Back at the Ice Wolf we talked about the undiscovered manses linked to the Spire and which to try and find first. So many manses in the immediate area was unusual and Song suggested it might be an indication the geomancy of the area had been specifically altered to create them. We were discussing the potential for the Lunars to see them from above and how easy it would be for us to speak to Caelan in animal form when we heard a noise from outside and with a quick signal to the others, Song shifted into bird from and flew from the window into the next door room as a tentative knock sounded at the door. She opened the door from the other room as Caelan opened the door of their room - catching the young girl from the market the day before by surprise.
We invited her in but she was somewhat hesitant and refused to even step over the threshold before we’d all gone inside, but was eventually coaxed into revealing what she was up to (beside listening at the door). We made a casual excuse for what she’d overheard as she admitted she had some information she thought we might pay for: there was a new Scavenger Lord in town by the name of Kurush of the Four Fires and he was setting up a stall in the Prince’s Quarter to sell all manner of First Age artifacts. We could be there early the next morning to be in at the start.
It was interesting, but we were also curious about our young informant and asked her name – or pseudonym should she not want to give us that much. She told us she was called Afra. We asked why she’d followed us the day before, who she thought we were and why she brought us the information. She shrugged. She noticed we were different, she said, we were strangers but we had a confidence and a way of being that suggested we weren’t just circus folk or travellers. We were a little surprised but her perception seemed to be simply that – a sense honed by a life of living hand to mouth and doing what she needed to survive. At any rate if she was anything more than an ambitious young girl it eluded us, and her request for money (for foods for her and her friends) wasn’t outside our means. Song dropped a generous few silver coins into her palm before she left, agreeing to meet us after the coliseum event the next evening where she promised she could continue to be useful.
We slept well that evening and were up early the next day to investigate the Prince’s market and the stall Afra had referred to. Kurush’s marquee was obvious from the attention already drawn to it. Having a look at the precious items, First Age artifacts amongst them on offer, in no particular order, we found:
• An artifact jade shield.
(Significant interest suggested it would be sold for a large amount of jade or silver.)
• A silver brush which would never need for ink.
(Useful, but likely to be seen mostly as a status symbol, we suspected the price would be overinflated.)
• A ‘cord of the winds’.
(A mid-range item (so mostly out of reach of anyone of even moderate wealth) they were more common items and could boost the sails of ships at sea when the air elementals in them were released.)
• A moonsilver coin or token
(Being sold as curiosity it nevertheless commanded a moderate price. It was moonsilver, so Olvir and Song were interested.)
• Wind slave discs.
(These we knew could be attached to cargo boxes and suchlike and would aid with lifting.)
• An odd item no-one seemed to recognise, embossed with markings in Old Realm, made of a dull grey material with metallic sheen and orichalcum circuitry on it.
(Song looked over it and understood the Old Realm script to indicate prayers made to Tara-kul using the device would be recorded and could be recalled. Tara-kul, she remembered, was a minor god whose sole duty was to listen to prayers sent through the device and then record the messages. If we had more than one of the devices it could be used as a Celestial communication device... however one was simply a curiosity. As such it commanded only a moderate price.)
• A small bumblebee made of blue jade, orichalcum, obsidian & moonsilver
(The little construct could carry a messages and take it a mile or so away. It commanded a considerable price.)
• Four small (empty) yasal crystals and one large one (containing an Essence 3 demon)
(Together, they would be sold for almost as much as the artifact shield.)
Song had used her charm to see the unseen and noticed two dematerialised Wood spiders looking over the yasal crystals and moved carefully to not stand in their space while taking a look herself. They looked up at her and she smiled, giving them a quiet acknowledgement she intended no-one else to see. They did likewise, and she left them to their considerations.
The market was thronged with people but one stood out as he made her entrance, even before the wood spiders bowed their heads as she passed. Flowers were woven in her long hair and her flowing garments hung about her like petals, blossoming out into the extended trumpet shape of a honeysuckle flower. She made a beeline for the yasal crystals and we listened in to the conversation she held with the man we presumed was Kurush as she made a reasonable offer for the set. It wasn’t the best price but it was fair... though Song’s ability to sense Essence flows revealed she wasn’t above using Charms and a natural toxin which clouded his judgement a little to ease the wheels of negotiation. Studying her a little closer Song realised quite what a reserve of Essence the woman had and quietly suggested to Song and Olvir the woman was probably the Eastern Censor.
