Post by Bruce on May 25, 2017 10:54:06 GMT
Originally posted on the Rite Publishing forums.... repeated here
GM Observations:
- In the first session of 2017, David and I sat down to review the ranking table (which we had not looked at in a very very long time - years), then we talked about the length of a time compress and what we’d like to see happen in the next story arc.
- This was the first session that we used Google Docs as a way of locking down points that were agreed during the time compress. Hence we talked over Google Hangouts (ditched the video on this call) and then talked through a Google Docs document, refining the decisions as we went. In locking down each point, we worked out whether we needed to run an adventure, or whether it was simple footnote.
- Those bullet-points then formed the skeleton of the initial time compress, up to the first adventure. The time compress ended up being less time than we expected because actions taken (by Ethan) have triggered an adventure. The time compress was so short that we decided not to award any advancement points, even though we haven’t awarded any since roughly Session 57!
- Why didn’t we award advancement points? Well, if for example we awarded Ethan 100 points, he can’t spend it on any powers because he can’t suddenly have them. He needs some downtime and an opportunity to develop those abilities. And if he ploughed all of those points into Attributes, we’d hit a different problem. Grant and Ethan can’t go up more than one rank in an advancement so we’d probably find both characters ploughing points into Attributes and being locked into spending only as much as it takes for them to bridge the gap from 2nd Rank to the current 1st Rank. Difficult to visualise? I’ll give an example. Ethan wants to increase his Strength from 12 points (2nd Rank). He can’t spend any more than 8 points because 1st Rank is currently 20 points. This is one of the downsides of infrequent advancements - we’re now stuck because we haven’t given the characters many opportunities to create new ranks above 1st Rank, so we’re caught. It’s a minor issue - we’ll make it work (I’m thinking of awarding them 3 tranches of points so that leapfrogging can happen if one PC ploughs points into Powers but the other ploughes points into Attributes). Most games wouldn’t have this problem - we’ll make it work.
And on that note, I give you the current (pre-advancement) Ranking Table:
After the next plot arc, there will be another time compress and we will award 100+ points to both Ethan and Grant. But right now, even if we gave them the points, they can’t spend it.
Part 1 - Settling Down
- Another New Year. It is now January 1993. Grant and Ethan can scarcely believe it. Where have the last two years gone. Margaret Thatcher is no longer in power, deposed by John Major over two years ago. A coalition of UN forces have invaded Iraq and deposed Saddam Hussein. The Soviet Union has fallen apart - the Cold War is over.
- Grant settles back into life on Marindar with Lady Sophia. Once convinced that the immediate security threat to Marindar is dealt with, he begins opening the Doors and starts working to rebuild Marindar as a centre of trade. Queen Constancia (Constance) remains the reigning sovereign, however Grant adopts the formal title of Protector of the Realm. Lady Sophia previously preferred to keep her relationship with Grant discreet, but that has changed. She is seen openly in the company of the Lord Protector.
- Grant also makes it a priority to assist Drake to find his missing troops on Skamino. Grant, Drake, Yaeger Zane and a squad of Drake’s 151st Legion “The Dragon’s Own” brave the hazardous realm to recover almost thirty soldiers and their descendants who have been marooned in the ‘Forever War’ for hundreds of years. The Wardens of the Stair sense another Warden in the realm (possibly trapped), but the individual proves elusive.
- As things start to settle down on Marindar, Grant and Ethan discuss returning to university (which they discussed more than once but not done). They also agree to explore the landing adjacent to Earth (Realm 0) and find more of the hidden Doors.
- Given that Abbie is so well known, Ethan uses sorcery to construct a ‘glamour’ for each of them so that they walk about normally without being recognised. Abbie asks Ethan if she can be taught the spell. Abbie reveals that she has learnt some sorcery from Sophia, and some from books which Macavity (!!) found. She asks Ethan to teach her more.
