Last updated 2006/2/1.

While the idea of letting memories drift like snow so that only that
which is remembered is deemed important, and the rest lost to time,
I decided to write up the game in summary form anyway.  I may have
gotten things wrong or forgotten bits.

The other players have contributed to this as well, and our words mingle
like snowflakes such that one cannot be told from another.

2006/1/21 First Song of the Tallstar Chronicle

Cera	Lady Altair
		Fate: Star-Crossed Lovers
		Ability: Lore of the Stars
Trip	Sir Al Thalimain
		Office: Last of the Aquili
		Blessing: The Aquila's Greatest Treasure
Carl	Sir Na'ir al Saif
		Office: Circle of the Moonlit Thorns
		Ability: Attribute: Sincere
Neil	Sir Horologii
		Fate: Idea: Blood that Burns
		Ability: Attribute: Persevering

Common Fate is a relationship with Commander Keid (meaning "broken eggshell").

Na'ir al Saif's attribute was almost "Genki" instead of Sincere. :-)
He's a cheerful innocent who is sure everything will work out if everyone
does their best and works together to move forward.

Long ago, the people were dying at the end of the world.

But hope was not yet lost, for Altair still heard the song of the stars.

And so it was that in the highest tower of the remnant of Tallstar,
where Aludra, Best-Loved of the Stars, had long taught the Lady Altair
her Lore of the Stars, Sir Mirfak broke down the door and took Aludra
into custody on the orders of the Senate.  (Aludra's reaction, by the
full moon: "Again?") Aludra's parting words (by the full moon) were
to follow the instructions in the secret compartment, in which Altair
found (by the mistaken's control of the environment) a lovely map of the
stars with instructions to take it to the Seer Lesath in the neighboring
remnant of Southreach.  On the map was a new star, only recently seen.

Altair studied the stars to determine Aludra's fate BUT ONLY IF she
discovered that Aludra will die by the next spring so IT WAS NOT MEANT TO
BE and instead of studying the stars she hurried off to meet her love Vega
for a stroll in the ice sculpture park, deciding to check the stars later.

But hope was not yet lost, for Horologii still heard the song of the stars.

And so it was that the pregnant Electra, niece of Commander Keid,
accused Sir Horologii of creeping into her house and slaying her
husband in his sleep.  Horologii claimed her husband was a demon and he
was performing his duty.  The city guards took Sir Horologii's side but
only if he accepted responsibility for her.  

Horologii agreed, but the guards refused to let him take Electra just
then.  He departed to go to his mother's house, alerted her to the new
houseguest, and then returned to the guardhouse to fetch Electra. There,
his way was blocked by Sir Mirfak, who declared he would not pass.
Sir Mirfak was eager for a fight, but Horologii instead called Electra to
the door so he did not need to enter, making a bitter enemy of Mirfak.
Horologii took Electra to his mother Alcyone's house, and began grappling
with the dilemma of how to deal with the girl. For the time, pity moved
him to not slay her and her child, and he gained an experience check
for not slaying the demon child within her.  (Zeal 3, Light 2).

But hope was not yet lost, for Na'ir al Saif still heard the song of the stars.

And so it was that Sir Na'ir al Saif and his boon comrade, Sir Beid,
both members of the secret Circle of Moonlit Thorns, looked down upon
the great castle swallowed by icy thorns in a hidden crevasse in the
wastelands, and speculated on the legends of the beautiful woman sleeping
within, who none have seen because any who seek her do not return from
the thorns' embrace.  Sir Beid mentioned the legend of a spring whose
waters purify the innocent, and the two sought it out, but found it
already occupied by a watery shape that turned into a lovely maiden.

The maiden of the spring asked them to defeat her champion, the Blue
Knight, before they entered, and Na'ir readily agreed to test his skills
against the Knight's.  After a long battle the Knight is defeated (but
not slain) by Na'ir.  Na'ir and Beid removed their armor and entered the
cold spring, but while Na'ir was battling, Beid fell in love with the
maiden, and remained behind to don the armor and become the new guardian
of the spring.  Na'ir was delighted that his best friend had found love
and a glorious mission to protect that love, and returned to the remnant
with a vial of the precious water.

But hope was not yet lost, for Al Thalimain still heard the song of the stars.

