The Magician as a Dramatic Persona

The magician is not, traditionally, treated as a heroic character. It is rarely treated as a protagonist, and then often as the lead in a tragedy (e.g. Faust, Prospero). In the realm of fantasy, this held true; Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone is a tragic character. Heroic magicians are often secondary characters, companions and mentors to a warrior protagonist. In terms of popular culture this wasn't really broken until, once again, George Lucas brought us his Star Wars trilogy that showed us the journey of Luke Skywalker from innocent farmboy to ascendant Jedi Knight (and therefore a warrior magician). Even so, Luke was not truly a heroic magician until Return of the Jedi.

However, in the years between 1983 (Jedi) and 1999 (The Phantom Menace) a sea-change occurred in the culture. From where I sit it is (again) driven by gaming primarily and by Dungeons & Dragons in particular, taking the pulp fiction influences and moving them to a very different medium of entertainment where the sensibilities and motivations are something else.

Players--gamers--aren't keen to conform to dramatic sensibilities as a class. They are far more aligned with technicians than dramatists, and as such they will discard notions that interfere with their desire and pursuit of excellence in order to defeat and overcome the challenges put to them by the game. In terms of tabletop RPGs, playing a magician (until recently) was playing on hard mode; big payoff if you made it, but you had it rough for quite a while until your power ramped up, and even then one wrong move or run of bad luck and you were done.

Coming back into dramatic media, this would (in time) rehabilitate the magician into a suitable heroic protagonist because it had a proven path of character development and a ready-made pattern for plot development. In short, the gamers showed the dramatists where the heroic drama in such a character rested.

Don't think so? Start looking at the fantasy published in the wake of Dungeons & Dragons. While the big successes, even through the 80s, still held to the old tropes you could see their gradual shedding and changing. Now? Especially with the rise of paranormal romance as a genre, and the continuing influence of Star Wars through its Expanded Universe, a heroic magician protagonist is hardly unusual. Rowling's Potter was the moment that the dam burst, and in its wake many imitators followed. Comic properties began getting adapted, to varying degrees of success. (e.g. Constantine) Doctor Strange, therefore, is a comicbook example who was ahead of his time- and his time is now.

Yes, expect more in the future, and especially more high-profile ones. (Warner Brothers should have a Zatanna movie in the talking and pitching stage right about now, and the Shazam film hits this territory while presenting a Superman-style character.) Until another significant cultural shift occurs, this will increasingly be a thing.

World Building: The Hidden City & Its Defenders

The Hidden City is one of the successors to the Old World destroyed by the Coming of the Azure Flames, and like the others it had ties to the twin conspiracies that foolishly destroyed that world in their hubris. In this case, the founder of the Hidden City was a programmer, engineer, and occultist by the name of Roger M. Ire. Inspired by Disney's Tron as a boy, he pursued programming and engineering as he got older; these lead him into philosophy as a sideline in university, which is also when he got into the occult and recruited to DARPA.

Once initiated into the Deep State, Ire would gain access to secret information Disney used to inform Tron, going on to realize the concept and figure out how to make real the postulated digitization of real matter into a digital construct. In doing so, he pushed for and contributed to several patent-making advances in computer and network hardwarve, software, and firmware; these patents allowed him a passive and clean income that freed him from needing to maintain a cover identity as most do.

The occultist side of the twin conspiracies saw the potential in his work, and gave him the cover he needed to get out of the known hubs of IT and engineering in favor of hiding in plain site in Minneapolis. He hid his work under the guise of medical technology research, gaining access to power and network resources needed for his laboratory; in this lab, he did what--again, through Disney--was fictionalized in Tron: Legacy: the creation of a virtual city-state that people could freely transit to and from.

But Roger Ire, by now, was no naive idealist like fictional Kevin Flynn. His studies of the occult led him to conclude that programming was so much like sorcery that they had to be related somehow, and his presence around medical research of all sorts lead him to conclude that DNA has to be some form of code--therefore, a symbol representing a thing that has effects in reality, which therefore can be manipulated to make effects that he desired. He concluded that the solutions to several long-standing known issues of Mankind could at last be solved, permanently, and drew up a few plans to do so.

That was when his contacts in the occultist conspiracy also informed him of the Grand Ritual plan. He--like Solador's Archmage--saw through immediately as hubris destined to fail and bring ruin, and he moved to execute a survival plan. He took a big gamble, as he suspected that the Minneapolis area was a convergence of hidden energy, and devised devices that he--at the time--did not fully understand to tap into it to use as emergency power to keep the Hidden City online.

When the Azure Flames hit, he sealed the lab to all physical access and put the taps into place before taking one last trip through the transit portal to the Hidden City and hoped for the best. Instead of facing oblivion, he found himself faced with a crisis of power surging into the system; he was right about the power source, but had no idea that it had been dormant and came to live in the wake of 90% of Mankind being either nuked to ashes or consumed in the waves of blue-white flames that followed. The Hidden City, then a small thing, grew into a gleaming metropolis in the blink of an eye as Roger struggles to use what threatened to overwhelm him in maddening sequences of program resolution and iteration from the inside.

To cope with the surges, Roger connected to the Internet knowing that the Deep State installations meant for Continuity of Government would be online, connected, and hardened enough to stay up. With the power at his command, he got into the local systems and usurped their automated tools so that he installed and integrated additional transit portals throughout the world and then secured these facilities to his command alone. It was during this crisis that Roger became aware of what went on outside in realspace, becoming aware of The Necromancer and the undead horde he controlled.

At this moment, Roger had a sudden thought: "This is my mission, to reformat the whole of Creation and bring it into the perfect system."

The Hidden City would, over the years, grow both in virtual and real population. During the time of The Necromancer is when Roger--now known as The First Founder--started recruiting real people to operate in realspace as his agents. (N.B.: This is a big part of the Solador story; Roger sends an agent to overthrow The Archmage.) It is here that Roger, and his growing body of disciples, turn the power of The Hidden City to making super-solders.

Roger and his disciples created their first model based on a need for deniability and concealment, but when action became necessary great power could be put to hand. As this first cadre was a small one, a focus on quality in power to make competency in acumen was the goal and (as all of them were survivors of the Old World) they used a Japanese model as their basis: The masked heroes of the tokukatsu genre and their animated counterparts.

