Dominion NES

You can trade a resource to as many people as you want.
Having one or two of a resource changes nothing. You either have it, or you don't, so resources beyond the first are useless.

They are not cumulative in benefits?
 
There are no cumulative benefits on duplicate resources.
On the other hand, there are very few resources that are actually duplicate (except for stuff like horses, which I can't think of any reason why they'd bring more benefit if you ahave more).

Can we use stories to cause evil events in other lands?
Generally no. However, if you write a story to cause evil events to go with other actions (spying, whatever), then this evil action is more likely to succeed/have better effects.
For instance if you have spying tech and decide to cause some problems in neighbouring lands, or have an assassin and want to cause some murders there, writing a story will make things more efficient, but you should submit it to me first (you probably want it written after the update anyway lest your target react early). Same for magic spells, they'll be more effective if backed-up by a story.
What you can't do is just write a story about how your neighbour suddenly gets hit with bad luck without spending gold/mana/units to explain it.
 
Any idea when the next update is going to be?
Can we add small additions to orders if they are sent early?
If our nation is destroyed can we continue to write stories about characters, maybe causing small events? I'm thinking like orange's nes, with the characters running around. Sadly that died before much happened but it would have been fun.
 
My orders are in as of last night.
 
Update will happen when I get thomas's orders and process them, probably monday night or tuesday.
Anyone who wants changes to their orders or wants clarifications can send me a mail or pm.

A clarification regarding upkeep. As stated in the first page,
If you stop paying upkeep, the army remains for one turn and then disappears. You can't pay twice the upkeep on next turn if you want to keep it and you skipped a turn but must pay full cost.
You CANNOT DELAY paying upkeep. If for instance you have a heavy infantry (27 gold) and don't pay 6 upkeep for one turn, the unit remains on second turn and disappears on next turn. If you want to keep it, you must buy it again the turn it would have disappeared, so not paying 6 gold twice (12) will cost you 27 to buy a new unit (which can't move) for a total cost of 27-12 instead of 18 for paying the upkeep for 3 turns.
This is why the cost of non sacred standing units is three times the upkeep: If you don't pay the upkeep, it costs you the same to rebuild one but it will be unable to move when you rebuild it.
 
Tellajio didn’t really think, specifically, of what he was doing anymore. That isn’t to say that he wasn’t aware. He felt the prickly weeds scratch and tear his old callused hands. He felt the burning sun beating down on his bare back. He tasted the sweat as it ran along his face and dripped from his chin. At some level his mind was differentiating between the varied weeds and the young shoots of lettuce, corn, bean, carrot and the various herbs. One gnarled and leathery hand spread the greenery while the other deftly felt its way amongst the plants, digging along the shoots and roots and pulling the entire unwanted plant, roots and all, from the precious crops of the garden. The lingering dull ache of hunger in his stomach was his constant companion, but one he had learnt to ignore- mostly.

While his aching fingers grasped at prickly weeds, his clear brown eyes scanned the vegetation and his body dripped precious moisture in the merciless sun, Tellajio’s thoughts wondered.

The old gardener had not always been a field slave, destined to tend crops he would only see a meagre share of, while the ‘sacred’, those closest to the obsidian chrysalis, grew stronger by his toil. Once Tellajio had been a priest’s personal scribe, a life much different then the day to day toil in the blistering sun, the torn and callused fingers with missing fingernails, the wracking pains when he tried to straighten his frame crooked and bent from constant field work. That had been a life of cool subterranean shade, delicately perfumed candles and incense, and scroll after scroll after scroll. Tellajio’s master has been ‘master of the fields’, meaning he has supervised the growth of the crops that fed all of Mictlan’s capital city. Tellajio had been a scribe to this man, a lettered assistant. His literacy made him a rarity, even among the freemen and nobles of Mictlan and much more so amongst the slave caste. His work had been meticulous. He kept track of pounds of beans cultivated, their date of harvest, their storage in neat curling dark red ink that stretched on and on and on. His numbers had been flawless and though he could remember multiple times when his fellow scribes had been whipped for flaws in their calculations, he himself had never suffered this fate. The position Tellajio had held was revered and desired by the thousands of field-slaves he worked with day to day presently, to hide from the harsh sun in the secluded depths of the dusty priests’ pyramids, to have one’s hands dyed with ink, instead of covered in blisters and cuts, to sit at a low desk instead of bent in a field all day with a whip at one’s back. To them it all sounded like some sort of heaven.

A cry shattered the gardener’s reverie. Overhead a hawk spiralled lazily on the updrafts rising from the baking fields of the Mictlan slave-gardens. Not the sacred eagle his people revered as lord of the sky and whose plumage was held in the highest regard, but beautiful and majestic in its predatory flight none-the-less. Unsurprisingly, it made the old gardener think of his son… wherever he was.

Aching fingers felt their way down the prickly stem of a short weed with deep roots. With cracked and broken fingernails he clawed at the sandy earth at the weed’s base until he could grip a sizeable portion of its root, and with a single slow and careful pull, the weed was removed from the garden. Tellajio took a half-step forward with his right foot and wiped his brow with a dirt-covered forearm. Blinking the soil and sweat away he reached for another of the short prickly weeds as he returned to his reverie.

Indeed, Tellajio had never had any desire to leave his position. It had been a fall from grace, and a distant fall at that, but he did not regret his choice. He had been in love. He was still in love. His choice had saved his life, but more importantly, it had saved his son’s life.

Tellajio had little left of that life left anymore, one small box buried only he knew where, and most precious of all, his memories. Each of these was like a shining precious gem glittering under a moonlight fountain, each more valuable to him then the rubies his people dug at great cost in blood and lives from the deep earth. Deep in his reverie now despite his hands and eyes continuing their relentless toil, he brought the most precious of these gems to light and slowly and lovingly gazed upon it. He was only fifteen, she fourteen. Already he was an adept scribe, one of the most trusted of the old priest’s ‘counting-boys’. She had been his master’s niece, the daughter of a warrior-priest and a hundred times too lofty for him to even dare look at. She had entered the scribes’ chamber with her uncle and, blinking away the sun’s brilliance as she tried to peer into the candle-lit chamber, the first thing she had seen in that dark room had been the young Tellajio. And she had smiled at him, a sweet heavenly smile. There was more life-giving vitality in her smile then there was in the rains, more brilliance then in the sun, and more promise then a seed.

Since that day he had loved her. At the time, he had been a glutton, going back to the memory of that smile again and again over the weeks and months until he saw her again even as his quick fingers threw the wooden balls across his abacus and he deftly made notations in his curling red script

Now, he was a gourmet. That smile was his favourite memory and he only drew that precious gem to light very rarely, to peer at with loving fondness and a hint of sadness.

That secret smile, that brief moment they had shared, the promise it held, the love it heralded was worth a thousand broken fingernails, ten-thousand whippings, a hundred-thousand hungry nights.
 
Asaid Virenus was a quiet fellow. He did not talk much and spent most of his day twirling his daggers in his so called "Officio Assassinorum," meaning "Office of assassins."

Talk about imagination.

There had been nothing of interest to do so. Except for occasional training scouts to explore the plain filled with angry savages and giant lizards. Provided that they escaped the gaze of local hydras in the first place, that was. In fact, the information that they got back was so similiar to the information he received 10 years ago, that he thought that the scouts did not even bother going out into the wilderness, and instead snuck into a tavern out in the countryside.

"Ambition is a poor excuse for not having sense enough to be lazy, I guess" he sighed.

It was true. All the recent exciting exploration work done near by was completed in the sheer secrecy of the priesthoods. With anyone revealing the secrets punishible by the pain of death.

"Talking to yourself again?"

Asaid looked up to see a man in a Centurion uniform. He was Cain, the new captain of the Emerald Guards.

