Silver Insanity

Komitus trots upwards in a tight spiral. At the second loop off the ground, it simply vanishes. For a few more moments you can hear footfalls in the air above you, but distance and some natural skill at stealth, combined with the background noise of a city, soon render Komitus' presence undetectable.

Several hours of investigation later, and you've found at least some of the information you were looking for.

The chain of events starts off with an unusually large number of kingdoms and city states being thrown into chaos. In a few of these, chromatikin managed to stage successful (and often brutal) revolts - that usually lasted all of a few weeks before neighboring countries sent troops to "calm" the situation. And then heading home to "calm" their own population of chromatikin before a revolt could happen there. This, of course, led to more revolts - and a steady stream of refugees pouring into (comparatively) safe havens such as Targrove.

Worse, the human refugees coming in generally blame all their problems on the chromatikin, and vice versa. It did not take long for the human population of Targrove to start clamoring for stricter controls; an actual watch station in the chromatikin district, and so on. (Nevermind that the human refugees were at least as much at fault for the increased violence...)

So queen Malika held a meeting with the most vocal (and richest) human protestors. It went something like this:
"So, you want the full force of the law to be applied to the chromatikin?"
"Yes!"
"And are you willing to pay for the city watch to be expanded enough to resolve this issue?"
"Um, well, that is... maybe a little..."
"Excellent! Here's the bill. Sign, please."
And then she turned around and declared that Chromatikin were henceforth to be considered full citizens of Targrove, with all the rights, priveleges, and responsibilities thereto appertaining. When challenged, she merely observed that perhaps, if they hadn't wanted the full force of the law to apply, they should have asked for something else.

While this has not been a perfect solution, it has limited the conflict to smaller scale events - such as the vandalism you encountered.

Kiaskurro appears satisfied with the explanation. As he's dealt with aspiring artists in the past, aimless angst is no new phenomenon to him. What interests him is the tales of chromatikin revolting in kingdoms around the world. This, he believes, is a cultural trend worth noting.

Taking leave of the merchants with, perhaps, a few interesting market trinkets in his pocket, he heads towards the Chromatikin district. It's been a long time since he's wandered through Theodin's territory, and decides to do away with his disguise and make his entrance known as a token of respect for the street lord.

Now that you actually have some idea of what you're looking for, the changes are obvious. The chromatikin district looks more prosperous. There are actual guard patrols - not many, true, but the ones that are in here include chromatikin in watch uniforms.

Graffitti is rather more common than it was the last time you were in Targrove; with the combination of more anger and less opportunity to vent anger through violence, it seems some individuals have turned to vandalism instead. You also note a few houses (clearly marked by larger quantities of angry graffitti from all and sundry) where one of the watch's special forces team has taken up residence, so as to be able to respond more quickly to any serious problems.

There's also a new tavern with an angrily lettered sign declaring "Chromatikin Only!", but a surreptitious glance through the open doorway reveals that it isn't as prosperous as the old broken tower tavern you're more familiar with.

Before you can check in on that fine old establishment, however, your progress is interrupted by a slightly nervous mental message from your familiar.
"Um, Boss? There's something... odd... going on a couple houses down. I can't see any details - all the windows are boarded over - but there's an awful lot of magical energy now, where there wasn't any before. It's like somebody cast a disjunction in reverse or something."

Kiaskurro's eyes light up with curiousity as he sends a message back in response, "Continue to observe. I am coming." He glances up briefly to where Komitus is following him invisibly before turning around, making his way back home.

As he nears, he makes use of the anonymous traveling kobold disguise.

When you finally round the last corner to your home street, you can see that it's deserted. And you can feel why; there's an almost tangible pressure of magical energy that even someone completely mundane could sense. And without some practice at dealing with such energies, they'd quickly get a headache and find themselves heading elsewhere.

Above you, Komitus flickers and drops a startled few feet, even as your own illusion spell wavers under the magical pressure. Komitus quickly rejoins you on the ground, its invisibility and even its normal illusion dissolving in the next wave of power.

"Maintaining even a single active spell in this environment will significantly impede my available reaction time. As such, following inconspicously is no longer a viable option," Komitus says, with obvious annoyance.

Kiaskurro nods distractedly at Komitus' comment, the intense magical energy and its effect on his illusory disguise taking up most of his attention. He carefully approaches the boarded up house, observing it from the outside and attempting to discern more about the magical pressure based on his knowledge of spellcraft and arcana.

As Kiaskurro gets closer, he sends a message to his familiar, "Fly up and scout the building from all angles. Search for alternative entrances and exits."

There's nothing you've ever encountered before like this - but it there are definite similarities to some things you've read about.

First, this sort of effect could be caused by the destruction of a particularly powerful second age artifact (or possibly something crafted by a deity). Though to achieve this duration, they'd have to have smashed at least a half-dozen such items by now.

Second, it could be indicative of a planar portal to some particularly volatile region. While a portal generally keeps the environments on each side separated... if somebody were to, say, open a portal into Tycho's throne room, you might get an effect such as this. Of course, you'd also get demonic hordes sweeping out over the city, which doesn't seem to be the case here - but Tycho's insane; perhaps he's pausing for a nice cup of tea before unleashing his wrath.

Or third, it could be somebody playing around with Wish (or presumably Miracle) and trying to achieve results far beyond the normal parameters of even those mighty spells.

The house itself is a fairly ordinary looking two story wooden house. There's a single front door on the right hand side, with a pair of boarded over windows to its left. The second story features three more windows that have suffered the same treatment. One more such sealed aperture is set into the peaked roof above. Aside from the windows, however, the place is in good repair - and, miraculously, graffitti free.

Your familiar responds with a mental grin. "Way ahead of you, boss. Three doors; one in front, one in back, and the third one on the back side of the roof. No wards left on any of them; any magic there might once have been about the house itself has been stripped away by this point. There might still be mundane locks or traps, though, and there could be subterranean exits I can't detect."

Kiaskurro whips his scarf back and pats Komitus' shoulderplate, positioning himself to get on top. He remarks in Draconic as he mounts, "Sealed window on the roof. Let's come in from above."

He also sends a mental order to his familiar, "Stay outside and keep watch. This won't go unnoticed for long."

Kiaskurro briefly sets ups dancing lights in front of the door, an experiment to determine the effect the area is having on his casting ability. If all goes well, he then shields himself and his cohort with a Mind Blanks, a possible safeguard against the dangerous magical forces at work within the house and to stop anyone from scrying on his entrance.

Casting such a simple spell, even under these conditions, is trivial. Maintaining it is only slightly trickier; now that you have some idea of what you're dealing with, you can be certain of at least a few minutes of functioning.

Mind blanks securely in place, then, Komitus heads for the roof - slightly clumsily; it's clear that your companion is not quite so adept at adjusting spells on the fly.

Halfway there, however, the energies around you abruptly fade.

Kiaskurro lets out a sharp hiss of surprise and hangs tightly onto Komitus' neck, bringing all his concentration together in trying to weave a featherfall enchantment.

Failing that, he attempts to activate the wings on his back.