They then blended this model with an older American one, that of DC's Captain Marvel (a.k.a. "Shazam"), giving each agent a secure passcode keyed to their unique genetic code- a sample of which Roger kept on file as a security failsafe. Later iterations and revisions would refine this concept until there was a clear gradation of power, granted by demonstrated quality of character as well as loyalty to The Hidden City (and, by extension, to Roger), and Roger decided to foster this via deliberate generational eugenics improvement. The goal? To create the ideal agent of the City and its interests as the Guardians of Civilization.

And, unnoticed by most, this was when Roger's fall into hubris became complete.

The Treasure of the Iron Range-06

Ken culled another zombie from The Necromancer’s uncounted horde of undead thralls, sneaking in under cover of darkness and ambushing a sentry lurching about its patrol of a dig site. After he dragged the lifeless corpse away, and then began consuming it, Ken also mulled over a plan. Ken knew that The Necromancer, whatever else that villain was, was not a fool; it was wise to presume that The Necromancer would be wary of Ken intervening.

Ken chewed on the flesh of his meal. Even now, The Necromancer’s presence—through his horde—felt palpable to him. That presence, if it focused itself upon Wendigo, would be more than he could handle. Somehow, Ken must separate his target from his enemy and keep them apart long enough to put Wendigo down for good. Then there was that ally of his enemy, the one whose very presence radiated power beyond mortal means, and yet did not seem so dissonant as his enemy.

What of this thing that allied itself to The Necromancer? Would he—it—intervene? If it did, what would it do and how would it do that? Why did it look like a young Christopher Walken from some Old World horror film? Ken tossed the now-meatless bone aside, and heard it hit something other than a tree, rock or dirt- and then felt that same eerie presence.

“You’re a curious monkey.”

Ken leapt to his feet. Out from the darkness he saw a man-like figure appear—approach—him.

“Would you prefer a more familiar form?”

The figure changed its shape, appearing as that now-dead actor, and now Ken remembered.

“Gabriel.” Ken said, “That is your name, isn’t it?”

“In your tongue, so that’s good enough.” Gabriel said.

Ken took in a deep breath, drawing in through his nose and exhaling through his mouth, flexing himself without thinking as if he prepared for a fight. He smelled stale incense barely masking a rot off of Gabriel.

“Your kind calls mine ‘angels’.” Gabriel said, “Yes, the monkey I look like mimicked me well, and I must say that inspiring your kind can be quite entertaining. The story, however, I made up.”

“You’re not here to chat over dinner.” Ken said.

“True.” Gabriel said, “I’m here because I caught your little trick the other day. The ‘see-through-another’s-eyes’ trick that you did I found very interesting. I had to know what new monkey came up with this stuff. I’ve been following you now for weeks.”

Ken gave Gabriel a disbelieving look.

“Time doesn’t work the same way for us as it does for you.”

“So,” Ken said as he assessed Gabriel’s body language, “if you’re watching me, then why talk to me now?”

“Because you’re about to do something rash and stupid, and—as much as I’d love to watch you do your monkey-thing and fail spectacularly—I have my orders.”

“Which are?”

“There’s more to what’s going on than you’ve figured out—that you could ever figure out—on your own.”

"Tell me."

The Vault Incident-12

“Here we go!”

Gale Wolf launched her drone fighters, and as they took wing she pitched over and dived upon the enemy airfield. Coming out of the sun, the enemy forces below couldn’t see their attackers clearly, making it impossible to hit them with ground fire. The drones targeted and destroyed the enemy’s aircraft on the ground, taking out any possibility of losing air supremacy, and Gale Wolf herself outright obliterated the airfield’s command-and-control infrastructure with a combination of missiles and well-aimed cannon fire. Within minutes, all resistance remaining consisted of enemy personnel using small arms and inherent powers- uselessly.

Roger, Alex and Alan 1 dropped from Gale Wolf as it made another pass to support her drones. The three of them glided down to the ground with the aid of backpack-mounted light-wings. As they neared the ground, Roger signaled to Alan 1, and on cue they threw down some hand grenades. That cleared the landing zone, and the three of them hit the ground running for the building wherein their quarry awaited them.

The trio breeched the building from the side, bypassing the enemy detail awaiting them at the door and catching them from behind. One grenade took them out, and a limpet mine used on the ceiling in a second-story room brought their target to them as she fell from the room above. Alex and Alan 1 dealt with the enemy handler and his henchmen, quickly overwhelming them with unexpected violence of action, while Roger bound their target and signaled for pick-up.

The three of them, quarry in hand, made for the rooftop where Gale Wolf met them. Once aboard, Gale Wolf made for home and recalled her drones. The enemy, completely unable to pursue, soon faded into irrelevance as it disappeared in the distance. Roger contacted the Council, and they made use of their executive privilege to recall Gale Wolf directly to the Inner City and the Council Tower. Once there, Roger took the prisoner to a top-security cell and locked her under Engineer’s Seal.

Roger waited until the Council was present before he began interrogation.

“Name.” Roger said, “Your real name.”

She didn’t answer.

“Fine. Have it your way.” Roger said, and he turned to Alex.

“Emile Tory, Imperial Intelligence.” Alex said, “You hold the rank of Major in the Imperial military, but your file is sealed due to your presence in the Imperial Cult- and, officially, due to being female.”

“We are well acquainted with Imperial hypocrisy.” Alan 1 said, as he entered the chamber.

“We know that you deal with the inhuman presence based out of the mid-Atlantic continent.” Roger said, “We also know that you are the one responsible for the entity that breached the Inner City, ostensibly in the Cult’s name.”

Emile looked up at Roger.

“One question, and your answer, determines how this ends: are you for the Cult or the Usurpers?”

Emile smiled and nodded submissively.

“That’s all I need to know. Council members, I recommend rectification.”

They agreed, unanimously. Within a year, Usurper agents got wiped out.

The Vault Incident-11

“Engineer,” Gale Wolf said, “I detect Imperial units ahead. They do not seem to have detected me yet.”

Roger looked at the sensors. “Gain altitude. Get us into the sun.”

Gale Wolf climbed high into the sky, attaining that superior position.

“Deploy drones.” Roger said, “I want eyes on that scene.”

Gale Wolf resolved and deployed a dozen drones, each one under its own cloak, and sent them forward. Their sensors reported back to Gale Wolf, and their streams fed directly to the bridge.

“Engineer,” Alex said, “there are too many Imperial units here to be just a cult operation.”

“I concur.” Alan 1 said, “That’s a forward base for staging prior to operations.”