"What do you want?" Asaid snapped. He and Cain was in bad terms ever since they had met. Cain thought that Asaid was a useless ornament. Asaid thought that Cain was a pompous fool and uglier than a hydra dead and rotted for 2 weeks. Although that may be regarded as heresy by the therugs who seems to like those hydras.

"Ohh, nothing. Just came around to see how you are doing." He smirked again. Asaid wondered if he could throw the dagger between the joints of an armor from a distance of 15 meters.

"Well, if you have nothing to do, leave. Can't you see that I am busy?" Asaid pretended to draw a dragon with his stylus. "Now go on. Shoo"

Cain frowned. "Just when we may just have an job for you?"

Asaid stopped mid-draw.

"What is it?"

"Here's the plan..."
 
Note: Players will be receiving detailed stats by e-mail.

UPDATE THREE
Merchants and Warriors (well, mostly warriors)

Trade is on the rise all over the world. Merchant navies are sailing from Shinuyama and Lanka, trade deals are made on all the continents, and merchant fleets are being built in countries heretofore land-bound.
Although these new fleets aren't effective yet, the nations who paid for them expect to earn the fruis of their investment soon.
Spoiler :
Which means nations who just researched sailing will get benefits from new trade possibilities on next update.


A few noteworthy, and quite peaceful, events happened in the recent years, apart from the increased trade:

In the north, Shinuyama bakemonos have decided to put their mark on their new northern island, and renamed it Kitajima.
In Marverni, revolts have taken place against the occupying power of Marignon. Although there is some unrest in the province, the authorities have thins mostly under control.
Farther north, a renegade Van has been killing slaves for unknown reasons. Words from this far-away country are scarce, but it appears things aren't going very well in these cold lands.
Ermorian faith is spreading beyond the small empire's borders, growing strong in Slavia and spreading northwards.

In the south, rumours of an extraordinary temple complex found in Mictlan's Jaguars Jungle have been reported:
This temple was one of the first temples of the One ever built, and although it had been forgotten centuries ago, it was rumoured to hold a marble statue of the Pantocrator, through which the One could see.
Mictlan priests found the statue, and saw that it was crying: From its left eye, water tears, from the right, blood tears.
These tears flowed into a pool, and the wizards immediately distilated huge amounts of magic pearls out of it.
Word of this miraculous discovery spread so fast than the Mictlan government couldn't do anything about it, but priests have started saying that this discovery proves that Mictlan people are blessed by the gods.
In the Lanka province of Bandar Log, elephants have gone feral and turned against their monkey masters, causing feelings of insecurity and loss of gold for Lanka.
In Abysia, some men talked about the divinity of Sslaah of C'tis, but the C'tisian faith remains quite weak, and didn't spread much after the humanbred Absalon, who had been the most vocal in supporting the lizardmen's leader godhood, died of an accidental fall while he was repairing his roof.

There was a lot of not-so-peaceful activity too...

It is said that Vanheim leaders fought some battle in their island. Whether it was against that renegade Van or against neighbouring provinces is unknown.

The great wars:

Marignon invaded Man:
Their flagellants were killed by Man longbowmen, but their knights caused Man knights to flee, and along with their footmen they conquered the province. Seeing this, Ermor wizard priests who were trying to convert Man nobles to their faith hurridely retreated into Ermor, where they don't expect the Marignon inquisition can reach them.