- Ethan settles down to spend time with Abbie. He finds one of the rooms in her Manchester house full of books about Earth politics, economics, religion and history - she is clearly seeking to understand how the present came to be, and why people here are the way that they are. They talk about Earth and she asks him many questions which illustrates to him just how different her homeworld (Meridian) is from Earth. Ethan has always been careful not to ask many questions about where she came from as it is a painful subject to her, but from her questions he is able to work out that she comes from a world with a unified government, with a single currency and where the needs of society outweigh the needs of the individual. Unlike Earth which has many religions, Meridian is effectively apatheism - the existence of a higher being or beings was not important to most of her people. She speaks highly of her own society, but to Ethan it sounds like the society was state-controlled with relatively limited personal freedoms, even if Abbie seems to think otherwise.
Part 2 - Moving out of Westgate
- On one of Ethan’s trips back to Westgate Manor, Macavity asks if he can come with Ethan to Manchester and he agrees. Stolvir also insists on coming. Stolvir becomes quite fond of Abbie (and vice versa) and he decides to stay with her. Abbie is also pleased to see Macavity and in the days that follow, she has long conversations with Macavity about theology and political structures - Ethan gets the impression that she and Macavity are kindred spirits.
- Ethan makes a point of going to see Finn (of Mordecai’s Raven Legion) in Fiveways. Ethan puts Finn in touch with Mordecai, and Mordecai extracts the team from Earth.
- As the weeks go by, Abbie starts to explain the changes (and improvements) she wants to make to the world. To begin with, she wants to address world hunger and poverty, but then she wants to make education a priority, particularly in the sciences. Abbie believes the challenge is enormous, but she is clearly driven to make a difference. She encourages Ethan to ‘think big’ and asks him to see if there is anything in Clockworld that they could use. Ethan asks her some questions as to what she thinks of the different Earth governments, and she comments that she thinks that there is a lot of waste but she has more important things to worry about at the moment (like food production).
Part 3 - Assuming Control of Clockworld
- Jacob eagerly hands over the responsibilities of Clockworld to Ethan when asked. The handover is rushed and doesn’t cover everything as Jacob is keen to leave and go home (at last). Jacob is convinced that Ethan can handle it (as he has repaired Clockworld more than once). Wrighting is also integral to Clockworld, but Jacob is sure that Ethan will ‘pick it up’ over time. Besides, some of it is beyond even Jacob and only Lucien understands all of its inner workings. (GM’s note - Bad Stuff means that the handover from Jacob to Ethan is incomplete)
- Jacob shows Ethan the Master Control Room which contains the master settings for Realm 0 - there are settings to change the speed at which time moves relative to the Stair (currently set 1:1) and Ethan knows that it’s possible to roll time back in an emergency situation. Jacob shows Ethan how to use one of the timepieces which can be used as a ‘remote control’ for this realm and he points out that Gearwing will remain with Clockworld (as he is effectively a part of it).The transition from Jacob to Ethan is agreed by the Guardian, a very strong Eidolon creature (who may or may not be an Annunuki). The Guardian reminds Ethan that the seals on this Realm are designed to keep dangerous things inside the realm.
- Jacob gives Ethan an Icon to contact him if needed. He plans to retain Eastgate and he explains that he will be back from time to time.
- Given that Westgate is currently occupied by a large number of cats and ravens, Ethan decides to take up residence in Clockworld. There is only one small room for sleeping and washing, but Ethan makes it comfortable. He moves some of his workshop from the Westgate basement into Clockworld. Clockworld becomes his ‘home’ when he is not in Manchester with Abbie.
Part 4 - Making Changes
- Ethan and Abbie work together to identify changes which can be made to the world to improve things. Ethan makes trips to Chernobyl to try to work out how to remove the radioactivity. He also visits drought/famine affected regions in Africa to see what is happening first hand, and visits Rwanda and Somalia, both of which are in a state of civil war. Ethan is convinced to help but he can see a slippery slope here - it is hard to stop a war without taking sides somewhere.