Roger looked at the realtime streams. He saw an airbase, crude-but-functional, with Imperial army personnel and air assets—dropships, gunships, fighters, etc.—moving about. Then he input an application from his personal device into the datastream, and ran that data again; the Imperial assets and personnel appeared translucent and other figures appeared underneath.

“Look again.” Roger said, and he pushed the filtered stream to the other stations.

“That is not good.” Alan 1 said.

“Wait.” Alex said, “I’ve spotted our target.”

Alex locked on to her and pushed that to Roger and Alan 1. The three now watched as she met with an older man, apparently an Imperial Intelligence officer, but really an alien humanoid in disguise.

“Doesn’t she think to check?” Alex said.

“Cult tradecraft is weak in the face of its object of veneration.” Alan 1 said, “So long as cursory scans come up clean, she’d never think to question that her contact is what he claims to be. Remember that they have to avoid Stalkers just like we do.”

“But I don’t see any of the usual Imperial countermeasures.” Alex said.

Roger quickly confirmed that with a scan of the scene.

“Gale Wolf, time to target.” Roger said. “10 minutes, Engineer.”

“Battle stations. We’re going in hot. Send report to the Council.”

Klaxons went off, and weapons consoles heretofore powered down lit up.

“What?” Alex said.

“There is no way that a real Imperial base would lack countermeasures, and there is no way that a loyal cultist would fail to notice that fact when it’s before their eyes. This woman is not a cultist- she’s the Usurper agent.”

Alan 1 nodded, agreeing. “Objectives?”

“Tag and bag that agent. Get her handler if you can. Destroy everything else.”

“Acknowledged.” Alex, Alan 1 and Gale Wolf said.

“Combat preparations procedures underway.” Gale Wolf said, “Drone fighters will be ready.”

“Standard engagement procedures, Gale Wolf.” Roger said, “The others and I will deploy when ready.”

Alex looked at Roger, curious.

“Suppress air defenses to establish air supremacy.” Roger said, “Then channel resistance into a line of retreat that we want. We deploy as soon as supremacy is established.”

“By air drop.” Alan 1 said, “They’re expecting something bigger, so they won’t notice us until it’s too late.”

“Hit hard, hit fast, and then we get out.”

The Vault Incident-10

“Security constructs report that the suspect is not present.” Alex said.

“She wasn’t there for some time.” Roger said, “The cult’s leaders and top members are not stupid, and they too are often as perceptive as we are. She likely noticed that the neighbors’ behavior changed, and then saw signs of our presence affecting them, and slipped away before the constructs got in place.”

“You say that-“

“Yes, I have, on the receiving end. Slipped out of the Imperial Capital like that.”

“What now?”

“The constructs will follow procedure. Have their report forward to me immediately.”

“Is this why you sent Alan 1 to the yard? You know that we’re going to have to chase her down?”

“Not quite.” Roger said, “I know where she’s going, and I know that she’s not going to be alone if we don’t seize the initiative now.”

“Engineer,” Alan 1 said, “we are cleared to proceed.”

“Acknowledged.” Roger said, and both he and Alex beamed aboard a waiting airship directly to the bridge, where Alan 1 awaited them.

“Welcome aboard, Engineer.” Alan 1 said, “Course?”

Roger entered some figures into a wrist-mounted device. “Set course for this location, on that bearing, and under cloak as soon as we’re about to go beyond the Outer City.”

“Acknowledged, Engineer.” Alan 1 said.

“I don’t recognize this ship.” Alex said, “It’s not in the database.”

“Not at your level of clearance.” Roger said, “This is my own design, and it’s under Engineer Seal.”

“Aside from the Engineer, only the Council and myself know of it.” Alan 1 said, “Its visual similarity to Republic standard designs, combined with camouflage protocols, ensures secrecy while its deployed and not cloaked.”

“The Seal does the job while in its berth.” Roger said, quickly following.

“Does this ship have a name?” Alex said.

Roger smiled. “I am Gale Wolf,” the ship said, displaying a feminine persona, “and I am pleased to meet you, Alex.”

Roger and Alan 1 looked over at Alex. “Sorry.”

The Gale Wolf slowly weaved through the air traffic of the Outer City, heading east-southeast as it passed through the outer screens marking the City-State’s outer limits, and under cloak it quickly sped up to a cruising speed that made their personal lightjets feel slow.

“I get it now.” Alex said, her eyes wide with delight, “How else does she vary?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Roger said.

“Engineer,” Gale Wolf said, “incoming transmission from the Outer City.”

“To me.” Roger said, and he read it on his personal device.

“Well?” Alex said.

Roger frowned. “They weren’t fast enough. We’re going to have company.”

Alex looked to Alan 1, seeking a clue, but Alan 1 smiled at her.

“General Quarters.” Roger said, and Gale Wolf’s pleasant environment instantly shifted to one of a harsher, combat-ready warship. Unnecessary displays vanished, leaving utilitarian bare walls. The bridge condensed into the minimum space necessary for the three of them—two stations and Roger in a command chair—which they assumed.

“Ready, Engineer.”

The Vault Incident-09

Roger, with Alex and Alan 1 behind him, stood before the full Council of Masters at the heart of the Inner City. As holographic images of things and places appeared about them, Roger began his briefing.

“Masters, I have reason to believe that this incident originates from the occupied homeland of the Atlan people.” The hologram depicting the occupied island continent, far east of the Sky-Blue Republic, and others depicted the monstrous god-like being reigning over it as well as the many inhuman minions ruling in its name, administering it as a key hub in a multi-dimensional empire focused upon the slave trade.

“Due to the verified intelligence produced by Operation Buy Back, we are well aware of the occupiers’ capabilities and willingness to use those capabilities. We also know that they are as aware of the Empire as we are, and therefore are likely to see the Empire as a useful tool to employ against any target.”

The Council nodded in agreement. “Continue, Engineer.”

“Due to the Empire’s dogma, we believe that the Imperial cult that is officially denied by the Empire became sufficiently isolated to become vulnerable to infiltration by the occupiers. We are aware that the slavers have the means to fool conventional as well as unconventional detection of their true forms, especially since the Imperial cult lacks the Hounds otherwise commonplace in Imperial forces as well as friendly relations with the Sons of Ken. We hypothesize that the individual handling this operation is actually a minion of the occupiers of the Atlan homeland.”

“To what end?” a Councilmen said.

