You wait for the group to pass, then inspect the mast. A strange assemblage has been attached to its base: a cage of glass, mirrors and crystals. This is a magical device, used to focus light and energy around the ship – perhaps powerful enough to render it invisible. You imagine a fleet of unseeable ships approaching Dioscoria, impossible to perceive until they unload a platoon of elite soldiers. You shiver. ·↽✦۞✦⇀· You hurry to the flagship: a towering vessel, heavily guarded. Suddenly you hear footsteps, and watch from the shadows as Karim is led up the gangplank in shackles. He is taken to the back of the ship, into a large cabin. It is the work of a moment to slip into the water and clamber up the hull. ·↽✦۞✦⇀· Once on deck, you survey your surroundings. A set of stairs lead down to the hold, where you see the faint glimmer of torches. You sneak toward the cabin and peer through a window. Torchlight flickers over the faces of two Ottomans: judging from their uniforms, an admiral and captain. ·↽✦۞✦⇀· “I won’t tell you a thing, admiral,” Karim spits. The admiral sighs. “Perhaps not, but your friends are quite talkative. Who was this stranger, so interested in Kösem?” “This changes everything!” the captain hisses. “A stranger, asking questions? If they are Dioscorian—” The admiral narrows his eyes. “Be silent. We stick to the plan. The fleet will be fully equipped by tomorrow evening. Now check on our guests below decks.” ·↽✦۞✦⇀· Suddenly, a glint of torchlight flickers on a device mounted on the wall: a clockwork assemblage of mirrors and crystal, inscribed with a focusing glyph. The control device for the illusion equipment across the fleet.

“Your friend suffers like too many,” says Karim. “Gürcan and I shall help. Come.” The pair lead you to a row of dwellings. On the porch, one has racks for shoes and a bench with clay water pitchers. A crescent and calligraphy mark the wall above the entry. Your guides take you to an adjoining house and knock. As the door opens, out steps a man, his eyes bright and beard greying. An imam, he’s robed in brown with a skullcap wrapped in white: he’s the defender of the boy you saw earlier. The men exchange pious greetings, then Karim presents you, saying, “Respected teacher, this one seeks aid, so I came to your door first.” ·↽✦۞✦⇀·The imam says, “Blessings, Karim.” Looking to you, he goes on, “I’m the caretaker of this house. You’ve been guided here for a reason. Come, let this humble servant know it.” Inside the simple home, you come to know Aarif, the imam, while relating your needs over tea and dates. He tells you of the admiral’s docked flagship, where the prisoners are held, and vows to distract the checkpoint guards with preaching. Arif smiles, “I’ve been detained for this before.” ·↽✦۞✦⇀·As the sun sinks, Aarif gathers others, including Gürcan and Karim. The group head towards the docks, you shadowing them. There, Aarif rails against the corruption of the Sultan and his soldiers, and Aarif’s group rally around him. The commotion soon draws the sentries’ ire, and you slip into the docks. ·↽✦۞✦⇀· Inside the port, you slink towards the enormous flagship, easy to spot in the light of braziers and oil lamps. Before you reach it, though, your skin prickles as you sense magic. Drawn to a nearby vessel, you creep up the planks to the deck. There, you spot two guards flanking a cowled figure who installs a crystalline, mirrored device to the main mast. How do you deal with this situation?