Episode 9
From Iridium Circle Exalted
A Funeral - The Drunken Tower - The Viridian Sanctum - The Griffon and the Bear - The Ghosts Return
Episode 9 - A Funeral for a Friend
- Carver's funeral procession departs the temple and proceeds on a circuit of the town.
- Citizens line the streets to bid him farewell.
- For obvious reasons, it is a closed casket funeral.
- The procession leaves the city to a stretch of ground outside where River is waiting.
- Weaving his essence about him, River throws up an impressive mausoleum in a matter of minutes.
- Its interior is covered in friezes detailing Carver's feats from the two weeks in which River knew him.
- The mourners then proceed to the Immaculate Conception's tent where a performance of Carver's deeds will be enacted.
- The performance celebrates the triumph and tragedy of the exalts.
- Carver is made out to be way more awesome than he was.
- Dragonlord Tepet gives a training manual to the leaders of the militia.
- It's extremely useful and will do them well in the future.
- After the funeral she leaves for the encampment.
- Aldbur would like to know about the place of power that River investigated.
- The Eastern Green Dragon was actually a big ol' spirit dragon.
- The dragon was also pretty chill apparently.
- There was a huge cavern under the tower which the dragon guarded full of leylines.
- There were also a number of totems and their attendant spirits.
- The totems controlled subsidiary functions of a massive manse in the Glen of the Viridian Rivers.
- This manse is known as the Viridian Sanctum.
- Aldbur may know something about this...
- Aldbur leads the group down to the basement of the temple.
- He hasn't been down here in eleven years.
- In an inconspicuous storeroom is a hidden door.
- Beyond is a corridor descending into the earth under the town square.
- Lit torches line the way.
- They are 100% magical as there is no way they've been burning like this for at least eleven years.
- This place is older than anyone has ever seen.
- There are a set of doors at the bottom.
- Everyone knows River made this.
- But he's never been down here...
- In the inner chamber is a raised dais of yellow jade with other magical materials describing glyphs on the floor.
- Each glyph corresponds to a caste for Solars, Lunars, or Dragonbloods.
- There are five groupings - a full circle required to proceed.
- Aldbur's circle was broken before they got to this spot so they could go no further.
- We are also missing a member (as the Dragonlord is at her encampment and Aldbur doubles up with Oboreta).
- River: "The Dragonlord will provide the missing link."
- Aldbur: "But she is not exalted."
- River: (pointing at the eclipse glyph) "She's that one."
- Aldbur is not sure she is friendly toward exalts.
- River sends an infallible messenger to tell her we're on our way to see here (it is nearly midnight).
- The group leaves for the mercenary encampment.
- As the exalts approach the river gate, there is an explosion of golden light from the plain beyond.
- A massive golden griffon roars into the night, then snaps out of existence.
- As the group rushes forward, they see several of the disease spirits winking out of existence, the body of Dragonlord Tepet, and a mysterious stranger.
- Did she ded?
- She is kill.
- Luckily the replacement is standing right there.
- As the Dragonlord was riding toward the city a hundred or so disease spirits materialised to ambush her.
- The mysterious stranger ran from the gate to help her out but it was too late.
- The Dragonlord was clawed to death by the mob which then dematerialised and escaped back to the city.
- The stranger is Bear, an older barbarian from the north.
- He's a traveler and explorer and he came to the Glen for shelter during calibration.
- That's not the whole truth though.
- While he looks like the stereotypical boorish barbarian, he is far more calculating and conniving than he appears.
- Suspicions abound.
- Casimir and several of the Pale Horse ride up.
- Casimir: "What in the blue arse shit fuck just happened?"
- I guess he's the leader now.
- Casimir proceeds to get a bit drunk on power.
- Aldbur is a bit put out by the fact that he will now never find out what's inside the Viridian Sanctum.
- Nevertheless he gets on with the business of protecting his people.
- He presumes that the ghosts will attack some time during the feast when people are vulnerable (ie. the exalts aren't around).
- Thus he asks us all to stay near the town hall so that we can be there at a moment's notice.
- In the morning, Wren goes to talk to Sacred Dolphin about the threat posed by the Hooded Man.
- Everyone in the Guild house is currently running around because Sacred Dolphin was found dead.
- He was shot by an arrow that looks suspiciously like the ones Wind Follower uses.
- The killer came in through the shutters which were left ajar.
- Wren questions those present and concludes that it wasn't any of them.
- He enacts Dolphin's succession plan and goes to investigate the murder.
- Wren: "Wind Follower, Did you kill Sacred Dolphin?"
- Wind Follower: "No."
- Wren: "Thought not."
- As Wren and Wind Follower go to retrace the route the killer took, there are screams from the town hall.
- Everyone rushes over to find that the spirits have appeared again.
- They're killing the guards who are valiantly fighting back (but losing).
- Bear screams into action hewing about himself with axes.
- He begins to glow with golden light.
- Perhaps we'll be able to open the Sanctum after all.
- Oboreta dives in over Bear's head and wipes out another chunk of spirits.
- Wind Follower's accurate arrows annihilate the apparitions.
- Wren, spear in hand, methodically cuts down spirit after spirit.
- Bear finishes off the last of the diseased wretches.
- River makes it to the doors just in time for it to be all over.
- I guess that's the spirit problem sorted.
- But it was way too easy.
- There's something more at play here.
- The spirits attacked from a sewer entrance.
- The assassin also came from a (different) sewer entrance.
- Probably a coincidence.
- The city battens down the hatches in preparation for calibration.
- We'll have another crack at the sanctum first.
- But that is a story for another time.