“To test our defenses, Master.” Roger said, “This signifies one thing for certain: the occupation is not only aware of us, but regards us as a viable threat and is now turning its attention towards destroying us. This operation is the first sign.”

“What of Operation Buy Back?” another said.

“I recommend a thorough audit to eliminate the possibility of corruption.”

“Is this incident concluded?” another said.

“No.” Roger said, and the holograms shifted to The Vault, “Cosmo 3 completed reorigination as I directed. Since completion, several attempts to pierce our barriers occurred at The Vault. Not only did they fail, but trace-back protocols automatically activated to seek out the origination of the attempts.”

Alex stepped forward. Another hologram shifted to a location in the Outer City.

“We traced the attempts to a well-concealed location in the Outer City. Records, verified in the last four hours, indicate that the location is the dwelling place of a woman originally encountered on the frontier where the Empire seeks to expand. She has no record of subversion, and otherwise is known to live quietly and aloof from everyday affairs.”

“Is this woman suspected of being an Imperial cultist?” a Councilman said.

“At the least, a cultist.” Alan 1 said, now stepping forward, “Possibly a minion in disguise. I’ve ordered a review of the woman’s interactions since settling in the Outer City.”

Roger took over. “We request sanction to proceed.”

“Granted.”

The Vault Incident-08

Cosmo 3 hovered well above The Vault, projecting a vast cone below that encompassed the whole of The Vault’s mass. It scanned The Vault, and then began systematic deresolution of its mass, layer by layer, bit by bit, while its satellites maintained combat patrols around the exterior maintaining a perimeter. Inside, Roger monitored progress from the bridge alongside Alan 1 and Alex.

“Engineer,” Alex said, “the Council is online.”

A trio of miniaturized heads, wearing cowls, appeared before them.

“Roger,” said one of them, “Alex briefed us on the situation.”

“Cosmo 3 is reorganizing The Vault as per instructions.” Roger said, “It just began the procedure, so anything anomalous has yet to manifest. What does the Council make of my assessment?”

“The Council, after conferring, agrees with the general assessment. We do not concur with the specific accusation towards the Empire, but we do concur that someone uses these entities as a cat’s paw against us.”

Alan 1 kept his attention on Cosmo 3’s progression. The first third of The Vault now derezzed, and the old system monitor nudged Roger. The Engineer shifted his attention accordingly.

“Hold, Council.” Roger said, “Something’s up.”

Out from the deresolving Vault raised a translucent entity, roaring and writhing. Cosmo 3’s satellites engaged it from maximum distance, quickly adapting their weapons systems to match frequencies with it, and once achieving resonant frequency they quickly ripped it apart and destroyed it in a most violent and brutal manner. Cosmo 3 continued its reorgination procedure while its satellites did their job, further deresolving The Vault and exposing the enemy’s hidden implantation of rooting protocols, creating a backdoor into The Vault.

“Suspicion confirmed, Council.” Roger said, “The enemy hacked The Vault and implemented a backdoor. It also had a guardian. Both have been destroyed.”

“This is not good.” The Councilman shook his head. “We still think that the Empire can’t be the party behind this operation, as this command of fundamental principles is known to be beyond Imperial capability.”

“We have no hostilities with any other body capable of executing this operation.” Alex said.

“Not entirely correct.” Alan 1 said, “There is one body, albeit one where our conflict is not openly hostile.”

“Who?” Alex said.

“Hold that question.” Roger said, “Council, I request an emergency closed session.”

The three Councilmen conferred amongst themselves briefly, and then nodded.

“Engineer,” Cosmo 3 said, “reorigination is past the point of effective enemy action. Resistance is now a non-factor.”

“Execute the new paradigm as I directed in the code.” Roger said, “Then report upon completion.” Then Roger turned to the Councilmen, “We three are on our way back. Cosmo 3 can take it from here.”

“Acknowledged. End of line.” The Councilmen’s holograms winked out of existence.

Alex turned to Roger. “Who?”

Roger beckoned Alex to follow. Alan 1 did likewise. As they reached the flight deck, and then took off in their personal lightjets, Alex pulled alongside Roger.

“You asked.” Roger said, “What do you know about Operation Buy-Back?”

“Them?”

“Exactly.”

The Vault Incident-07

Alex came Robert’s quarters aboard the mobile fortress.

“Constructs need no rest. Users do.” Robert said as she entered his quarters.

“Indulge my curiosity.” Alex said, ignoring him, “Do you think that we’re being played with by a hostile force?”

Robert lay in repose on a lounge. “Indeed.”

Alex began to follow-up, but Robert cut her off. “The hostiles are not dupes as such. They are as they appear, insofar as their aim and objective is as it appears to be.”

A faceless servant construct delivers food and drink to Robert, and then leaves.

“Then they are assisted by the true enemy?”

“You’re learning.” Robert said, sipping his drink, “Good. Why would a hostile actor want to use a third party?”

“To distract our attention, blaming their actions on another likely target while they move against us unopposed until it’s too late- that is why they would use a third party.”

Robert sat up. “Correct. Now, if the Vault is not the true threat then what is it?”

“If this is really an elaborate ruse to test our defenses, then the enemy actor must possess the means to act effectively against us in ways similar to our own.”

Robert smiled. “Go on.”

“Similar entities are akin to frequencies. They can easily fall into discord because they are too similar to easily harmonize, and in discord cause interference that we interpret as conflict.”

Robert’s smiled widened. “Good analysis.”

Just then Alan 1 entered. “I concur.”

“Imperial Intelligence?” Robert said, looking at the elder system monitor, “They have people with the means and the knowledge.”

“Are they not disavowed?” Alex said, curious.

“Yes, they are officially disavowed. However, they started their studies from the same base that we did and never got past the fact that the Old World’s understanding of the arts derives from old cults and religious practices. That atmosphere promotes a fanatical perspective, which the Empire exploits to this day to keep them within the fold despite being officially disavowed.”

“Personal experience?” Alex said.

“Alan 1 and I encountered this cult—and that is what it is—performing operations for the Empire more than a few times over the years. Their methods, by comparison, are primitive and they are far more reliant on rote learning without the fundamental mastery of the concepts. They are, for all of their power, not that much better than the Imperial Army’s grunts.”

“Men that use tools without knowing the how or the why behind their function.” Alan 1 said, “They might as well be guard constructs.”

“Are all of them lacking like that?” Alex said.

“No.” Robert said, standing up, “Their leaders and top operatives are far more dangerous because they do understand what they’re doing, to a significant—if lesser—degree.”

