Between Game Lore

Dragon Lore

Between Game Lore/Research Results

Inrisor hears of the dragon problem. He flies to the peak and begins spying on the dragon. The following things are noted:

The thing is huge. At least 100 feet from tip to tail, and 30 feet from ground to snout when standing with its head up. (Size 10 or so).
The thing eats a lot. It eats both animals and gold.
The thing craps a lot. No gold though.
The thing sleeps with one eye open.
In a startling revelation, the thing casts magic through use of words and gestures. It is reminiscent of Hermetic magic, perhaps being a rendition of the rites done by the old Cult of Mercury.
The things cave has an Aegis or the equivalent (discovered by trying to go in and feeling that familiar tingling).

Being a bold fellow, Inrisor decides to test how tough it is (in typical Inrisor fashion). Inrisor takes to the air following the dragon and gives it his all on a lighting spell (fatigue, life-boost, max effect) and determines the following:

It really hurts to give everything.
It is possible to fall from a considerable height and survive. That hurts a lot as well.
Lightning either does not affect the creature, or it has a huge might. The lightning did not damage it at all.
It does not have a parma (the effect did not look at all like that).
The creature can be fooled into thinking you are dead if you fall unconscious from a sufficient height. At least you assume so since you are alive and not a pile of greasy ash like Bob.

Upon waking up from the end of that experiment, you found yourself in an old man's hut. He is apparently a hermit who lives in the Pyrenees (since that is where you found you were on exit from said hut). He is in nominally Basque lands on the southern side of Mount Coronat (where the dragon lives). You find that you have been out for at least a couple of days, are badly banged up (fatigue only) and have marks from some wounds that have apparently been healed. You cast a hairy eye at the hermit thinking you will have to come back later to see if he is a potential corpse, er, joiner to the Order.

Determining that the direct approach is not a conducive one, you head out to do some book-learnin'. You scour tomes with the help of Linda at the library of the noble we helped get his lands. You know, the-one-with-the-sword-thing-or-whatever-that-he-gave-to-somebody-to-get-something. The rest of your time is spent doing this. Based on what you know of the dragon, you narrow your search to ones that fit that general description (big, gold-red, users of magic, eaters of gold). You come up with the following facts:

The dragon is likely very old. They don't get that big until they are very old.
The use of magic is not unique among old dragons. They often pick up a few tricks through the years.
The dragon probably spent some time in or around Greece or Rome to pick up the magic you saw it do.
There are tales of three different dragons that fit the general description. You have three names: Garathanor the Flameheart, Rutilus Fervens, and Kitanetos. To discover more, you will have to travel to the environs of Greece and/or Rome. Garathanor the Flameheart is associated with some old Greek tales, Rutilus Fervens is mentioned in the area of Rome, and Kitanetos is mentioned as being associated with Crete.

A visit to Rome

You go to Rome, see the sights, get kicked out of the Cathedral (as usual; you don't get no respect), consider frying the place and those in it (it always pisses you off when they kick you out; like you are not a God fearing Christian), and are preparing to do just that when you are interrupted by a man saying, “Salvate, Sodali”. Turning, you see a smallish fellow brandishing an amulet that could only be his sigil. He invites you to come to a private chapel and worship rather than destroying the beautiful artwork in the Cathedral.

You find that he is associated with a small covenant outside Rome called Literatus. They are a group of magi committed to learning and cataloging mystical things. You and he seem to hit it off fairly well. He is polite, speaks loudly enough for you to hear, and gives you the respect you feel is your due. He doesn't even seem condescending. It is odd, because he doesn't strike you as a mage, but then you learn he is from House Jerbiton, so that explains that.

As you spend some time together, you mention Calor Novus and your interest in the dragon, and explain about coming here to learn more about Rutilus Fervens. He seems to recognize Calor Novus (“Aren't you the Flambeau covenant in the south part of the Frankish kingdom?”). He says they have some old texts about the early days of the Roman Empire and the Cult of Mercury at his covenant and wonders if you would like to visit it. You happily agree.

At the covenant you are greeted by the other magi (if you can call them that; a Bonisagus and 2 Criamon) with suspicion. Your new friend smooths things over and you do not see the other 3 during the rest of your stay there. The Jerbiton, one Fidelis by name, spends time with you poring over books. Many of them you cannot read, so he provides translations. Together you explore what they have on Rutilus Fervens (actually, he explores; you eat and drink and read what he translates).

The result of a month of research produces clear clues as to one place Rutilus Fervens once inhabited. Some wilderness in the mountains across the Adriatic, on the border with southern Germany (roughly Austria) seem to be one of old Rutilus' haunts. Armed with this new information (and a cool map of the area) you bid goodbye to Fidelis and head out.

Catching a boat to cross the Adriatic is easy enough (amazing how easy it is to cow a skittish sea captain), and the flight into the mountains is smooth and unbothered by weather. You search around for several days, following the map as best you can. You eventually discover what you believe used to be the cave dwelling (some mystical aura, a few piles of cattle bones, a particular smell, similar to what you noticed near the dragon's cave). You poke around a little bit but find nothing of real significance. It being late, and this cave being here, you spend the night. During the night you are attacked by some sort of creature (you do not get a good look) that flees back through a rift that you recognize as a portal into another regio. You chase the creature off (though it is a near thing; it is dangerous and sneaky, you were lucky to get a preemptive shot off at it are nearly killed by the thing), and then are nearly overcome by a poisonous gas emitted into the cave. You barely get out before you pass out. You awaken about noon the next day. There are wolves standing a distance off obviously considering whether you might be good eats (ah the benefits of being a mage; it is so good that animals are made skittish by the Gift). Having no good way to get into the regio to discover more, and not wanting to become a meal for whatever attacked you the night before, you head back to Literatus.

At Literatus you receive no welcome and find out in a round-about way (basically one of the Criamon refusing you entry and nearly slamming the door in your face) that Fidelis is not in residence (and they are not in the habit of entertaining guests). Annoyed and a little disappointed (the food there was quite good), you head back toward home to plan the next steps. You think Adrian and Orella both know how to cross regio boundaries...

Adrian and Saverio Visit the Poisonous Cave

In the Fall of 799, Adrian and Saverio head out to see what they can do about entering the regio Inrisor reported. The trip to Italy is uneventful, and the subsequent trip to the cave on the border of Austria is just as dull. It would seem that good language skills and priestly appointments overcome many difficulties, including some of those afflicting Gifted individuals.

At the cave, Saverio does a number of mystical things (which Adrian only half understands) to determine things about the regio, the cave, and what might be expected inside. It is clear from his investigations that there is indeed poisonous gas in the cave, especially at night. The two decide to camp for the evening (outside the cave) and go in the next day.

Adrian leads the way across the boundary, and immediately Saverio and he are affected by a noxious vapor that seems prevalent in the regio. Saverio casts a spell which clears the air in the immediate vicinity, but the vapors slowly invade again. With some more mystical work, they penetrate a little deeper into the regio and can see some structures in the distance. During this time, Adrian is attacked by some creature (perhaps the same one that attacked Inrisor) and is wounded. Saverio manages to drive it back and get Adrian to the boundary. Adrian, slowly losing consciousness, gets them across the boundary of the regio, and Saverio gets them out of the immediate area of the cave. It would seem that Inrisor's tale was not exaggeration. The creature is very swift, very sneaky, and, it would seem, has poison/venom of some sort either on its claws, in its bite, or both. Adrian is much the worse for wear and is fading. Saverio gets them to a village and convinces the villagers to aid Adrian.

While Adrian recuperates, Saverio learns that the villagers know of the cave, and there are, indeed, tales of a great dragon that once lived there. The cave is believed to be an unwholesome place due to this fact. People, at least sensible ones, do not go there. Those that do are often lost forever.

Adrian, in his delirium, dreams about the structures he saw in the regio. They seem so familiar. There is something about them that is reminiscent of something, but he cannot remember what. The structures also seem very important. They are central to the regio and the dragon, at least in his fever dreams. He must know more about them. They call to him, almost like he can hear them singing.