At the mention of the word ‘Censor’ her head snapped round to focus on Song. Since Song had spoken so quietly no-one more than a foot or so away from her would’ve ordinarily been able to hear it came as somewhat of a surprise and as Caelan and and Olvir slipped back into the crowd Song inclined her head in a slight bow of acknowledgement. The Censor returned the gesture and went back to her negotiations (to our relief).
Caelan also had negotiations on his mind. He’d seen the interest Song had shown in the moonsilver token and wanted to show he could make a canny deal as well as any of the circus folk. With natural charm enhanced with Charms he spoke to the Scavenger Lord about purchasing it ‘as a curio for a friend interested in the esoteric’ and arranged for a meeting later, at the Ice Wolf. Meanwhile Song had made enquiries after the prayer disk and agreed to return the next day to conclude the deal.
With Caelan riding Ariorn we followed the rough directions we had to find the manse towards the north-east. We’d come up with a plan for Olvir to carry Song aloft where she could use her Essence sight to scour the land from above – which was also our best bet for claiming the manse in the sky if Song could attune while resting on Olvir’s back. So Olvir hunted for a vulture, the best for flying high and with exceptional sight and soon met up with Song and Caelan in vulture shape where Song shifted into spider shape and practiced hanging on as Olvir rode the updrafts.
It took a little while to get used to it but on the third pass over the area Song spotted the telltale glint of Essence laying across the landscape. As she directed Olvir, Caelan followed on the ground and we arrived together at an overgrown space in the middle of the wood with a thick layer of leaf litter, prolific creepers and fallen branches showing it hadn’t been maintained in years. Song pulled at a vine impatiently, seeing how it was impeding the Essence flow but soon realised any movement shifted Essence in unexpected directions and without considerable understanding of geomancy moving things too much could be dangerous. She shouted a warning to Olvir who’d assumed his ape form and swung up into the trees to get a good look at the place. We looked around but couldn’t find a hearthstone – though we thought perhaps since the manse was designed to power the Spire, it may have been created in such a way as to not produce one.
It certainly seemed as if no-one had been near it in years but being cautious, Caelan stood watch while Olvir and Song attuned to the manse. They were successful – no-one else had claimed the place (or if they had, they didn’t object to the two Lunars also attuning to it) so they stood guard with a little less concern as Caelan attuned before we playfully raced back to the city to grab a bite of food at the Ice Wolf before heading to the Coliseum.
The fights that evening were nothing spectacular though the beast fights and bear baiting made for fine entertainment if one was interested. Olvir was especially interested – but he wanted to play the bear. Instead, he went off to register for the tournament, not going into details but saying he was an Essence user, that he’d caught a boar single handed (when he was 11) and that Kashlyk Ashak had said he was looking forward to his performance. The steward looked at him sceptically, but wrote down his information as Olvir sauntered off, telling Caelan he ought to be able to put a decent bet on him now - after all he’d not lied about any of it, but he didn’t think he’d get rated too highly. Song hadn’t been swept up in the performance but had noted Kashlyk in the Royal Box and focused for a moment on the Prince who was watching the show. His Essence was notable for a mortal – roughly akin to her own.
Afra met us as planned as we left; doing nothing to make us doubt her perceptive talents. Back at the Ice Wolf Caelan went to fetch his practice sword and chivvy Olvir out to the back for practice so Song and Afra watched, and talked about the kinds of things Afra wanted, or could do for us as they tangled with each other. Olvir got caught away in the moment and having burnt through Essence in the fight with Caelan pulled on the peripheral Essence around him flaring his caste mark in to life. Of course Afra noticed, eyes widening. Song asked the girl what it meant to her - wondering if she’d recognise it or be afeared of Anathema – but Afra shook her head, saying she didn’t know. Song suggested then it was best not to mention it – it could get her into a lot of trouble, and not from Olvir, and Afra was happy to agree. Leaving with the remains of the sweets from the coliseum she scurried off to investigate the priests of Ethris at Song’s suggestion instead.
Back at the inn we’d got visitors. A deputation from the Scavenger Lord Kurush had arrived to tell us Caelan had been successful in his negotiations that morning for the moonsilver token and with the exchange of some jade it was ours. Sitting with it in her hand Song realised she could attune to it and spending a mote saw its value – it could be attached to an artifact which could then be attuned to as if it were moonsilver.
Night approached but Olvir was still up for exploring and a conversation with Afra earlier had made him realise the manse below the city might be easiest to access via one of the wells. She’d given him the location of the nearest one and together with Song the two Lunars assumed animal forms to climb down the sides and shift into aquatic forms to explore where swimming against the current they made their way through black crevasses and channels in the rock; their way illuminated by Luna’s light gleaming from their caste marks, to eventually drop down a water filled gully and emerge into a huge watery cavern.