Just them, Cosmo 3 appeared in hologram form.

“Engineer,” Cosmo 3 said, “we are in position.”

“Engineer Robert Prime, authorization Gold Omega Diamond. Execute Reorigination Protocol on Quaratine Facility previously designated.”

“Acknowledged, Engineer. Please wait while performing operations.”

“The game’s afoot.”

The Vault Incident-04

Robert held his face stoic, but he knew that things had suddenly become far more dangerous. The legends of the Old World talked of many mighty monsters, supernatural slingers of sorcery and users of unnatural utilities long ago lost to myth and time. Since the Old World’s destruction, and then the Wars of the Damned, many of them returned and made the truth of their existence known too well. Robert knew this, as did all Engineers, and he knew that he—like many before him—were now facing a threat whose true capabilities were likely beyond what the legends reported. So, Robert responded as best he could.

“Really?” Robert said, “You’re late. The end of the world, and your revenge upon all and sundry, came and went centuries ago!”

The demon looked puzzled. “What nonsense is this?”

“You missed your opportunity for revenge.” Robert said, “A few centuries ago, the entire globe burned to ash in a world-wide wave of azure flames. You overslept your own appointment for the cataclysm! Have you somehow failed to take notice of all the ruins, the stark lack of population, the twin evidences of both a civilization whose wonders approached those of the very god you despise as well as the obvious utter extermination of said civilization? You must have, because you somehow think that it’s still at all relevant to the world as it is now.”

The demon stared at Robert, disbelieving.

“Go on,” Robert said, “you know I’m not lying. Suck it up, you overgrown undead godspawn. You messed it all up, and now you’re stuck in a world where you don’t belong at all anymore. This is our world now, free and clear. You and your kind have no claim to it any longer.”

The Nephalim roared, voicing its frustration.

“Impudence!” it said, “How dare you claim sovereignty over what is rightfully mine?!”

“Hardly.” Robert said, “What makes you think that you own where you are now? This place is entirely the creation of Man, exercising powers granted lawfully to us. You have no place here, so you shall be either expelled once we are prepared to do so.”

“FOOL!” the Nephalim said, “I can breach the barriers into this place whenever I choose! The power of my blood ties me to the secrets of all things, and so I can—and will—defeat all of your pathetic portal-protections at every turn.”

“Indeed.” Robert said, “I thought as much.”

Robert turned to Alex. “Remove this intruder.”

The Nephalim laughed, and then it took a closer look at Alex. It stopped laughing. Alex energized her chakram and moved on the Nephalim. It attempted to swat her, and she dodged it with ease. As Alex rushed it, Robert drew forth a rod from a sheath in a booth and activated a rifle from it; Robert fired upon the monster as Alex moved into position, and when at the right place she threw her chakram and slew the Nephalim.

The Vault Incident-03

Alan 1 brought up the video of the quarantine cell holding the prisoner. Robert stood there, stunned, as he beheld the image before him: a demon, a classic bat-winged giant-sized humanoid figure straight out of Old World mythology, with a hideous visage and a palpable sense of power emanating off of it.

“The entity is in our largest cell, formerly used for virulent hive-mind infectors prior to the most recent cycle of sanitization.” Alan 1 said, “You two and myself are the only authorized individuals here; not even the security constructs are allowed. This entity’s capacities are unknown, and I advised the Council that its capture seemed too easy.”

“I concurred.” Alex said, “I examined the records after the fact, and even that process seemed far more dangerous than ordinarily the case. I requested sealing them for the time being, and the Council agreed.”

“Do you claim that this entity is so dangerous that even knowledge of it, below a given threshold, is actively dangerous to the integrity of the system’s constructs and operations?” Robert said.

“Correct.” Alan and Alex said, in a creepy unison voice.

“Then I must interrogate immediately. I know where the cell is, so all I need is for everyone not vital to operations in that sector to be cleared out immediately.”

“Acknowledged.” Alan 1 said.

* * * * *
Robert and Alex transferred directly to the cellblock containing the prisoner.

“That’s your plan?” Alex said.

“The plan is deliberately kept simple.” Robert said, “It will not survive contact with the enemy, so it is not wise to spend more than a minimal amount of time or resources on it. Instead, it is wise to put down a large and diverse reserve and be prepared to improvise contingencies as needed. Problems are dynamic environments, and as conditions shift so do the best actions to deal with them, so that is why Engineers spend time mastering the skills necessary to do so effectively and efficiently. Once the matter is resolved, and the situation stabilized, that is the time to introduce conventional approaches.”
Robert and Alex arrived at the cell.

“Let me do the talking.” Robert said, “I need you to be the credible threat of immediate violence, and that’s best done when the threat is a silent one.”

“Acknowledged.” Alex said, “I concur with your general assessment.”

The door opened, and the demon’s aura of power washed over them immediately.

“Come in.” it said, “It’s lonely in here, and the master of the house isn’t a talkative one.”

Robert and Alex stepped inside. Alex put her chakram in hand and stood by the door while Robert approached, and saw that this demon was indeed a massive giant of a thing. Its wings had been shredded into useless appendages, and the ram-like horns about its skull likewise had been damaged into useless protrusions, but he felt its malice fill the room- this demon was by no means helpless.

“Identify.” Robert said.

“Nephalim, usurper.”

The Vault Incident-02

“Approaching drop zone. Prepare for drop.”

Alex handed Robert a drop pack, and both of them quickly put it on.

“Robert Prime, ready to drop.” Robert said, and he moved into the rear compartment.

“Alex Prime, ready to drop.” Alex said, and she moved to join Robert.

Both of them grabbed handholds in the jet’s frame. The aide, seeing the Vault coming up, circled around and rolled over half a turn. With the frame now upside-down, the opened the rear hatch.

“Drop zone below. You are cleared for drop.”

“Acknowledged.” Alex said, and she threw herself out.

“Acknowledged.” Robert said, and he followed.

As the lightjet closed up and headed back to the Inner City, Robert and Alex engaged the packs’ wings, which winked into existence as gleaming gossamer wings out of the packs. Robert took the time while in transit to scan the scene below—literal and otherwise—and it did not seem like a worst-case scenario, yet. No breakouts, no breeches, and certainly no security forces struggling to put down such. Yet there Alan 1 stood, next to a foursome of more common security constructs, on the landing pad. As he and Alex glided in and touched down, Robert wondered just how bad things are- and worried that this was actually worse than it seemed.

“Identify.” Alan 1 said, with his infamous chakrams in hand.

“Alex Prime, Independent Security Monitor, Council Liaison.”

“Robert Prime, Engineer.”

The old security construct looked them over and them put its weapons away.

“Acknowledged, Alex and Robert Prime. Follow me.”

Robert didn’t try to engage the old construct. Alan 1’s reputation for being tightly-focused on the job, such that it did not tolerate idleness, well preceded it and Robert felt no desire to test if those reports were accurate. Alex made no such moves either, though Robert could not tell if it was due to a general lack of concern or if it was due to a specific protocol forbidding it.

As Robert followed his host, he now made a more specific inspection of the situation. Nothing at all was out of place; there were no signs of a breach, or of any damage, or anything at all out of the ordinary- and that got Robert very worried indeed. Once the three of them arrived at the Vault’s central command chamber, leaving them alone—the common constructs lacked the clearance to be there—he turned to Alan 1: “Alan 1, request situation update.”

“An unknown entity penetrated the outer barrier and entered the realm. It immediately engaged security and got overwhelmed, whereupon it went into quarantine here. The breach is sealed and all involved rectified.”

“The Council is concerned that the entity possesses dangerous qualities that our existing measures are unable to address.” Alex said.

“That explains why I am here. You need a man.”

The Vault Incident-01

Robert answered a summons to the Inner City. No sooner had he passed through the portal and emerged on the grid than an aide appeared beside him.

“Robert Prime!” it said, “You are cleared for expedited transfer. Follow me, sir.”

Robert sighed. Whatever it was, it bothered the Council enough to clear the way for him to get to it—or them—without delay, and he knew better than to think it better to see the Council first. He did as asked, followed the aide out of the portal security chamber, and saw that the aide led him to a waiting lightjet- and inside sat another individual, definitely female in appearance.

“Aide.” Robert said, “Identify the other passenger.”

Without pause, the aide answered: “The passenger’s designation is ‘Alex’, and is classified as a feminine identity of unknown origin. She is attached to the Council—capacity unknown—and shares your security clearance.”

The aide took the pilot’s seat, and Robert sat in the adjacent seat, with Alex in the gunner seat behind them. Robert saw that Alex was much like female personae were in the Inner City: fit of figure, appealing in seaming, and apparently confident in posture. That didn’t mean much.

“Engineer Robert Prime,” Alex said, “I assume that the aide told you who I am.”

“Just your name and affiliation,” Robert said, “so I would like to know why the Council recalled me from another task that they claimed was of vital importance.”

Alex nodded to the aide, and the aide lifted the lightjet off the ground. As they ascended, Alex continued: “Something unusual occurred at the Vault within the last hour, and your expertise is required to resolve the issue.”

Robert rolled his eyes. “Be specific.”

“Not until we arrive. The aide is not cleared for access to that data.”

Robert did not like that answer. First, it implied that Alex was a construct and not a man. Second, it implied that the information is sufficiently corrosive that most constructs will become corrupt if exposed to it. Third, the Vault is the top-level quarantine facility for the Inner City where entities of all sorts that the Council deems too dangerous to permit within the Inner City itself, yet somehow gains access to the Inner City’s realm, end up once captured and confined. This made the job a potential or actual containment breech, and even Engineers are considered expendable in such scenarios so far as the Council is concerned.

“When do we land?” Robert said, turning to the aide.

“Ingress is by air drop over the landing platform. We will arrive at the drop zone in 10 minutes.”

That is how Robert deduced that this was a very bad containment issue. If the Council won’t even permit a landing, and thus risk the aide’s corruption, then it had to be very bad indeed. It also put to Robert that Alex was one of the top-tier security monitors, the ones that the Council does not talk about.

“Who’s meeting us?” Robert said.

Alex answered, “Alan 1”.

Robert’s blood turned cold. The Council’s prime enforcer itself was in charge. This was bad.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-12

The demon wanted whatever the chamber held, yet the fallen angel that previously occupied it denied that demon access to the chamber. I could not ponder this at the time, as I had to focus upon the ritual, but in retrospect it becomes clear what the situation actually was: the fallen angel sired the demon by way of the cult, likely using one of the many hapless prisoners as the vessel for its seed. We removed the angel, so the demon assumed that the way was clear; it assumed, so I speculate, that we would be gone also. It erred.

Eloc, Gar and Ray now felt the full fury of the demon, unable any further to break contact and regroup. Slowly they fought as good a fighting a retreat as they could, but without mercy the demon smashed away and one by one the men-at-arms and then Eloc’s bodyguard fell before its infernal might. They stabbed it, slashed it, cut it, threw debris at it, and all they did was slow it down. Its endurance let it shrug off wounds that felled the men fighting it, and its determination demonstrated why the savages worshipped it. Nonetheless, it had to die.

The three of them attempted to lead the demon on a circuitous route, knowing that they could not keep it away from the chamber entirely. They blocked off corridors, but it seemed to discern that the barriers were weak and bashed through them instead. They tried to incite the demon to chase them regardless of its desires, but it somehow sensed the chamber’s proximity and declined to do so. With no other options before them, they made their stand at the mouth of the final hallway before the chamber. Eloc, Gar and Ray stood ready to buy time by blood.

Eloc had been in such situations before. He knew that they need only hold until I completed the ritual. What he did not know was how close I was to doing just that, so he made as good a guess as he dare, and placed his trust in me to come to their rescue. This did not comfort Gar or Ray much at all, but they had no choice but to make the best of it. With the demon in sight, they met its charge and entered battle one last time- and as this was the end, no quarter allowed.

The demon, so close to its goal, went berserk and made an all-out attack against them, trusting to its supernatural prowess and endurance to finally smite its mortal enemies dead. The three of them ducked, blocked and moved as best they could in that corridor to avoid its massive club. But, one by one, each took a blow and could barely fight thereafter. When the demon felled Eloc, it moved to kill them all with one sweeping smashing swing. That did not happen.

I completed the ritual, and quickly I rushed to save them. One spell felled it. We survived.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-11

For this last part, I must rely on Eloc’s report for I focused upon completing the ritual work before me. Eloc took Gar, Ray and the men at his command forward. The plan was to ambush the demon and slay it before it reached me. The objective, therefore, was simple: kill it before it killed me. That you read this letter spoils the question, so I shall instead emphasize how Eloc and his company did the deed. I assure you, My Lords, that Lord Eloc merits consideration for induction into the Order of the Immortals for his actions this time.

