Bitterness and Dread

is the second episode of Exandria Unlimited: Calamity, the third installment of the Exandria Unlimited series of miniseries. The Ring of Brass deepen their investigation into Vespin's inconceivable ritual while juggling their own profound desires and lofty ambitions...

Part I
Cerrit, having just seen Vespin Chloras in the mirror and having killed an invisible entity, continues to investigate the room. He notices the glyph of the Golden Scythe on the deanimated hodmedod, but no means of animation for it. He also find that the inside of the throat of the person he killed is covered in growths. As he prepares to exit the room, he gets a call on his sending stone from his son, Kir. Kir, using code names and pretending to be a detective, tells him that Maya, Cerrit's daughter and Kir's older sister, has been sneaking drinks of liquor in Cerrit's absence. Cerrit tells Kir not to worry and that he would take care of it when he got home, and that he loves him. Kir told him he loves back and asked when his mother would be home; Cerrit reassured him that he wasn't sure, but that she was "brilliant" and very busy working on important things. Cerrit then exited to return to the party in the hopes of finding Zerxus.

Outside, Loquatius realizes that Purvan Suul's terseness was likely due to him being afraid and not having any more information than he gave them. Meanwhile, Zerxus summons Tempus and attempts to catch up to Nydas, who had left earlier, but misses him.

At the Golden Scythe, Nydas asks Alessander to provide him with four automata. When Alessander tells him that he cannot spare any, Nydas asks him to requisition the Taxmen, a special prototype the Golden Scythe is secretly developing on behalf of the city of Avalir. Alessander is reluctant, but ultimately agrees.

Back at the Palazzo Por'co, in the ivy-covered alcove of the Ring of Brass, Loquatius tells Cerrit and Patia about his talk with Purvan and Cerrit tells the others of the hodmedod, invisible person, and Vespin Chloras's threat that they would not see the Wildmother's embrace, which he interprets as a potential issue with the city's landing. Patia and Loquatius urge Cerrit to continue investigating but not to alert anyone else; Cerrit asks to speak to the rest of the Ring of Brass. Patia also mentions that she's aware of what Nydas might be doing.

In the Meridian Labyrinth, Laerryn stands before the Astral Leywright, a large machine with a pendulum. The pendulum swings over a massive platform covered in runes, and is fed by batteries and immense amounts of arcane energy. It attaches to another device, called the Ley-Rudder. Laerryn also holds a locket that once belonged to Evandrin Alterra, Zerxus's deceased husband. She recalls both good memories, but also Evandrin fading away into translucence, and the guilt of not knowing if she had caused it. She hears footsteps and casts Animate Objects for protection but drops it when she sees it's Nydas. After Laerryn and Dweomer express some surprise at the strange Taxmen, Laerryn drops concentration on Rary's Telepathic Bond and tells Nydas that it's time to move the city, as the apogee solstice only comes once every 120 years and it is their only opportunity. They insert the bow from a solar that Cerrit had brought to the party and activate the machine. Two of the Taxmen begin to be crushed, but Nydas and Laerryn see the leylines of Cathmoíra as the machine continues to work. Nydas is deeply moved. The engines then stop, and the Ley-Rudder moves along with Avalir, then at a diagonal to Avalir's path, then disappears. The gems on the Astral Leywright blink, confirming that the transfer to another plane was successful.

Nydas and Laerryn celebrate and Laerryn says that she will inform the rest of the city about the plan to travel to other planes after the Replenishment. However, Laerryn and Dweomer then notice that 8% of the city's power was used on the experiment, and that the Arboreal Calix appears to have drawn that power. Laerryn attempts to fix the problem, but primarily recalls that the Arboreal Calix draws the majority of the energy tithed to the Gau Drashari per the terms of the Pact of Crown and Throne; it has no instructions and typically does not draw her attention, and she used it only as an ancillary engine. She realizes that the best source of information would be the Magisterium, as the Arboreal Calix had been built 119 years prior, when the pact was last updated shortly after the ascension of the Raven Queen.

As this occurs Zerxus arrives at the Golden Scythe and finds out from Alessander that Nydas had gone into the Meridian Labyrinth to work on something with Laerryn. He then flies to the labyrinth and quickly catches up to Nydas and Laerryn. While Zerxus notices that Laerryn is holding Evandrin's locket and is highly emotional, Nydas manages to divert his attention, and the three of them return to the rest of the party at the Palazzo Por'co.

At the Palazzo, Cerrit notices a strange sense, as if the city had reached a ley intersection he was unaware of. Patia distracts the partygoers and Laerryn excitedly tells her that the Astral Leywright had been successful, but that the Arboreal Calix was drawing power and she needed to learn more from the Magisterium. Loquatius, Cerrit, and Zerxus all express surprise, having been unaware of these experiments; Laerryn tells them that the only thing separating them from the gods is the ability to travel between the planes, and this would allow them to do so. Patia and Nydas are both in support of this, and Patia mentions Aeor's upcoming weapons test as a reason to travel and gain more knowledge from other sources. Zerxus, meanwhile, cautions the group to keep quiet as this would make them, and the city, a potential target. Cerrit and Zerxus also catch the others up on their respective encounters with Vespin Chloras and Purvan. The group all realize that the number of coincidences on this night is building up to something concerning that is likely to occur within the next 24 hours. Patia also recalls the lore she had been told about the solstices, taught to her by the woman who would one day be the Raven Queen. Zerxus gives the others a stirring speech and they all go to further investigate the man Cerrit killed.

Zerxus, upon seeing the body and the growths within it, realize the man is a k'nauth: a person so dedicated to the gods they serve as a puppet of them. He also realizes that the growths date back only two weeks, indicating this man became a cleric of a Betrayer God within that time - which in turn means that the Betrayers must have been released, as they had not been able to lend their powers since their imprisonment during the Schism. Loquatius, in turn, realizes that the cleric must have been sent to do something, but was stopped by Cerrit. This leads Patia to discover that the cleric entered the party disguised as Lacrytia Hollow's hodmedod, then slipped into the room and went invisible, at which point Cerrit found him. As the party discusses what to do next, the fireworks display for the Festival of Replenishment begins.

Ring of Brass

 * Cerrit Agrupnin
 * Laerryn Coramar-Seelie
 * Loquatius Seelie
 * Nydas Okiro
 * Patia Por'co
 * Zerxus Ilerez

New

 * Karwen, oracle of the Hall of Prophecy
 * Kir, Cerrit's son (via sending stone)
 * Sofyra, oracle at the Hall of Prophecy

Returning

 * Alessander Kyrus
 * Asmodeus
 * Dweomer
 * Lacrytia Hollow
 * Madara Glyph
 * Micah Cormorant
 * Tempus

Mentioned

 * Elena Tuvaris, reporter for the Herald's Tome eight or nine years ago
 * Evandrin Alterra
 * Feromyne
 * Maya, Cerrit's daughter
 * Melora
 * Pelor
 * Purvan Suul
 * The Raven Queen
 * Vespin Chloras
 * Volucia of the Heart's Emblem