After Adrian has mostly recovered, Saverio leaves him to return to the covenant. Adrian rests and recovers for the remainder of the Fall season. In Winter, he again tries the regio, but with a different idea in mind. He brings some bladders of air, enters the regio, and immediately leaps (One League Stride) toward the buildings. It turns out that they are either much farther away than they seem, or that things work differently here. It takes several leaps to get near the buildings. There is writing in Greek along the eaves of the buildings. They are made, it would seem, of marble with fluted columns supporting the stone roofs. Adrian is rapidly running out of air, and his eyes are stinging and tearing up, so he can make out only a little before he believes it is prudent to leave. There are 3 buildings, there is writing on the eaves of each, all the writing appears to be Greek, but he could not see clearly enough to read it.

When Adrian exits the cave, he sees some flowers breaking out through the snow. This seems odd, because winter was just coming on when he went in, and there was no snow yet on the ground, let alone any flowers in bloom. He travels back to the village and finds clear signs on the way that it is the very beginning of Spring. He had been inside the regio, he would guess, for much less than an hour, but a season has passed. This did not happen when he and Saverio went in, so he is unsure what the cause might be. Is it because he went nearer the buildings? Because he used traveling magics? Or something else?

Orella and Saverio Visit the Poisonous Cave

Orella reads through all the journal information before going, and has a plan. She and Saverio easily find and enter the cave. Between the two of them casting spells like Chamber of Spring Breezes and careful navigation of the regio, they approach the buildings. There are 3 buildings with Greek lettering around the eaves. Orella immediately recognizes that they are Greek renditions of the Roman temple below Calor Novus (or, perhaps it would be more accurate to say the Roman temple is a rendering of these Greek buildings). Orella makes a careful copy of all the text, and marks it according to which text belongs to which building. After more careful inspection (and driving off a few of the sneaky creatures; turns out they don't like fire much and Arc of Fiery Ribbons seems to do the trick), the pair enter the buildings. Inside they are laid out very similarly to the Roman temple below Calor Novus, with a central pillar and writing along the eaves on the inside. Bas relief examples of the 3 dragons you have seen elsewhere appear here, too, one per building. Behind the buildings there is a fountain with running water. Orella writes down all the text and makes drawings of the buildings and the fountain. There are also some decorations on the fountain she makes rubbings of. During this time Saverio is busily keeping the sneaky creatures at bay. They seem to be increasing in number.

Having discovered all they believe they can, the pair leave the regio. After Adrian's experiences, they are careful to determine year and season. It would seem they have been inside for only a day or so. So it must be travel spells that go awry in the regio.

Having accomplished this part of the task, and having a good bit of the season left, the pair decides to investigate the regio under the Alps where they have seen the dragon carvings. With rubbings of these, as well as the information gathered in the poisonous regio, they believe they can put together some reasonable conjecture.

Orella translates the writings and iconography from the buildings in the regio. It becomes clear each building is a temple dedicated to one of 3 great dragons. The dragons were, purportedly, controlled by Poseidon (or Neptune for those following in the Roman tradition). They were a power he would unleash on mortals when he was angered. Each of the dragons bore a blessing from one of the other gods. The indications are that Rutilus Fervens bore Hephaestus' (Vulcan for our Roman audience) blessing, Kitanetos bore the blessing of Zeus (Jupiter you Romans), and Apollo blessed Garathanor. Based on this information, the images you have seen in various places, and what you know of the dragons, you would guess that Rutilus Fervens is not your dragon. Also, the writing from the eaves is a poetic riddle in multiple parts. It implies that the dragons can only be controlled or defeated by Poseidon's (ok, Neptune's) Trident. This makes sense of the imagery on the fountain, and the fountain itself which is shaped kind of like a triangular 3 pronged trident, especially if you think of the jets of water as the prongs. There is further indication that Poseidon (yes, yes, Neptune) also had another mechanism for controlling the dragons: he knew their names (possibly their true names; the text is not precise).

Further implications are that Poseidon's (Neptune's) realm is some kind of regio and can be entered. Where it is, and how to do it, are not to be discovered here.

