Reforge

>Nobody will be able to take you seriously without the coat.

Well of course! You had a new one fetched for you.

Don't be completely open, but otherwise try to match the tone they're aiming for. Definitely insist on knowing why they came to your room before anything real starts.

What draws your eye when the pair scuttles into the hall you’ve arranged is him- and how on earth could he not? The Sword-bearer is renowned the world over, the most successful and popular adventurer of the modern age- quite the celebrity. You wonder where the rest of his retinue is? He has this sort of band of sidekicks that he travels with, but he’s alone now. As he approaches he pulls off a flawless bow in the local style- He even got the depth exactly right. He has all the poise and charm you’d heard of.
… you might have owned some merchandise when you were younger.


But that ownership has been past tense since he formed a partnership with Four Corners, the traitor!

The rather disreputable-looking mage with him, for her part, blatantly doesn't even try to get it right. From the way her darting eyes glare at the Swordbearer as they bow, you get the distinct impression that he had to talk her into doing it. Apparently she's named 'Morgan'- which, who doesn't give a family name? Ridiculous.


Donnella: What business brings you to Edison?
You already know the answer, but that’s the best kind of question.
The Sword-bearer: Providence upon you, Firstborn. Put simply, we’ve travelled here to inquire as to the identity of the god that seems to have emerged not far from here earlier this morning.
Donnella: And what, exactly, does a summoning on Edison soil have to do with you? You can't possibly keep pretending that's what this is about. Edison maintains relationships with many powerful spirits-
Morgan: Not like this you don’t.
Did she just interrupt you? Who- wait a second is she implying Four Corners knows which gods Edison is in contact with because-

Morgan: Let’s not fuck around here. This was the largest recorded magical event.
There’s a silence that extends just a touch too long as you realize she’s apparently not finishing that sentence.
Donnella: In…?
Morgan: No qualifiers. Far as recorded history goes anyway.
A slow, crooked smile stretches across her scarred face as she says it.
Morgan:… so you can see why folks have taken a particular interest in what you’ve got on your hands.
Out of the corner of your eye, you note your Secretary of Magic hesitate for a second before signaling you with a covert hand signal- tentative confirmation. Well. Fuck.
The Sword-bearer: Firstborn, if I may- whatever emerged today is extraordinary, seemingly unprecedented… but there are six and one forces that, while plainly not accessible to direct observation, could bring that degree of power to bear based on theoretical predictions.
Hold on. Can he actually mean-?
The Sword-bearer: I humbly beg of you to answer… has Edison been in contact with one of the High Gods?


The silence slinks back again as all present take a moment to digest that.
To allege- ignoring for the moment that Four Corners is now claiming to have a theoretical framework for predicting the size of the High Gods- that this Prism Beast has power rivaling the divinities directly credited with creating the universe?
If only a fraction of that is true… how are you going to fight this thing? Could these Cursed Ones really act on their desire to remake the universe?

The Sword-bearer: Please.
Genuine emotion distorts his impeccable manner for the barest fraction of a second. Desperation? Longing? Whatever. You made a decision to work with your enemy for the time being, to play nice for as long as they did. Time to follow through.

Donnella: This is... not one of the Six. It’s something else- a powerful spirit that eludes our knowledge, apparently accompanied by a host of highly competent servants. They are hostile, dangerous, and by their own admission seek to position their spirit as the sole power in the cosmos.

The Sword-bearer: …I see. Then you seek our assistance in dealing with these beings?
Donnella: We may...
ooooooh you don't want to finish this sentence
Donnella: deciiiiide to...
forming the words is like trying to fit your mouth around the table in front of you.
Donnella: Negotiate. Some sort of a deal.
And instead of any kind of relief once you get them out, there's only a cold writhing settling into your stomach. The Sword-bearer, for his part, carries on bright as ever.

The Sword-bearer: Very well! We'll need a sense of what we're up against, then- let us discuss details. Of what elemental nature is this god? What do you know of its followers and their number? Of the methods it intends to pursue its goal?

You’re ready to fill them in, but you hesitate slightly.
You could bring up your suspicions that Cyan’s magic was not elemental in nature- frankly you’d half convinced yourself that you were somehow mistaken, but now… one of the High Gods' divine aspects is their transcendence of the elements. If this Beast truly is comparable to them in terms of raw strength, could it also be comparable in this transcendental nature? Even if it could, would it be able to somehow pass that power onto its servants? You might want to present the possibility now… it unfortunately seems less absurd than it did just minutes before.

But more than that, as far as its goals, you know one peculiar thing in particular: it apparently needs you, specifically, on its side- or at least it wants you in general, given how readily ‘recruitment’ became ‘kidnapping’. Should you mention this? On one hand, it’ll be just a bit important to your strategy for proceeding. But it could also get… dicey, if people knew that this evil god’s servants were looking for you- that seems like something that would reflect poorly on your image, and that’s not mentioning the possibility of betrayal. What's more, it seemed like your Vizier knew something about it, but kept it hidden from you, which you're honestly still processing. But perhaps making the knowledge public would force them to share what they know?

ANShow

Real And Canon Facts: The Sword-bearer has the top background of panel 4 airbrushed on the side of his van lmao

Anyway this turned out really exposition-y I guess, and even the choice here at the end is basically a matter of bookkeeping. TBH that first blurb re: non-elemental magic I just threw in as an afterthought cause I realized it'd be unreasonable for this not to remind her? But otoh, who knows what IS p important to decide and keep track of.

I don't even knowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww