes, I will make good on my word. We will present the armor to Lavatera to show her that her plan worked.”
*** “The armor for the Maiden was her plan?”
** “The… mental state that allowed us to get to this point. That was hers. The armor… well… conceptually was mine. The details? All you. Don’t worry. You saw to her defenses yourselves.”
*** “I can’t speak fully for Lavatera but I don’t think she was picturing this.”
** “I don’t care what she was picturing. We do what was necessary. That is the end of it. Now, will you allow us to continue running tests.”
* Bee asks to be excused, and heads to the temple to sit by the 12th. She wishes she hadn’t been made. Maybe things would be better. She reads her journal.
* Ki stands in front of the obsidian box, takes the first mountain stance. 
** “If you want me out of the way, you will have to move me. I will not leave here and let you hurt her. You will have to force me out of here.”
*** “That seems very unnecessary, Ki. Fine. We won’t run any more tests today. Maiden, follow me. Let’s get you fitted with some more experimental pieces.”
* Magion turns around and begins to walk away as the Emerald Knight begins to follow in the shadow of him. He stops and turns.
** “Seth, Cauda, I could still use your help.”
*** Seth follows. Cauda follows. Ki looks to them with pleading eyes.
* Going our separate ways, Marcus must roll another 1D6 +3
** 4
*** 8 Morale
** +2 Intel
* News of the Emerald Knight starts to spread through the Brigade. This new glorious protector. The citizens and the soldiers of course buy it. How could they not. But… also, Caleb rolls 1D6 for the new omen.
** 3
*** The Locust Omen