Mictlan invaded Machaka:
Machakan tribesmen had been warned by the Jaguars Jungle refugees of an incoming invasion, and the whole province had prepared for war.
When the Mictlanese invaded, it was not long before they were met by a big Machakan army, fielding well armored hoplites, archers, spider riders and a regiment of jaguar tribe warrior refugees.
Machakan sling stones and arrows met the Mictlanese as they approached, and a Machakan spider lord single-handedly charged Mictlan's right wing.
As Mictlanese jaguar warriors were reaching Machakan hoplites, the holy eagle warriors took flight and landed in the midst of the enemy slingers. which they soon cut to pieces.
The fight continued. Mictlan's left wing of slaves reached Machakan archers mounted on giant spiders, and they were suddenly stuck in webs.
Mictlan's right wing of unarmored slaves was held by a single heavily armored knight riding a huge and terrifying black spider.
In the center, Mictlan's forces finally overwhelmed Machakan hoplites, but most slaves broke. They had suffered lots of casualties, their friends were stuck in giant webs, so they just fled.
Mictlan's elite troops kept fighting. The eagle warriors took heavy casualties, as some of them were ensnared by the spiders, but they killed enough archers and slingers that the rest ran away.
Eventually, only the spider riders and Mictlan's sacred troops kept fighting.
Seeing that their troops were routing, and fearing the giant spiders still on the battlefield, Mictlanese priests fled with their slaves.
Machakans would have won this battle against most foes at that point, but the Mictlanese sacred warriors had gone berserk, and they wouldn't stop fighting as long as they stood. This sheer savagery overcame Machakan warriors, who ran away as their most heroic knight finally fell.
Spoiler :


Mictlan army invades Machaka, and mages cast fire flies at each other.


Mictlanese eagle warriors land in the midst of enemy slingers and wreck havok.


Machakan spiders spit web and the battle rages.


Mictlan main forces decide to flee.


Berserk sacred warriors save the day for Mictlan.

Machaka's army was vanquished, but at what cost? The casualties were heavy and the priests had fled, leaving only their sacred warriors on the field.
In the following years, Mictlan priests had to go back to Jaguars Jungle to capture their slave warriors and bring them back under control.
The sacred warriors tried to quell any dissent in Machaka, and to bring slaves back towards Mictlan.
Unfortunately, they were not numerous, and they were unable to use their flaming weapons or berserk rage without the support of their priests, busy catching the slaves who had fled.
Machakans feared Mictlanese sacred warriors greatly, and this fear helped Mictlan take control of the country.
However, as they round up some of the population to enslave them and bring them back north, they were subject to sneak attacks by spider riders, who killed many isolated eagle and jaguar warriors.
The jaguar warriors general finally decided that it was not possible to bring slaves back to Mictlan, and tried to just keep control of the land.
Ultimately, Mictlan controls Machaka, but their warriors remain encamped most of the time and they certainly hope that the priests come back with reinforcements soon.

Ulm attacked Bavaria:
As Ulmish armies invaded Bavaria, warrior chiefs called upon the population to fend off invaders. Bringing axes, mauls and great swords to battle, Bavarian men gave bows and short swords to their wives and went to meet the army of Ulm.
Bavarians started the fight by throwing axes and shooting arrows at Ulm's heavy infantry, while Ulm retaliated with crossbow fire.
Footmen fought fiercely while Ulmish knights remained on the flank, waiting for the good moment to enter the battle.
Lord Ulrik, commander of the left wing, saw that the infantry was weakening: Although Bavarian axes had trouble getting past black steel armor, their heavy mauls crushed them to devastating effect.
So Ulrik blew his horn two times long, one short, and the left wing of the infantry disengaged, allowing the knights to charge the Bavarian infantry on the flank as they tried to pursue the infantrymen.
On the right wing, lord Adelbert sent his men charging against the rear of the enemies, taking out the archers and their leaders.
The cavalry charges were decisive, and the Bavarians broke. Most of their infantry was slaughtered, and the maidens fled while lord Adelbert pursued the chiefs.
Bavarians had long thought Ulm men were weak to hide themselves behind steel armor, but they now realised they were no match for Ulm knights, and the province surrendered to the smiths' troops.
Spoiler :

Bavarians threw axes and arrows at Ulm soldiers, who answered with corssbow fire


Lord Ulrik's ordering a charge


Lord Adelbert charges the enemy archers


Lord Adelbert's knights pursue the enemy leader.