Albus Investigates Fighting Dragons (Spring 801)

Albus drops the images gained during Ishamael's quest by Linda. He explains the relevance of the images, as well as their origin. She agrees to look into the matter. Albus explains he must return to the covenant and that she should contact him there. After further research, Linda says she is missing some information, but has found a book that is reputed to contain it. The book is by Heraclitus of Thebes, a one-time student of Democritus. It is entitled “The Natural World”. It is supposed to be a treatise on many aspects of the natural world and how the Gods interact with it. She believes the story of Poseidon (and she is emphatic that it is Poseidon, not Neptune) and the dragons is in the work.

Albus takes this information and flits here and there among people he knows, members of the Order, and so forth to see if he can acquire a copy. He finally is directed to Literatus and told to speak with Fidelis (at Inrisor's suggestion).

Arriving on the doorstep of the covenant Literatus, Albus asks for Fidelis and is invited in. The other magi are unfriendly, but mostly keep to themselves. Fidelis agrees to help, and begins work on finding a copy in the archives. It turns out Literatus has a very large store of books and such, perhaps a hundred.

After a lengthy search, Fidelis returns with what he believes is an Egyptian rendition of a Greek work regarding Heraclitus' work “The Natural World”. The picture on the cover is certainly compelling: a relief of two dragons fighting. Fidelis begins the work of translating. Many days later, he is sharing the results with Albus. One of the other magi, a Criamon, keeps making harrumphing noises during Fidelis' dissertation. Finally, the Criamon interrupts with “where did you learn your Egyptian, boy! That is completely wrong!” Albus, intrigued, asks what the Criamon means. The Criamon gives both a different rendition, and indicates that the work is not a good gloss on the original, which he has read.

Fidelis leaves Albus in the Criamon's hands, and Albus gets the following fable:

“In those days, the dragons were rarely unleashed, and grew restive. Poseidon knew of the discontent, but could not be troubled to do anything about it. Kitanetos and Rutilus Fervens fell to arguing. The argument turned violent, and the dragons latched on to each other and rolled around and around, each struggling with the other for dominance. Though young, they were both still quite large, and villages were smashed flat in their struggle. Wells were poisoned, for Fervens blew Hephaestus' fumes all about him. The fight was ended when they crashed into Poseidon's temple and the fury of Zeus descended, breaking off part of the roof. Poseidon was furious and punished both dragons by chaining them to the earth. He would have killed them, but they were blessed of the other gods, so he dare not.”

Albus, intrigued by the story, prompts the magus for more. “So, what of the third dragon, Garathanor?”

“He is not mentioned in this tale, though he is one of the three.”

“Could each of them breathe fire? Or was that an especial blessing from their patron god?”

The Criamon shakes his head, obviously frustrated. He mutters something that sounds like, “no scholars anymore”. “No. Or rather, yes, each of them could breathe fire. That is inherent to dragons of this sort. It has nothing to do with a 'blessing'. In fact, calling it a blessing is a misnomer. It is not like the church does blessings...” and he goes on for a bit with little of relevance and much of wind. He is somewhat hard to follow, and Albus finds himself wishing Fidelis would return. Once the Criamon winds down, with the gist being whatever the favor of the god was, it had nothing to do with breathing fire, Albus asks “So none of the 3 were blessed by Demeter or Cerces?”

Once again, the Criamon goes off about blessings, and Albus swears to himself he will not make that mistake again. One nugget of value comes of this rant, though. While instructing Albus that Demeter is not actually a goddess of Earth (as in Earth, Air, Fire, and Water), but rather of harvest and fertility, and perhaps Pan (ok Faunus), the god of mountains would be a better fit (blah, blah, blah), he mentions “but that is the first astute question you have asked. Indeed, none bear the favor of Earth, and that, in fact, is how they were purportedly chained to the Earth. As a triad, they have a weakness to quadratic magics, and can be compelled to fill the missing element, whether in the Elementals or other forces of that nature.” He says a great deal more, but it is mostly incomprehensible, and Albus' head is beginning to ache.

Venturing one last foray, Albus asks “Would visiting Poseidon's temple be of use in finding more?” to which the reply is, blessedly, short “It would if anyone knew how to find it. It has been lost under the waves for centuries.”