- Grant makes regular trips to Earth from Marindar and he enrols in a paramedic course in Manchester. (He found that healing on Marindar relies upon sorcery which may not work in all places). Ethan is also very keen to go to university but he ends up in an argument with Abbie about what to study. She discourages him studying medicine, saying that he is already an incredible healer. Reluctantly, Ethan is persuaded to study science and engineering instead.
- Ethan and Grant talk regularly on campus, and Ethan shares some of his thoughts about improving the planet. He worries a little about Abbie and Ethan asks Grant to keep an eye on them both in case they ‘go too far’. Ethan is afraid of losing his objectivity. Grant points out that Ethan needs to have some fun - he can’t work all of the time.
Part 5 - Changes and Distractions
- While Grant is studying on Earth, he receives an urgent Icon contact from Lady Sophia. Grant had long suspected that some fragment of Talos had survived on Marindar. With the news that Talos has returned (or at least part of him), Grant returns to Marindar and quickly deals with the situation. This time, Grant is sure that the threat has been ended permanently.
- Ethan studies biology and chemistry. He is a quick learner and he finds that he enjoys his time at university. But he has little time to make new friends as he’s distracted by Abbie’s plans and he’s frequently making changes to the Earth. On his third attempt, Ethan believes he has figured out a way to remove the radioactivity from Chernobyl without having to remove a large amount of planetary mass. In the meantime, he’s delivering food supplies to starving people in two countries (using sorcery to transport foodstuffs), whilst Abbie is publicly putting her support via the International Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières and half a dozen other international aid organisations. The work is satisfying but Ethan begins using Eidolon more casually, healing sick people, improving crop yields and interfering more frequently. This does not go unnoticed. He senses a scrying spell upon him whilst in Somalia, but when he focusses his attention upon it to study its source, the spell winks out.
- Over the next three months, Ethan intervenes dozens of times. He becomes aware that there are others of power who have sensed what he is doing. Between Abbie and himself, they catch glimpses of the Faceless people, Deep Ones and even small animals behaving strangely (with a strange glow in their eyes). But there is no sign of the Shoggoth creature that plagued the area around Fiveways. It is as though it has disappeared completely, and Ethan cannot even locate it via Wayfinding.
- Over a beer after university, Grant comments that he thinks that Ethan is working too hard. Even though they are still getting out onto the Stair quite regularly (once a week), and gradually they’re mapping out the landing, Grant fears that he’s ‘burning the candle at both ends’. Ethan smiles and reassures him that he’s pacing himself. Grant comments that Ethan is pretty serious about Abbie, and Ethan admits that he’s in love with her. He finds that he thinks of little else even when she’s not around. This pleases Grant (he describes it as the ‘honeymoon period’) and he encourages Ethan to make sure that Abbie knows this.
Part 6 - Finding Arana
- Shortly after, Grant goes to find what happened to Arana (the dark elf) - she was last left in a secure location by Trell. Before heading out into Dwimmerlaik-controlled territory, Grant consults with Lady Vala and Lord Drake. He also takes the opportunity to talk with Drake about the Excalibur project that he discovered on Finbar. Grant is very interested in seeing that project continue and Drake agrees to involve Grant in its future development. Grant takes a circuitous route which only a Master of the Stair could follow. He finds that Arana has moved on, slipped away from the location where he (as Trell) left her. Pressing on, he tracks her down to a domain known as the Slave Markets of Attalan. (GM’s note - which Ethan has been to, back in Session 48) Even though she appears to be laying low here and not in immediate danger, Grant judges that the situation could change in a place where many monstrous creatures prey upon humanoids. Disguised as a Dwimmerlaik, he subdues her, then removes her from the realm. He deposits her in what he considers a ‘safe’ realm for the time being.
