The World Kiln

It is the assumption of many, for indeed, the stories as they are retold in such a manner, that only warriors head to the field of battle. The knights and guards of the Kingdoms, enforcers of the Empires, and even the scrap-metal monsters and otherworldly malevolences who exist beyond humanity. Upon deeper consideration, it becomes apparent that it would be negligent for so much to be invested into these forces, only for them to be left to their fates without support. It is, therefore, that for each of these groups there is an assembly of other groups whose duty it is to aid and support them. The Northern Kingdoms At all times, during peace and times of conflict, the famed knights of the Northern Kingdoms are shadowed by their squires and attendants. The majority of these individuals are either aspiring not-yet-knights, who will remain in the position temporarily to gather experience before the trials to ascend to knighthood, or permanent retainers that have served the knightly orders ...

  Per their longstanding agreement with the city of Anvillon, the Noinette clan are required to send an annual tribute of nanocomponents, their most valuable export, equal to no less than five-percent of their total ouput for that year. In return, they bear the favour of Anvillon whose mark of approval has established them as the provider of choice across much of the continent and their goods a standard worth paying for.   It was on one such year that a horde of ironbeasts began to rampage across a section of the southern tradeway, which forced many merchants and suppliers to take the long diversion to reach the safer western route to the city. The leaders of Noinette chose otherwise, for they saw no point in spending additional time and expense on a act they were already providing for free. The terms of their contract only required that tribute be sent, not received: if the rulers of Anvillon wanted their tribute so badly, then they could expend the effort themselves.   ...

  "What are they arguing about?"   Robbest had moved to stand next to June in the gathered crowd, picking her out from the assembly of armoured figures by the star insignia etched into her shoulderpad. On the far side, a troop of the local guard were assmbled in neat ranks with their officers picked out by individual pieces of plate armour on top of the matching leather armour they unanimously wore. Robbest and June stood among the ranks of the knights across from them, in a loose formation as the spectacle between the two groups unfolded.   The two figures upon whom their attention was centred were still debating back and forth in a steady crescendo. The guard captain jabbing with pointed fingers and pacing intermittedly while the acting-commander of the knights remained almost totally still but for the turn of his head, legs planted and arms folded as a statue unwilling to be swayed, but his voice carrying the weight of such stone.   According to the briefing, this...

  The sky-galleon descended silently through the cloak of night. Invisibly, in the dark, the gravity sails atop its deck relaxed into a flat sheet as their buoyant force lessened. As it drew close towards the ground, a stabbing light shot out from a point towards the prow and swivelled from place to place as an observer began picking out points on the debris-strewn ground.   As the ship touched down, three smaller dots of brightness emerged, and then dropped a few feet from a ramp that had opened out on the port side, stopping their fall at about head height. The bobbing lights became identifiable as individuals as the moved away from their landing point and split up to survey the imminent surroundings. In the collective illumination scattered from their head-mounted torches, the shapes of implements they were holding could just about be made out from the gloom. Without clearer sight, this equipment could have been mistaken for some other, more vicious, purpose, but these tool...

  In the four days since Gideon had returned to the city, he had spent much of that time in deliberation. The debriefing on the day of his arrival has been underlined by an unexplained sense of tension, as if there was a dangerous secret unknown only to him, or worse, that he had unknowingly made some terrible mistake during the unexpected course of action he had been forced to take. His superior asked only one question, about the tome that Gideon had confiscated from the mad noble, and seemed satisfied by Gideon's response that it made no sense to him. Despite his worries, or perhaps because of what he feared, Gideon did not give voice to his own concerns and headed back to the barracks still bearing them. His mood remained grey for most of the subsequent days and he spent much of this time solitarily, poring over archictectural diagrams and territorial maps as much to distract himself as to keep his skills as a castellan from waning.   On the fifth day after his return, he r...

  The young acolyte stands just before the southern gate of Old Breta. He has spent much of the past week seated inside an automaton-driven carriage, along with a number of wealthier, returning travellers, with his passage earned by a recommendation from the local repair chapel of his hometown as a substitute for his meagre funds. Over the coming days, he will make efforts to seek out a mentor whose tutelage can guide him higher into the circles of techno-occultism, but for this moment his fate lies in the hands of the gatekeepers.   As is routine, they have taken the electro-mechanical device he carried with him - a personal creation which is both proof of his study and his most valuable possession - to confirm its safety and ownership before issuing the appropriate license as proof for the city authority. Although the newcomer maintains a reluctant optimism that the guards will take care with their examination, he cannot help but fidget nervously until it is returned undamag...

  In the vicinity of the Bridge of Grimwater, there is one building complex, shrouded in the corroding mist, which stands apart from the rest. This is the base of operations of the enforcer-clan known as the Gloom Mongers, and from here they co-ordinate their defence of the region and wider mercenary activities throughout the world. The facility encircles grimwater pool 14-M, to which the enforcers have been loaned free and exclusive access, in return for their services in protecting the Bridge and its citizens from outside threats.   The combatative arm of the Gloom Mongers are much the same as those found in any of clan of enforcers. The majority arm themselves with laser blasters of varying kinds and rely on their shield emitters for protection rather than physical plating, with the majority that they do utilise being reserved for use in conjuction with the heaviest armaments in their arsenal. The true power that has earned the clan their infamy is housed within . Beyond th...