046. Dominion

In this special marathon episode, the motley uncover several bombshells, and move to save High King David.

## Dominion

### Play of the Game:

Scott as Braum, for bumping his bonded buddies up to besties, and creating Ignite, a new motley.

***"The things that you've done keep coming back. All the trash you pick up, the curses you accumulate, and the victories that weigh you down…."***

A radiant Sophia, an overworked Patches, and an injured Braum meet in the Exhaust to exhort their victory from the previous day, and to plan their next moves. They decide to meet with their allies before decisively moving on either Duchess Eloyse or the High King David just as their first meeting arrives. Helena flies down into The Spark's garden atop the griffin Rika. While the touch of Banality is still very present on her, the Kithain notice that it has lessened somewhat. While she can't confirm any knowledge of a conspiracy between King Meilge and Duchess Eloyse, she does tell them that the timing would make sense. The High King has been listless for some time, and for a reason that nobody can guess. Helena believes that if the Duchess Eloyse had allied herself with Meilge, it would have been incredibly foolhardy, although she now stands to gain from him having fallen.

Sophia receives a message from the Countess Weyer, asking how she's been… and informing her that she's seen that Henri Richard would be able to save High King David. Confused by the vagueness of Weyer's glimpse of the future, both Braum and Patches identify Henri Richard as a famous Montreal Canadiens player, better known by his moniker "the Pocket Rocket". The three immediately head down to the Spark's workshop to confront Zistor Flexx.

The nocker grumbles that he *still* doesn't know anything else about the Rocket, but Sophia and Patches can sense that he's holding back. They ask him if he ever created a device known as a "pocket Rocket", which he laughs off. He explains to them that the Rocket's original design consisted of four components, which made the device too complex to be small enough to fit in a pocket. Patches looks at the schematics: what if one or more of the components were removed? Sophia's presence inspires Zistor to take the idea even further: by leaving the Glamour-gathering and -redirecting components intact, but removing the limiter function and ability to do so at a distance, the nockers manage to create a miniaturized Rocket device! If Zistor and Patches were able to figure this out, then who's to say that it hasn't already been built? Patches divines that a device like this, if built, would help a Kithain recontrol their Glamour after being affected by Banality or cold iron, or could deliberately interfere with the Glamour of another, causing him to seek more! The "mystery" of High King David's affliction laid bare, the group decides that they need to get close to him in order to uncover and destroy the device.

That night, the group travels to Parc Lafontaine in Montreal's east end, with Patches and Braum standing under a streetlamp while Sophia hides nearby. As they take in the flickering light and nearby stream, they are soon approached by Seville wearing a turn-of-the-century trenchcoat, and carrying a small bag. Braum and Patches find it difficult to follow some of Seville's more cryptic statements, but understand that he believes Sophia, the "Quill of the Sun", to be like a boulder thrown into a lake, causing ripples and waves across it. The second vampire killed by Sophia (in reality, by Patches, although nobody chooses to enlighten him) was a "big deal" in clan Ventrue, putting the rest of the clan on her trail. No love lost with the Ventrue, Seville offers to help them destroy the creatures: they will no doubt return to one of their hideouts, the Ventrue-controlled Abford Pharma! With the knowledge that the pharmaceutical company must now definitely be destroyed to save the world from these creatures of darkness, the group takes their leave. Seville names Patches the "Usurper and Driver", putting her "at the centre of it all", and before disappearing, leaves an envelope containing some of Abford's research into Scythe.

Back at the Exhaust, the group meets an eshu passing through who excitedly tells them the newest gossip: King Meilge seems to have vanished! No one has seen him, and his ward Faerilyth, in line for the throne of Concordia, is now actively searching for him. As the eshu departs, Braum tells Incisor of their meeting with Seville, who casually mentions having killed a vampire before, in the sewers beneath the city. She provides a couple of "tips" for dealing with those "nasty sons of bitches". Patches visits Zistor in the workshop one last time, and discovers the old nocker dreaming of his love, Talus.

Sophia calls for Little One out in the garden, and finds the little dragon has not grown much, but is at least learning to fly. Scythe also appears and reassures Sophia that she has not been recaptured by Abford Pharma. At the same time, Braum tries to check in with Fala, who is still deep within the Grand Bes Din. She warns Braum that she thinks she is "being given the run around" in regards to the parchment she had delivered while still in the employ of King Meilge. While she has managed to locate it, it is still being withheld from her. She also confirms to Braum that the Grand Bes Din has also received news of the King of Willows' demise, meaning that it will become widespread soon.

