[color=purple]"What's that you say? Accent? I have no idea what you're talking about, good sir."
The three scriptorium girls burst into a fit of high-pitched giggles at this.
"Well, of course, Charles, you don't think you have an accent, no one thinks they have an accent. I'm sure master Korvin would love to converse more with you at a later time, so if you'll excuse us, Ibrahim is waiting with Abigail."" Ra'am says, trying to try and buy a few moments peace. ((I'm just giving this a friendly bump.))
At Ra'am's urging, Ibrihim pulls out the various genealogical records that he's brought with him, and the day is spent in long study of the matter.
At one point, during a lull in the discussion, Korvin thinks he can hear the distant sounds of sorcerous battle, though none of his companions seem to be in the least bit concerned.
Various (Jewish) servants come in and out throughout the evening, requiring Ra'am's response to some trivial matter or another. Each time this happens, Korvin notices that the servants are all much more comfortable around Korvin than they are even around Ra'am. (How does Ra'am react to this favoritism?)
Come suppertime, nearly the entire occupancy of the library leaves for the mundane side of the regio, and Korvin discovers that at this covenant, the wizards dine among the specialists and administrators of the land they manage. Indeed, they do not even sit at a distinct table together -- the seating arrangement seems to be based entirely on how talkative people tend to be during meals.
Again, Korvin is struck by how pleasant everyone is to him, to the point where it might be called downright gregarious. This makes it hard to even tell who among the many conversationalists are even magi. Aside from Ra'am, only two are obvious:
-
A big, scarred man apparently in his late forties, his red hair seem almost literally aflame, the colors and shape shifting about like a torch, but giving off no heat or light. There is something deeply sad yet determined about this man, and it is unsurprising that he sits at the "Silent Brooders Table," so described to Korvin by a cheerful, blushing jewish maid as she pinched Korvin's bottom.
-
Arriving late, and moving slowly, a huge mound of shivering furs is given a place very close to the fire. It's hard to make out any details about his face, for his eyes glow a deep blue, like two frozen suns, so powerfully that it is impossible to look directly at them for fear of blindness.
There are also a number of shades that are hanging out in or around the dining table.
Ra'am probably doesn't notice. Even when you tell him you have a problem with him, he doesn't get it. ((Here I'll point to Ra'am, Cygna, Azura and Heims episode in the library where he tells her that she probably needs to self-pleasure herself to unlock the secrets of Cersei's sanctum). Although, he feels a vague sense of familiarity and wonders how Heims and Cygna are faring in Gallus Florensis. He'll know soon enough, because Azura indicated she's headed off for the Tribunal in the matter of Adorjan. Ra'am didn't push for too many details.
(Azura left already. She's a go-getter and there's a Redcap turf battle going on, not to mention the Other Stuff. Amos is still in the covenant, but there's no way that shrinking violet would stand out in this crowd)
((I'm a tad lost on the Cygna, Azura and Heims stuff so I'll let that pass. I assume that Azura is not here when Korvin arrives.))
Korvin will enjoy the attention and conversation at dinner...especially the female attention. He will chat with any of the females that are so inclined. He will concentrate so much on trying to charm a girl into bed he will not much care for the other interesting people ( and ghosts) that may be around.
And Ra'am will watch with the disapproving glare of a father. While his lechery isn't geared towards Abigail, Ra'am is taking notes.
((Cygna and Heims are PB's and The Fixer's characters in Phoenix who've relocated to Stonehenge and are in play in Arya's Albion saga. This is all one big interconnected mess.))
(Mess being the operative word here)
The women willing to give Korvin attention are mostly Jewish and Muslim, and by and large are more interested in long-term relationships than dalliances. Korvin gets the sense that the NSA-willing have previously experienced dire consequences. Additionally, there is something about the attention he's getting that is more familial than generally friendly.
That night finds Korvin alone in a guest bedroom, though he may (at player's discretion) feel a certain sort of fullness from having spent a day free from the negative aspects of his Gift.
He awakes from an odd dream in the middle of the night, the sound of high-pitched giggles a vague memory. He's not sure if that was part of the dream, or a real sound that woke him.
Korvin will sit in his bed for a bit to see if he can hear the giggles again and if not he will go back to sleep.
