Devotary of Spontaneity

Day Four: Awakening Linaan arrived at the reservoir just after dark only to find Sidor there, standing next to a wagon. It had only been three days since their last meeting, but as she purred from the joy of seeing her again after their longest separation in months, Linaan almost forgot she wasn’t supposed to be there. Ruin saw her too. “Now’s your chance, my daughter! Kill her now!” Linaan ignored him and crouched down to run, crying out to Sidor. “Ruin knows you’re here! I’ll lead him off before the Spiked arrive.” “No! I won’t let you run from me,” Sidor replied. She lifted her shield off the wagon to reveal not just piles of bones and hair and fur, but a wicked, double-bladed obsidian axe. “If the Spiked come, we will kill them. Until then, tell me why you can’t bear to join me.” “Why do you still hesitate? See how she wields the weaponry of the Empire’s enforcers. She will use any tool, any resource, to achieve her goals. She will use you up too if you don’t stop her. Quick, before she arms herself!” Linnan hissed at his words, then caught herself. Her ears twitched as she flicked her tail back and forth. “Ruin wants you dead. He‘s in my head constantly, telling me to kill you. If I’m around you, he can see you and direct his Spiked to find you. I know you can defend yourself, I know you’ve been trained to fight allomancers since you were a boy, but you shouldn’t have to. Please, let your other agents and I be the ones who put our lives at risk. Tyrian can’t afford to lose you. I can’t afford to lose you.” Sidor grabbed the axe in her left hand and her shield in her right. “You can’t treat me like a victim. I’m not going to risk myself, but you don’t get to decide you’re a threat to me without explanation. I know you don’t want to kill me, and I’d prefer the Spiked go after me than someone who can’t defend themself.” “My Spiked have another job tonight. Killing her is your responsibility. You can even keep her bones if she means that much to you.” Linaan hissed again to hear Ruin seemingly responding to Sidor’s words. “Ruin’s sent his Spiked out to kill someone else tonight.” Sidor nodded. “Aurelian is the most likely target. I’ve already sent agents to watch him. Agolac is the other. His survival last night remains unexplained. I trust you to determine whether it was deserved. You must trust me not to die. I love you.” “Understood. I’ll find Agolac. I’ll see you again when the village is safe. ” She wrapped her tail around Sidor's waist. "I love you too.” ~~~ There hadn’t been time to put in any hair, but the enhanced speed of her pony lower half made up for the time spent switching bodies. She found Agolac just in time to see him being pelted by a hail of coins, huddled under his message boards. “What do you mean ‘again’?” she heard him call out. “Did I forget this happened before?” The deluge of metal began to slow and the mistcloak-shrouded figure hovering in the air hesitated, unsure how to take this new arrival. With the last coin splitting open the sign bearing Willam and Aurelian’s names, the figure soared away on lines of steel. Agolac turned to Linaan. “Have I forgotten who you are?” She hesitated. Ruin’s advice, “Kill him. What use is he to you?” was no help. “I’m a villager,” she finally responded. “Tomorrow, you’ll have to prove you are too.” ~~~ Aurelien knelt and retrieved the box from below the loose floorboards. Felt the pang as he entered Livie's empty room. Lost, but not gone, he told himself, running his fingers along the band knotted at his wrist. Never gone, for as long as he could help it. He had left his old life behind, when he and Flavia had moved to Tyrian Falls. A quiet village in the Central Dominance, away from the intrigues and the plotting of the North. He had come to that decision the fifth time he'd killed a Misting assassin in his own bedroom. No, there was no place for him among the Iron Hawks any longer. Nor was there a place for him in the keeps of House Kosigan or House Vahanian. Buried in the soft folds of the mistcloak were his belt of vials. He made certain to keep them fresh by securing a supply from the village metallurgist. One of the many reasons he'd favoured Tyrian Falls. A safe place to raise a family, he'd thought. A place where it wouldn't matter if Livie inherited the Allomancy that was his bloodright. Her bloodright. But then the Lord Ruler had fallen to skaa insurrectionists, and then the koloss marched on Tyrian Falls, and those Spiked worshippers of a mad, imprisoned god had killed and killed. And they had been stopped, somehow. All of them, even Scimon Tlag. But not before market square. Not before that welter of blood and metal and ruin. Not before he'd watched his wife, his best friend, and his daughter cut down, and had been powerless, unable to do anything at all without his metals. Never again, Aurelien had sworn, except it was happening all over again. Tyrian Falls was rebuilding, but there were too many discrepancies to ignore. Small acts of sabotage. The fallen crate. The severed lift. And then. And now. Reverse had been killed. Aurelien had liked the glassblower. Had felt he'd a good head on his shoulders, and his heart was on the right place. The deaths continued. Aurelien belted on his vials, and wrapped his cloak about his shoulders. He left the armour and the sword where they lay, and picked up the dueling cane. Tonight, it was time to take to the mists. To be Mistborn again. Aurelien pounded on the door. Again. And again. Finally, it creaked open. Aurelien knew the stance, didn't even need to lean over to notice that Hastler was gripping the hilt of a dueling cane. "Aurel, you madman," Hastler said, at last, disgruntled. "What's with the visit at this hour?" "Can I come in?" Aurelien asked. "It's something I'd rather not talk about...in the open." Hastler nodded. His paranoia'd kept Aurelien alive on more than one battlefield. He stepped back, pulling the door open. "Come in." Aurelien stepped through slowly. "I see you're wearing your mistcloak again," said Hastler. "Yeah." "So it's that, isn't it." Hastler managed to make the question a statement. "Yeah." "You think losing a father will make it up to Livie? For the death of her mother?" Hastler always knew the questions that would get under your skin. He had a way of getting through to the heart of the matter. "No," Aurelien said, acknowledging the hit. He bit down on the fury that threatened to rise. Men who killed in a rage died in a rage. And anger made you stupid. "But she won't live at all if someone doesn't stop the Spiked before the koloss descend on us. You've fought alongside koloss before, Hastler. You know what it is like." Hastler scowled. Oh yes, he