Forum

[Rolzup]

A Complex Oedipus

I regained the top of the tower just in time to rescue my compatriots from their attackers. Rackhir was having great difficulty with the chain-wielding man, who kept striking at him from a distance, the madman was also being held at bay, and Kenji was quite unconscious.

Pathetic, really. I spent a moment to finish off Cloud Ghost….

BY FIRING A CROSSOBOW BOLT AT POINT BLACK RANGE INTO THE FOREHEAD OF A HELPLESS FOE.

…which occasioned a shout of dismay from the foe. I noticed, as I observed the battle for a moment, that Xian's men were making pains to avoid bleeding upon the monastery grounds, going so far as to roll around on the roof to avoid their blood coming into contact with it.

I made a mental note of this, considered the fact that our enemies were armed solely with bludgeoning weapons, deduced the meaning of all this on the instant, and concluded that it was irrelevant for the nonce. But interesting nonetheless.

And then, at long last, Burne took the field. A single usage of Burne's Incandescent Arc was enough to clear the bridge, and to force the blank-eyed man into retreat. I wasted precious seconds using a wand to restore Kenji to consciousness, and then advanced into the monastery with Kenji following behind.

Rackhir, as is his wont, had already charged ahead. Intent upon vengeance, no doubt.

We met more thugs, and between the madman, Kenji, and myself we dealt with them in a summary fashion. Waving the smoke from the air, I paused for a moment, and heard the sounds of battle coming from a room ahead. Rackhir, without question, and no doubt in need of rescue again.

How right I was. I'm not sure what to call the sight that greeted us, but I feel certain that we could have charged a goodly admission for it. The blank-eyed man, whom we would soon learn bore the name of "Broken Chain", was employing his chain weapon (the ends of which, I now noticed, were wrapped in thick cloth) in an exceedingly cunning fashion, using it to rip the bow from Rackhir's hand and his feet from the floor. It was all the more astonishing to see now that I had a moment to get a close look at him; Broken Chain was clearly an imbecile, a mental defective of some sort.

I SUPPOSE THAT "IT TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE" WOULD BE CONSIDERED A CHEAP SHOT?

Comedic though this performance was, it paled in importance to the other occupant of the room.

He actually had the audacity to threaten us. Outnumbered, his minions slain or fled, and with Burne himself prepared to strike him down. He made threats.

Unthinkable.

I stepped forward, prepared to unleash a working that would forever break his power, and….

Kenji pushed me out of the way and entered the room. It boggles the mind, the way that man acts. I turned on Kenji, ready to unleash my full fury upon him, but it was too late.

He had begun to work his own art. Kenji, Erebus preserve us, was already talking.

By the time he finally fell silent, matters had entirely changed. Dephine was free, the Kuo-Toa had been given their freedom, Daikon had taken possession of the monastery, and we had agreed to help Xian in his work.

And what was this work, you ask? Why had he come to Narayan, and why had he kidnapped Delphine?

Because of his mother. His mother, who so closely resembled Delphine. His mother, whose soul had become trapped in a mask of jade. His mother, who he had dedicated his life to reviving.

He had consulted with many experts on this matter, including the famed Diabolist Dr. Mephisophocles, and the infamous Shirac mind-witch Nadir Medhi...both of whom we had seen leaving the premises earloer that very evening.

Such a great fuss, over so very little! I offered to build him a clockwork mother, similar to (but more sophisticated than) Abraxis, but he would have none of it. "A Jade Golem?" I suggested.

No, no. Only flesh and blood would do. Such a limited mindset!

Obviously, I had a good deal of research before me. With the proper essential salts, I could almost certainly grow Xian a new mother, but even now this art is somewhat beyond me. Remind me to do further research into this matter, Abraxis!

In the meantime, Xian had agreed to leave CITY and give up the life of a crime-lord. But our troubles were not yet over. Savur Phillipe, of the Asymmetric Recruitment Squad, had made certain deals with Xian, and would not be happy to learn that they would be coming to an end.

And we had less than a day to determine how to deal with him.