Arc 11 Descriptions

## Episode 0: Opening Monologue

[00:33:27]

All aboard! For over 200 years, the nation of Visteria has put their trust into the good people of Albion Rail, and here at Albion Rail, we take great pride in the work we have all done, together. The land of the past is far behind us, leaving only our bright future ahead. Our hundreds of rail lines connect every family, company, and coast, so that no one is too far to reach. Our station towns ensure stable workand lodging for all those who contribute. Long gone are untrustworthy beasts of burden, since domesticated and kept as dear friends. No more wild magic left loose to interrupt your peaceful lives, and no more reliance on beings that do not answer. We have all come together as one, forged in steel and iron, under the care of Albion Rail and its subsidiaries. Magic belongs to everyone, and we are honoured to be the ones giving it to you. Remember, Albion Rail would be nothing without the people of Visteria, and Visteria is nothing without Albion Rail.

Chief executive officer and head of state, sovereign Elyna Albion, is over the moons to show you all Albion Rail's newest, groundbreaking innovation: The Ascendant Engine. The newest in our line of arca-mechanical transportation, this train is made up of fifteen sleek cars, each with six large, reinforced wheels. The engine of this train is our most streamlined yet, consuming only fourteen runits for every hour of operation. Enjoy its beautiful, ever-available lights and relaxing ambience, as the Ascendant Engine carries you along the most efficient route every time.

The true feat of the Ascendant Engine is this: The self-tracking locomotive. This locomotive lays its own tracks based on real time arcane input, avoiding all obstacles without sacrificing any speed. The brake car then lifts the sections of track, dissolves them into their individual components, and prepares them for reconstitution. The places you can go are limitless! Nothing like this has ever been attempted at this scale, but Albion Rail is bringing it right to your doorstep.

Watch out, June Grove station town! Her maiden voyage will set of on Autumn the 25th, and she will proudly travel all the way to Pistol City Station Town at the northernmost edge of Visteria. Innovation waits for no one, and neither does Albion Rail. Tickets for the Ascendant Engine may be purchased with any nationally accepted currency, such as Gold Pieces, Runits, or contractual obligation. Tickets for the Ascendant Engine and all other Albion Rail engines may not be purchased with station town specific slips or chips. The Ascendant Engine. All aboard for adventure!

## Episode 1: The Ascendant Engine

[00:11:04]

The nation of Visteria is home to many pockets of carefully structured life, and each is given the honourable designation of station town. June Grove Station Town, formerly June Grove, is a circular landlocked plot of land filled to bursting with buildings all made for a purpose. Dwellings stacked neatly atop each other around the border, businesses, workshops and factories filling the spaces in the middle. The straight and cobbled roads all lead towards the centre, to the focal point, the purpose, of every station town.

There is a sharp chill in the air today, it is the 25th of Autumn, and it seems as though all of June Grove Station Town is here, at the June Grove railstation. The building is massive, and its tall curved ceilings are decorated with images of nature, trees and fields and birds etched into the metal. The crowds swell against the barriers keeping them away from the rails themselves, and the gates that might grant entrance to a new life somewhere else. A tall Tiefling in the back lifts their Gnomish partner so they might have a better view, an Elven man squished in the middle reluctantly checks his pocket watch to rush away so as not to miss his shift that starts soon, a Halfling child near the front holds a squirming (???) close and holds their breath as they listen to the newest creation of Albion Rail huff to life, just a few yards away, completely unreachable behind the tall black iron fences. They imagine where such a train would take them, and ask their mother when they'll get to ride it. Her pockets are heavy with June Grove Station Town currency, and she pats their head silently. They aren't here to board. They are simply here to witness.

The energy of the crowd, their hope, their belief, their imaginings, their borderline mania, none of it touches those who are here to keep their heads down and work. There is a tall archway that was installed just for todays celebrations, a guilded thing, gaudy on its own, but perfectly in tandem with the rest of the railstation. Past the arch is the gate, and the Ascendant Engine. She is fifteen cars long, gleaming and bronze and polished, poised atop the rails that were made for her. Under that arch is a simple wooden podium, and a man. It is his job to ensure that no one climbs aboard who did not pay their due, a tedious task he will have to repeat numerous times on the trip he will soon embark on. I move our focus to John. Can you describe to me, what does Chet look like, here at his job?