knew. "I'm coming with you." "No." Hastler held up one thing. Hadn't been a dueling cane, then. A single crossbow bolt, with a flaked black tip that glinted glassily in the light. Obsidian. The Black Archer and the Bastard of Kosigan. What a pair they'd made, in their heydays. "I've still got your back," Hastler said. He might as well have said, "I've still got it." "I know," Aurelien said. He caught Hastler's wrist, pushed it down. "But Livie can't lose her uncle too." "You bastard," Hastler growled. "I know," Aurelien said, again. "That's always what they called me. But maybe that's what Tyrian Falls needs right now." "Come back," Flavia had said, and he knew the prayer and plea implied. Come back safely. Come back alive. But there was acceptance as well. She hadn't married a man who would sit there when others got killed. Not after market square. Not after last year. Aurelien took to the rooftops. Around market square, roofing was still damaged, and in places, caved in, making for treacherous footing. But quick flashes of pewter steadied him, and he had steel and iron both, and if there was one thing found in plentiful quantities in market square, it was metal. Tin washed out the mists, allowed him to see clearly through them. He leapt to the top of the collapsed steeple, pulling himself to the very top, hand-over-hand. The old church to the Lord Ruler dominated the landscape of Tyrian Falls, providing him a good vantage point from which to look down at the village and its inhabitants. Reneau had kept on pushing for the church to be restored to its former glory, nevermind that his god was dead, or that Tyrian Falls was still struggling to get back on its feet. The steeple was still treacherous, with tiles and beams threatening to give way any moment, but Aurelien trusted in his own skill. There. His eyes caught a flicker of movement. The signature tassels of a mistcloak. Perhaps there was another Mistborn in Tyrian Falls. Perhaps not. Aurelien leapt from the steeple. He flew in a long, graceful arc, and then burned iron. The world came alive, traceries of bright blue light radiating from everything to him. He found something that seemed solid enough, and pulled. He flew. The other Mistborn led him on a long and merry chase through the mists. The mists curled about Aurelien, and danced outwards from the other. Aurelien narrowed his eyes. He hadn't known the mists to behave like this. "They give us power," his father had said, a long time ago. Aurelien had expected an attack, an ambush. What he hadn't expected was market square all over again. He never had a chance. Perhaps that was kindness, that day, when Zebra held off the storm from Scimon Tlag. He didn't know how the Lurcher had fought someone like that. He was just outmatched. Just didn't have it. He tried to meet the other Mistborn strength to strength. He was certain they were matched, weight for weight, and yet there was a force and power to the other's Steelpushes and Ironpulls that Aurelien struggled to beat. Metals ripped through him. Pewter kept him standing, kept him upright, kept him conscious. He charged, daggers held out. Pulled Iron to send himself flying through the air. A shock, as though he'd been punched in the gut. Crossbow bolts ripped through him. One, and then another. He knew the fletching. But Hastler was dead. But Hastler was dead. And his pewter was running out. Running out of pewter was always the danger. Then the shock killed you. He was a dead man, on his last legs. The Spiked laughed. I win again, Ruin whispered, in the remnants of his shattered mind. You tried and you failed, Bastard. "Hush now," said a voice he knew. A gentle kiss on his cheek, her fingers interlaced with his. "Hush now, Aurel." "Daddy!" Light through the shutters of the window. A beautiful, golden morning, the quiet sort he'd come to appreciate in Tyrian Falls. The gentle tolling of the church bell. "Daddy, come on!" Livie giggled. "Uncle Hastler says he's got something to show you!" Could it be? Aurelien opened his eyes. ~~~ The wall clicked closed once again as Oleinda turned towards Afandor. She held out another vial of metal. He was running dangerously low on steel—a resource growing more and more scarce in Tyrian Falls. Unless you had connections. Unless a lot of people dismissed you as a threat because you were blind and not metalborn. It allowed Oleinda to be more discreet about her acquisitions of the metal. Some may be upset about it, but she was doing it for the greater good. She couldn’t forget the sounds of her beloved city being torn apart at Tlag’s last stand. The shouts. The deaths. It lived in her mind, repeating again and again. Which is why she tried so hard to stop it from happening now. Afandor grabbed her shoulder, his fingers brushing hers as he took the vial. “It won’t happen again. I won’t let it.” “But Aurelien—” “He was making too much noise. Of course someone wanted him dead.” They’d found him on their patrol. Afandor had taken her again, though begrudgingly. She’d caught the scent of death on the wind again and led him to the body. He’d said there was a brutality to the murder that suggested it had been from the Spiked. She hadn’t been surprised by either part of that statement. Instead, she’d held her hand to her nose and listened, just in case the Spiked was still nearby. But she heard nothing. Only the mists themselves shifting through the streets of Tyrian. Afandor had taken her home, then. His metal was running low and she was exhausted. It was more than just the late nights and lack of sleep. It was the impending doom weighing on her soul. “What if we can’t stop this? Last year was a miracle. Can we really expect another?” Afandor pulled her across the room and sat her down, keeping hold of her hand. The wood floor thumped softly as he knelt in front of her. “Oleinda. The fight is always worth it. Even if it seems hopeless. Even if it’s equivalent to killing the Lord Ruler himself, it’s always worth it. After all, someone actually accomplished that.” “Which led to a world in chaos.” “Better a world where skaa can be free in that chaos than a world of suppression and hiding.” He pulled her hands closer, shifting so his chest was pressed against her knees. “We are free, Oleinda. Free to be who we were born to be. And that is worth fighting for.” Salmon Meerkat was killed by the Spiked! They were a Village Mistborn! They also wrote their own death writeup. Onyx Flamingo was attacked by a Coinshot, but survived! Day Four has begun! This turn will end Saturday, January 7 at 6:00 PM PST / Sunday January 8 at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT PMs are Open Player List: Tineye Messages:

The day is over, all votes count.