Fidelis re-enters the hall at that point, and invites Albus to his quarters for a meal. Grateful for the reprieve, Albus readily agrees. Once there, and with a little wine in him, Fidelis suggests that if Albus wants to know more about the dragons and their tales, he might try Byzantium. 'It is risky, because travel is iffy, but the great city has many libraries, and many texts of Greek and early Roman origin.”

Albus goes to Byzantium (Summer 801)

Albus takes a ship to the Great City. The seas are reasonably calm, and the passage is not too tough. Entering the Pearl of the Bosphorus is no less impressive for having seen it before. The sounds, the smells (both enticing and repulsive), the colors: overwhelming. As Fidelis indicated, finding a guide who speaks one of the languages Albus knows proves to be no problem. Giving the urchin the name of the inn Fidelis suggested begins a confusing romp through the avenues of what Albus believes is half the city, the young guide babbling about the various statuary, important buildings, and the like the whole way. The inn is as Fidelis described, and readily accepts Albus' coin. Albus settles in for the night.

Upon rising the next morning, and making his way to the common room, Albus is confronted by the urchin. “Where do we go today, Master?” Albus tries to shoo the child away, but has no luck. It would seem he is stuck with a guide for the duration. Unsure how much to trust Francois (which name Albus finds both amusing and somehow fitting: his own “bodyguard”), he mentions that he is looking for a book and some people. Francois suggests going to one of the places of learning. He asks what kind of book Albus wants. “Dragons” says Albus.

Over the next several days, Albus and Francois visit many places, including some private homes. All with no luck. There are many books, but none of the scholars is who Albus seeks, and none of the scriptoria have a copy of anything like “The Natural World”. During this time, Albus becomes more comfortable with the City, and with how life is here. He is sure there are more dangerous areas, but the one's he seems to be visiting are safe. Safe in a way he has never seen in the Occitan, or in his homeland. He becomes more relaxed, and even develops a rapport with the inn keeper.

With Francois as his constant companion, tour guide, and translator (it turns out the boy speaks Greek reasonably, as well as Frankish), Albus comes to know the place a little better. He is confident traveling on the streets here and there in the quarter of the City where he is staying. He comes to know some of the street vendors, many of the people who frequent the scriptoria, as well as others. Being no novice in games of intrigue, he begins to put together connections between people. As he gains a sense of who he can trust, he begins asking about the people Fidelis suggested he seek out. At first, he has little luck, but eventually his efforts produce fruit. He gets an interview with one of the men from Fidelis' list. The interview goes well, and the fellow (one Flavius) promises to contact him with more information soon. Feeling good, as if he has finally accomplished something here, Albus becomes a little lax. He is hungry, and unthinkingly hands Francois his script (satchel, bag, purse) while he digs out a little money to buy some of the excellent “Steak on a Stake” from one of the vendors he knows. As he is bargaining, he realizes his parma has just been brushed. Whipping his head around, he hears Francois shout “Look out, Master!” A man with a knife in his hand grabs Francois by the hair and slits his throat. Albus reacts as he has been trained, and casts a spell on the man (Winter's Icy Caress). As the man is dying, Albus notes the fellow looks confused. Albus gathers up his satchel, sees that Francois has shaken the mortal coil, and heads away before anyone can ask questions. He forgets his food, but it doesn't really matter: he is not hungry any more.

Puzzling about what occurred, Albus finally decides to go carefully through his script (satchel, bag, purse) and see what is in it. He finds one item he knows is not his. It is a tile with etchings on it. Setting it aside results in his parma being brushed. He tries this a few more times and determines that the item is definitely the source of the attack on his parma. He has no clear idea of what the effect is exactly, nor how or when it came to be in his bag. The City has a powerful Divine aura, and so he has no real way to determine more about the item here. It seems safe enough if he keeps it on his person, so he does.

True to his word, Flavius contacts Albus a couple of days later. Another old fellow is there with him and Flavius introduces him as Gellin, a fellow scholar. The man has an odd way about him that sets Albus' teeth on edge. Gellin, however, proves to be a well of knowledge about “The Natural World”. He knows the tale of the fighting dragons quite well, and embellishes on the account Albus had from the Criamon. It seems the dragons fell out over something called “The Well of Life”. They both believed it would grant length to even their long lives, perhaps even immortality. They would become very hard to kill if they could drink but one drop. The difficulty was finding the Well. They both knew the location, but after each person (or creature) drinks, the Well moves. So they argued over which of them should be allowed to drink. Once the fight was over, and their punishment finished, Kitanetos snuck off the the Well only to find it was gone. He was sure Rutilus Fervens had beat him there.

