- Natasha leads a shadow-walking contingent with Caelin, Tate, and
  Carolan heading toward House Moonlight. Caelin is surprised to be
  there already, possibly since he was distracted while talking to
  Carolan.  Natasha points out that they just walked past Chaos a
  little while ago.

- Kintani is outside Pride's Folly (still blucited, but with a hole)
  with the Serpent's Apprentice, Dalkantyr, Doom the Fringe Dragon,
  and a Jean.  Dragons need: minions.

  The Serpent's Apprentice keeps Ubermjolnir between his cheek and gum
  to protect it from the sea of chance.

- Kintani suggests creating a Serpentish minion - that guy who created
  a Fringe Dragon without being Fringy or Dragony is a good
  candidate. Ilk contacts Princess Chandra, who informs Ilk that -he-
  is the minion.  Princess Chandra suggests that what Ilk is looking
  for is a 'flunky'.

  Ilk and Princess Chandra discuss Serpent power and what it would do
  to minions - apparently Serpent-power causes the aggregation of
  material, which is why Ilk has to scrape off every so often in the
  sea.  A flunky wouldn't have the momentum to avoid just falling
  over.

  Princess Chandra is mildly surprised that Ilk doesn't accrete
  material in non-Serpent form. Eventually, she volunteers her
  apprentice as a flunky.  Ilk is chagrined (and astonished) at having
  forgotten Zorro.  Ilk accepts the loan of Zorro, and goes looking
  for him.
  
- Caelin and Carolan discuss shadow-shifting as they walk along.
  Carolan would like to find a way to get someplace he hasn't been
  before.  They speculate about Carolan's ancestry, and decide that
  shape-shifting probably precludes Amberite ancestry.  Caelin and
  Natasha admit that there may be other ways of shadow shifting, but
  they don't know it.

- The shadow-shifting crowd gets to House Moonlight.  The person at
  the front door is still gone, having scarpered off when Pharaban
  arrived.  Tate goes back to the lab to exercise, Natasha goes to the
  House Second to brief him, and Carolan wants to ask the Archvist
  just what records he has access to.

  Natasha points Caelin toward the ladies-in-waiting to make sure the
  invitation list was complete and so that he can choose flowers.
  Carolan points out that his family will need to be invited.

- Ilk searches for Zorro, expecting to fail.  He finds Caelin.
  Confused, he tries again - Caelin again.  Ilk talks to Caelin, who
  is very clear about not having done anything. Caelin tells Ilk that
  Tate went back in the Lab to exercise with Zorro.  Caelin goes back
  to the lab to check, and Ilk's tendril gets cut off at the lab door.

- Caelin enters the lab, where there are signs of debacle.  Tate is
  screaming his head off and trapped upside down by a tentacle, and
  Zorro's apprentice seems to be seriously injured.

  Caelin goes back outside and complains loudly at Ilk.  Shortly
  thereafter, a rubbery tentacle phases through the wall and wraps
  around Caelin's waist and drags him into the room.

  Caelin conjures scissors to cut the tentacles, and the scissors
  skitter off without finding a purchase.

- Ilk checks the wards on the lab - it's Zorro's signature, and it's
  blocked against just about everything.

- Caelin tries to freeze the tendrils.  Caelin fails.

  Caelin conjures a note in the Archivist's office asking for help.

- In the Archivist's office, Carolan, Natasha, and the Archivist see a
  giant burning "HELP!" appear.  Instantly, they know it's Caelin -
  because it's asking for help but offering exactly no useful
  information.  Carolan conjures back the image of a burning bush and
  the message "What the fuck?"

  Caelin conjures back - "traps in Zorro's lab!"  The crowd wanders
  down to the lab.  Ilk creates a viewscreen in the hall outside the
  lab and displays the image of Caelin being grabbed and dragged.
  Carolan very much wants this to be shown at the wedding.

  Natasha starts handing out bottles of conjured hot sauce.  She gives
  one to Carolan and tosses one to Caelin.  Caelin levitates his
  bottle and cracks it.  Hot sauce goes everywhere - if it hits
  Caelin, it -really burns-.  If it hits the tentacle, that part
  hisses and turns black.  If it hits parts of Zorro's lab, it does
  property damage.