Sixteen glowing spheres floated suspended in the water and gave off a pale blue light, arranged in two cubes, one inside the other, illuminating a cavern covered in carvings representing the Moonspire along with vessels of flight and underwater creatures and prayers to Luna, to the Unconquered Sun and to Vanileth. As we stared around in wonder at the temple three figures unfolded from the corners of the room and began meticulously cleaning, apparently made of clockwork and brass though how they functioned underwater we couldn’t tell. They were evidently designed to be automata – unlike Van-Oris, who resembled a bird in all ways but his clockwork mechanisms, and looking into the furthest corner we saw a fourth figure, half completed (or perhaps, half dismantled).
Olvir swam over to one of them using a charm to allow him to speak in his crab form and to his surprise it replied in Riverspeak. One of the automata – one which looked more finely crafted – spoke and the other two echoed it seconds afterwards, telling us when we asked that the temple was built by Magnificent Jaguar and s/he was a Chosen of Luna. Magnificent Jaguar had crafter the first automaton we learned, which had in turn crafted the other two.
Pleased the temple resonated with us and admiring its beauty we took some time to mediate, hanging in the water, but attunement was out of reach: something blocked us. Surprised we looked at each other warily then asked the automata the obvious question. Did another claim this manse? Yes, they told us – Magnificent Jaguar did. Perhaps we shouldn’t have been so quick to assume that the owner of a temple crafted so long ago wouldn’t be around any more. Song left a message in Clawspeak at one of the entrances to the manse (before the temple itself) with our names and our thanks for being able to spend time in the place and Olvir asked one of the automata to convey a message to Magnificent Jaguar when s/he returned.
Before we left we wanted to take the chance to offer a prayer in this most beautiful and strange of temples and Olvir felt he wanted to make a bigger statement than simply shedding blood into the water in sacrifice, so tore off a leg. In crab form, it would grow back, he reasoned. Of course, for Olvir, it was easy to heal even severe injuries... and Song elected not to question it. We left the temple and navigated our way back to the well, scrambled up the sides and returned to the Ice Wolf where Song stopped by Caelan’s room to let him know they were back safe and related the tale of what we’d found.
Morning dawned on the 20th of Resplendent Water and we woke with more ambitions. Olvir was set to return to the coliseum and train with Kashlyk which left Song and Caelan to track down the manse to the east. With Song’s prayer at the altar in the coliseum to call Kashlyk, Olvir was soon gathering new bruises and she and Caelan rode out, he on Arion and she in the form of a bird, heading ten miles eastward as they’d been told. Knowing more what to look for this time she found the pool in the clearing easily. Caelan also found the body of water, unusual in that it had no apparent source yet was fresh (demonstrated ably by Arion who sucked at it thirstily after the ride). A closely cropped circle of grass surrounded the pool and as they watched they saw leafcutter ants carefully trimming the tops of individual blades.
Unsure of the exact centre of the manse Song shucked outer garments and took to the water, keeping her human shape but adopting gills to swim underwater to find the centre, which like the forest manse lacked a hearthstone although the tribe of ants who maintained it kept a colony underwater by trapping little bubbles of air with which to breathe. Song swam to the surface and called to Caelan – he’d need to swim out but could probably float atop the water and attune that way. After a couple of hours either in or on the cold water both were pleased to successfully attune – no-one blocked them – but were chilled and glad to head back to the city where Olvir had spent the day discovering quite how proficient a fighter Kashlyk Ashak was. He knew multiple styles of martial arts and Olvir came away battered and bruised – but having learned a considerable amount.
As ever, though, he was keen to explore – especially since Song and Caelan had found another manse. That left only one, which if the stories were right was two miles up in the air, so after a meal the two Lunars set out leaving Caelan to keep himself busy in the city.
The vulture/spider pairing flew higher than either had been before but in the clear sky Song could see twinkles of Essence glittering like stars. As they got closer they made out the edge of a platform – barely visible but for a ripple in the air upon which Olvir landed - and Song jumped down from his back assuming lynx shape. Now they’d landed they could tell the platform was made of adamant – a rare material and even rarer floating two miles up.
There was a door in front of them which presumably led the way into the manse itself, so Olvir knocked. It was opened by one of a pair of huge, golden lions which peered out suspiciously at the two Lunars. Song narrowed her eyes... her Essence sight revealing both had more power than she or Olvir and were strengthened by active charms for defence which could be turned to aggression quickly.
