GM: Kevan Forbes
System: Exalted, 2nd Edition
Hand’s Account
As Timeless Wandering Wind absorbed the contents of the small library, she began to explore the labyrinth of chutes, tunnels and hidden passages throughout the Adamant Manse. Knowing that certainly no collection of “Sands of Fire” would be complete without the commentary, she searched these often winding passages to find the displaced portions of the epic. Having to chimney her way through a near vertical chute, little Wind found a small leather bound tomb. Certainly not the lore she had hoped for, the young solar was nevertheless intrigued by the text. Peeling back the cover, she found the inexpert calligraphy of Hands of Velvet. The text began with an apparent invitation to read its contents.
Should I one day learn the craft of air, I hope to continue my predecessors tradition and transcribe these tales onto the winding passages of my new home. For now, however, this musty tome will have to do:
The is the story of Melani Sahlak. I had been hired by a mercenary captain, Swift Brook, to come and entertain her troops. I like working mercenaries. They pay well, they are jovial, and their tastes aren’t humiliating or degrading for me to appeal. Sex, Spirits and Jade. I can work with that. Swift Brook is a friend of Nadaal and I’ve got a soft spot in my heart for Nadaal, maybe more than a soft spot. So helping her out was partially for the money and partially to gain the further favor of Nadaal.
My travels through the Temple quarter are usually solitary. Not many people find time in their busy nights to pray. Honestly, I understand, its just too hot to want to do anything right now. Its what we get I suppose for living near the Elemental Pole of Fire. The most I usually hear are some solemn yet indistinct prayers to ancestors or the occasional revelation as one priest tells a devotee they have gained the favor of some family god. Tonight, however, was different. As I walked by the clustered shrines of Talespinner, Dreamweaver and Dayshield I heard sounds of conflict.
“We don’t need your God here, foreigner” A rough band of miners surrounded a man who’s garb marked him as one who had traveled very far to come to Gem. “We’ve got enough Gods already. Go take your prayers somewhere else.”
The man, who had been knocked to the ground and wore a bruise cheek swelling from the miner’s blows, protested “But I have been told all worship is allowed in the Temple Quarter. I seek only to erect a small shrine in the name of our God Howakan. The God who walks among men.”
It seemed however, that the foreign man’s pleas only incensed the miners further. They grew agitated and violence boiled inside them ready to bubble over any minute. I remembered the days when I was helpless to protect myself or those I cared for. A girl I called sister in my youth, named Tickling Rain by the Realm, was forced to fulfill the depraved whims of our dragon-blooded master. Even after she had passed out from pain he continued to force himself upon her while I watched, helpless and afraid. My days of being helpless are over.
As my memories filled me with sorrow I channeled that pain and fear around me. The burnt out torch beside me became a club, my loose trousers into a military vestments, and from pure essence the emblem of the Southern Ranger formed across my chest. With my olive skin and shorter stature my own mother would not recognize me. It was time for these bullies to taste fear themselves.
It didn’t take much really. I feigned indifference to the travelers plight but nevertheless made it very clear to the miners that their form of “justice” would not be tolerated. They fled and I was left alone with the man. He told me his name was Farum, that he worshiped Howakan, a god who heals the sick and glorifies the word of the Unconquered Sun. It is rare that I hear our God’s name spoken without disgust. Struck with curiosity I asked him to speak further. He did not want to preach to me himself, but instead invited me to attend one of the sermons in the foreigner’s quarter. I told him I would send a man, Hands of Velvet, and asked that he show the same generosity to Hands as I had showed to him. He assured me that all were welcome and we bid each other farewell.
My encounter brought me so much joy I nearly skipped through the temple district. Protecting the defenseless and a chance to meet another of the Unconquered Sun’s chosen? It was the first bit of good news I had found outside the Manse. As I walked I allowed the disguise to fade from me so that when I met the door guard to Swift Brook’s chambers, I once again wore my natural chocolate complexion and simple garb. Her entertainment was nothing less than I expected. The troops had been given their first taste of indulgence after weeks of traveling in the desert and they were gorging themselves. Overlapping strokes of gambling, drinking, dancing, cavorting and sex painted a collage I am quite familiar with.
Swift Brook’s first introduction to me was through my hands. I placed them softly on her shoulder and slowly tightened them, gentle yet strong, around the knots in her back. She sighed, remorseful to interrupt the message “Your reputation proceeds you, Hands of Velvet, but I am not the client tonight.”
She bid to sit by her side, enjoy strong ale and hear her use for my skills. Apparently several members of the merchant houses were at the party, some of which might us Swift Brook’s troops to protect their goods. With Gem being in a trade war with Paragon, no caravan is safe without strength of arms. She hoped that I could loosen some tongues, find out their dirty little secrets and give her leverage to use against them. One merchant in particular, Melani Sahlak, was probably here not to cavort or employ her soldiers, but to pander the finest assortment of illegal recreation. The house Sahlak has a monopoly on drug trade, but there are still many substances the Despot has banned and the same laws that make the substances illegal also make them very lucrative. Swift Brook hoped that I could gain the merchant’s graces and ferret out his plans. If he hoped to sell her soldiers drugs under her nose she would gain a powerful hold on him. I agreed to the task. It wasn’t noble by any means, but she was paying in Jade and the Unconquered Sun knows I needed it.
I spent some time cavorting. Its a little game I play when I’m bored. I watch to see how many social circles have formed and then try to insinuate myself in as many of them as possible. First off, it’s a challenge. I may have to play the part of storyteller, masseur, comedian, intellectual and object of desire all in one evening. Second, by speaking with each participant I have a chance to instill an emotion in them. Another blessing of being a lawgiver, should I command a crowd to be exited, angry or filled with sorrow they will feel just that. Tonight my work was easy, I encouraged the party goers to relax and feel at ease. Many of them were already on their way.