I've also edited in that Flamingo was attacked by a Coinshot and Tuatara was killed by the Spiked.

Day Three: Dead and Unemployed “Is there anything you can do?” Oleinda asked in a mere whisper. The night had a biting chill to it, so she pulled her rough wool shawl a little closer around her shoulders. The darkness, the mist everyone spoke of held little fear for her. After all, why should it? Darkness was her life, and she could hear as well in the mist as she could during the hottest days. Afandor stood a few paces away. She could hear his breathing, slow and steady. Measured. When he spoke, his voice matched hers in volume, though it was rough as tree bark. “I’m doing everything I can, but I’m no Mistborn.” “Nor am I.” A sorrow laced her words. She couldn’t count how many times she had wished for something other than copper. Maybe tin to enhance her already honed senses. Steel or iron so she could, in a way, see the world around her. But that was not her lot in life. Hers was to guard. To protect. To hide. “You’re good at hearing things. Send anyone you think may be on our side—that may be metalborn—to me. I’ll protect them.” She smirked. “And if anyone comes to inquire, I can even say honestly I haven’t seen anyone.” He chuckled softly, though it lacked any real mirth. “I’ll keep watch for you.” After a long pause, he let out a sigh. “You know more bodies will drop before this is fixed, right?” “Of course.” “Thank you for calling me back.” “Someone needed to do something, and I am limited.” Gravel crunched as Afandor shuffled his feet. “Stay here. I’ll go see what I can find.” “Wait—” Oleinda fell silent as he dropped a coin and launched himself into the night. It would be safer to have her with him, but he was not used to working with a Smoker. A silence fell across the city as the noise of his clothing flapping in the wind grew distant. It was the kind of silence that was oppressive, stifling. The kind that smothered other sounds and hushed people into keeping it. It was the silence of fear and dread. Of a city hiding away and hoping—even pretending—that everything was fine. She wished she could pretend the same. Instead, she was left hoping that Afandor would be fast enough to stop, or at least catch, whoever was responsible. ~~~ Oleinda had not retreated once Afandor had left. Instead, she’d gone out to do her own searching. The rhythmic tap of her walking stick was the only sign of anyone out and about. Maybe she should have been afraid of announcing her location like that, but few people listened as they should. Besides, she kept it quiet even to her own ears. She listened to the stillness of the night. Listened to the air whistling through gaps in windows and doors. Brushing across the wooden exteriors. There were things moving out there in the night. More than just the quiet shifting of people tucked away in their homes. Oleinda burned copper, keeping herself hidden from those Seeking. She couldn’t guarantee those were all working for the good of Tyrian Falls. Anyone could be compromised. That’s why she’d called Afandor back after all these years. He was hopefully removed enough that he wasn’t a problem. She turned into what she thought was the town center and heard coins clattering to the ground. She stilled, holding her breath and backing up until she brushed against a building. “Why are you out?” A quick sigh of relief escaped her. It was Afandor. “I called you to help. Not to do all of the work for me.” “It’s not safe.” He hesitated. “I saw something, and was about to go—” “Take me. We’ll both be safer if you’re in my cloud.” “I knew you’d say that.” “And you should have figured I’d follow regardless.” “Fine. Hold tight.” He stepped close and put an arm around her waist. She tucked her walking stick under her arm and gripped him tight with both hands. Then they were in the air. It was a strange sensation, having the world drop away. But thrilling. The rising and falling as Afandor Pushed them from building to building. After no more than a minute, he dropped them slowly onto a rooftop. “There. Listen.” He grabbed her hand and pulled it towards where he meant. Oleinda blocked out the rest of her senses, focusing only on what she could hear. Some rustling of clothing. Clinking of a coin pouch, though it didn’t seem very full. Crunching gravel under shuffling footsteps. “What do you see?” “There’s someone in the street. They look… lost? Or maybe like they’re looking for something.” That accounted for the shuffling. Not the meandering stumble of a drunk or the purposeful steps of someone trying to find safety in the night. This was something else. “Can you see a coin pouch?” “No.” Dread sank low in her stomach. That clinking. It was rhythmic. Like someone contemplating what to do. She opened her mouth, but it was too late. There was the slide of coins being plucked from the bag and an instant later a shout from down below. Afandor cursed as he grabbed hold of her again and launched towards the person who had seemed so lost in the streets. Another coin dropped, making a hollow thunk as if hitting wood rather than stone. “Do you see anyone else?” “No. And I don’t see any metal moving.” They dropped to the ground and as soon as Oleinda had found her feet, Afandor released her and rushed forward to the source of groaning. “Are you hurt?” Afandor said. The man on the ground moaned. “Sure, but I’m not dead yet.” “What happened?” Oleinda asked, stepping closer. “Lord Ruler only knows.” ~~~ Linaan would never catch a Spiked at this rate if Ruin could track her every movement and relay her position to them. He would never accept her defection without proof of her killing Sidor, an unacceptable price to pay even at the cost of the entire town and extremely difficult to fake. No Kandra could pass as unspiked to Ruin’s eyes, and no body double would hold up under close investigation. Perhaps Sidor herself would have a solution, if she could talk to her without leading the Spiked right to her. To start off, a different approach would be needed. Reverse had called her a mistwraith, so perhaps it was time to lean into that. She’d switched through a spectrum of her preferred cat bodies for two weeks, so she was overdue to take on a different form. The location of her underground bone repository was already known, so going there again wouldn’t cause further harm. She retracted her cat features upon seeing that Sidor’s study was guarded by two of her agents, who startled as Linaan approached. At the same time, Ruin’s voice began in her head. “This village will never accept you. They tolerate you for now on your mistress’s behalf, but they’ll always see you as a predator lying in wait to strike at the most opportune moment. Once true panic sets in, they won’t hesitate to kill you. Why give them a chance?” Linaan ignored him as one of the agents called out to her. “Linaan! Sidor’s not here, but she left a message for you. The place where Willam was staying has been broken into, and the first agent we sent to investigate hasn’t responded. The first ones to find you were to go investigate with you.” “Traveling with me will draw unwanted attention to you. We’ll go separately.” "See how you bend and scrape for these humans! None of them would show you the same concern. You’ve simply been deemed expendable, a tool who can be placed in the greatest danger with little regard for your survival.” “Of course. We’ll go north and then east to get there while you circle around.” While saying so, the other agent held out a metal sheet etched with a crude map showing that they would be taking a completely different route. Linaan nodded in acknowledgement and headed off. “By now it’s too late for poor Willam, but you can still save the agent who went after him. Why should you though? What do you hope to gain? A member of my finest creations satisfied by being a good kitty for humans when you could have whatever you want at my side.” ~~~ Linaan rushed into Willam’s house. It had been heavily damaged and its original inhabitants killed by Scimon Tlag’s last stand, but under Willam’s care it had regained far more than its former glory. Now it was damaged again, windows shattered and the front door smashed in. Inside, the wreckage was even worse. Furniture had been overturned and destroyed and a spreading pool of blood rippled out from where Willam and the first agent lay, the former with an arm’s length of glass in his chest. “Ah, Linaan! Thanks for coming. I’m afraid I can’t do anything more for Master Willam here. I heard sounds of combat and got here just in time to see him fight off an intruder, but he’s been too badly wounded to move, and I can’t defend myself if the intruder comes back while I’m carrying him. Now that you’re here, we can get him to medical care.” “No medical care,” Willam wheezed out. “Let me die in my house. Mine. I never thought, I’d have a place, I could call my own.” He died with a smile on his face. Cream Tuatara was killed by the Spiked! They were a Vanilla Villager! Onyx Flamingo was attacked by a Coinshot, but survived! Day Three has begun! This turn will end Wednesday, January 4 at 6:00 PM PST / Thursday January 5 at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT PMs are Open Player List: Tineye Messages:

Night Two: Prior Obligations Sidor and two of her spies examined the cart that bore Reverse’s remains buried under glass. Carved into the metal frame of the top pane were the words “Ruin can track me. Stay safe. -L :3” “Ruin can track her?” one spy said. “Does that mean she’s Spiked?” “I knew we couldn’t trust her,” the other replied. “She always looks at me like I’m prey. It was only a matter of time before she turned on us.” “Enough,” Sidor cut in. “I’ve known she’s Spiked and I know she’s still on our side and not a threat to any of us. Her wrath is reserved for those who support the Empire, and now the Spiked who are threatening Tyrian Falls.” “How can you trust her so quickly? What makes her different from the other servants of Ruin?” “Ruin can’t make Spiked do anything. He can talk to them all he wants, but only Koloss and Inquisitors are bound to his will.” “You know this because she told you? Or he did? You’re too smart to be so foolish for her.” “I will not abandon her for a hypothetical! We are fighting back against those causing real, tangible harm. If she wanted to hurt us she wouldn’t be keeping her distance like this. Now go, we’re late to the meeting at town square. Let’s not be so quick to execute someone without evidence this time.” The two spies didn’t look happy, but they left without another word. Sidor began running to the town square by another route. “I’m losing them. There are so many more plans we need to execute, ways to track down the missing inventory to find out exactly who is stealing from our stockpiles to mount this attack, but that’s much harder if my agents don’t listen to me. I wish I could tell them the truth. [I wish I could trust you as much as I say I do. I wish you trusted yourself.] ~~~ By the time Sidor arrived, tensions had already reached their peak. There would be no stopping this crowd, and truthfully she didn’t want to. An obligator still loyal to the Lord Ruler was a threat to the entire town regardless of whether he was working for Ruin. She made no effort to intervene as Reneau dug his grave deeper with every word. “Fools! How dare you lay your hands on one of the Lord Ruler’s faithful servants! When He returns, he will cast down His wrath on all of you! Bow down and beg forgiveness now that He might yet show you mercy.” The people of Tyrian Falls had weathered catastrophe after catastrophe over the past year. The ravings of a man who refused to accept that he no longer lived in a world that catered to him didn’t slow them at all. He died screaming out to a dead man who had no power to save him anymore. His lack of spikes was only a minor disappointment. ~~~ The air grew thick and Oleinda thought she could feel the mist beginning to coalesce around her. Shaking her head, she joined the crowd as they began to disperse, staying at the edges and close to the walls. She could hear the panic in their movements. It was growing late. No one wanted to be caught in the mists. Not when mistwraiths and worse were about, doing the work of murderers. Everything felt all too familiar. It was like a year ago. Desperation and fear began to rule over logic and sense. In times like these, Oleinda wished she was a Soother. She wanted to ease fears and help people see that turning on each other was far worse. Yet she had the sense that there was more at work. Someone or something manipulating, stoking the crowds. This would not end until that was stopped. Or they were all dead and Tyrian Falls fell. Mint Heron was executed! They were a Village Smoker! Vote Count: Mint Heron (6): Mauve Crocodile, Amethyst Scorpion, Salmon Meerkat, Ivory Dragonfly, Pearl Chameleon, Azure Mouse Emerald Falcon (4): Fuchsia Ostrich, Plum Rhinoceros, Magenta Albatross, Charcoal Hyena, Cream Tuatara Amethyst Scorpion (1): Sapphire Elephant Onyx Flamingo (1): Mint Heron Plum Rhinoceros (1): Sunburst Toucan Pearl Chameleon (1): Coral Swan Coral Swan (1): Onyx Flamingo Night Two has begun! The turn will end on Monday, January 2nd at 6:00 PM PST/ Tuesday, January 3rd at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT. PMs are Open Player List:

The day is over!

Day Two: Flying in Reverse Linaan crouched on a rooftop in far greater feline form. It didn’t matter if people saw her anymore, everyone had much bigger problems to deal with and an obvious Kandra was at least not Spiked. Or not Ruin’s servant, as her spikes made themselves very apparent as the voice of Ruin echoed in her head. He’d talked to her occasionally over the centuries, but since she’d fought that Spiked last night he’d been incessant. “Why do you persist with being that human’s pet?” Her ears flattened and her tail whipped violently back and forth, but she said nothing. She’d long figured out that Ruin couldn’t hear her, or at least never responded to anything she said. “She worked for the Empire that held your people hostage for a millennia. She aspired to be the next High Prelan of Resource, where she would be compelled to uphold the Empire’s power. How can you trust that she’s forsaken that goal?” Still, it was hard not to respond, even internally. “She was no more willing to work for the Empire than I was. She’s committed to making sure it never rises again.” Ruin continued implacably, as he always did. “It would be so easy. Those claws of yours could shred that pretty little throat in one swipe. Or you could bite down on her neck just a bit harder and crush her windpipe. Doesn’t that thought bring you joy? Just that one simple step and you can sever the leash she restrains you with and gain the freedom you’ve sought for so long, the freedom you deserve as a daughter of Ruin.” “Hisss! She restrains me with nothing. She has no leverage with which to coerce me. If I wanted to walk away I could do so at any time. I stay with her because I want to, because I love her, because here I have a community that treats me like a person and not a weapon.” Linaan dug her claws into her pads. Pain never stopped Ruin from talking, but it did remind her to stop arguing with a god too pathetic to kill a single human on his own. She was here on the rooftops to monitor Reverse, who’d narrowly avoided death earlier. Was his survival evidence that he was a servant of Ruin? There he was now, a simple glassblower out and about at night when the mists swirled thick, when most people would be inside. He pulled a cart behind him covered with cloth. The windows he’d offered to install throughout Tyrian, or something more sinister? There was only one way to find out, and so Linaan leaped from the roof, hybrid leg structure letting her land lightly on her feet. Reverse stopped abruptly and turned, had he somehow heard her? No, he was facing another figure just now coming out of the alleyway. The newcomer immediately turned to face her and put a finger up to their lips. Her ears flicked up in surprise just as Ruin’s voice invaded her thoughts once again. “This time I intend to take a more... personal interest in my devotees’ success. Wheresoever they go, so too will go my vision, and my voice shall guide them to victory. This blessing shall be yours too, should you wish, once Sidor lies dead.” “I wish nothing from you,” Linaan hissed out, but his words had distracted her for the crucial seconds needed for the Spiked to drive a glass dagger into Reverse’s lungs and disappear into the mists. Investigating the scene found Reverse dying with one of his own daggers next to a wagon containing great panes of glass and blueprints for a memorial he’d never get to build, his murderer vanished without a trace. “Make sure...to remember...all the dead,” Reverse wheezed out in his last breaths. “Immortalize us...in glass...mistwraith.” ~~~ Wind caught at Sage’s clothing as he Pulled himself from building to building. He was supposed to be out protecting. Helping people. Instead he was running. It was not so easy a task in a place such as Tyrian Falls. The buildings were short and few were made with an excess of metal. And if he pulled on the wrong nail or hinge, he’d create a projectile aimed straight for him rather than gain a good anchor. He couldn’t afford to make a mistake. Not with the coinshot on his tail. Steelpushers always had the advantage in a chase like this. He could hear the click of the coins as his pursuer dropped them for anchors. Sage kept Pulling. Always on the next furthest thing that would hold his weight. And always on the coins that came flying from behind. They thudded against the plate on his back, one after another. A constant stream that was beginning to make his muscles ache and tremble. This coinshot was relentless. And then Sage made a mistake. A single missed anchor while he was distracted by another barrage of coins. The nail flew at his chest. He released it before it got close enough to harm, but he began to drop into an alley. Then something struck his shoulder, just outside his plate. He fell. Then he was Pushed. Whether it was the plate or coin driven into his shoulder, he couldn’t tell, but the coinshot was shoving him to the ground. Pain erupted across his body as the coinshot seemed to drift to the alley floor. “Wasing the wanting of protecting,” Sage said through gritted teeth. The coinshot said nothing. They only held a coin out on their open palm. Sage saw the blue line pointing to it, but it was fading. It was getting more difficult to burn his iron. “Wanting the knowing the why of you,” Sage said as his vision grew dark. Still, his executioner said nothing. The coin flew out of their palm and everything faded. ~~~ Oleinda heard the coins, then a dull thump. And then she smelled death. That was all she needed to know what had happened. Someone had taken a life. There was little she could do to save the poor soul, but she could try to find out if they deserved it. If the spiked truly had returned… Oleinda shook her head, refusing to believe it. There were always rumors. Always fears. Surely, that was the problem. People were afraid and paranoid. But she couldn’t deny the taste of promised destruction on the air. The promise of ruin to come. Following the smell of death, her walking stick collided with something unmoving in what should have been a clear alley. At least, it was one she hadn’t had difficult navigating before. The feel of the thing was solid, yet pliant. A body. The sound of the shifting fabric confirmed it. Oleinda knelt, her skirt growing damp with something warm and thick. Blood. Carefully, she felt until she found the face. It wasn’t a familiar shape, but that wasn’t surprising. She knew few faces. But that’s not what mattered in the moment. She was looking for signs of what this poor soul could do or had done. She could find no sign of a spike—no strange bumps or scars to suggest a hidden one, nor a large protruding one like she’d heard described in the eyes of Steel Inquisitors. So this was an innocent. Then she found the vial. The cork pulled free easily enough, allowing her to smell the contents. The sharp tang of iron was easy enough to identify. A lurcher. How unfortunate that would be in the coming days. Tyrian Falls had lost a valuable resource that night. But who had shot those coins? She couldn’t know, for they left no sign she could sense. Sage Kangaroo was killed by a Coinshot! They were a Village Lurcher! Melon Dingo was killed by the Spiked! They were a Village Smoker! Day Two has begun and will end on Sunday, January 1st at 6:00 PM PST/ Monday, January 2nd at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT. Player List: Tineye Messages: PMs are Open