A little nervously, they greeted the lions, Song giving formal introductions and listing their castes as Chosen of Luna. That seemed to offset some suspicions and introduce new ones and Olvir asked them if they were connected with the Censor of the East – worried he’d come across her guardians. They denied it vigorously and gave them the impression she’d be even less welcome if she turned up on the doorstep. Olvir and Song however were allowed inside, after Song expressed her surprise at finding two such majestic creatures in such an unusual place (flattery, she knew, opened many doors) and they agreed, though grudgingly saying any Solar or Lunar in good standing was allowed in – on a technicality.
The obvious questions were asked first. Who were they, why were they there, and what place was this? They were Celestial lions, they had been set here to guard the place, and it was a place where the Deliberative had tested things. That didn’t answer anything with any great degree of understanding but did pose further questions.
What was the Deliberative, Song asked? One of the lions sighed and with a certain amount of foresight asked if there was anyone else the information would go to. Nodding, Olvir said there was one other and the lion suggested he be fetched so they could hear it. That posed a problem – Caelan couldn’t fly and the only possible way Olvir and Song could think was for him to carry him in his strix form at night where there was less chance of being seen and if they were spotted, it wouldn’t look quite so suspicious. So it was that Olvir took off as the sky began to darken to find Caelan in the city.
It left Song talking to the lions. She’d heard a little of such creatures...Celestial Lions guarded portals to Yu Shan as well as the domain of heaven itself, and they were said to be incorruptible, powerful, competent martial artists as well as expert trackers and investigators who were set to uphold Yu Shan’s laws. Consciously leaving some questions until the others returned, she spoke to them about the realms of Heaven instead.
Meanwhile on the ground, Caelan had been back to the courtyard he’d practiced in with Olvir the previous night to do a little training on his own, mainly sword forms and some knife throwing work. He left a note stuck to his door in the tavern addressed to Afra, telling her where he’d be but couching it in terms few others would be likely to understand. He’d been practicing for a couple of hours when the girl hopped over the wall with his note in her hand and proudly held it out to him – she’d managed to recognise his name and concluded it was for him. He tried to explain then shrugged. It had had its intended effect after all. He talked to her for a bit and asked what kind of things she needed: food, mostly, and since he was willing, led him round the market where he bought some staples she pointed out. He impressed on her that she should let him (or Olvir or Song) know if she got into any trouble or people asked her about them - he’d look out for her, he said, reassuringly.
He went back to training after helping her struggle home with the food, and so Olvir found Caelan practicing katas with his dai-klaive. He didn’t go into details but hustled Caelan out of town – telling him they were going to meet up with Song. Caelan was confused. Were they going to a new inn? And why? Olvir didn’t want to talk too much within the city so waited till they were well beyond the walls before telling Caelan he needed to see something up in the air. Without much time for Caelan to react, he shifted into his strix form and made to grasp Caelan in his claws. The Solar was confused – and would rather have travelled on his back but Olvir suspected that would prevent him flying so easily so grappled him gently in his claws. Caelan protested as sharp claws dug into his flesh but clung on, rapidly lifted high into the air.
Song was watching, her caste mark glowing, to signal to them when they got close. It was full dark but she could just make out the white winged strix as Olvir valiantly flapped towards them. It would have gone smoothly had it not been for Olvir misreading his approach and slamming straight into the side of the (almost invisible) manse, falling backwards and beginning to spiral downwards with Caelan still clasped in his claws. Song took a chance and leapt, calling on her hybrid form to grow wings as she shifted into her beastman form, the better to catch Caelan with. Flying beneath Olvir as he struggled to stop his descent she called out to him to drop Caelan – and caught the slightly panicked Solar before he fell too far. He balanced lightly on her toes as she wrapped arms around him and struggled upwards to the doorway of the manse.
Olvir was still falling and shifted to a smaller form to try and catch himself – but was only buffeted by the wind as it tore at his wings and fell further before he finally caught the day’s last updraft and stopped his spiralling plunge. Song had managed to land on the platform and deposit Caelan who was glad to be on solid ground – even though it didn’t look much like solid ground – and introduced him to the lions, both of whom had their large and imposing heads stuck out of the doorway watching what was going on. Olvir landed a few minutes later, having reassumed his vulture form to gain height, and we gladly all made our way inside.
After Caelan had composed himself and berated Olvir for not telling him what was going on, we turned to the lions. Song asked, again, what the place had been and what the Deliberative was. One lion hung his head a little, in that way parents do when children ask why – but we weren’t children, and the lions knew that. This place, the manse, the Spire, the area – was a place the Deliberative had used to test great air vessels manufactured in the Spire for speed, power, destructive force and so on. The Deliberative, they explained, was the government which ruled Creation in the First Age: Solars, their Lunar mates, Sidereal advisors and some Dragon Blooded who served. It was something of a revelation as they explained what had been here so many years before - and how much Creation had changed.