The group ventures down to Homefires to learn what they can from the High King David impersonator. David, a piskie, is surly and combative, but explains that he was hired by King Meilge in exchange for promises of a more comfortable life. Patches starts to threaten pain on the piskie if he doesn't tell them more, and David cracks, revealing that King Meilge wanted Sophia killed. The sidhe has been prophesied to choose the High King David's successor to the throne of Concordia!

On their way out, Braum tries to convince Lord MacAllistar to be merciful towards the piskie when deciding his fate. He is forced to admit that this request is only because of a feeling he has about the piskie's motivations, but understands that some must be made examples of in order to uphold order. Sophia, Patches, and Braum venture to Tara Nar, King David's stronghold in upstate New York, a huge fortress situated in the mountains. Their entrance to Tara Nar is barred by two guards, the imposing Ursula and the helpful and eager Borf. When they request entrance to see the High King, they are more or less laughed aside until Ursula allows Braum alone inside. "I require my motley with me," the troll declares, extending his hands to the other two, binding them into a motley right then and there: "Ignite"! Borf and Ursula lead the newly-minted motley into the fortress, barring their way again at the entrance to the "executive branch" until they are persuaded to lead the three to the King's quarters.

In the ante-chamber, they hear a familiar voice calling out for them to come in, and behind King David's desk, Talus sits, miserable and on the edge of sanity. He begs the motley to help him, to help "fix" him… or at least whatever it is that is "wrong" with him. Patches, thinking quickly, promises to help heal him with a salve, and steps back into the antechamber to mix together a concoction of dirt and water. Using Chicanery, she manages to persuade him that this "healing ointment" she's put together *will* aid him. Allowing Patches to apply the ointment, Talus begins raving about having gathered enough Glamour to "fix" the High King, but that venturing back to Arcadia is "too small": "we gotta make this world our home!" The motley are uneasy, knowing Talus is spouting complete nonsense: how can Glamour be put back into the Earth from humanity? When they ask about how Talus has managed to store so much Glamour, he answers that now, he'll take Patches'!

As the satyr slams a small disk onto Patches' neck, he grabs the remaining "healing salve" from Patches, still believing it to be useful. The disk begins to sap Patches' Glamour as Braum charges Talus, ripping his mechanical arm from its socket. With an ear-wrenching scream, Talus unleashes a huge shockwave of Glamour, far more than any normal Fae should be able to muster, which knocks Sophia and Patches back into the far wall. As Talus re-sockets his arm, Patches furiously digs at the disk embedded in her skin. As Sophia unleashes the force of fire on Talus, and roots him to the spot with foliage, Patches sets her rifle to automatic, unloading on the Dauntain. As Talus begins to Flicker Flash away, Braum draws his sword Whisper, and brings it down on Talus' neck.

The satyr is near chimerical death, but instead of finishing him off, Sophia decides to venture inside his mind, if only for a moment. Bringing Braum with her, they pop into the satyr's dreams. Patches, tasked with guarding his almost-dead body, panics when it disappears, firing a few rounds out the window of Tara-Nar to see where they track him to.

Inside Talus' dream, Braum and Sophia find themselves inside a Greek restaurant on the beach where a much younger Zistor and a "whole" Talus are smiling, surrounded by friends, getting married. Talus tells Braum that he truly loves Zistor, because although he may not admit it, he is so kind that he only ever builds things for others. Sophia, stepping out onto the ocean in the dream, leans forward further and further, sensing the presence of a woman beneath the waves, and tries to flip the water upside down to see her. But just as she tries, the dream begins to collapse, and a brush of white owl feather touches her face. "Tell them I'm sorry," Talus intones as Braum and Sophia are ejected from the dream.

Patches' bullets found their mark, and Talus lies chimerically dead on the ground. Patches uses a portal passage to find her way over to the secret room where the ex-Dauntain transported himself to, and discovers not just Talus, but the High King David himself! Braum rushes quickly to his side, providing him with enough Glamour to be re-enchanted… just long enough for the High King to look into his eyes and exclaim: "Braum! I remember you!" before sinking back down into Banality again.

The new motley stand in a secret room in Tara Nar, holding a confused unenchanted David Ardry, an unconscious Talus, and a few owl feathers… and the world will never be the same.