[color=red]You were not paying attention. There was not just one prisoner, there were a score or more! Apromor's Adulteration, representing his unfufilled esires that were repressed throught his life, that is running around loose in the catacombs somewhere. The Iron Door was not the great danger you had imagined, it held naught but shadelings. Most of them are still lurking these halls, trapped in the Magic Realm with all of Val-Negra as their new prison. The most powerful spirit is Vanacastium, or it is now anyway. He is more than he understands.
He considers the statement as Abaddon had not made mention the other spirits escaping and still being free. "Master Abaddon, I regret to inform you that your goal has not been entirely achieved. Master Ludovico did not enter this realm by the same means I or the others did."
He watches the man's reaction evenly. "Master Caecus believes himself the inheritor of all that is in Val-Negra and assumes you and the others dead. Master Fuego, Vanacastium's apprentice, also shared this last assumption. However, unlike the latter, the former attempted to obtain allies to lead an expedition to Val-Negra proper to pillage it for whatever treasures he desired. After he failed in his bid to take leadership of Andorra covenant's group, he sought allies elsewhere: masters Trentus and Ludovico. Through some means they breached the regio boundary and Ludovico appeared outside the guest house Val-Negra covenant had erected."
"As he has stated, Ludovico intends to slay you if the opportunity arises. Which certainly suits the desires of master Caecus. However, we have not encountered him or master Trentus in Perdu so there is possibility that they remain in the mundane world. Additional allies will not be difficult to find to pursue an invasion of this place. Multiple groups of magi had ventured to Barcelona seeking their share Val-Negra's riches. He will only be further encouraged should he learn his success in transporting master Ludovico here."
He considers for a moment. "Eventually other members of Andorra will be seeking answers for the fate of the expedition and may find master Caecus to venture here. Or those with less honourable or avaricious motives."
After your endless questions and interrogations, Abaddon finally looses his patience and he breaks (or maybe these are new lies?).
[color=red]What do you want from me Raven? You want the truth? My every plot and plan has come to ruin! Val-Negra is a ruined covenant! There is no recovering from this. All is lost. So many have dies or faded into Twilight in recent years. I am all that is left, and I now find myself trapped! There were none left to assist me with the rituals needed to keep the Iron Door sealed. When it could no longer be sustained, I tried one last mad desperate gamble. Metron was the fly in my ointment. I had hoped to utilize his assistance, for the ritual requires multiple participants. And though it would rely mostly upon my knowledge and power, it must be lead by a Flambeau magus.
Knowledge is the source of a magus’ great power, and a lack of it is cause of certain downfall. I was ignorant of his renounced status; the taint of his power was obscured from even my powers of perception. His participation caused the ritual to botch, and that is what placed us in the Magic Realm. Afterwards I locked Metron in Taglyn, and through my interrogations I learned about the Shadow Wars and much of what has transpired in the Order as of late. But in his prison of shadows and dreams, Metron’s power continued to grow. Then with the unwitting assistance of Ludovicio, he managed to coerce Berenguer to lead them out Berenguer is a Criamon magus that cannot tell the difference between Twilight and Reality. I stuck him in Taglyn for his own safety).
Ludovicio, yes, I am the one who both wiped his memory and implanted false knowledge. I did it for his own protection, to save his pride and to shield him from accusations. And you, Raven, you shall preserve this secret. If you want my respect and cooperation, you will honor my will. Lest I demote you from Raven to a mere Crow.
As for sending Ludo on a quest to retrieve Inigo, I am merely indulging the whims of a newly made ghost that understands not what he is. There is nothing to be gained, there is no threat of a Twilight Vortex. Val-Negra is firmly rooted in its new home. It was half here all along anyway. The Magic Realm is where we belong anyway. My main concern is vengeance, which is why I indulge Vanacastium in his delusions. I want revenge, yet my reach is short. I want Metron, preferably as a corpse with his ghost intact. I will inflict such torment upon him that he will come to view eternal damnation as a pleasant release! But to know he is dead and in hell would be pleasing as well. If indulging Vanacastium in his delusions can bring this about, so be it!
So, Raven, are you through? What is it you seek to dig out with your interrogations? Do you want metaphysical specifics of how I did this or that? Tales of ancient lore so you can understand the things your small mind fails to comprehend?
Or do you want to know what was really behind the Iron Door? It was the ghost of Flambeau himself, the embodiment of all his fury and wrath. And it has been unleashed upon the world. Are you happy? Will you run to warn them? Will the Order collapse in panic when they realize that the most terrifying destructive force that the world has ever known has been released upon them, and none has the strength to stop it? How will House Flambeau react when they see the true face of their founder? How will House Tremere react? Oh yes, for I know the horrible secret they keep hidden deep beneath the hallowed halls of Coeris. I know why they used a similar ritual to seal Tremere’s coffin, and why they locked him behind the Gates of Eurydice!
Inigo bows his head in silence. Vanacasitum is right, but that doesn't make it any easier.
[color=red]I will do that, brother. Or, at any rate, I will try.
Your quest has been arduous, and it is time for you to all go home. You finish up the season here at Val-Negra, taking advantage of their hospitality. You can study, practice, or borrow a lab. Then I will send you all home, Vanacastium is a living Portal. The threads will be reunited, and we can move on to the next phase of the saga 
[color=red]You will succeed, it is your destiny...