The night is over!

Night One: Ties Kill Spies Sidor stared into her open armoire with distaste. All her old Hazekiller gear was in there, equipment she hadn’t touched for a year. [I had hoped never to do so again.] She still wouldn’t fight unless pressed, brute force wouldn’t solve this crisis and she was much better suited to coordinating the town’s response, but there was no sense in being assassinated. Wooden shield, concealed glass daggers, and non-restrictive clothes would do. “Enough for defense, not enough to mark me as a threat.” [Everyone who remembers last year’s attack knows I’m a threat.] Linaan was still missing, having gone off on her own without explanation. “That shouldn’t hurt so much. I’ve been overly reliant on her.” [She hates being seen as just a tool.] “I’ve never felt physically threatened by her. I’ve seen her gleefully slaughter enough Empire supporters to know how dangerous she can be, but that’s never been turned against me. She’s told me flat out that Ruin can only maintain control of people with at least three spikes and she only has two, so why is she so quick to avoid me?” [I decide what is and is not a danger to me.] “The only solution is to drive the Spiked out again. I have to see how the rest of the village is doing.” [If Linaan wants to talk to me, she will.] ~~~ In the town center, Sidor found arguments centering Spiked identity were all jumbled up and confused. Worse, fear of the Spiked was driving some people to espouse pro-Empire sentiments. “That has to be stomped out immediately. Steel Ministry agents and powerful nobles have been testing our borders all year, looking for the slightest opportunity to crush us beneath their heels. No safety can be found within a system that doesn’t consider skaa to be people.” ~~~ There was blood on the wind tonight. Sharp and metallic mixed with the dreadful knowledge of death. Oleinda’s nostrils flared as the scent hit. Carefully and using a walking stick to check for obstructions, she followed the smell and sounds of shouting. They all came from the same direction. “Liar!” someone shrieked. Warmth sparked to life in Oleinda’s stomach as she began to burn her copper reserve. It wouldn’t be useful in stopping anyone, but it would keep her emotions safe. The Lord Ruler only knows what kind of machinations were happening in that crowd to make them so angry so quickly. Luckily, she did not need to get too close to know what happened. Once she was close enough to hear the arguments clearly, she found a wall. If she had counted her feet correctly, it would be the wall to the tavern right off the town square. She trailed her fingers along the rough wood exterior, listening to the people while she searched for her hiding place. It was not safe for her to be exposed in such a volatile crowd. Not while they were searching for people with unnatural powers. Most skaa still didn’t know better. And worse, they were scared. It had only been a year since the last attack. The last uprising that left their town in near ruins. They were looking for someone to blame. To throw out. Even to murder if they must. And murder they would. The smell of blood in the air was stronger than ever. Yet it wasn’t. It was the promise of blood to be shed, Oleinda realized. That was what had drawn her along with the shouts. The promise of something she could not stop. It was Taltin Keriell, in the end. The noblemen were not thought of well these days as the skaa grew in power and strength. Of course it was the noble who would die first. Oleinda bowed her head praying to a god long dead. It would only be the beginning of their troubles. Saffron Iguana was executed! They were a Village Rioter! Vote Count: Saffron Iguana (3): Sunburst Toucan, Mint Heron, Melon Dingo Melon Dingo (3): Ivory Dragonfly, Coral Swan, Indigo Weasel Sage Kangaroo (2): Mauve Crocodile, Charcoal Hyena Chartreuse Penguin (2): Amethyst Scorpion, Onyx Flamingo Amethyst Scorpion (1): Sapphire Elephant Onyx Flamingo (1): Cream Tuatara Mint Heron (1): Salmon Meerkat Ivory Dragonfly (1): Emerald Falcon Charcoal Hyena (1): Pearl Chameleon Azure Mouse (1): Sage Kangaroo Night One has begun! The turn will end on Friday, December 30th at 6:00 PM PST/ Saturday, December 31st at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT. PMs are Open Player List:

Cycle closed!