  "It has a pour spout for a reason!" offers Natasha.  Natasha tosses
  a second bottle at Caelin.

  Caelin looks at the bottle - there's a picture of a rooster and some
  strange characters.  He pours the second bottle on the tentacle.

  Tate goes unconscious.  Carolan goes over to cut him free from the
  tentacles holding him.  Tate twitches back into consciousness at
  precisely the wrong moment, and loses a hand but is only held by one
  tentacle.  Tate tries to beat his way out, and fails.  Carolan tries
  to cut the other tentacle, and the tentacle twitches.  A handless
  Tate runs out of the room at speed, and is snagged by Ilk.

  In the lab, the tentacles have grabbed Tate's hands and are filling
  into a Tate-shaped form.

  Carolan's ankle is grabbed by a tentacle.  He tries to cut it, but
  his weapon skitters off.  "Oh well, you asked for it."  Carolan
  uncaps his bottle and shakes it on the tentacle.  Sizzling happens.

- Ilk does some tracing and finds a large tentacular thing under House
  Moonlight, in the Sea.  It looks like it could be Pharabanish.  It
  wants "FOOD.  SQUISHY.  SOFT." Ilk offers to find it better food.
  It follows Ilk's tendrils, dragging both Caelin and a Tate-shaped
  mass.

- Ilk shares on the viewscreen in the fleshy nodule shadow.

- Caelin tries to supersize himself magically, but runs out of power
  after simply doubling. He is confused - until he realizes he's in
  the Sea.

- Carolan steps out of the lab and sees the viewscreen.  Carolan is
  amused.

- Ilk looks for a thriving city, something Neotokyoesque, and points
  the tentacular thing at it.  Excited, it drops Caelin and runs
  toward its new (less resistant) food source.

  "So, do you want to let Pharaban know you're around?"  "HUNGRY."
  "Right."

  Caelin is still out of magic.  He realizes that he didn't test his
  magic after leaving the trap shadow.  Ilk tries to take Caelin to
  House Moonlight, but Caelin wants to get back to the trap.  To get
  his magic back.

- Ilk brings Caelin back to the trap shadow - it's sealed with Realms
  Mage tape.

  Caelin admits to not being sure his magic is actually in the
  shadow. Ilk decides not to break Ferethyn's wards just yet.

- Ilk splits the viewscreen in the hallway in half to continue
  tracking the tentacled thing. 

  Elsewhere, the tentacular horror seems to have come across a
  problem.  There is a young lady wielding Greyswandir.  It's not
  Deirdre - Deirdre's not that clumsy. Ilk shares with the fleshy
  nodule crowd.

- Caelin finds Zorro's apprentice (who is still unconscious and
  bleeding) and brings him out into the hallway.  Carolan starts
  healing him.

- Ilk checks the Sea - there is a blob of Caelin magic.  Kintani says
  "Look! A minion!"

  Ilk checks with Princess Chandra about shaping Caelin's magic into a
  disposable minion, but she points out that Caelin's magic is already
  shaping itself.  Into something dragonish.  Oh, Black Councilish.
  Ilk grabs the magic and stuffs it back in Caelin. Caelin forgets why
  this might be a bad idea just after the magic comes back in.

  Carolan realizes that his healing attempts are failing.  Caelin
  tries to fix the apprentice, but he's too real to affect.  Carolan
  starts mundane first aid. Ilk tries to weld some blood vessels and
  fails - the kid's reality is resistant to this.  Ilk realizes the
  kid is more real than Zorro. Ilk also realizes he has no idea where
  Zorro found this kid.

- Zorro rides back in, having found the coloring book for his
  apprentice.  Zorro is confused.  Ilk replays what he saw. Caelin
  fills in the rest with some assertive guesswork.

  There is some discussion - the general consensus is that the
  tentacled thing is not powerful enough to have caused the damage to
  Zorro's apprentice.

  Caelin is placed back on a leaf for a few moments, and still not
  given a chance to make a threat of his own.  Bickering happens.
  There is consensus that Caelin should not eat kraken, although
  Kintani does arrive and drops off a chunk of kraken.  Kintani hunts
  for Max's daughter, and determines that she's still moving at speed
  and is definitely not Zorro's apprentice.

- Ilk influences Zorro to go hunt the Alcalde in the Pride's Folly.
  Zorry asks Kintani for a lift. Kintani fails to pouch Zorro, and
  flies to Pride's Folly with Zorro riding him. Ow. Spurs.

- Cagliostro notes Zorro climbing into the reality (via the Ilk
  telescreen), and asks Princess Chandra if they should shut the
  defenses down.  Princess Chandra says that Zorro is having fun, but
  does admit it will be wise.  Cagliostro asks Johnny1 and/or Johnny2
  to shut down the defenses.  They do so.

- Zorro declares victory (because the enemy has obviously fled), and
  returns to his apprentice, who is still unconscious.

- Ilk leaves a note at House Pharaban that one of his potential
  relatives is at thus-and-such-a-place in Shadow.

- Caelin asks Ilk why the creature was in Zorro's Lab - Ilk checks,
  and determines that the lab is a soft place because Zorro keeps
  going in and out of the Sea.

- Dalkantyr, seeing that the defenses are gone, dives into Pride's
  Folly.  Ilk makes a token objection after Dalkantyr disappears..

  Ilk and Kintani discuss what to do about the machine, and whether or
  not it's a pole (and therefore structural) or can be safely
  destroyed.  There is speculation that it's logic, an opposite pole
  of emotion. Ilk checks the powers in the promontory - most things
  are off in most places, but back on in the lab.

- Ilk sends in a red eye, the color of malediction, floating spirits,
  and the Jewel.

- Elsewhere, Johnny3 has found his quarries.  They are in the same
  place, but are not not in one piece per person.  There is a vaguely
  bacta-ish tank with Malcolm in it - it doesn't seem to be dissolving
  him, nor healing him.

  Kaylee has a pressure bandage around her the bottom of her upper
  half, and seems to be missing her lower half.  On top of the bacta
  tank is what seems to be an ice sculpture of Zoe's head and spinal
  column. River is helping to hold Kaylee's innards in while Kaylee
  works on the tank.

  Kaylee looks at Johnny, looks at the Ifrit, and faints.  The bacta
  tank starts to fall apart.

  Johnny3 talks to the Ifrit about bringing in Cagliostro.  The Ifrit
  trumps Cagliostro, and gives the Count a view of the area.  The
  Count has the Ifrit talk to River, who passes through the three
  mangled crew members and comes through herself.

  River says that they were in such pain, and seems somewhat
  unfocused. Cagliostro suggests that she sleep, but she's not doing
  well. Whatever Random did to her is wearing off. Cagliostro conjures
  another dose of the meds, and administers it.  It still works, but
  not as well as the first dose.

  River asks the assembled Ifrit to tell her brother that she's fine,
  and passes out.

- The Ifrit regroup around Johnny3 to shield, and head back to the
  Assassin's Guild with Johnny.

- When Ilk checks into the lab, he sees that Dalkantyr is stuck in a
  net of raw power.  The net seems to be anchored to the reality
  itself.

- Zorro's apprentice regains consciousness, sees the coloring book,
  and scurries into the lab and fetches his crayons.  Kintani compares
  the kid's Kintani passes that information to Orm, who tells Kintani
  about alternate realities.

- Ilk checks with Johnny1 and 2 - are there are any defenses active?
  "No."  "Are you sure?"  "I just deactivated them."  "Why don't you
  check?"  Johnny checks, and finds out that Dalkantyr defenses 1 and
  3 are activated.

  "Query - Dalkantyr explusion?" "I'M SORRY, JULIAN, THAT IS NOT
  WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE REALITY ENGINE."

- Query other Dalkantyr defenses?  "1 THROUGH 11". There's a warning
  after Dalkantyr 11 - use only in EXTREME danger!  Dalkantyr 7
  appears to assume there's a fleet of Dalkantyr.

- "GWEN REINCARNATION CONTINGENCY 7 ON-LINE". Johnny shares.  People
  are unhappy. Ilk goes looking for a Gwen-beetle.  He doesn't see
  them, but he does see Julian beetles. Johnny checks - the computer
  informs him that Gwen is required to deal with Dalkantyr.

  Jean tells the computer that the G-person is no longer required to
  deal with Dalktyr.  Jean tells Dalkantyr that his presence has
  caused Gwen to become reincarnated - and Dalkantyr freaks out and
  bails. Jean says "See?" to the computer, and gives it a good hard
  vibration along the unlife channel.

  The reality engine detects the return of normal conditions.

  "FLUSHING EXCESS POWER DRAIN.  VENTING... VENTING..."

  Ilk sees a bunch of white dust spraying out into the Sea.  The dust
  does not survive well in the Sea, but Ilk makes sure it is destroyed
  anyway.

- Ilk has Jean check if Dalkantyr knows white dust destruction
  techniques - not only does Dalkantyr not know them, it did not know
  about white dust.  Jean briefs Dalkantyr, who is distressed to
  realize it has a hold full of white dust.

  By design, Dalkantyr has no way of manipulating the contents of that
  hold.  The hold is sealed, and cannot be manipulated by Dalkantyr,
  and can only be accessed by someone with the key.

  Ilk warns Dalkantyr that it carries its enemy within itself.
  Dalkantyr determines to destroy itself! Dalkantyr is talked down.
  Dalkantyr still wants to do rash things.

- Ilk adds a post-it note to Shiryu's pile.  Shiryu has sorted the
  notes and dealt with a couple.  Shiryu ah-ha!s and asks for
  leaf-shaped post-it notes last time (to verify the sender).

  Ilk briefs Shiryu on Dalkantyr.  Shiryu waters the Jean and Ilk tree
  while he decides whether to help.

- Kaylee is conscious again and is happy to help with her own
  finishing touches (because it both horrifies and fascinates her).
  Kaylee prefers mechanical bits over organic bits during the
  finishing touches.

  Cagliostro lets Kaylee know that her friends are alive, and will
  remain such, and asks for her help healing Al-Nazir.  Kaylee agrees,
  as long as her friends will be fine.

- Cagliostro pokes around in Al-Nazir's head, searching for a suitable
  reward for not being a -useless- tool. Al-Nazir wants: his father's
  respect (that'll take a while), for everyone else to know he's
  better than they are (even longer), for his spine to stop hurting
  (working on it) or fighting lessons from Random (hmm...)

  Random has left, so Cagliostro asks Gil. Gil has a particular phobia
  about being burned, since friends of hers were burned to death in
  front of her.  Cagliostro sympathizes.  Cagliostro checks with Calla
  and Janus, and Calla agrees to offer some lessons.  Cagliostro and
  Calla agree on rules. ("Don't make me work too hard fixing him.")

  Johnny1 checks if there is a connection between the reality engine
  and Dalkantyr. "I'M SORRY JULIAN, THAT IS A RESTRICTED PIECE OF
  INFORMATION."

- Dalkantyr is heading out into the deep Sea. It doesn't want to be
  found, so it doesn't want Jean near it since the reality engine just
  needs to find one Jean to find all Jeans and Dalkantyr.  Jean is
  displeased by this thought.

- Kaylee and Cagliostro have fixed Al-Nazir.  Cagliostro issues Kaylee
  minion-level armor (in the guise of Kaylee-appropriate clothing). He
  asks her to keep an eye on the tanks while he has a good nap, or
  perhaps a full fleshy night's sleep.

- Now that the Pride's Folly situation has reached a lull, Kintani
  decides to return to his charge.  Cagliostro fluffs his pillows, and
  gets sniffed by Kintani.

  Janus tells Calla: "Right.  Kata 6, 8, and 12 intermixed".
  "Intermixed?  Are you sure?"  Janus shrugs.  "It's more fun that
  way."

  There is a clash of blades.  Kaylee asks Al-Nazir, "How did you get
  so many cuts?  They were fighting each other."  Cagliostro drifts
  off to sleep.

  Kintani watches for a while, then offers to spar with Janus
  again. Janus points out that they should move before they do that,
  so Princess Chandra doesn't critique them.

- Johnny3 reaches the Assassin's Guild, and his curfew escorts suggest
  that he stay here because of the Chaos curfew.  After consultation,
  Johnny agrees.  Johnny3 approaches the guild, but the Ifrit stop at
  the door.  Johnny makes sure they're fine, which they are, but they
  haven't been invited in.