Pythium vs. Amazonia:
Pythian armies invaded the plains of Amazonia, attacking isolated villages and subduing them.
These villages were ruled by women, warriors led by wizards who kept men in almost-slavery, which the Pythians found extremely shocking, since in their lands, men ruled over women and kept them in almost-slavery.
They advanced slowly, which gave the amazons time to gather an army. It looks like Celes was looking for a decisive battle, and he got it:
Pythians fielded an army of gladiators, backed with a few standard bearers and javelin throwers, flanked by heavy infantry and wizards priests.
Amazonia fielded a large front of spear-armed amazon warriors backed by archers and their own mages.
Pythium waited for the amazons to charge, and this was an obvious mistake, as they stood still while amazonian archers of the crystal tribe had easy shots at them.
Fortunately, Pythian wizard-priests cast spells at the amazons, smiting them with divine wrath and burning their minds with astral magic.
The gladiators finally marched forward rather than be slaughtered by arrow fire, and met amazon infantry of the jade and onyx tribes.
Celes' Theurgs spells were very effective and the amazonian right wing broke as the jade tribe soldiers fell to the ground, their brains burnt by sorcery.
Celes himself, until then remaining at the back of his army in bird shape, turned into a giant winged snake and flew over the army to attack amazon wizards. These reacted immediately and bound him to the ground by combined air and earth magic.
Celes was busy trying to disentangle himself and couldn't help much in the fight, but the amazonian wizards and archers concentrated on keeping him tied and no longer supported their infantry.
As a result, the gladiators, backed by the legionaires, managed to break through the jade and onyx amazons ranks.
As the legionaires neared the archers, the crystal amazons shot them, and the few remaining gladiators broke and ran away, but the emerald guards closed on the archers, protected by their large shields.
Now amazon archers and mages were fighting hand to hand, and Celes could free himself. Pythian and amazonian mages summoned phantasmal warriors and neutralised each other.
Facing heavy infantry and a giant snake, the remnant of the amazonian army finally routed, and Pythium took control of the land.
Spoiler :

Amazonian armies


Pythium fielded many gladiators


Celes chasing fleeing jade amazons is grounded by hostile magic


Only the amazons of the Onyx tribe keep fighting the Legionaires backed by their wizard priests.


Celes and his troops finish the crystal amazon archers.
Among Amazonians, the jade tribe was now held in contempt by the other tribes, for many believed the routing of their right wing had doomed their armies. Pythians didn't think so, but this dissent among autochtons helped them secure the province.
The few surviving Pythian gladiators were given land in Amazonia and many of them became rulers of local villages.
Amazonian men are rather happy with the new regime, although many mourn a lost wife or daughter. The women are less happy, but their warrior pride has been beaten and they now submit to their new masters.
It remains to be seen whether men or women will keep ruling in this land. Will Pythians impose their traditional patriarchal ways, or will they let the amazonians continue with their matriarchal ways?

Sinuyama vs. Tir na n'Og:
A fleet of Shinuyama landed on the island of Tir na n'Og, and troops of stealthy bakemono started scouting the lands. They fought a few skirmishes against Fir Bolg warriors and slingers, shooting their arrows and retreating.
The tactics worked well at first, allowing the bakemono to secure part of the land. However, one day, the bakemono archers came back with bad news: The king of the land had been sighted, and he had a court of faerie fighters helping him. These warriors bet the bakemono archers, surprising them by their stealth.
Shinuyama generals decided to march against the faerie king's army, where their superior armors and katanas, along with the size and might of their O-bakemono fighters, should help them prevail.
The battle was fierce, with the bakemono light infantry diminished in numbers, and the enemy elite warriors shrouded in illusions and hard to hit.
Bakemono bows were more efficient than Fir bolg slings, despite their lower numbers, and the Fir Bolg warriors were no match for the bakemono. Only the faerie warriors proved dangerous, but when the Fir Bolg broke, faeries were outnumbered and their king, Cumhal the fast, fell on the battlefield.
Shinuyama now controls Tir na n'Og, but their light infantries have been severly depleted.
Spoiler :

Shinuyaman raiders


Shinuyama light infantry flees in front of Tir na n'Og faerie warriors


Bakemono face Fir bolg and faeries in a final battle


Fir bolg warrior rout in front of the stronger bakemonos.


King Cumhal and his bodyguards fight their last battle, surrounded by Shinuyama soldiers.