And so it was that Sir Al Thalimain, the last of the Aquili, had revealed
to him by Gienah, the last servant of the Aquili, that he would waste away
and perish like the rest of his family if he did not bathe in a certain
spring, and so they set out together into the wastelands to find that
very spring.  They came across a small hut where Aludra, Altair's teacher,
was hiding, having escaped into the wilderness. She was about to be
recaptured by an "army" (not Knights) sent by the Senate to retrieve her.

And so it was that in the glorious garden of ice sculptures, Altair
strolled with Vega, neither speaking of their love, but were interrupted
by a small child with the same blue hair as Vega, who threatened to tell
on them and ran off into the park.  They heard a scream from that
direction and raced to find the blue-haired moppet in the grip of an
icy sculpture of a Mistaken, awoken from a heroic life-scale diorama,
whose heart had captured the fire of the sun and brought it to life.
Altair pierced its heart saving the child but only if her starlight sword
melted but only if Vega's family in gratitude gave her a sword to replace
it but only if Vega became secretly bitter that his father Aladfar's sword
had gone to her instead of him but only if the sword would protect Aludra
but only if the sword would protect everyone Altair loves, and that was
how it happened.  

Altair replaced her "Star Light Sword" blessing with "Sword of Vega's
Father" and added the fate "Sword of Aladfar protects everyone Altair loves."

And so it was that meanwhile, out in the wastes, Sir Al Thalimain won
Aludra's approval with a glorious speech that did not reach the army's
heart, for "The less we know of the stars the more the Sun rules the sky".
So moved was Aludra that she favored Al Thalimain with a kiss on the
cheek, an unprecedented gesture for one so celebrated for fierce
defense of her chastity.

Al Thalimain bought Aludra time to escape but was grievously wounded
defeating the army, although he took from them the (demonic) burning
golden heart of Senator Scutum, but did not slay the Senator, who had
loaned his heart to Aludra's pursuers and was not present at the battle.

Al Thalimain's faithful servant Gienah bound his wounds and then,
overcome by her emotions or perhaps the heart, took it and ran off
into the wasteland, and he was too weak to pursue.

And so it was that back in Tallstar, Sir Na'ir al Saif reported to
the on-duty Captain of the Watch, who was his older brother Orion (his
Mistaken).  Orion's lieutenant Groomian was also there, as was Na'ir and
Orion's mother, the Senator Alnilam.  Na'ir gave the report of what
happened and Orion inevitably pointed out opportunities for improvement.
Na'ir gave his brother the vial of purifying spring water but Orion
smoothly passed it on to their mother but only if she couldn't dispose
of it and it weighed on her mind.  Orion ordered Na'ir to capture the
fugitive Aludra, wanted by the Senate for crimes Na'ir paid no attention
to the details of.  Na'ir received a silver chain that would point him
towards Aludra, and he set off cheerfully and alone into the wilderness.

(I really liked how the Mistaken worked in "but only if your brother
would have done it better" anywhere she could, and I was very tempted
but did not throw in a "but only if Mom likes me best.")

The silver chain also served to attract nearby Mistaken to Na'ir al Saif
as it lead him towards Aludra, and he happily slew them as he went.
(Here we established that it was early summer, after the spring sieges
have been broken but when the wastes were still dangerous with surviving
Mistaken.)  Some of the Mistaken took the form of beautiful women with
fiery red hair and golden eyes and he fell in love with them as they
fought but slew them anyway because that was his duty.  He reacheed
Aludra but she is in the form of a beautiful woman with fiery red hair
and golden eyes and he raised his sword and that was how it was, cutting
the scene there.

(That led to a nice discussion of whether he deserved an experience
check for callous, or should NOT get one because he showed no sympathy to
Mistaken, and concluded that slaying something you love probably deserved
a roll, which I gleefully took, and rolled a 5, so his Zeal remained at 4.
None of my themes had been exhausted so the refresh wasn't needed.)

And so it was that Sir Horologii 
set out to investigate the mysteries surrounding Electra's
pregnancy, and in her home found the burned remains of a contract
she had made with her demonic husband, written in a code known only to
the two of them ('but only if the evidence is inadmissible in court').
Horology returned to his mother's house. There, he sought out Electra
when she was alone and cajoled the truth of her pregnancy from her.
Her attempt to resist spilling everything drew an "It Shall Not Come to
Pass", and his Zeal and Light of 5 overcame her resistance.