(Would use folk ken to try and determine if its really sincere: Per 2 + Folk Ken 3 (magi) + possibility that keen vision to spot ticks or piercing gaze to help if it can
invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1973582/ )
At the conclusion of the speech, the Tremere bows. "Master Abaddon, I thank you for your forthrightness in the matter. You may label me a crow or a raven, but my interest does not lie only in carrion and scavenging what is left of the appearance of a dying covenant. What I do seek is understanding and truth so that I may act in accordance to the principles of my will."
He closes his eyes for a moment. "I will pursue Metron and will consider bringing whatever remains of him to you master Abaddon. However, as you have said his powers have grown. Such that, I may not have anything at my disposal to apprehend him. He possesses eyes that can perceive through imaginem spells of at least the 4th magnitude. As a Flambeau, Ignem has proven ineffective and other abilities indicate he may be unharmed by other types of physical or elemental attacks. Vim may harm him, but it will not leave the remains you seek. He is likely to avoid the Dominion of cities, and will avoid drawing attention to himself so that pursuers will not track him down."
He bows deeply. "I have witnessed your simulacrums and they may prove useful in his apprehension. If it pleases master Abaddon, I would take the steps necessary to learn how to produce the effect."
Abaddon is so chaotic and erratic, it is hard to get a reading on him.His emotions seem genuine though. He appreciates you willingness to cooperate, and will supply you with a few trinkets he has collected.
But as for your question...
[color=red]Simulacrums? What in the world are you talking about? Erat Caecus, my miscreant filius, he was the illusionist. I am a necromancer. Magically create a corpse, make it look like you or whomever you want, and animate it as normal. No mysteries involved, no illusions.
"No illusions? Then how to match the voice to speak in unison or perceive through the corpse?"
[color=red]Spirits
(OOC: So he would be binding the spirit within the corpse and have a continuous magical effect on all of them and himself? Wouldn't I be able then to perceive the spirit with second sight in the body?)
His skepticism remains but he maintains his composure and does not press the point further. "My investigation of the matters that transpired here began with master Ludovico's accusation and desire to have a Wizard's March declared upon you. He will have to be convinced to drop the charges. Restore his memories in their entirety and veracity and I will consider that matter resolved."
Moving along to more pressing topics. "How would one go about capturing and returning the spirit back behind the Iron Door?"
He could be lying. Also, if the body was shielded by Parma Magica, I think it would block your Second Sight. I am unsure about this one.
[color=red]I have no idea. As I said, it is the Ghost of Flambeau, the most powerfully destructive wizard to ever walk the Earth. The one thing I respect abbout House Tremere is their disdain for all dieties. But in this case, I might consider asking the Pope for assistance.
(If that were the case, then Might and other MR would also block it making viewing most faeries or spirits difficult if not impossible. Not to mention neutralize most personal illusions like invisibility.
Anyways, Abaddon is under no obligation to reveal it so pointless for now to argue. Especially as Octavian has Corpus of 0 to begin with)
"I shall reflect upon our conversation master Abaddon. In the interim, may I impose upon your covenant's hospitality for a time?"
(OOC: Mark, how long would it take to skim through the stuff retrieved from Metron's sack? What are the trinkets provided by Abaddon? Does he agree to restore Ludo's memories? Will Octavian be granted the audience with Vanacastatium (sp?)? If we're allowed to study, what is available?)
Might is not the same as Parma Magica. It is vastly inferior. But I will check up on it tonight at home and come up with an excuse 
I shall post the stats for Metron tomorrow. It takes little time to peruse and analyze the notes, but it would take a full season to decode the notes as to be able to use them (as normal).
If you want an audience with Vanacastium, ask Vares or Inigo to introduce you 
I will devise the trinkets on my own 
(( Yet you always take whichever is higher when calculating MR 
))
OOC: It remaining a secret is much more fun though)
He will spend the season doing that then. In his free time, he'll engage Remius in requesting the audience as he said that would be possible after speaking to Abaddon. And occasionally striking polite conversation with Abaddon on the matters to gauge the veracity of what he has said)
(OOC: Of course. )
OOC: Season in study? Last I checked, Vares and Inigo were meeting with Vanacastium, but there was no further follow-up. All of the responses were to the thread with Abaddon instead.
That's because you and Falls wer't posting much of anything or asking questions. Octavian was, i was obligated to respond. i am not dragging players through my story. I am creating my story in response to the actions of the players. It is like tennis, he said something, you said something, his turn, your turn, etceteras. Vanacastium was the last to say anything, in response to Inigo. It is your turn.
I am being snotty. I just woke up. sorry. Anyway, what I mean to imply is that you have a green flag to explore the covenant for a season and may take advantage of the accomodations. If you have more questions to ask, feel free 
I have decided that if there are spirits involved, they would be inside the bodies that they animate and thus you couldn't see them unless you could also see through bodies. If a guy is wearing full armour covering his whole body, you cannot see him in the flesh, just his armour.
OOC: Ah. It seems that I missed Vanacastium's reply. It was buried in among all the details with the Abaddon sub-thread.
I also completely missed the fact that Kesara is Inigo's daughter. I thought she was the daughter of someone else. Which means that I am substantially out-of-touch with the goings-on in the game.
I can think of a number of things that Vares would do with a season to explore Val-Negra. Let me meditate on exactly what would be done, and I'll post accordingly.
Okay. I did see your idea for dividing this thread for clairity. I contemplated it, but decided not to. It would make things more confusing for me, and this segment is almost finished. I want to reunite the covenant