Okay, the next day, Korvin makes his way back to the library, where he returns to work with the rabbi on the genealogies. The records of Ra'am geneaology are much more rigorous than the Mercere records that are available -- apparently, Azura had obtained a more complete record, but the volumes had been lost during transport (a pretty severe blow to Azura's reputation among the Mercere).
The week goes on in this manner, tedious days spent attempting to decipher a poorly written Mercere geneaolgy, with people being warm and welcoming to Korvin whenever he steps away from the studies. It's frustrating particularly because there's no way to tell how long the process might last. There's no sense of potential discovery. You'll just keep getting negative results until you trip over a positive one, assuming one exists at all.
It becomes clear to Korvin that the many ghosts which haunt this covenant are engaged in some kind of war beyond the doors of the covenant. After a few days, it also becomes clear that the covenfolk would prefer Korvin not to know about this battle or to see it. Not exactly a conspiracy so much as everyone seems to feel the same sort of embarrassment.
The nights, too, develop a familiarity as he begins to dream about the door that leads beyond the covenant. Three women, a sort of Greek Chorus, stand before the door and make dire predictions about what would happen were the door to open before it was ready. Behind him, Korvin can sense a holy presence beyond his left shoulder, and a dreadfully chilling figure behind him and to the right. These two figures whisper with dire urgency, making each other, and the Chorus unintelligible.
The day after the Sabbath, an innocent remark sends a young Jewish woman, Daniella, fleeing from his chambers in terror. The maid had been caring for his chambers and belongings, and Korvin had imagined a rapport growing between them. Indeed, he'd thought of her as his most likely prize to be taken. Not long after, at breakfast, he realizes that his reprieve from the negative aspects of The Gift is over.
((Is this it? There doesn't seem much for jebrick to bit into as Korvin.))
Alright, since this hasn't moved in a week, and I think it's done...
Here's what I am going to do.
Korvin can read from any volume in the Phoenix Library or if there's a lab text of interest and note, he can be given a guest lab that's haunted with equipment. I don't think Warping will be relevant in this case, so, we will disregard it. Presume there is a full season of access.
This is one of those things that will take a full season. Travel to Phoenix, research and then back to ME. I am sorry if I did not explore the covenant more but I,as Korvin, thought it was better to look into genealogy than any mystery. As with most Ars adventures with magi, you need a sledgehammer to move him from his activity towards an area that you want to explore.
I told JL that I felt the adventure was for others with some background with Phoenix as 95% of the info went over my head.
I know that, as a player, I was pretty bummed about the Phoenix saga ending so soon (and I can totally understand real-life getting in the way), because the saga had so much potential and so many answers left unasked. And there were hints of what happened since 1213, that I would have loved to have seen explored more fully, but none of the characters I have would have any reason to either go to Phoenix or to go down that rabbit holes that need gotten down.
And, to be honest, I wouldn't mind a Phoenix 3.0, but I'm not sure that's going to happen.
Although, now that I think about it, I do have an apprentice character there. Hmmmm...
But there is no reason I can not go back. I need to work on some of the Gifted Mercere and there are 3 in the area.
Totally agreed.
Phoenix had great potential, and I was quite sad when it ended, though I regret trying to keep some of it alive.
I'd love to see a phoenix 3.0, but don't know how it could be done.
I theorically do have a bunch of characters still there. Grogs, but great ones.
I actually sort of enjoyed the way Korvin walked straight past all the tangential side plots and stayed focused on his goal. It gave the sense that every covenant has a thousand things going on, and every set of magi have averted one or two apocalyptic battles.
How did people feel about this experiment with wandering through the halls of a previous campaign? Is this something I should be prepared to do more of in the future?
As far as a Phoenix 3.0 campaign, given how much difficulty I'm having keeping up with the two games I'm currently playing in, I can't picture myself able to play in a 3rd, much less run it.
I greatly enjoyed it, even if I did only get to be a voyeur.
I totally understand, and don't want to force you to run something that you won't be able to keep up with. But, since we have Ulrich and Ra'am semi-active, perhaps running something or posting something on occasion that shows what life is like there for them, or something like that? Something that says, "Hey, these guys aren't in Bibracte, but they have a life anyway!"