Current GM vote count: Saffron Iguana (2): Sunburst Toucan, Mint Heron Melon Dingo (2): Coral Swan, Indigo Weasel Azure Mouse (2): Mauve Crocodile, Sage Kangaroo Chartreuse Penguin (2): Amethyst Scorpion, Onyx Flamingo Amethyst Scorpion (1): Sapphire Elephant Onyx Flamingo (1): Cream Tuatara Mint Heron (1): Salmon Meerkat Ivory Dragonfly (1): Emerald Falcon Pearl Chameleon (1): Melon Dingo Sage Kangaroo (1): Charcoal Hyena Magenta Albatross (1): Ivory Dragonfly Charcoal Hyena (1): Pearl Chameleon

Day One: Calling the Reserves Linaan strode into Sidor’s private study in the middle of the night carrying a dead man, shifting her form as she went. Only so many alterations could be made in such a short time and without immediate access to her stores of bone and fur, but discreet modifications to her template’s skeleton enabled her to grow a fleshy tail and larger, more flexible ears. Her fangs and claws, newly freed from retracted gums and hollow fingertips, still dripped red with blood. Sidor looked up from the latest forged inventory report [Faked for sure, but knowing what had been faked will grant insight as to why], her face flickering past irritation and concern to land on alarm. She got up from her desk to approach Linaan as she dropped the body on the floor. “What have you gotten yourself into?” Linaan’s left ear flicked back once before she started angrily swishing her tail back and forth. “A year of not fighting has done wonders for you, but that time’s up.” Sidor’s gaze slid to the armoire that concealed her dueling canes, obsidian knives, and Inquisitor’s axe. Hated weapons from her time as High Prelan Ferac’s favorite protégé that she’d discarded for pen and ink as Tyrian’s treasurer, but she’d never been able to throw away a tool that might be useful later. “Explain.” “I checked our metal stockpiles and it was just like you said, it’s being emptied faster than the inventory reports show. One of the locks had been smashed open and when I went to investigate, some minor noble screamed that Tyrian Falls is a disgrace to the Empire and that the Lord Ruler had given him a divine commandment to help His Koloss wipe us off the map. Then he grabbed a stone block he must have needed pewter to lift and tried to bash my head in the same way he destroyed the lock.” Linaan flashed her bloodstained teeth and flexed her claws. “With these, I can never be unarmed. He clearly wasn’t used to fighting and no amount of enhanced strength and natural healing could help him lift that block with the tendons in his wrists severed.” “Why didn’t you capture him?” “I was going to but as soon as he dropped the block he cried out ‘I’ve failed You’, grabbed the spike sticking out of his heart with his forearms and pulled it out, killing him instantly. A waste, but now that he’s dead I can wear his bones and root out any accomplices.” “No, you can’t risk it. If there are other Spiked working with him, they’ll already know he’s dead and if Ruin turns his attention to you, the best you can hope for is pulling out your spikes before he controls you. Linaan began purring as she licked herself clean of blood without breaking eye contact, tail slowly swaying behind her. “Concern for my well-being? Very well. I won’t be needing this body now but it’ll still be another skeleton for the closet once you’re done with it. No sense in wasting resources that can be modified to taste later. Good night!” Sidor watched her open a trapdoor in a corner of the study and disappear down into her subterranean lair. “What am I doing with her?” she thought. “She’s spent centuries lying to humans.” [How can I trust her after less than a year?] “She claims that her animal features will accurately reflect her emotions, but she could be as adept at lying with those as she is with her human features.” [I’d need to test her and I don’t … want her to fail.] “She could reveal that she’s been on a Contract this whole time, or get controlled by Ruin, or simply decide that she’s bored of working with me. Despite that, I don’t want a game piece, the way Ferac treated me and tried to get me to treat others.” [I want her as my wife.] Ferac would call that foolish, but look where that got him! Just a pile of bones gathering dust underground, his ambitions forgotten. [He didn’t even live to see his ‘son’ betray him.] She shook her head vigorously. “That’s not important right now.” [I’ll come back to this later.] “Right now, I have to make sure the community I helped build isn’t destroyed. That means rallying the villagers against the Spiked, the way we did before. Ten others survived the fight last time, and Tyrian has grown since then. [If I can trust Linaan, I can trust them.] “I’ll make the announcement in the morning.” As Sidor brought a knife with her to bed for the first time in almost a year and drifted off to sleep, she saw Linaan emerge from the trap door with a bundle of fur and curl up by the front door. “She’ll keep me safe until I wake. [She sees herself as a threat to me now.] ~~~ Oleinda shuddered as she stood in the doorframe. It wasn't from the cold, though there was a cool breeze. There was something else drifting along with the wind. An ill omen. The sense of dread and pending destruction. She'd lived through enough of it before to know how the air tasted before everything went to rust. Retreating back into the stillness of her home, she made her way to a small hidden panel in her wall. She felt where the wood had been smoothed just the faintest bit from her fingers. Another person - one who relied on their sight more than touch - would miss it. Not Oleinda, though. She pressed against the smoothed panel to open her hidden compartment. The glass vials were cool as she slipped them into a pocket inside her belt. The last one she uncorked and drank its contents. A few seconds later, she sensed the reserve inside, ready to burn. Copper. People were going to need to hide in the coming days. She would do what she could. Generic Thug was killed! He was a Spiked Thug! Anniversary Game 9 has begun! All PMs have been sent. If you can't get into your anon account, please let us know as soon as possible! A few quick reminders, clarifications, and whatnot: On anonymous accounts: do not post with your anon account in any thread but this one. Do not post with your personal account in this thread. You can follow the thread or the forum with your anon account if you so choose. All PMs from past games should be gone already, but if there are any remaining please just delete them. You can add your personal account to your GM PM, but we do not recommend it, as it leads to substantially more mistakes. If you want to add a cosmetic role or character name/description (and please do!), DM it to me (preferably on your anon account) and I’ll add it into the next player list. VILLAGE: Win when all Spiked are dead. SPIKED: Win when they outnumber the village, or otherwise can no longer lose. The turn will end on Thursday, December 29th at 6:00 PM PST/ Wednesday, December 30th at 2 a.m. GMT / 1 p.m. AEDT. Player List: PMs are open.