Arshnoc vs. Baikal:
Arshnoc armies attack Baikal province. They conquer a few villages quite easily, but the locals organise themselves and soon a decisive battle is fought. Baikal cavalry is more numerous than Arshnoc's, and concentrated on one side of the battlefield, they break Arshnoc's left wing.
Baikal infantry moves into contact and are met with arrows and then Arshnoc infantry and its mighty flying dogs.
Baikal infantry is quickly dispatched. Arshnoc archers fire at Baikal cavalry, and the dogs strike them now they depleted their javelins against Arshnoc's left wing. Baikal troops soon get overwhelmed by the opponents' dogs, footmen and cavalry backed up by archers.
Spoiler :

Arshnoc army invading Baikal


Arshnoc's left wing retreats under concentrated fire from Baikal light cavalry.


Arshnoc infantry fights with the help of mighty celestial hounds.


Arshnoc armies celebrate as the last Baikalese are killed.

New map:
Spoiler :
 
I'll try to think of trimming the images to the same width next time.
If you have preferenes for the political map posted in the first page, please tell me. I think I posted versions with and without vegetation, with and without province information, and still don't know what's best.
e-mails are going right now.
 
The nation of Arshnoc is willing to sell horses or the so-called "mana gems" to other nations for a fair price.
Is there anyway to increase the morale of non-sacred units? I'm getting annoyed at my cavalry fleeing whenever they face overwhelming odds...
Is there anyway that you can do magical research without using wizards or speed up the magical research of a wizard? (Like using mana or something.)
 
Is there anyway to increase the morale of non-sacred units? I'm getting annoyed at my cavalry fleeing whenever they face overwhelming odds...
Letting them not face overwhelming odds. Grouping units together makes them less likely to rout. If you have 1 unit it will be more efficient if used as a whole on one wing than spread on both wings for instance.
Also, good priests can boost morale. Usually, wizard-priests can do that. In a few nations, non-wizard priests can do that too, but it's rare.
Is there anyway that you can do magical research without using wizards or speed up the magical research of a wizard? (Like using mana or something.)
You can build magic items for that, but you need to know construction (which itself needs research).
You can also create a magic site which will give you some kind of boost, like providing you with mages specialised in research or whatever you can think of. Magic sites costs depend on the effects you want to have and on whatever story you can come up with to explain these effects.
 
for some reason the province map isn't showing anymore.
 
I like the new political map, with province numbers and national borders together.
 
for some reason the province map isn't showing anymore.
Weird. I can see it well here. I'll try from another computer in case it's a cache.

Note I updated the units cost page to specify that sacred units, priests and wizard-priests need either a temple or capital to be built in.

If you think something looks weird in your update, let me know. Stuff like figures suspiciously like those of the previous turn are likely to be a copy-paste which I forgot to replace (though in some cases stuff didn't change).
 
Orders sent
Could you post the lines separating the sea provinces so it is easier to figure distance on the sea, scouting cost, etc?
 
Orders sent.

Shizen sat in his tower, looking over the reports of the conquest of Tir na n'Og. He smiled to himself - the conquest had gone well, though not as well as he would have liked. That one light infantry battalion that broke and fled - they had better stay fled, he thought, or they would wish they had died serving me.

He sighed - the people of the provinces only accepted his political authority, not his religious authority. Ruling an empire left no time for him to go around and demonstrate his immortality, he had to rely on priests to relate it for him.

The door to his chamber opened, and his lieutenant, a huge Oo-bakemono named Chishi, entered. 'The ships are almost ready to depart,' he grunted.

'Excellent,' replied Shizen. 'I will be there shortly. You are dismissed.'
He grinned to himself - he was wanting to try out some new spells he had learned, and the annihilation of heathens was very good stress relief. He got up, stretched his back (and wondered why he felt old if he was immortal - maybe he immortalized himself at an inconveniently late point in life), and headed towards the door.
 
