Campaign Updates: Politics By Other Means

As I mentioned last week, the Dolmenwood campaign is on hiatus until the end of this month. That means there will only be updates for the Barrett's Raiders and House of Worms campaigns. Fortunately, both campaigns provided plenty of action recently, especially House of Worms, where the struggle for who will succeed Hirkáne Tlakotáni upon the Petal Throne continues to heat up.

Barrett's Raiders

Michael and Radosław took the Ford F-150 truck (one of three vehicles assigned to MLG-7, the others being a LAV-25 and a Humvee) in the direction of the coded radio message Bum Farley had picked up. This led them to an obviously damaged roadside diner that had a ring of damaged cars around it. Sneaking up to it, Michael was able to ascertain three people – two inside the diner and one outside keeping watch, armed with an M16. While Radosław kept an eye on the guard, Michael slipped in the back, surprising the two inside. One was a woman and the other a man. After a brief moment of tension, Michael and the man exchanged pass phrases and countersigns that made it clear to each of them that they were both operatives of the CIA.

The man identified himself as Lee Gerber. He'd been doing deep cover work in Richmond, infiltrating the virulent Free State offshoot, New America, that had been growing in influence recently. When USMEA attacked, he only escaped thanks to Wyatt Henshaw, a Virginia National Guardsman and Dana Richter, a paramedic. They've been with him ever since, with Richter tending to cracked ribs he sustained prior to his escape. Neither one thinks much of USMEA, so Gerber was glad Michael didn't bring any soldiers with him. Gerber claimed to have sensitive information about New America, but wouldn't reveal it to Michael. Instead, he asked for a lift to the west side of Richmond, if possible. Michael couldn't do that – he was expected to rendezvous with Barrett's Raiders as they headed toward Fort Lee. Gerber was fine with that and asked to be dropped off, along with Henshaw and Richter, as far as Michael could take them.

 

Meanwhile, Barrett's Raiders was make its way toward the I-295 interchange, which was as close to Richmond as they dared go. Captain Calloway had warned them against traveling near Richmond, as USMEA was not popular there. Because he hoped that Michael and Radosław would catch up with them before they headed southwards, Lt. Col. Orlowski ordered their vehicles to stop so that they could reconnoiter. Doing so proved smart. Up ahead, near the interchange, there were two vehicles, a Humvee and a black SUV, neither of which bore markings. With them were at least six soldiers, who likewise had no clear insignia on their uniforms. Worrying that they might be deserters turned marauders, Orlowski ordered Barrett's Raiders to avoid the highways and head south through smaller state roads.

Michael caught up with his comrades just before they left the highway. He also dropped off Gerber and his companions, wishing them luck. Gerber told him that, should he make contact with someone in the CIA, mention the name "Marcus Fallon" to them. It's important, he explained, and they'll know what to do with it. Now a full unit again, the group made their way south, stopping at the Varina-Enon Bridge over the James River, which was manned by a small detachment of military police from Fort Lee. The soldiers explained that the road was clear to the fort, but to stay buttoned up, because some of the locals liked to take potshots at passing USMEA vehicles. Orlowski thanked him for the advice and ordered the vehicles to continue their journey south.

House of Worms

Still reeling from the revelations regarding Prince Dhich'uné's plans, the characters tried to determine a way forward. Prince Táksuru admitted that he was simultaneously in awe of his half-brother's bold scheme and in fear that it might just work, securing eternal rule over Tsolyánu until the End of Time. Of course, not everyone was so sure that things would work the way Dhich'uné imagined. Chiyé in particular felt that Dhich'uné was deluded in thinking he could outwit the One Other and suggested that it might well give the pariah deity the means to become even more involved in the affairs of Tékumel – not a pleasant prospect! 

There was also some discussion of certain similarities between Dhich'uné's plan and what had happened to Aíthfo some years ago. When Aíthfo died and was resurrected through Naqsái sorcery, he seemingly lost his Báletl or spirit-soul, which was replaced with the power of the god Eyenál. The worry now was that, if Dhich'uné sacrificed his spirit-soul to the One Other while emperor – even if he believed he could survive as an undead being – he risked providing an opening (literally!) to the One Other to inhabit him. Again, what this might mean remains unclear and it's precisely for that reason that the characters are so concerned. There were simply too many unknowns to Dhich'uné's gambit to allow him to pursue it. One way or the other, he had to be stopped.

Nebússa's wife, Srüna, arrived and asked her husband to forgive her for something she had done. She presented him with a sealed letter, bearing the seal of Princess Ma'ín. She explained that she had for years made use of a contact within a small local clan, the Green Smoke clan, who acted as middlemen for nobles and priests who wished to communicate discreetly. Her contact had intercepted this letter and thought it would be of interest, especially since it was headed for the clanhouse of the Domed Tomb clan, where Dhich'uné spent his time while in Béy Sü. The letter was a poem written in Classical Tsolyáni that, while in code, clearly suggested that Ma'ín wished to throw in with Dhich'uné, seeing him as the inevitable winner of the Kólumejàlim.

This concerned Táksuru, since his and Rereshqála's plan depended on all the other princes entering the Choosing of the Emperors in order to minimize the likelihood that Dhich'uné might win. While Ma'ín's odds were not good – she's a lover, not a fighter – her presence might still drain Dhich'uné's resources enough for others to defeat him. Srüna suggested substituting a fake letter for the one her contact intercepted, one that was more ambiguous and might undermine the burgeoning alliance between princess and prince. Nebússa agreed this was a good plan and made arrangements for it to happen.

Word also spread that Prince Eselné, who'd been absent from Béy Sü recently, would be entering the city in two days at the head of several cohorts of the First Legion, led by his friend and mentor, General Kéttukal. Ostensibly, this is a parade in honor of his deceased father, the emperor. However, Táksuru believes it's also intended as a provocation to Dhich'uné, a reminder that he has not yet won and that others are prepared to stand up to him. Eselné is not called the "Chlén-beast in blue robes" for nothing, after all! 

More immediately pressing was the matter of Kirktá's golden disk. He still did not have it and, without it, he could not participate in the Kólumejàlim. The characters had earlier learned that it mostly likely lay somewhere within the Temple of Belkhánu where Kirktá had been trained as a young man. However, its precise location was unknown. Rather than directly looking for it, the characters opted to journey into Béy Sü's underworld beneath the temple, while Keléno's third wife, Mírsha, made use a locate object spell. Though the plan worked, revealing where the disk was likely located within the temple, it did draw the attention of temple guards in the underworld, who asked them to leave the area. Apparently, masked and robed men had been attempting to enter the temple from the underworld and now it was on alert against further incursions. Who these men were and what they wanted was yet another mystery.