Part 7 - Something Unexpected
- Back on Earth, whilst Ethan is continuing to ‘do good’, something unexpected happens. Ethan has been prepared for a magical attack, but he is not prepared for a mundane one. He feels Abbie cry out in pain (he’s psychically sensitive to her). Abandoning any pretense of normality, Ethan teleports to her location in a flash of light, appearing in a chamber full of witnesses. Abbie has just been shot in the foyer of the Steigenberger Grandhotel in Brussels. One of her bodyguards has just tackled and is attempting to disarm the assailant, whilst another shields her. Everyone is in shock. Ethan instinctively slams both Abbie’s assailant and the bodyguard with a massive invisible Force-Push, felling them instantly but also making a mess of the lobby, overturning chairs and tables. Turning his attention to Abbie and her other bodyguard, he finds that she’s lying on the ground and the bodyguard is calling for an ambulance. Despite being shot, she’s still conscious and she insists that it isn’t too bad, even when the blood starts soaking through her clothes. Seeing Ethan, she stammers apologetically (as if it is her fault) that she saw the gun but wasn’t fast enough to get out of the way. She heard two gunshots but it seems that she’s only been hit once on the right side (in the abdomen). He must have been a lousy shot. With the sound of sirens in the distance, Abbie pales and Ethan can tell that she’s going into shock. He holds her hand and uses Eidolon to relax her, take away the pain and stop the blood flow. He knows that he could remove the bullet with sorcery and heal her, but he can’t do it here. Not in front of so many people.
- The ambulance arrives and Ethan decides to go with her. Abbie continues to be mildly apologetic, but Ethan reassures her and she seems happy with that. Holding her hand in the ambulance, he realises just how much she means to him and he can feel her contentment at having him there.
- In the hospital, the surgeons wish to operate on her to physically remove the bullet and stitch her wounds. At this point, Ethan intervenes. Using force of will, he freezes the medical staff in place and then removes the bullet using sorcery. He then repairs the wound using Eidolon, and releases the medical staff to make an inspection and confirm that she has been healed. Ethan feels very tired - his secret has been blown. The doctors can’t believe it - one of them openly wonders if there is some sort of trick. But it is one of the nurses that snaps him out of it and tells him to come with her. Abbie seems to be sleeping so Ethan agrees. The nurse leads him back the emergency section - she shows him a handful of patients that are badly injured. One may not survive. She persuades him to do what he can. Watching him carefully as he’s not a doctor, Ethan nonetheless heals the patients one by one. To finish up, he takes her hand, heals her of mild arthritis and uses the contact to gently forget what he has done here. He tries to do the same of the other doctors who witnessed what he did, but he is not successful. (GM’s note - Bad Stuff)
- Abbie recovers quickly. The police arrive and ask some questions - they are astonished to find that she has recovered so quickly from being shot. It is revealed that her assailant claims to have been her lover (which Abbie denies). It appears that the man is an ordinary but very disturbed man. Ethan is shocked by this - he had no idea that she could be a target for a normal man.
- The next day, the newspaper reports are conflicting and confused. There is a photo of Ethan in the papers - evidently Bartholomew wasn’t able to suppress this one. There is mention of the miraculous recovery of four people in the emergency section of UMC Sint-Pieter (the hospital). Worse, Ethan can feel the occasional scrying eye of another sorcerer (perhaps the same one as before), and he realises that his public actions have now drawn unwanted attention.
- Abbie decides to press on with her itinerary in Brussels and Geneva and try to ‘ride out the noise’. Ethan goes along, wearing a ‘glamour’ to disguise himself. However, in Brussels he sees the Faceless Men on the streets in broad daylight; and in Geneva he feels that some of the changes to the weather systems that he has made to Eastern Africa are being unravelled. Someone else in Realm 0 is working against him.
And that’s where the next adventure begins …. clearly there are entities in Realm 0 (Earth) that are now aware of Ethan’s presence. This is where the next adventure triggers. We’ll continue to the time compress after the adventure concludes.
GM Observations:
- In the first session of 2017, David and I sat down to review the ranking table (which we had not looked at in a very very long time - years), then we talked about the length of a time compress and what we’d like to see happen in the next story arc.