She told him that she had made a contract with the demon-her-husband,
but only if it was to protect Horologii from the Siren of the South, but
only if it was out of love, but only if she no longer loved him. Moved
to grief at having such a confession extracted from her, Electra attempted
to kill herself. Horologii stopped her, but Sir Mirfak (perhaps just
concluding a tryst with the Countess Alcyone) chanced upon the scene
and misinterpreted it as Horologii attempting to murder Electra, the woman
Mirfak loved. Mirfak threatened Horologii, but backed down. However,
the countess discovered the confrontation and ejected Horologii from
the manor for his unseemly behavior.  Electra was left behind in the house.

And so it was that Lady Altair took the map to the neighboring remnant
of Southreach, handily dealing with any perils along the way, and found
her way to the caverns of the Seer Lesath, who "looked not to the stars."
His divinations used the light of the sun reflected and refracted through
icy stalagmites, and shadows cast by the light of flames through ice, and
his voice was the dry whisper of claws rubbing together in the darkness.

Altair held out the star map, which was a thing of beauty and wisdom
with Aludra's notes and lines and those of countless scholars of the
stars before her, to deliver it.  And Lesath BURNED IT to perform his
divinations.  Altair exhausted the Ability theme for her aspect "Lore of
the Stars" for a YOU ASK FAR TOO MUCH so he didn't burn it but instead
demanded she perform a task for him, which she accepted.  So she didn't
hand it over after all because she was too careful, knowing how valuable
its knowledge was. Instead he lectured her on the uselessness of clinging
to outdated knowledge and grumbled that his divination would not be as
accurate without the destruction of something she loved, and told her
to seek out the fallen star and take it her teacher because their fates
were intertwined.  Altair asked for a way to find the fallen star and
Lesath lit several fires and arranged ice and sang lost songs of power
and a flame kindled in the heart of an icy thing that melted into the
shape of a beautiful man, the demon Ra, who Lesath commanded to obey
Aludra and take her to the fallen star.

And so it was that Na'ir al Saif arrived at Aludra's hut in the wasteland
valley with the remains of a great battle all about, and found the
severely wounded Al Thalimain.  (Note that this therefore is taking
place chronologically *before* Na'ir al Saif finds Aludra herself!)
Al Thalimain asked Na'ir al Saif to go after Gienah who had fled into
the wastes with the demon heart and see it safely back to the city.

Na'ir al Saif caught up to her, and she held out the heart in her hands
and agreed to give it up if he would shed a tear on it, whereupon he said
"I have no tears for my fellow knights, but every drop of my blood is
their's for the asking" and drew his starlight sword slashing the heart
in half but only if as his blade touched it he filled with the heart's
sorrow and cried a thousand tears but only if his tears quenched the
heart's flame.

And so it was that Horologii plotted with his squire Cujam and they
devised a cunning plan in which Cujam disguised himself as Horologii
and traveled to the next remnant, Southreach, to provide an alibi while
Horologii disguised himself as Cujam and liberated Electra from his
mother's home without difficulty, taking her to Southreach.

He spoke with her on the road, learning more of her. Learning that she had
made her pact to protect him softened his heart towards her, and inwardly
he vowed to save her life. Mirfak, having pursued the two fugitives from
the countess's house, caught up with them in the wasteland between
remnants and accused the disguised Horologii of conduct unbecoming a
squire. Horologii called his starsword and explained that he was in fact
a knight by besting Mirfak.  The Conflict ended with Horologii bargaining
to move Electra out of Mistaken, into his New Moon.

Cujam was caught for impersonating a Knight in Southreach and imprisoned,
with the penalty being execution.  His trial is to be by combat with
Horologii as his Champion. Altair was chosen as the combatant for the
prosecution since none but a Knight could hope to stand against the power
of a Knight of the Order of the Stars.  Horologii defeated Altair, sorely
wounding her, but they became boon companions, and Horologii agreed to
help Altair with her quest to find the fallen star and take it to Aludra,
wherever she might be.

So Horologii, Altair, and the demon Ra are questing for the fallen star to
take to Aludra, and Na'ir al Saif, Al Thalimain, and Gienah are taking
the cloven demon heart of Senator Scutum along with them to a spring
where Al Thalimain will forestall his doom, then on to help Na'ir al Saif
find Aludra, and eventually to return the heart to Tallstar.

But that all happened long ago, and now there are none who remember it.