After leaving the meeting, Albus is sure he knows why Gellin disturbed him. The man has The Gift.

Sylvie reads a Dragon Book

What a phenomenal waste of time. The book Viktor gave you is tedious in the extreme. It goes on and on about things you care little about, with references to dragons from all over the world, but none that is in any way enlightening about which one lives on your mountain.

Then, one day, Orella and Saverio compel you to take part in a discussion about what has been learned regarding the dragon. When Orella describes Poseidon's trident, it seems really familiar to you. Likewise when the tale from “The Natural World” about the dragons fighting (from the contents of a letter from Albus) rings a bell. When the part about “quadratic magics” is mentioned, you know why it is familiar. There are passages in the book about that. You go get the book and find the part that references that.

The gist of the work (which is quite obtuse and difficult to understand) is that quadratic magics are not a kind of magic, but rather a way of working with magic. It relies on the ideas of Contagion (once together, always together) and Sympathy (like produces like). Piecing it together with what you know of how the dragon was trapped, you would guess it is something like this:

The dragon represents Fire
Using that as a basis, the elements of Water, Earth, and Air are related through a connection of base elements
By creating a binding that includes the four elements, the dragon can be forced to be the fourth part of the binding (in this case, Fire)

You do not know how to create such a binding (it is not Hermetic), but it is ritualistic in nature and predates the Order. Perhaps the Cult of Mercury knew how to do it. The value is questionable, though, because the text makes it quite clear, you cannot use the same binding twice (again, because of a variant on Contagion: once broken, always broken). You would have to have a different set of 4 that binds as tightly (or perhaps, more tightly, since the dragon is likely more powerful now).

Taking a more careful look at the book, you note that in this section, there are glosses in the margins (you know, little notes someone other than the author made about the section). The glosses seem to be about the dragon, the bindings, and how the magic worked. Additionally, there is a drawing Orella identifies as a depiction of Poseidon's trident (based on what she saw in the regio near Rome) and a geometric figure that seems to be a square with lines across the diagonals and a small circle centered where the diagonal lines cross. Orella thinks the geometric figure matches the layout of the original bindings with the covenant as the circle and the four points as the four elemental pieces of the binding.

Subsequently, Sylvie decides to re-read some of Garrick of Rhone's notes to get a clearer idea where some of the thoughts about the dragon come from. She is very surprised to find some pages in Garrick's notes that seem to have the same hand as that in the glosses from the dragon book. Comparing them carefully, she is sure the same person wrote the glosses and a couple of the pages from Garrick's notes. The hand is not Garrick's. Going through his notes carefully reveals nothing further.

However, when Sylvie goes to learn the warding spell, she encounters the same hand in some glosses in the margin. The gist of the glosses is a little unclear. There are a set of interlocked circles where the centers of the circles are in a single line (like O-O-O-O, but with the O's overlapped). Next to this is a little drawing that Sylvie finally recognizes as the outer room in the Roman temple below Calor Novus. She is unsure what this means. There is a final note, below the temple drawing, that seems unrelated. The line says: “Araquiel? Shamsiel?”

AlbusSpends More Time in Byzantium (Fall 801)

Albus is more cautious now, but spends more time talking to Flavius. He asks questions about this “Well of Life”. Flavius turns out to know very little Albus has not already heard. So, over a hot drink one afternoon (it is minty and somewhat sweet; odd to drink something hot during the hot part of the day, but when in Rome...), Albus carefully broaches the subject of some of the other people on Fidelis' list. Flavius has heard of one or two of them, but does not know them well enough to make introductions. He is also surprised that a man such as Albus would know them. Upon further discussion, it becomes clear this is because several of the ones Flavius has heard of are quite well respected and live “higehr on the hill”, which Albus determines means “are very wealthy”. And “very wealthy” in this city would be something to see. Albus, surprisingly wisely, drops the subject.