- This was the first session that we used Google Docs as a way of locking down points that were agreed during the time compress. Hence we talked over Google Hangouts (ditched the video on this call) and then talked through a Google Docs document, refining the decisions as we went. In locking down each point, we worked out whether we needed to run an adventure, or whether it was simple footnote.
- Those bullet-points then formed the skeleton of the initial time compress, up to the first adventure. The time compress ended up being less time than we expected because actions taken (by Ethan) have triggered an adventure. The time compress was so short that we decided not to award any advancement points, even though we haven’t awarded any since roughly Session 57!
- Why didn’t we award advancement points? Well, if for example we awarded Ethan 100 points, he can’t spend it on any powers because he can’t suddenly have them. He needs some downtime and an opportunity to develop those abilities. And if he ploughed all of those points into Attributes, we’d hit a different problem. Grant and Ethan can’t go up more than one rank in an advancement so we’d probably find both characters ploughing points into Attributes and being locked into spending only as much as it takes for them to bridge the gap from 2nd Rank to the current 1st Rank. Difficult to visualise? I’ll give an example. Ethan wants to increase his Strength from 12 points (2nd Rank). He can’t spend any more than 8 points because 1st Rank is currently 20 points. This is one of the downsides of infrequent advancements - we’re now stuck because we haven’t given the characters many opportunities to create new ranks above 1st Rank, so we’re caught. It’s a minor issue - we’ll make it work (I’m thinking of awarding them 3 tranches of points so that leapfrogging can happen if one PC ploughs points into Powers but the other ploughes points into Attributes). Most games wouldn’t have this problem - we’ll make it work.
And on that note, I give you the current (pre-advancement) Ranking Table:
- Psyche: X+1 [100 points], 1st Rank [65 points], 2nd Rank [25 points], 3rd Rank [5 points], 4th Rank [1 point]
- Strength: X+1 [50 points], 1st Rank [20 points], 2nd Rank [12 points], 3rd Rank [11 points], 4th Rank [4 points]
- Endurance: X+1 [50 points], 1st Rank [20 points], 2nd Rank [10 points], 3rd Rank [8 points], 4th Rank [1 point]
- Warfare: X+1 [100 points], 1st Rank [50 points], 2nd Rank [10 points], 3rd Rank [6 points], 4th Rank [3 points]
After the next plot arc, there will be another time compress and we will award 100+ points to both Ethan and Grant. But right now, even if we gave them the points, they can’t spend it.
Part 1 - Settling Down
- Another New Year. It is now January 1993. Grant and Ethan can scarcely believe it. Where have the last two years gone. Margaret Thatcher is no longer in power, deposed by John Major over two years ago. A coalition of UN forces have invaded Iraq and deposed Saddam Hussein. The Soviet Union has fallen apart - the Cold War is over.
- Grant settles back into life on Marindar with Lady Sophia. Once convinced that the immediate security threat to Marindar is dealt with, he begins opening the Doors and starts working to rebuild Marindar as a centre of trade. Queen Constancia (Constance) remains the reigning sovereign, however Grant adopts the formal title of Protector of the Realm. Lady Sophia previously preferred to keep her relationship with Grant discreet, but that has changed. She is seen openly in the company of the Lord Protector.
- Grant also makes it a priority to assist Drake to find his missing troops on Skamino. Grant, Drake, Yaeger Zane and a squad of Drake’s 151st Legion “The Dragon’s Own” brave the hazardous realm to recover almost thirty soldiers and their descendants who have been marooned in the ‘Forever War’ for hundreds of years. The Wardens of the Stair sense another Warden in the realm (possibly trapped), but the individual proves elusive.
- As things start to settle down on Marindar, Grant and Ethan discuss returning to university (which they discussed more than once but not done). They also agree to explore the landing adjacent to Earth (Realm 0) and find more of the hidden Doors.
- Given that Abbie is so well known, Ethan uses sorcery to construct a ‘glamour’ for each of them so that they walk about normally without being recognised. Abbie asks Ethan if she can be taught the spell. Abbie reveals that she has learnt some sorcery from Sophia, and some from books which Macavity (!!) found. She asks Ethan to teach her more.
