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Message: <blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 1594940" data-attributes="member: 1210">An Ambassador from the CrimsonkindlThe Crimson Garden is a beautiful place, to those who can survive its burning.  The sculpted blue flames, created by the artist Shesski, are legendary.  Ever-changing, but always spinning back to a semblance of its original form.  Flickering into yellow and green, but always at least limned in that pale blue.  The dominant color around them is red- a deep scorching crimson.  To those not native to this place, the Crimson Garden is baleful and hot and deadly- even moreso than the rest of the Elemental Plane of Fire.  Even to other creatures of the plane, the Crimson Garden is very dangerous.Kembrin, Lord of the Crimsonkindl, burns hotly in the Garden.  All around him the fires of the Crimson Bask roar and rage.  His people, far more than mere fire elementals, are already at the gates of the City of Brass.  It resists strongly, but his triumph is inevitable.  He’s certain of it!  The only problem is those adventurers.  Imix killed!  Well, what’s to stop them from coming for him as well?Perhaps a little diplomacy. Kembrin flows to a large burning coal.  He cracks it open and extracts several clay tablet, and with his finger he scribes a message.  He passes it to one of the crimsonkindl.  “Go to Imix’ killers,” he rumbles.  “Ensure that they will not side against us.”The appointed ambassador scans the tablets.  His instructions are clear, but- he looks at Kembrin quizzically.  “Pasha Ifroobil is bound to offend them,” Kembrin booms.  “They will aid us by destroying him, and as long as we do not offend them ourselves one of the largest obstacles to my ascension will be removed.”The other crimsonkindl nods.  It basks in the radiance of the garden for another few moments, then activates the cubic gate.***The Three Rubies- a nice place for a drink, if you don’t mind paying good prices.  The food’s remarkable, too, and there’s often good music or storytelling.  Chobain is there a lot these days.  So are our heroes.  Tonight, Chobain is not present, but Sir Maxwell, Thrush, Sybele, Jezebel, Horbin, Drelvin, Ten Buck Tom, Orbius and Lester are sitting around with a bucket of ale.  “...open a casino,” Sybele is saying.  “Think about it!  It would be great.  We could set up anti-scrying and anti-teleportation magic and stuff...”“So, Max,” Thrush asks, “what’s next for you?  Say, it’s alright that I called you Max, isn’t it?”“Oh, sure, among friends.”  Sir Maxwell smiles brightly.  “As to my plans, I’m not sure exactly, but I’ve been directed to you folks for a reason.”“Excuse me,” says a lad, approaching the table with a clay tablet.  “Is one of you Horbin the Holy?”“Yes,” Horbin proclaims.  “What do you need?”“I have a message for you,” and the boy hands the tablet to Horbin before running off.Horbin looks it over, his eyebrows climbing.  “What is it?” asks Sybele.“It’s an invitation to treat with an ambassador of fire.”***The chamber in the inn is lined in plates of stone.  Horbin and the others look around warily, but there is no sign of danger- other than the crimson flames of the passive elemental ambassador itself.Who the hell builds a room like this? wonders Drelvin.  He’s lived in Var for centuries, barring the period he skipped while traveling in time, and he’s never seen a chamber like this before.  He suspects illusion, or something worse- some sort of plane-shifting hooey.  Still, his sharp elven eyes reveal no illusions, nor does his gem of seeing.  The ambassador greets them, crackling like a campfire, and the negotiations begin.He represents Kembrin, one of many powerful fire creatures vying for the title of the new Elemental Prince of Evil.  It cannot remain unclaimed for long.  The position is a cosmic one, a necessary role.  It must be filled, else, like a vacuum, it will disrupt everything around it.  Already the Plane of Fire roils with war.What do I want?  (the ambassador goes on.)  Merely to come to an understanding.  I represent the lord of the crimsonkindl, special elementals of extraordinary power.  He is one of the contenders, and he respects the fact that you destroyed Imix.  He is wise enough to wish to avoid conflict with you.  “Is there an elemental prince of good?” asks Lester, intrigued by this talk of cosmic elemental powers.  “Bah, he is weak and hardly worthy of mention,” the ambassador answers dismissively.“What’s his name?” insists the L.“Zaaman Rul," the ambassador says dismissively, and presses on with his suit.It seems that not only is Kembrin desiring to avoid conflict with the party, he’s even willing to make an offer.  Neither he nor his servants shall journey to the Prime Material Plane so long as the party does not assault them or their affairs.“We’re not going to promise you anything!” Drelvin bursts out.“Wait a minute,” Lester urges.  “Think about it.  He’s right- there will be a new Elemental Prince of Evil.  Fire, I mean.  Why not make it so he won’t intrude here on Cydra?  He can hang out in the City of Brass, and we’ll hang out here, and everything will be fine.”Sir Maxwell frowns.  His position has merit, he has to admit.  As a knight of the chalice, I must strive to keep Cydra clean of fiends and such, and he would be one less powerful entity wanting to intrude.  He rubs his chin thoughtfully, wondering where his duty lies.The party debates for a few moments; not everyone thinks this is a good idea.  But then the ambassador offers to sweeten the pot with gifts, and when it becomes clear that he means magic items for all, the lion’s share of the party is swayed.  An accord is reached.***The ambassador departs that evening, the boy who had summoned the party (returned to his true form as Buuzan, an efreet) with him.  The two of them are immediately escorted to their lord, and Kembrin eagerly sways, demanding their report.  After they give it, the Lord of the Crimsonkindl booms, “You have done well!  They will not fight us unless we make an obvious move against them, and that fool Pasha will try for them sooner or later, to establish his reputation as a hunter.  Hah!  In seeking to show his superiority to Imix, Amhari Ifroobil will bring a wrath upon himself that he cannot survive!”The scarlet flames of Kembrin’s face dance in amusement.  “And if he doesn’t bring them on him, we can help!”Next Time: Our heroes go after the Elemental Prince of Evil Earth!</blockquote>

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