Eloc let Ray direct them to the demon’s location, where they set an ambush upon the demon as planned. As expected, this initial encounter did not go as well as the men had hoped; a few of them got slain out of hand in the first push, and a few more died by its hand before they broke contact and began to execute the next phase of the plan. Eloc told me that those yet living held their nerve, with difficulty, and withdrew in good order to the next point where they would do it again.

Ray ensured that they broke contact and got ready, body and soul, for the next attack. They did again achieve surprise on the demon, despite it now being wary of attack, and they fought it again hard and fast. This time they avoided losing any men, but they did not do much harm to it either. With this in mind, Eloc pushed himself and took a risk to wound it about its knees; Gar went with him while Ray distracted the demon, but this proved to be very difficult and before they smote its knees and stunned it both Eloc and Gar took hit by the demon’s giant-sized club. Again, they withdrew in good order.

At the third fallback point Eloc and Gar rallied the men while Ray quickly tended to their wounds, but barely so as Ray’s depths of power now began to run low and he had to reserve what he had left to deal with the demon. The demon again fell into their trap, but he took to the offense right away and Eloc had to quickly seize the initiative to avoid being routed. Nonetheless, several more of the men died in the melee, crushed by the demon’s infernal might as expressed by being crushed by the club in its hands.

If not for a desperate throw of power by Ray, the demon would not have been slowed enough for the men to break contact again and fall back to the next point. This came at a price, and Ray’s used his power reserve to make that happen. It wasn’t that his patron left him, but that his mortal flesh can’t hold that much power without harming him, something that you My Lords understand far too well. As this now left no more resilience amongst the men, yet the demon lives.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-10

Once the angels ceased fighting, both disappeared and left us to our own devices. I took Ray aside and bade him explain what we just witnessed, and his explanation—that the cult was expendable as there were many like it across the world, such was their order’s accounts—left more questions than answers. At that moment, Eloc reminded me of the demon still out there, and I turned my attention back to more immediate concerns.

At this point I began executing the final phase of the expedition plan. First I contacted both the forward position and the base camp, informing them of our progress. Then I began the task that you, My Lords, put to me: establishing an anchor point. Out came my tools, and with Eloc and his men on guard I began the ritual. The first phase went without incident, but that came with the knowledge that using this much power in such a blatant manner could not be anything but a beacon for the demon to follow to our position. Given previous encounters, we would be foolish not to exploit that fact.

I trusted this task to Eloc and Ray. Ray had expert knowledge of demons, and Eloc’s prowess in war-making needs no explanation. Reinforcing us came Gar and the forward position group. In total, we had three men worth a damn leading a warband of about 40 men-at-arms. I estimated that most of them, even with the best planning and most favorable execution thereof, would die under that thing’s cloven hooves. They were fodder, whether they thought themselves so or not, so all that I expect of them was that they would get in one good strike before being rent asunder by that monster’s might.

The only concern I had was that the demon might again attempt to flank us by bursting forth from some unexpected and unknown space within these ruined halls. When I had a moment to pause, I told Eloc of this concern. Ray then acted, on Eloc’s orders, to ensure that this could not happen within our present position; he went around the room and blessed it such that things of evil could not enter. This forced the demon into a route of our choosing, and we chose a route that we could easily harry it with little or no reprisal.

Well, until it approached the chamber itself, that is. I estimated that, even with the room’s protection by the blessings of the Dawnsman, once I reached the apex of the work the raw power I’d have to handle would overpower any mortal techniques- and thus leave the chamber, as well as myself, vulnerable to attack. My Lords, you now see the situation I faced at the end; I had to do specific work at a specific rate in a specific manner. This was the constant; the variables were all out of my control. I need not tell you, masters, of the terror that being helpless should plans fail mean for us.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-09

My Lords, what comes next should not surprise you; that you have this letter, and are reading it, should be proof enough to support what I presently state (for I know well your wrath, and am no fool) as being a true and faithful report: we did reach our goal. We expected that demon to attack us once more before we approached the goal, but that did not happen. In retrospect, it was clear as to why, but I did not know for certain until we got there.

We passed the destroyed corpses of several slain predecessors, victims of traps meant to guard the center of the cult’s power from unwanted users. Soon thereafter, we reached the door to our goal; we wasted no time ascertaining that its own wards and traps had long since been exhausted. Apart from the corpses, what remained of them, the walls approaching the door showed signs of charring by fire years before and we all know that the cult’s capacities in the Arts and Sciences were not ours. I suspected, and verified by divination, that this was the case.

Eloc opened the door, with his bodyguard prepared for trouble, only to find something not to our (in retrospect, errant) expectations. This central chamber was a brilliantly-lit chamber, with quite sophisticated architecture meant to channel natural light deep into the mountain- something that we know to be impossible for them. The chamber walls had not the treasures that the others expected—gold, silver, gems, etc.—but instead the treasures that we enlightened ones risk life and limb for: knowledge! On all walls are tomes, scrolls and other volumes filled with what knowledge that they possessed. I confess to a quite audible gasp of amazement as my eyes beheld the sight, untouched, of our enemies’ secrets.

Then came forth the final guardian, and the reason for why the chamber never felt the demon’s presence: an angel, manifest before us as a glorious winged man armed and armored as a warrior. We all were shocked, but I quickly got my wits about me as it quickly explained everything about the cult- its command over the hordes of the Abyss, its knowledge of otherworldly entities and its ability to create so many breeds of monsters out of natural life.

Ray, fearless, called it what it was: a fallen angel. The angel did not deny that accusation. It revealed that it was the cult’s true master, and now it understood why its minions ceased contact with it- and I, being an agent of those responsible for its minions’ destruction, now bore its wrath. Even after all our adventures, Eloc and I did not think ourselves the match of this great and powerful being; Ray did agree, after a fashion, for he cried out in supplication to whatever god his order claims as their patron.

My Lords, Ray’s cries were answered and in a most obvious manner. Crashing through the ceiling came another, similar angel. They fought, and ours won.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-08

What came next was a flight through darkened caverns and ruined corridors. Half-starved things once employed as guardians for the cult would attack out of desperation for living flesh and hot blood, but all they did was wet our blades with ichor and offend our senses with their inhuman stench. We heard not, initially, any sign of the demon but that did not comfort us; we knew he lay out there, and it was only a matter of time before he found us.