- Ethan settles down to spend time with Abbie. He finds one of the rooms in her Manchester house full of books about Earth politics, economics, religion and history - she is clearly seeking to understand how the present came to be, and why people here are the way that they are. They talk about Earth and she asks him many questions which illustrates to him just how different her homeworld (Meridian) is from Earth. Ethan has always been careful not to ask many questions about where she came from as it is a painful subject to her, but from her questions he is able to work out that she comes from a world with a unified government, with a single currency and where the needs of society outweigh the needs of the individual. Unlike Earth which has many religions, Meridian is effectively apatheism - the existence of a higher being or beings was not important to most of her people. She speaks highly of her own society, but to Ethan it sounds like the society was state-controlled with relatively limited personal freedoms, even if Abbie seems to think otherwise.
Part 2 - Moving out of Westgate
- On one of Ethan’s trips back to Westgate Manor, Macavity asks if he can come with Ethan to Manchester and he agrees. Stolvir also insists on coming. Stolvir becomes quite fond of Abbie (and vice versa) and he decides to stay with her. Abbie is also pleased to see Macavity and in the days that follow, she has long conversations with Macavity about theology and political structures - Ethan gets the impression that she and Macavity are kindred spirits.
- Ethan makes a point of going to see Finn (of Mordecai’s Raven Legion) in Fiveways. Ethan puts Finn in touch with Mordecai, and Mordecai extracts the team from Earth.
- As the weeks go by, Abbie starts to explain the changes (and improvements) she wants to make to the world. To begin with, she wants to address world hunger and poverty, but then she wants to make education a priority, particularly in the sciences. Abbie believes the challenge is enormous, but she is clearly driven to make a difference. She encourages Ethan to ‘think big’ and asks him to see if there is anything in Clockworld that they could use. Ethan asks her some questions as to what she thinks of the different Earth governments, and she comments that she thinks that there is a lot of waste but she has more important things to worry about at the moment (like food production).
Part 3 - Assuming Control of Clockworld
- Jacob eagerly hands over the responsibilities of Clockworld to Ethan when asked. The handover is rushed and doesn’t cover everything as Jacob is keen to leave and go home (at last). Jacob is convinced that Ethan can handle it (as he has repaired Clockworld more than once). Wrighting is also integral to Clockworld, but Jacob is sure that Ethan will ‘pick it up’ over time. Besides, some of it is beyond even Jacob and only Lucien understands all of its inner workings. (GM’s note - Bad Stuff means that the handover from Jacob to Ethan is incomplete)
- Jacob shows Ethan the Master Control Room which contains the master settings for Realm 0 - there are settings to change the speed at which time moves relative to the Stair (currently set 1:1) and Ethan knows that it’s possible to roll time back in an emergency situation. Jacob shows Ethan how to use one of the timepieces which can be used as a ‘remote control’ for this realm and he points out that Gearwing will remain with Clockworld (as he is effectively a part of it).The transition from Jacob to Ethan is agreed by the Guardian, a very strong Eidolon creature (who may or may not be an Annunuki). The Guardian reminds Ethan that the seals on this Realm are designed to keep dangerous things inside the realm.
- Jacob gives Ethan an Icon to contact him if needed. He plans to retain Eastgate and he explains that he will be back from time to time.
- Given that Westgate is currently occupied by a large number of cats and ravens, Ethan decides to take up residence in Clockworld. There is only one small room for sleeping and washing, but Ethan makes it comfortable. He moves some of his workshop from the Westgate basement into Clockworld. Clockworld becomes his ‘home’ when he is not in Manchester with Abbie.
Part 4 - Making Changes
- Ethan and Abbie work together to identify changes which can be made to the world to improve things. Ethan makes trips to Chernobyl to try to work out how to remove the radioactivity. He also visits drought/famine affected regions in Africa to see what is happening first hand, and visits Rwanda and Somalia, both of which are in a state of civil war. Ethan is convinced to help but he can see a slippery slope here - it is hard to stop a war without taking sides somewhere.