I was prepared to talk as much as possible and get myself killed as the canary in the coal mine, but after JNV died immediately and I was suddenly half the village win von it didn't seem fair to the village to risk myself like that. If there had been a lot more IC I would have been more willing to keep talking.

Xino and Nerdy don't make much sense as e/e since there's little reason for Xino to bus Nerdy instead of Silver or trying to save them both by voting for you starting a new train. Putting three elims in a 2-2-2 tie and then having Nerdy show up, keep their vote on a teammate, and then none of them ever show up again is bizarre. I do note that Nerdy clearly wasn't concerned about signing off for the cycle when they had three votes and made no attempt at self-preservation by switching from Xino to Silver. That reads closer to just e!Nerdy than paired with Xino. So either could be evil but the pairing is less likely. Fifth is a more likely partner for e!Nerdy. C2 EoD still looks more like whatever elims were around were okay with Nerdy dying though. I'll vote for Xino but wouldn't mind if the other two died. Everyone else can figure it out.

It is true that I probably would not have voted for Silver had Aman's vote not been on him at the time making Silver a viable exe.

E/E Silver and Nerdy doesn't seem like the most reasonable option since there's no reason Xino or Aman doesn't die there unless there was only one elim around for EoD. Neither of them were around so whichever of [Fifth, Aman, Mat] would have to decide to bus their teammate who are both pretty new players without approval. EoD looks more like the elims felt okay with Nerdy dying and were then blindsided by Stick and Kas and maybe even Hael voting for Silver.

Why Fifth less so this cycle? I doubt Xino noticed if he didn't read the thread. Any of these players who are villagers are less likely to have been looking for IC members, so using it as evidence seems backwards. Since he didn't actually vote Dannex and stuck with Mat. Though there were enough votes for Dannex that Fifth's vote didn't matter. Not going to be around for the rest of the cycle so I am going to vote for Silvereye. I don't see much reason for e!Nerdy or Xino to vote for Kas especially when Dannex is village. Kind of would expect e!Silvereye's teammates to have noticed that I didn't list his vote though. Not opposed to TUN but don't feel that strongly. What's caused you to not make that point this game?

Pushing was the wrong word for it. Fifth notes no traction on Dannex counterwagons -> elims aren't desperate to save him = more likely village. When votes start piling up on you, he's also opposed to that which fits if he's fine with v!Dannex dying or wants to save e!you. I knew I wouldn't be around for rollover to see if Mat or anyone else would be a viable counterwagon to you and Dannex. It could have been their speaking patterns in the doc, or rereading the rules to catch how Winzik's vote manipulation worked and speculating on inner circle numbers. For suspects I'm mostly looking in the pool of those who vocally disapproved of the votes on Kas (even though I wouldn't say he's evil), especially if they then voted for Dannex, so Fifth but less so than last cycle, Mat, you, Hael (#1 of those). Maybe also e on Wizard but that feels wrong since that's just the Sith team from the last MR.

I copied Stick's vote count and missed Silvereye's vote. Probably because I didn't know who that was so didn't remember a name to put in the vote count as voting for Dannex.

Specifically the 'no traction on Dannex counterwagons' suggests elims were fine with him dead then opposing the main Dannex counterwagon. Though Kas can certainly be village too so this isn't really a 'wants Dannex dead' proof.

So we have e!Dannex, e!Fifth trying to push him, or they're both village. And now three people in a row, four counting Fifth willing to vote Dannex/save Kas. Can't all be evil certainly. Looking okay for v!Dannex though. Won't be able to see what happens so I'll vote for Fifth, hits either teamed with Kas or ensuring Dannex's death.

Kas (4): Dannnnnex, Nerdy, Kas, Xino Dannnnnex (2): JNV, Bookwyrm Mat(1): Fifth Wiz(1): Aman Stick (1): Mat Clearly not true since there's only two votes left on Dannex while Kas has four now with Xino's vote. The self-vote will presumably go away, so effectively three votes. Should be an hour and a half left in cycle instead of three. You're not outright concerned for Kas's potential death at least.

Not saying anything abut Stick, since not assigning a firm read on someone is reasonable at this stage of the game, more that it was an odd statement for you to make. Don't need to get bogged down by this or by the definition of opportunistic as the first vote. Votes for you and Danex do at least see how committed people are to exing Danex. That's still the primary train even though there has been resistance to it because of how quickly it started. Potentially willing to vote for Fifth even though last time he was a Jedi. : Why can't we argue over definitions with that human? To see whether humans should be integrated into the Superiority, we need to learn how they think. : :water droplet: Kalli: Correct, that human is far from representative of his species. One opinion won't provide a picture of them any more than we are representative of diones. Species integration requires observing how prospective members behave collectively. Besides, we have to focus on Terlken's death. We can't allow the DPS to gain any more power. What if the rumors of human infiltration are true? They could be worse than the DPS. :scale: If the rumors are true, I won't let humans gain that power for themselves either.

I'm not sure what you mean by this. Stick is village reading TUN but specifically his vote apparently didn't factor into that. I don't see how the possibility that Mat would claim Winzik as a villager contradicts the fact that Stick didn't assign him a read based on that.

The number of elims and inner circle members would have been balanced against each other. Probably within one of each other. Notably that nobody dies in Avalon. You quoted the sections where she said she could see Mat's claim coming from any role and TUN's vote coming from either alignment.