Eloc’s blade gave us our warning, for he bare with him that same sword what you My Lords made for him all those years ago when we warred against the cult. The blade shimmered when the demon drew near, and that was how we were able to keep ahead of us until we were ready. With each warning, we threw whatever obstacles we could to slow it down, assuming that he followed us instead of coming from another direction. We were not wrong, but neither were we correct.

After the first few warnings, we kept an eye on Eloc’s sword for another shimmer, but when that next one came we could not discern where behind us it was. Unlike the previous warnings we heard no sound, and felt no menace, until it was too late. The floor before us exploded and the demon leapt into our path, its menace now oppressive and overbearing upon us.

Eloc’s blade gave us our warning, for he bare with him that same sword what you My Lords made for him all those years ago when we warred against the cult. The blade shimmered when the demon drew near, and that was how we were able to keep ahead of us until we were ready. With each warning, we threw whatever obstacles we could to slow it down, assuming that he followed us instead of coming from another direction. We were not wrong, but neither were we correct.

After the first few warnings, we kept an eye on Eloc’s sword for another shimmer, but when that next one came we could not discern where behind us it was. Unlike the previous warnings we heard no sound, and felt no menace, until it was too late. The floor before us exploded and the demon leapt into our path, its menace now oppressive and overbearing upon us. Eloc’s blade glowed bright as the sun in its presence, and the demon howled at it.

Eloc knew me well enough to know what to expect next, but neither of us counted upon Ray to come through. With a simple, but firm, command he rebuked the demon and it recoiled as if smote by Eloc’s sword. The Dawnsman followed up with a literal smite with his sun-like mace, and again the fiend recoiled as if struck by a much mightier blow. Eloc saw the opening, so he charged and struck at it with that brilliant blade. Then the henchmen with us struck it with their swords. With such unexpected violence of action, the demon’s ambush turned against him and we drove him back into the pit he came from. I conjured a wall and used it to seal the breach, and then we continued running for our goal.

Once Eloc’s blade stopped so much as shimmering, we paused to regroup and refocus. Ray assured us that, when it comes to it, we’ll be able to put down the demon; he’s certain that our might combined, if properly marshaled, will do the deed. This Dawnsman, and by extension his order, has already proved to be far more useful than I previously thought. (My Lords, if their master has not made contact with you already by the time you receive this letter, then I urge you to take the initiative and do just that on behalf of our nation. While the horrors of our own area wane, other follow; we could use their support.)

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-07

I presumed that we did not have time on our side any longer, and yet we were not in a secure position. Neither did we enjoy a secure line of retreat. I had to address those fault before we went ahead, so I consulted with Gar on the matter over a meal. We concluded that our demonic foe would not only return, but that he would do so driving all of the minions he yet commanded upon us. I made contact with the base camp, and my subordinates there reported pressure coming upon the camp by monsters during the night. It took me no time to see that our strategic situation had changed, and not for the better.

In numbers greater than I’d expected, they came at us shortly after Eloc and his men arrived. The Dawnsman amongst his bodyguard proved his order’s boasts about their experience with all that is unclean immediately, calling down the power of the sun and channeling it through a sun-disc tattooed upon his forehead where one is said to manifest a third eye. While the rest of the men formed up to keep the camp secure from attack, this Dawnsman—Ray—burned them to ash with the power of the sun. After the fight, Ray used that same power to heal the wounded and purge them of infections. I see now why they are so popular.

With equal speed we reorganized our expedition’s numbers. To Gar I charged maintenance of our lines of retreat, and to act as a reserve; Eloc and his men would come forward and join me once more at the van. The men-at-arms I left with would remain with Gar, ensuring that regular patrols—and a forward position—would remain manned. If we needed to retreat quickly, then the forward position would be our fallback point before abandoning the adventure altogether.

I communed with the mountain itself, asking it to aid me in finding what I sought, and I got the answer I needed. With a new map freshly drawn from my visions, Eloc and I set out once more for our objective. His bodyguard was a smaller number than the men-at-arms Gar led, but they were all experts in their professions and veteran adventurers themselves; it reminded me greatly of being amongst the elite group that you, my lords, keep for your purposes.

As we had a definite route to take, we wasted no time worrying about getting lost or any other normal concerns. Only monsters remained.

Expedition to the Silver Mountain-02

My expedition consisted of 25 men-at-arms, drilled to act as a unit, led by Eloc’s protégé—Gar, son of Dar, descendent of the First Immortal—and their families I took on as useful servants. Gar put those otherwise-worthless wretches into a useful camp organization, and he appointed one of the more sensible women to take charge of them. Someone needed to mind the significant baggage train, so why not the more capable women and children?

Fortunately, I knew exactly what path to follow by the time we departed. That meant one less unknown interfering with my progress, which meant that I could focus on ensuring that the expedition met its requirements and stayed on schedule. With Gar on hand to enforce discipline, and a clear chain of command, I am pleased to boast that even this lot of expendables did not fail to meet expectations. Just 30 days later, on the 45th day of Spring, we arrived at the place where I planned to build my base camp.

Reaching this point did require the daily employment of divinations and transmutations to augment the speed of the daily marches, allowing us to pass through the wilderness faster than any ordinary party could and keep our progress on track. This is not the only reason for why I used what I knew of the sciences in this manner. It also served to keep firmly fixed in the minds of the company that I was no one to be trifled with; the rumor-mongering, which I encouraged, kept discipline problems well below what could be reasonably expected from the low quality of characters I employed for this matter.

The base camp got built with speed, again in part due to my use of appropriate techniques to augment their toils, and once we had a defensible perimeter I had Gar take the men-at-arms to clear the path to the point of entry into the underground that you my Lords provided for me. I established a firm border, keeping out unwanted unnatural attention to compliment the physical perimeter, and then had my personal pavilion fortified to act as my sanctum. Gar completed the task put to him, and in a time I believe only some of you, my Lords, can match I was ready to begin the primary mission put to me.

Gar and I conferred as to how to organize the camp to operate while we were inside seeking the object. We agreed that the woman we appointed as the head of the camp followers would not be good enough to handle this responsibility herself. After reviewing our options, I took Gar’s suggestion to take one of the older youth currently training with the men-at-arms and appoint him to that role. I ensured the youth’s loyalty through an elementary technique of applied mental science, and then implanted into his mind the directives that I wanted him to follow. I ensured that the camp mistress and my new garrison commander got along. Then, to work.