Story #4
Spoiler :
Observe a road. This road twists and turns into the distance, turning as it meets rivers, climbing mountains, falling into valleys. Observe as a figure walks down this road, resolutely going over rivers, across mountains, and down valleys. Observe this figure, clothed in grey and brown with a green cloak wrapped around its shoulders, the staff in its hand, the knives by its sides. Observe as the figure sees something on the ground and rushes towards it. Let us see what he sees.

Kyzarc rushed forward as he saw the injured civet on the ground. As he got closer the civet turned toward him and snarled, unable to move much due to a large slash across its hind legs and an arrow stuck in its shoulder. Kyzarc approached cautiously, staying out of reach of its claws and teeth, and pulled out a piece of relatively fresh meat. He tossed it to the civet which snatched it out of the air, eyeing him warily whilst chewing.
“So little creature, what happened to you?” Kyzarc asked questioningly, almost to himself, while the Civet swallowed and he tossed it another piece.
The civet growled in response, chewing industriously.
Kyzarc cocked an eyebrow. “That arrow seems rather well-made for a common hunter… Peacock feather fletching? Definitely a noble’s arrow, caught in one of their hunts were you?” Kyzarc looked up as he heard baying hounds and approaching hoof beats. “… and here they are”
About a hundred feet down the path a group of well dressed figures burst from the forest, slavering hounds surrounding them. The lead figure, some kind of spokesman, noticed Kyzarc and started shouting; “You there, peasant! You will kowtow when you are facing your superiors!” Kyzarc stood his ground, smiling faintly. The spokesman approached and continued shouting, “Did you hear me peasant? You will be punished for this insolence! Who is your lord?” Kyzarc turned around and tossed another piece of meat to the civet. “Answer when you are addressed peasant!” The spokesman’s face contorted in fury as Kyzarc continued to ignore him. He drew his dao and swung it at Kyzarc’s neck in one fluid motion. There was a brief blur and the spokesman’s head slowly slid off. There was utter silence for a few seconds then the figures down the road drew their swords wordlessly.

Five minutes later Kyzarc pulled out a piece of cloth and proceeded to wipe his daggers carefully. That done he approached the whimpering civet which was cowering under a nearby tree, as far from the carnage as it could get. Kyzarc glared at it for a moment then yanked at the arrow stuck in its shoulder, pulling it free before the civet could react. The civet lunged at Kyzarc, biting into his leg and hitting chainmail. Kyzarc brought his hand around, knocking it unconscious immediately. He started gathering firewood and pulled various herbs from his pack.

As the civet regained consciousness it noticed the pain from its wounds was deadened, more importantly though it realized it could think. The civet concentrated for a few seconds and stood up. Where the civet had been a human woman stood, clothed in a green dress. Kyzarc bowed deeply “Milady, I see you are awake. I deeply apologize for knocking you out earlier, I didn’t want you to get injured while I was treating your wounds. May I inquire as to your name?”
The civet-turned-woman bowed in return and replied “My name is Aara. I thank you for helping me, could you please tell me where the nearest temple is? I’ve not been… conscious for some time and am not entirely sure where I am.”
“Temple? Too who? You are in western Tien Ch’i.”
“What do you mean too who? The One, Divine Pantocrator of course. What is this Tin Chi you speak of?” She looked very confused
“The Pantocrator is dead, has been for many years. Tien Ch’i is the far eastern empire. You know; peasants, alchemists, all that.” Kyzarc looked mildly surprised at her ignorance of recent events.
Aara looked shocked, “Dead? How is that possible?!? He is God, he couldn’t just have died!”
“Well he did, no one really knows how… some large flash in the sky then all the divine magic failed. People didn’t look too kindly to this and there were some fairly major changes in the order of things.”
Aara continued to look shocked and sat down. “Dead… What can I do now…”
“Want to come with me? I could always use a companion for the road.”
Aara distractedly said “Yes, why not… dead…”
The next day they broke camp and headed out west, towards Pythium and Kathnesjac.

Sorry, I was a bit rushed toward the end. It's confusing I know but I didn't have time to clarify it...
 
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