00. Prelude

Rey, Jorek, and Valeria met up in Nexus and encountered several characters who would help shape their destiny…
After Exalting, each character finds themselves in The Pocket, a small room in Nexus (and yet somehow outside of it) containing a table, some wine & water, and a few biscuits. Also in The Pocket are the items (a bowl, chalice, and dagger, all made of orichalcum) and bodies (their former Exalted selves) that they had seen at the time of their Exaltations.
Valeria, using her knowledge of ancient texts and the information given to her by the Unconquered Sun, pieces together why the three of them had arrived in the same place at the same time. After some discussion (and after Rey devouring several biscuits), Jorek volunteers a place where the three of them could stay in Blue Sky, one of Nexus’ wealthier neighborhoods; the Wyld Hunt, and who knows what else, could be hunting them! Before leaving though, Valeria uses her Zenith powers to commit the corpses of their former selves to ashes, absorbing some of their pasts at the same time.
Outside of The Pocket was a woman giving food to hungry children, and it seemed she that was trying to get information from the kids about the three Solars. Leaving separately and traveling at some distance apart, Rey takes advantage of the distance to split off along the rooftops to visit home and leave some food for her ill father. Unintentionally waking him, he senses her dishonesty about where she was going, and gives her a box of Maiden Tea (a contraceptive), embarrassing Rey to no end.
Jorek leads the three to a penthouse in Blue Sky, where they plan to rest for the night, that is, until the mysterious Starlight Dove arrives. After some initial suspicion, she convinced the group as to her identity—she had promised Rey’s former self that she would guard over Rey’s new incarnation for two nights, this being the second. She also implied that there was a truly safe place for them, a place of power, which they could find with their three Orichalcum items in addition to “the Heart”. Starlight Dove suggested that the woman who was looking for them outside of The Pocket might have the Heart they sought.
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The next morning they see to some personal business: Rey visits a friend, Jorek meets a Guild associate, and Valeria stakes out the woman, all before re-assembling at Bacon Day’s Pork Buns for lunch. This woman had made two large orders of pork buns, and was leaving them for the children. Shortly after our trio met up again, this woman, Summer Blaze, is approached by her brother, Ember. Rey used her keen sense of hearing to pick up on their conversation, and Valeria approaches once Ember has left, offering moral support to Summer Blaze. “Was that man bothering you?” It did not take long for Summer Blaze to figure out who Valeria was, however, and spot her companions; she did not want to fight them in public, as there were too many innocent bystanders, and so they moved into an empty side-street.
Though Rey was injured in the fight, she still managed to smash Summer Blaze into a wall, defeating her for now. They carried Summer Blaze back to Blue Sky, needing information on the Heart and not wanting her to bring in others to hunt them down. Rey once again broke off from the group to visit home, bringing some pork buns to her father.
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After an evening taking turns watching over Summer Blaze, Jorek leaves to tend to some more Guild business. While he is away, Summer Blaze awakes and Valeria (with some help from Rey) tries to convince her that Solar Exalted aren’t the evil beings the Immaculate Order claims that they are. After some time, Summer Blaze refuses to continue speaking and Jorek returns.
Rey catches the scent of roasting meat from outside, and Valeria steps out to get some, but, seeing Ember standing next to the food stall, quickly backtracks to inform her companions. Summer Blaze begins screaming for Ember, and while Val tackles her, the group get a knock on the door from the concierge, concerned. Jorek implies that he is busy with a… female companion (further infuriating Summer Blaze). After he leaves, Valeria threatens Summer Blaze, and cuts her quite badly when she struggles to escape.
Jorek had arranged a meeting with Ember through his Guild contacts for that evening, and so he left a Guild mook watching over Summer Blaze while the three of them go to the meeting. Jorek speaks with Ember directly, discovering that Ember was also reluctant about his being in Nexus, and just wanted to find Summer Blaze — which he hires Jorek to do on the spot.
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The three return to a sleeping Summer Blaze, but are disturbed by two people on the roof. Rey shimmies up a column to check it out, which scare them down: they are Yun Kim and Eau, siblings from Valeria’s home town, shivering in fear of her presence. It turns out that word of her Exaltation had reached home, and some form of cult has sprung up around her. She assures them that they do not need to sacrifice themselves or their possessions for her, and insists that she was not yet so powerful as to be able to instantly travel great distances. Valeria sends them back home to keep her informed of happenings in their village, and requested a few ancient texts for her to use as reference in writing a new tome on the Solar Exalted.
Shortly after they leave, Starlight Dove once again appears to remind them of their quest, clarifying that the Heart was not an Orichalcum item. Jorek wonders if it is Summer Blaze’s changing heart that they need. With no confirmation one way or another, Starlight Dove approaches Rey, stroking her cheek as though Rey was her former self, and then leaves as mysteriously as she had come. They agree to bring Summer Blaze outside of town at dawn in hopes of finding this place of power, and, trying to bring them closer together, Jorek tells the others of his past involvement with the weapons trade. This brings Valeria near tears with anger, but Jorek makes a promise he intends to keep. He sanctifies an oath to use his power within the Guild to make Nexus more equitable, if Rey would let him help her with any troubles in her life. Agreeing, Rey sets off for home while Jorek and Valeria take turns keeping their eye on Summer Blaze as the other slept. Rey brings wine and food to her father, prepares his medicine, and sleeps in her own bed for the first time in several nights, and perhaps even for some time….
Category:EXN-Ep