They’d been placed as guards after the Deliberative had fallen, commanded by the Celestial bureaucracy. Olvir asked if that meant there was a way to Yu Shan from here, but they told him no - this place was the command centre for the Moonspire where they could talk to those who piloted vessels nearby and oversaw projects going on in the tower. They couldn’t control the tower itself though they had some access to it – but they’d not left the manse since they were set on guard some 1,000 years ago. They had indeed met the Censor of the East, they replied to Caelan’s question – but not the one we knew about, they’d encountered the one who’d come before.
We asked on what ‘technicality’ was it we were allowed to enter the manse and they told us it was dictated by the Mandate of Heaven which permitted Solars, Lunars and Sidereals access. We asked what Sidereals were having not heard about them before and were told they were Exalted of the Maidens. However no-one else – Exalted or not – had been here in all the time they’d been guarding the place.
What was the Mandate of Heaven? Song asked, their mention of it had reminded her of something Van-Oris had said once. The lions were impassive in their reply. Also known as the Creation Ruling Mandate, it was a gift given by the Unconquered Sun to the Celestial Exalted to rule Creation, and no law was greater. No god could raise an army or claim ownership over any place: but we could and we could do as we will. It was a little awe-inspiring for three so new to our Exaltation. We knew we could do great things... but rule Creation?
The Mandate had been given firstly to Merela, a Solar and Queen ruler of the Deliberative but extended to all those Chosen. Caelan asked how many Solar Exalted there were to be ruling Creation, and was told 300. Of Lunars there were also 300 - and little under 100 Sidereals, who mostly resided in Heaven.
If the Mandate had been set by such a force as the Unconquered Sun, why was it not so now? The Lions didn’t answer directly, saying only that the Deliberative had been brought low and destroyed within a month, the Solars didn’t return, the Lunars were kept busy elsewhere and no-one reforged it. They didn’t know why the Solars hadn’t returned and were surprised when Caelan asked - they thought he should have known.
We took a tour of the place with the lions as guides. The central room contained a hearthstone and since neither Lion seemed to have claimed it we asked if we’d be able to. If they could have said ‘no’ we thought, they would have... but they informed us, politely and coldly, that it was our right to do so. It was evident there was more going on and we asked what the rules were. They told us there were many rules, though which ones pertained to the specific situation and which to the broader aspects of manse operation we didn’t know... but the unofficial guideline was mostly summed up as “don’t do anything bloody stupid”. Well, we weren’t planning on that (but then, how many people plan on doing something stupid?)
As we toured the manse – quite a large place and from the inside appearing perfectly solid, we learnt a little more of the laws of heaven and where we as Celestial Exalted stood in regards to gods and elementals. The views from the very top of the manse were spectacular. We weren’t able to appreciate them earlier and could only imagine what the sky would have been like thronged with flying vehicles.
One of the lions when showing us around a lower level storage room pointed out some glider packs, looking like innocuous stuffed rucksacks hanging on hooks. There were about six of them but once worn and attuned to they could be used to glide safely to earth and the lions suggested it might be a way for Caelan to more easily return to solid ground.
Song suggested Caelan ought to take the hearthstone if we were to attune to the Manse. It seemed somehow fitting, given all we’d heard of the Deliberative, and Olvir agreed, keen to make the place our own. It would allow the bearer to monitor all things flying within range of the place said a lion when Caelan asked.
We’d had time to think on it and other things, but it had grown late and after the earlier excitement sleep called. The manse had several guest rooms and we were shown to them, though neither Olvir or Song slept straight away. Olvir stayed up talking to the lions and entertaining them with old jokes... all of which were new to them, and some of the melodies he sang in the circus which they seemed to like.
Song stayed up even after he called it a night, too curious about all she’d discovered to even think of sleep. As the hours passed she found the lions generally content to indulge her curiosity which extended to themselves, their names, what they liked and did not like, the touch of their fur and their abilities as well as the rulership of Creation, the roles of Solars and Lunars, what had come before, what Heaven was like, the Celestial Exalted they’d met before, about the Sidereal Exalted, their view on Creation and how gods saw them, about the manse and how it was powered and what the First Age had truly been like. There simply were not enough hours in the night for her to ask all the questions that burned in her mind before the sun rose once again on a new day.