- Grant makes regular trips to Earth from Marindar and he enrols in a paramedic course in Manchester. (He found that healing on Marindar relies upon sorcery which may not work in all places). Ethan is also very keen to go to university but he ends up in an argument with Abbie about what to study. She discourages him studying medicine, saying that he is already an incredible healer. Reluctantly, Ethan is persuaded to study science and engineering instead.
- Ethan and Grant talk regularly on campus, and Ethan shares some of his thoughts about improving the planet. He worries a little about Abbie and Ethan asks Grant to keep an eye on them both in case they ‘go too far’. Ethan is afraid of losing his objectivity. Grant points out that Ethan needs to have some fun - he can’t work all of the time.
Part 5 - Changes and Distractions
- While Grant is studying on Earth, he receives an urgent Icon contact from Lady Sophia. Grant had long suspected that some fragment of Talos had survived on Marindar. With the news that Talos has returned (or at least part of him), Grant returns to Marindar and quickly deals with the situation. This time, Grant is sure that the threat has been ended permanently.
- Ethan studies biology and chemistry. He is a quick learner and he finds that he enjoys his time at university. But he has little time to make new friends as he’s distracted by Abbie’s plans and he’s frequently making changes to the Earth. On his third attempt, Ethan believes he has figured out a way to remove the radioactivity from Chernobyl without having to remove a large amount of planetary mass. In the meantime, he’s delivering food supplies to starving people in two countries (using sorcery to transport foodstuffs), whilst Abbie is publicly putting her support via the International Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières and half a dozen other international aid organisations. The work is satisfying but Ethan begins using Eidolon more casually, healing sick people, improving crop yields and interfering more frequently. This does not go unnoticed. He senses a scrying spell upon him whilst in Somalia, but when he focusses his attention upon it to study its source, the spell winks out.
- Over the next three months, Ethan intervenes dozens of times. He becomes aware that there are others of power who have sensed what he is doing. Between Abbie and himself, they catch glimpses of the Faceless people, Deep Ones and even small animals behaving strangely (with a strange glow in their eyes). But there is no sign of the Shoggoth creature that plagued the area around Fiveways. It is as though it has disappeared completely, and Ethan cannot even locate it via Wayfinding.
- Over a beer after university, Grant comments that he thinks that Ethan is working too hard. Even though they are still getting out onto the Stair quite regularly (once a week), and gradually they’re mapping out the landing, Grant fears that he’s ‘burning the candle at both ends’. Ethan smiles and reassures him that he’s pacing himself. Grant comments that Ethan is pretty serious about Abbie, and Ethan admits that he’s in love with her. He finds that he thinks of little else even when she’s not around. This pleases Grant (he describes it as the ‘honeymoon period’) and he encourages Ethan to make sure that Abbie knows this.
Part 6 - Finding Arana
- Shortly after, Grant goes to find what happened to Arana (the dark elf) - she was last left in a secure location by Trell. Before heading out into Dwimmerlaik-controlled territory, Grant consults with Lady Vala and Lord Drake. He also takes the opportunity to talk with Drake about the Excalibur project that he discovered on Finbar. Grant is very interested in seeing that project continue and Drake agrees to involve Grant in its future development. Grant takes a circuitous route which only a Master of the Stair could follow. He finds that Arana has moved on, slipped away from the location where he (as Trell) left her. Pressing on, he tracks her down to a domain known as the Slave Markets of Attalan. (GM’s note - which Ethan has been to, back in Session 48) Even though she appears to be laying low here and not in immediate danger, Grant judges that the situation could change in a place where many monstrous creatures prey upon humanoids. Disguised as a Dwimmerlaik, he subdues her, then removes her from the realm. He deposits her in what he considers a ‘safe’ realm for the time being.