After an hour of such social niceties I casually made my way to the merchant from house Sahlak. “Good evening your excellency. What brings you here tonight?” Melani, as I have learned he is often accustomed to doing, tried to shift my attention away from himself. He assured me I must have been mistaken for another merchant as he was not a member of the house who dealt with providing narcotics. Sadly for Melani, he was trying to lie to a lawgiver. I saw clearly through his deceptions and convinced him that not only did I have the ear of Swift Brook, but that I could be a useful ally to him if he was inclined to do commerce with her. Melani consented. He wanted to meet with me inside one of his dream parlors. I could tell he was happy.
Suddenly his demeanor changed. From the fold of his robes he produced a golden timepiece whose equal I have never seen. The device was truly a thing of beauty, but to him it only reminded him that he was running late. In a rush he pocketed the wonder and excused himself. He gathered his allies and left unnoticed. Or so he thought. As anxious has he was, I know the meeting he was making haste for was important. Important enough that I should attend. As he took his leave of me and shook my hand a party goer stumbled past and I deftly stepped aside. Melani left, leaving his precious timepiece safely concealed in the palm of my hand. At worst, I would lie and tell him he dropped the watch and I followed after him to return it.
I followed the merchant quite a ways through Gem. He stopped in the trade quarter and met another man, and the pair was followed by wary bodyguards. Nimbly I danced in and out of shadows till their trail lead me into the noble tiers and I caught my first breath of truly fresh air in Gem coming from the passage that must have lead outside the volcano. I heard from down the passage Melani leave his guards instructions that no one was to pass while he conducted his business outside.
Unfortunately I didn’t know another way outside except for through them. Thanks to Graceful Crane Stance and a quick distraction, the first guard saw only a blur bounce from wall to wall before he was knocked unconscious. The second had longer to react. He drew his blade and tried fruitlessly to cut me down. I am Exalted, chosen by the Unconquered Sun. I try not to abuse my power, but I must admit it does come with benefits. It seemed to me as though motions were whispered to me in the wind, so easy was it to dodge his blade. A quick jab to the throat silenced him, followed by a low sweep and an ax kick to the chest left him sleeping soundly beside his partner.
I danced down the hallway until it opened to a great terrace, overlooking the mountainside below. I crept through a dried and withered trellis to find a proper vantage point to observe Melani and his partner. To my surprise, however, no deal was being made. Instead they looked to be awaiting someone. I was not close enough yet to make out their words, but soon I understood.
From below a carriage rode on wind. A feat I was certainly not expecting. The carriage was drawn by a creature of fantasy. A winged horse that bore an opalescent horn on its brow. The driver was a squat creature, scaly and repulsive. The carriage bore stranger passengers still. A woman whose beauty exceeds any description my rough prose can offer. So perfect was her shape, her flowing hair and enchanting almond eyes that I stood for a moment mesmerized despite myself. At her side was a creature of equally impressive appearance. His aspect, instead of beauty however, was of fiery death. The man, if he could be called a man, was tall. He wore a suit of Gothic plate spun from volcanic glass into impossible angles. His hair was fiery red and indeed danced in the wind as though it was ablaze. He carried a long spear, gigantic in size like the weapons of the First age, from which flames crackled along the edges of the blade. His eyes, however, were the most terrifying. Blacker than coal they smoldered in his scull. He looked as though he was at the brink of explosion but could control his power effortlessly.
The carriage landed and I gingerly continued further to overhear their conversation. Regrettably I missed the introductions but as I approached I could hear Melani speaking to the Fair Folk “Are you sure you can produce enough Wyldfire to keep the demand satisfied. If this stuff sells as well as you say it will and I can’t provide it to my clients, it will be more trouble than its worth.”
When the woman spoke her voice was like a soft breeze whispering over a lazy creek. It seemed to lull Melani into a suggestive state. “My dear, don’t you know that everything I do is for your benefit? I would never do anything that causes you trouble, however it seems you have brought trouble with you. A little mouse has come along and even now spies on our meeting.”
It is reasonable to say that all present were shocked at this announcement. I gulped and like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar and walked into the open. I tried to come up with a good excuse “The day we set to meet I will be gone…” or some such nonsense, but in the presence of the Fair Folk my manipulations were improvised and far from believable.
The woman quickly became tired of the charade “I’m bored of this” she turned to her silent companion “kill him.” He might not have said much but his sudden lunge, spear extended towards my chest, made his intentions very clear. Facing two Fair Folk with uncertain powers I did what any respectable solar chosen under the midnight hour would do… I ran my ass off!
My feet were like the paws of a squirrel as I danced up the side of the volcano wall. Believing the powers of the Unconquered Sun would save me I dared a look behind me. I wish I hadn’t. Keeping pace the warrior dashed up the sheer mountainside behind me moving every bit as gracefully despite his armor. Behind him he dragged the spear and as the blade skipped against the edge of the rock wall it ignited a trail of fire that scorched his path. Eventually my knowledge of Gem gave me the upper hand in eluding my newest fan and once I had entered back into the city proper he broke off pursuit.
That was the last I saw of the Fair Folk, however it will not be my last meeting with the drug merchant. I know the knowledge of his supplier, if not the product itself, would make the Despot’s blood boil. Melani will pay for the suffering he brings to creation. As the Unconquered Sun has chosen a lowly slave to work his will, I will mold like base creatures to uphold his laws. No man shall be indentured to another against his will. This is my promise to creation.