  Johnny3 calls in, and gets permission to enter from Simon.  He
  enters, the Ifrit stays outside. Simon wants to go to River, or have
  River brought to him.  Simon won't go outside - he's been advised
  not to leave.

  Simon is insistent that he and River be reunited. The Ifrit trumps
  Cagliostro, who is asleep and dreaming of the sea and seagulls.
  Cagiostro talks to the Ifrit for a bit, and realizes he's asleep.

  Cagliostro talks to the Ifrit a bit longer, then wakes himself up.
  He tells Kaylee that Simon wants River to be where he is, and passes
  River through the trump connection.
  
- Cagliostro goes back to sleep.  As he sleeps, he sees Kintani curl
  around him and wrap a wing over him.

- The Ifrit ask Johnny to ask Inara to ask River to either hold back
  on her wandering or wander in Benedict's service.  Johnny blanks,
  shrugs, writes a note to that effect.

  Johnny enters the Guild, and sees two women building card houses
  with a gentleman made of sand.  He talks briefly to them, then
  wanders into other rooms looking for Inara.  In the first room, he
  encounters Roland who menaces him and trumps Cagliostro to validate
  the message.

  Cagliostro is asleep and dreaming again.  Roland is somewhat taken
  aback - Cagiostro is floating in mid-air above his lens.  (Dragons
  are apparently playing in the lens.  Cagliostro does not see this.)
  Cagliostro talks to Roland about River's message

  Roland points out where Inara is, and goes to vouch for him.  He
  knocks on the door, and is greeted by "We're busy!"  There is some
  conversation through the door, but when Johnny mentions that Malcolm
  is hurt, Inara slams the door open and demands to be taken to
  Malcolm.  She's surprised that Simon isn't dealing with Malcolm,
  since that's the ship's doctor's job.

  Inara demands to be taken to Malcolm, or his grave.  Johnny3 agrees
  to do this, with some trepidation as to her reaction. Johnny3 brings
  her outside the guild and informs the Ifrit of her request.

  The Ifrit have some discussion back and forth, and open a magical
  gate to where Hamster Benedict is.  They announce that the route is
  not direct, and they must make one stop first.  They walk through
  the gate, and the Ifrit speak briefly with Hamster Benedict.
  Hamster Benedict greets Inara, who warmly greets him as Brand.
  Inara is distressed to hear there is more than one of them, but
  gamely struggles to cope.  "My entire family."  "That... makes
  sense. Men and women?"  "Yes." Benedict offers to arrange for
  transport to where Malcolm is.  Hamster Benedict pulls out cards.

- In the midst of the duel, Janus says "Go easy on me, I'm getting a
  Trump contact."  Calla swears at him.  Janus says "Okay, you're
  really going to have to go easy on me, I'm pulling someone through."

  Calla pulls back and salutes, and Inara comes through.  Janus is,
  strangely enough, standing between Inara and Malcolm's tank.  Janus
  tells her that no matter how bad it looks, he will get better.
  Inara just wants to sit beside him and hold his hand.  Janus says
  that she can sit beside him, but he's in an advanced medical tank.

  Janus steps aside, Inara goes up to the tank. She sits beside it,
  looks around to be sure no one is watching, and quietly weeps.
  Kaylee is off at another tank bending over, and Inara did not notice
  her.  Zoe's skull and backbone are not recognizeable as Zoe, and so
  do not freak out Inara.

+ Jayne is in a full-support double-waterbed cushion, and not
  recognizeable as Jayne.  Not that Inara would care.

  Hamster Benedict hands the card to one of the Ifrit, and goes
  through.  On the other side of the connection, Benedict jumps on top
  of Al-Nazir, does some damage, and comes back through.  Benedict
  takes the card back from the Ifrit and shuts down the connection.

  Benedict turns to Johnny3 and says "Our work continues."

- Johnny4 is asleep.  Johnny1 and Johnny2 are sleeping in shifts.

- Geryon is in the fleshy nodule shadow, goldbricking, watching the
  viewscreens and the duel.

- Eagleton is waiting on a plane. Presumably, stuff happens.