Part 7 - Something Unexpected
- Back on Earth, whilst Ethan is continuing to ‘do good’, something unexpected happens. Ethan has been prepared for a magical attack, but he is not prepared for a mundane one. He feels Abbie cry out in pain (he’s psychically sensitive to her). Abandoning any pretense of normality, Ethan teleports to her location in a flash of light, appearing in a chamber full of witnesses. Abbie has just been shot in the foyer of the Steigenberger Grandhotel in Brussels. One of her bodyguards has just tackled and is attempting to disarm the assailant, whilst another shields her. Everyone is in shock. Ethan instinctively slams both Abbie’s assailant and the bodyguard with a massive invisible Force-Push, felling them instantly but also making a mess of the lobby, overturning chairs and tables. Turning his attention to Abbie and her other bodyguard, he finds that she’s lying on the ground and the bodyguard is calling for an ambulance. Despite being shot, she’s still conscious and she insists that it isn’t too bad, even when the blood starts soaking through her clothes. Seeing Ethan, she stammers apologetically (as if it is her fault) that she saw the gun but wasn’t fast enough to get out of the way. She heard two gunshots but it seems that she’s only been hit once on the right side (in the abdomen). He must have been a lousy shot. With the sound of sirens in the distance, Abbie pales and Ethan can tell that she’s going into shock. He holds her hand and uses Eidolon to relax her, take away the pain and stop the blood flow. He knows that he could remove the bullet with sorcery and heal her, but he can’t do it here. Not in front of so many people.
- The ambulance arrives and Ethan decides to go with her. Abbie continues to be mildly apologetic, but Ethan reassures her and she seems happy with that. Holding her hand in the ambulance, he realises just how much she means to him and he can feel her contentment at having him there.
- In the hospital, the surgeons wish to operate on her to physically remove the bullet and stitch her wounds. At this point, Ethan intervenes. Using force of will, he freezes the medical staff in place and then removes the bullet using sorcery. He then repairs the wound using Eidolon, and releases the medical staff to make an inspection and confirm that she has been healed. Ethan feels very tired - his secret has been blown. The doctors can’t believe it - one of them openly wonders if there is some sort of trick. But it is one of the nurses that snaps him out of it and tells him to come with her. Abbie seems to be sleeping so Ethan agrees. The nurse leads him back the emergency section - she shows him a handful of patients that are badly injured. One may not survive. She persuades him to do what he can. Watching him carefully as he’s not a doctor, Ethan nonetheless heals the patients one by one. To finish up, he takes her hand, heals her of mild arthritis and uses the contact to gently forget what he has done here. He tries to do the same of the other doctors who witnessed what he did, but he is not successful. (GM’s note - Bad Stuff)
- Abbie recovers quickly. The police arrive and ask some questions - they are astonished to find that she has recovered so quickly from being shot. It is revealed that her assailant claims to have been her lover (which Abbie denies). It appears that the man is an ordinary but very disturbed man. Ethan is shocked by this - he had no idea that she could be a target for a normal man.
- The next day, the newspaper reports are conflicting and confused. There is a photo of Ethan in the papers - evidently Bartholomew wasn’t able to suppress this one. There is mention of the miraculous recovery of four people in the emergency section of UMC Sint-Pieter (the hospital). Worse, Ethan can feel the occasional scrying eye of another sorcerer (perhaps the same one as before), and he realises that his public actions have now drawn unwanted attention.
- Abbie decides to press on with her itinerary in Brussels and Geneva and try to ‘ride out the noise’. Ethan goes along, wearing a ‘glamour’ to disguise himself. However, in Brussels he sees the Faceless Men on the streets in broad daylight; and in Geneva he feels that some of the changes to the weather systems that he has made to Eastern Africa are being unravelled. Someone else in Realm 0 is working against him.
And that’s where the next adventure begins …. clearly there are entities in Realm 0 (Earth) that are now aware of Ethan’s presence. This is where the next adventure triggers. We’ll continue to the time compress after the adventure concludes.