This episode carries content warnings for discussion of kidnapping. In the city of Harborview, on the world of Saboria, a group of Ashen refugees tried to make new lives for themselves. In the process, they connected to the history of their people—the ancient Hypha—and rediscovered an ancient art: the creation of strati. This was all it took for the Pact of Necessary Venture to close the snare around them. Now it falls to a group of incongruous and infighting pilots to stand against the Pact, get the strati to safety, and forge a future for the Ashen. This week on the Road to PALISADE: Lancer Pt. 2 Records Recovered from the Divine, Arbitrage Factions Hypha & Ashen: The former were a culture of galactic nomads, guided by a paranatural force called the Strand which they could commune with using technological devices built into their antlers. The latter are their descendants, their routes broken by the Principality’s expansions and occupations, their culture ripped from them.  Stel Columnar: Famously “courted” by the growing Principality many generations ago, this nation of humanoid synthetics traded freedom for the prestige and security of the Principality. They hid behind imperial walls and pursued the Future, pushing boundaries not only in technology, but in art, commerce, and war. I suppose I can call them cousins, but not with much fondness. Today, they share righteous screeds and fight for the return of something like democracy as part of the Pact of Necessary Venture. What a comedy.  The Curtain of Divinity: For generations, the Curtain of Divinity operated in the shadows of the Principality, partly as intelligence agency, partly as shadow government. Now they have been dragged into the daylight, and serve as one of the two ruling factions of the whole Principality. Though there are some divisions along questions of secularity, humanism, and cultural taste, in general, leaders of the Curtain are conservative, traditionalist, and nationalistic. They seek the reunification of all five Stels and the permanence of the Divine Principality. Led, in public at least, by Cynosure Whitestar-Kesh, the Peaceful Princept. In fact, the Curtain has five divisions, each led by a ruthless individual known only by a codename: Silk (diplomacy), Damask (research & inquisition), Lace (military), Linen (economics), and Gabardine (espionage and collaboration). The Pact of Necessary Venture: As their (current) name suggests, the Pact began as a cooperative exploratory committee founded in the late 14th Century of the Perfect Millennium. They sought new territory to conquer, breaking an old taboo in the process, and inviting destruction and fracture. Which is appropriate, as their vision for the future is one where each Stel is granted more autonomy and independence—some even claim that they would see the Principality utterly destroyed and replaced by a loose affiliation of free states.  Despite this, the Pact are no radicals: While they want more independence from the Principality, they have little interest in shaking up the internal power structures of the Stels themselves. After all, their founders were all Elects, and though only two remain (Gallica, elect of the Divine Present, and Rye, elect of the divine Space), they are led by Dahlia, who serves as both Apokine and Glorious Princept. Persons Zark “Banjax” Vapor (he/they): Mechanic, Harborview contractor, and pilot of the Ill Portent Teasel “Derby” Fauna (he/him): Entertainer, sharpshooter, and pilot of the Dressage. Narmine “Ketch” Te’ketch (he/him): Former two-bit criminal, current whaler, and pilot of The Captain. Martilla “Journeyman” Häske (she/her): Professional soldier, Pact true-believer, and pilot of the Under the Radar. Kaliope Flow (she/her): The de facto leader of Harborview. Zeke Minuet (he/him) & Deanthe (they/them): A pair of researchers into ancient Hypha culture. Dirwin, Elaina, Stas: Strati that had been kidnapped by the Pact of Necessary Venture from Harborview. Now resc