At their next meeting, a few days later, Albus broaches the subject of tiles. Flavius, it turns out, knows a fair bit about this, or claims to. He explains that tiles are often used to curse people, though usually among the under classes. It is quite common with the “colors” (the “colors” Albus knows, is a reference to the very popular sporting events in the city; the different teams of riders/charioteers have different colors or banners and it is somehow related to politics as well). Albus shows Flavius the tile, and Flavius is quite confused. He is quite sure it is not from one of the tilemakers here. When questioned as to why, he indicates he has seen a fair number of them, and this is not like any he has ever seen. He takes Albus to another room in his house, and shows off “the collection”. There are perhaps a hundred tiles arranged in cases around the walls of the room. They are quite varied, but Albus immediately sees what Flavius is talking about. While the tiles all differ, they all have complex designs, and the designs always contain one or more Greek letters. That is nothing like the tile Albus has. After more elaborate description (picture Fred Welch on some favorite hobby-horse; or Linda VanDerHoof) about where this tile was acquired, or where that one was used, Albus retires for the day.

Upon entering his room, he is startled to find he has a guest. The man rises and says, “I think we should speak. Salvate, Sodali”. It is Gellin.

Albus, non-plussed, returns the ritual greeting without thinking. Gellin explains that he has lived in the city for quite some time, and has, in fact, established a small covenant here. The workings are, of course, a bit difficult, but there are compensations. He explains that he heard from Flavius that Albus wanted to know more about the Well of Life. Gellin explains that Flavius seeing them together might raise more questions than would be convenient, but did not want to leave a fellow magus in the cold. When Albus gets around to asking about his parma, Gellin smiles and indicates that he finds, with some, the “aura of mystery and danger” works to his advantage. Flavius is one such.

In the conversation which follows, Gellin makes it clear that Flavius has no real idea about the Order, nor about Gellin's true nature. Gellin would prefer it stay that way. Flavius is useful, but talks too much, and sometimes to the wrong people. “Secrecy is always better,” says Gellin.

Over the next several weeks, Albus finds Gellin a compelling storyteller, as well as full of other knowledge about the Well of Life. To wit:

The Well of Life is a pre-christian thing, is real, and did grant a sort of immortality
Those who drink from the Well heal wounds very swiftly, with no scarring
The Well was rumored to be one of Poseidon's greatest treasures and secrets
Accordingly, the Well has long been hidden, probably by actual creation of some sort of regio

After many long afternoons spent in the company of Gellin, often at a small outdoor bistro (or what passed for one then), Albus arrives a little early one day, to see Gellin talking to a man. As they part, the exchange some odd ritual handshake. Albus decides not to mention this, and watches the other man leave as Gellin takes his place at the usual table. After debating about following the other man, Albus goes and joins Gellin. Albus is distracted by what he has seen, and so does not take in all the tale of that afternoon. Why would Gellin be meeting with someone and sharing a secret handshake? Was the other man a magus, too? Why has Gellin not introduced Albus to others of his covenant? The questions pile up in a jumble in Albus' mind. Ah, well, perhaps it is all the intrigues Albus has been exposed to in the City. Maybe they are making him see things where they are not.

Having put the event out of his mind, Albus spends more time with Gellin, and learns more about the fighting dragons. It would seem there is one, little known, ending to the fighting dragon story.

“According to this obscure tale, the fight between the other two was arranged by the third dragon, who was always tricky. He, too, knew the location of the Well, but knew he could not best the others easily (and he always preferred easy). So he contrived to get them squabbling. Once the fight was in full swing, he was sure Poseidon would take notice, so he made his way swiftly to the Well and drank deep. Upon his return, he had not been missed and the other two were being punished. With a few more clever words, he ensured that each of them thought the other had made it to the Well. Completely pleased with himself, he decided on a new name: Garathanor the Flameheart. And so he has been known since”.

Saddened, but with the full realization that if he is to return before Spring, Albus recognizes that he must take his leave. It takes a few days to arrange for passage, so he gets to say his good-byes to his hosts, but little more is learned. Albus vows he will return to the Great City one day: there is much of interest here.