“MEDIC!!!”

Harlequin’s armor begins to dissipate as he lays dying.

An-Lan runs after Snickering Sorrow and finds that her escape route, a large mirror, has shattered and the gateway is closed.

Outside, Procyon tries desperately to bandage Harlequin and Five Blades shouts for a medic.

Procyon: “Where is Lopra Red-Tail?”

Harlequin: “She walks the streets. You should know, we never lied to you.”

Then Harlequin dies.

The party rings his body with salt and buries him under heavy rocks, ensuring that his corpse will not spread his taint literally or metaphysically.

Then the Lunars plot to walk East away from the town until their auras die down.

The group discusses what cover story Taizei Ong Park will spread to the town.

Taizei appears to his men and tells them that he came upon the Circus Halcyon embattled. It turns out that the Dark Force who battled outside of the town five years ago had returned, only to be confronted and attacked by other Anathema. Taizei hid and watched and when the battle was over and the Dark one lay dead, Taizei convinced the remaining Anathema that a talon of Seventh Legion was en route and that they should depart away from Bewellen. His bluff worked and the Anathema departed to the East. Taizei instructs his men to spread out and tell the tale correctly, to reassure the populace.

An-Lan and Procyon return to town quickly. An-Lan reassures his people and Procyon decides to plan a huge party to celebrate the saving of the town.

An-Lan decides to recommend his lost Huraka (Air Bear) spirit guardian to his supervisors in the spirit realms, while also summoning a new bodyguard.

Taizei plans for security at this party and sends his runners to carry word to the rest of Bewellen.

Procyon and An-Lan work their bureaucratic and social wonders to ensure that the party is non-factional.

Incomparable Implement visits Ong Park the next day and they talk of the situation, Five Blades telling him the true story. Implement says he will continue to build up Jugram’s Falls defenses and prevent his people from diving into the ruins.

Later that day, the Lunars meet (less one Lance of Law) and go to see Kisseki to see the vision Lopra was shown.

Kisseki says that Lance of Law arrived recently and very magically, though he does not understand exactly how or why. He says that Bewellen is like a spider’s web and he can feel things that happen within it.

Two days of preparations involve An-Lan going back to town and laying the seeds of a story for the sorcery that will happen at the old battle site. The Goat-Headed God, now that the Dark One is dead, can finally purify the battle-site and will be doing so.

Meanwhile, Procyon and Five Blades train under Kisseki.

After the two days pass, they regroup and Kisseki gets down to business and shows us the vision:

Sorcery tears five stone from the shattered ground. Five old realm symbols appear in five colors and the light show explodes into the sky. The party is transported into the past- visually, at least. We see Harlequin standing over a defeated Lopra Red-Tail, triumphant. His dark sorceries flames curling across the battlefield. The group watches Harlequin summon five stones in the vision, a second light-show hurling the party farther back in time to another vision.

We see a vision of the City of Abelshire as it was long ago, in the First Age. The soaring architecture and strange clothing of the residents- suddenly a massive Jade Warstrider smashes down in front of the party, soon joined by the a second Jade Warstrider. The pair race towards a huge Orichalcum Warstrider- more like a cathedral than a humanoid shape and a battle commences.

A thousand men stand at the foot of what is now the ruins. The Warstriders flank the Solar and fierce Essence Cannon bolts shatter the air above the town. The giant machines close and enter brutal melee combat and the troops, led by Dragon-Bloods on foot, begin to fight. The thousand men sacrifice themselves and the “wings” on the Golden Solar Strider proceed to vanquish the entire dragon-blooded contingent in a flash of golden light that ends both spells and brings the party back to reality.

The device is called the Hallowed Glaive of Martyrs and Kisseki thinks it or it’s remaining parts lie in the ruins.

The party discusses how or why the Abyssals would even show Lopra this object. After much disagreement, the only thing they can resolve is that they will not tell Lance of Law about it…

Procyon returns to town to speak with Lopra. She finally appears as a fly on his ear and thanks him for killing Harlequin. She says that now that he is dead, she no longer wants the town destroyed. She explains that she could not be trusted because she had a bond with him. When asked about the device, she tells Procyon that it required a husband and a wife to operate- in other words Lopra and Harlequin. Harlequin needed her to open the device’s locks… Lopra tells him that to activate the device both a Solar and Lunar must be bound and attuned- then it required the willing sacrifices of mortals to power it. When asked about destroying it, she says that the Dragon-Blooded had failed, but that it might not be impossible. Lopra says that she prefers it be forgotten entirely, because every mortal who sees it is a Solar or Lunar waiting to happen. Then Lopra reveals that her actions against the party might actually have made Harlequin return, seeking her out. Procyon says that they have bought time against Harlequin’s plots and she agrees and thanks him again.

The pair go get a drink together and she turns the conversation to politics, saying that she doesn’t think the factions can be stopped and that the town may be doomed. Procyon disagrees and talks about the positive turns that have been taken.

She says that Jugram’s Falls could be an ally, but that Mayor Huttenton in Harmonious Homestead would not be amenable to that sort of thing. Lopra also states that Huttenton has a love for the Occult and may seek to move into the ruins himself. Lopra and Procyon part amicably and Procyon soon tells his companions about their meeting.

Then the game moves to long ticks.

The season of air passes and Abelshire’s dire situation improves. The leadership of Abelshire in the end is essentially a triumvirate of Conley Cogs, Orlaugh & the Coven and Lin Rui. The rest of the former factions fade into non-leadership rolls and it even appears that the Chronicler is going to leave town. Trade and relations continue to improve between Jugram’s Falls and Abelshire.

In the Season of Water,

Harmonious Homestead has notable progress thanks to a supernatural pact with the Spirits. There is a significant influx of money and people as winter sets in. People from Nexus are taking an interest in the place. It increases into a city from a town (gaining 1 Magnitude).

Man in saffron colored armor on a giant owl shows up, landing in Taizei Ong Park’s encampment.