The aged yet unbowed figure took his place at the podium, and the chamberlain stood aside, giving him the floor. With great care, the mobian adjusted his reading glasses, and gazed out at the Grand Convocation of Traditions. He took a deep, wavering breath, and shuffled the notecards he had brought with him.

"...Members of the Grand Convocation. It is with great concern that I stand before you today, and ask that you hear my words, and act. Many believe that the signing of the Durnwyn Accord in Mobotropolis a few months from now, will finally secure peace between us, and that centuries of hostility and conflict will finally end. I warn you against complacency."

The speaker paused for breath, and a murmur of discontent began to grow in the meeting chamber. Undeterred, the speaker glared out at his audience from above his glasses, which had begun to droop to the point of his nose.

“A dark spectre looms before us with the signing of the unification pact between the member Conventions of the Order of Reason. They are now a power equal to the Council, and pose an ominous and real threat to our very existence.”

In the room, the murmur had grown to a dull roar, and now individual voices made clear their opinions of him. “Liar!”

”Liar!”

The speaker pressed on relentlessly. “This is no idle warning, members of the Grand Convocation. This is a reality...” Despite speaking into a microphone, and the meeting chamber being shaped like a giant amphitheatre, his voice was drowned out by outright shouting and booing. A few shouts of “Traitor!” could be heard over the din.

It took a few desperate seconds of the chamberlain banging a gavel at his seat before the room was quiet enough for the speaker to resume. “Since the first Grand Convocation of Traditions, the Council has maintained a free and open society for those with mystical talent and for those who Sleep throughout the world. We have gone far beyond our dreams and achieved great things.” There was a short-lived span of applause, as some members believed he had wisely stepped away from his damning speech, but as he continued, the discontent returned. “But, we are overextended and vulnerable. While the Council has focused all its efforts and minds on the shepherding of our charges, and the infighting that has sprouted up from time to time, the Order of Reason has sought to consolidate under a ruthless and totalitarian regime.”

The sounds of booing, and angry, incoherent shouting returned. The speaker began to feel desperation as he realized the direction this was turning. Only a few at this Convocation would even consider his message, if at all. Regardless, he knew couldn’t stop now, and he pressed onward.

“Over recent decades, we have appeased nations that allow the Order to propagate: the very Order who has sought to rewrite the Consensus and undermine the core systems of belief in the Masses we are supposed to protect. Lest we forget, this Consensus is the very foundation of the Council itself. In our hubris, we have conceded both mystical and mundane assets to the Order, and I say we have conceded too much!”

The din in the meeting hall now threatened to drown the speaker out, and the chamberlain seemed to have sided with the audience, as he made no effort to regain order at this meeting.


“I warn you, we must act now and with due haste, and prepare ourselves for the coming of a great conflict. A great war...!”

The meeting chamber finally erupted in cacophony and enraged pandemonium.

Not only has the day started off weird, but in your last chemistry class your professor surreptitiously left a leather-bound book by your belongings. The cover of the book held three titles; the first was a written in a flowing, foreign script -- Arabic, was it? -- under which seemed to be a romanized translation of the script: "Kitab al-Alacir." The third line was written in plain English, identifying the book's title as the "Book of Ether." When pressed, the professor had insisted that you borrow it to 'enhance your studies and stimulate your inner Genius.' Not that any college professor would mind seeing his students pass, but this book seemed a bit... out of the ordinary, as study materials go. Moreover, he hadn't seen fit to award anyone else in the class with a copy of the book. Just you. You also still have it with you.

Empire City's "Battle of the Bands" event had won you the coveted reward; opening for Mina the Mongoose and her band, Kalarishi. The radio had crowed about it for a week or so, but as the date for the concert drew closer, even the particular commercial bit about the contest faded off. It was fine in the long run: opening for Mina's concert tonight would remind everyone of who that winner is.

Speaking of... In the beginning, the only thing discussed was your band's attendance at the concert. They never said anything about backstage passes, but last night they had contacted you. The opportunity for Yo'chi to bring some friends backstage to meet with Mina was suddenly available, pro bono and without restriction. Mina and the rest of her band would be there before the start of the concert, and Yo'chi (and those he brought with him) would be able to hobnob with the international pop star. What luck!