The interior of the tavern was lit by a series of glyphs painted onto the ceiling, glowing with a very bright light that simultaneously managed to be softer than any lamp or lantern. The overall effect was very pleasant, making the entire building seem warm and inviting.
Once again Twilight could make out an astounding amount of diversity among them, so much so that she no longer even bothered to try to observe all of their differences. Somehow, in the short time she had spent on the plane it had all become normal to her.
The only people that stood out among the crowd were several human figures clad in gleaming silver plate mail, with long indigo capes that seemed altogether too still even without a noticeable air current. Everything about their armor was meticulously crafted, from the carefully-engraved runes to the fastidiously-tied sashes to the near-perfect symmetry of design, save for a scant few asymmetries that were placed with geometric precision. The swords they carried in their scabbards were remarkably broad, widest at the hilt and tapering sharply towards the end, granting them the shape of an elongated isosceles triangle. Their open-faced chainmail coifs each revealed expressions that were unreadable, save for an unblinking, ironclad gaze.
Twilight felt a shiver run down the already uncomfortable knot in her back. Whoever these soldiers served, their very presence projected a palpable aura of authority and utmost devotion to order. They were almost certainly enforcers of some kind, though what laws they upheld she could only guess. Ignoring the thought, along with the ever-present headache from the conflicting sensations of her illusory self, Twilight made her way over to an unoccupied space by the bar.
The bartender was another one of the short, green, hook-nosed humanoids that she had seen throughout the city. His gnarled skin was covered in a multitude of scars and blemishes, and a single black eyepatch was tied around his left eye. As Twilight stood at an empty space by the bar, she watched as the bartender grabbed a shot glass in his left hand, and then reached for a countertop containing a series of liquors and mixers.
Then, in a stunning display of dexterity, he grabbed a bottle of liquor and tossed it into the air, following suit with two other bottles, and then finally the shot glass in the air. His arms moving in a blur of motion, he expertly juggled the cocktail ingredients. In the span of a second the shot glass perfectly upright on the countertop, and in the even shorter time between catching the bottles and throwing them back into the air, he poured small amounts of into the shot glass. When the glass was full, he tossed each of the bottles behind his back, where they landed on the countertop perfectly, without so much as a crack in the glass or a drop of alcohol out of place.
The bartender snapped his fingers, and Twilight felt a tingle of residual magic as a small flame appeared on the tip of his thumb. He placed the fire against the edge of the shot glass, causing the cocktail to burst into flames. Then with his other hand he pushed it down the bar, where it came to a stop in front of a woman with goggles adorning her forehead, and red hair that almost looked to have more fire in it than than the drink in front of her. She downed the entire shot glass in a single motion, literally swallowing the flames without the slightest hint of discomfort.
Twilight couldn’t do anything but stare at the entire display. As she gawked, the tavern erupted into cheers and applause, and the red-haired woman stood up from her chair and turned around, a smirk adorning her face as she took a short bow towards her onlookers. Meanwhile the silver-clad soldiers glared at her, their expression both familiar and disapproving, and Twilight noticed that their fingers were now barely brushing against the grips of their swords. The red-haired woman seemed to notice this, and responded by sticking out her tongue. The soldiers became visibly more tense, though they did not move from their position.
Twilight’s stomach churned; she realized that a bar brawl was more of a possibility than she’d initially expected. Multiple scenarios played in her mind in which a fight had broken out into the tavern. In every single one of them, her disguise was broken, and she was forced to fend for herself against foes much more well-equipped for combat than she was. While she had no idea what kind of magic the silver-clad soldiers were capable of, her mind immediately went to what was simultaneously the most plausible and worst-case scenario. If they were truly the enforcers of the law as she assumed, they would no doubt be able to nullify magic with ease. Especially so if a discipline as exotic and dangerous as pyromancy was common enough to be used for bartending tricks.
She was suddenly snapped back to reality when the bartender approached her and spoke to her, though Twilight was too preoccupied in her own imagination to notice what he had said.
“Oh, sorry! I got distracted for a second there,” she said. “I’m uh... not from around here. Do you know where I could find a library? Nobody outside seems to want to talk to me.”
The bartender looked taken aback, lips curling as he raised a single eyebrow. “Quedi?”
Twilight’s eyes went wide. “Ack! Language barrier! I forgot about the language barrier!” She grabbed the side of her head, pulling at her illusory body’s hair. “Hold on, I can fix this!”
Inhaling deeply, she focused inwards on her magic, and shaped it as it flowed outwards from her. Casting the spell alongside the illusion she was maintaining placed a heavy strain on her mind, but with unshakable resolve she pushed through regardless, until she felt the spell wash over her. Almost immediately, the background noise of the tavern changed; though the conversations were too drowned out in one another to make out, they way they registered in her perceptions was much clearer.
Twilight let out a sigh and then looked directly at the bartender, who seemed more baffled than ever. “Can you understand me now?”
“Er... I ‘fink so, yeah,” said the bartender, his speech strangely accented. “Not exactly sure what you were trying to say before. Last I checked, nobody in the neighborhood speaks ‘orse.”
Twilight could almost feel her cheeks turning red. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it, I swear!”
The bartender laughed. “‘Ey, relax! I’m just ‘aving a bit of a giggle, no hard feelings or anyfing. So, what’ll it be?”
Twilight reflexively put her hoof behind her head, and her illusory body followed suit. “I, uh... I’m not here to drink, actually. I just... moved here, and need directions. Do you know where I could find a public library?”
“A library, eh?” said the bartender. “Well, if you ain’t looking for anyfing secret, the Azorius have one not too far from ‘ere. Most of it’s guild members only, but there’s a public section last I ‘eard. Just ‘ead left on the street once you get out the door, take a right at the third intersection you see, and keep going straight. Eventually you’ll see a massive complex of archives, you should find the main library right in the center. Can’t miss it.”
“Yes!” Twilight cheered. “Thank you! Thank you so much! This is everything that I’ve needed!”
“No worries, miss,” the bartender replied. “Be careful out there, eh? The Tenf’s a busy place, you never know what you’ll run into.”
“Don’t worry, I will!” With that Twilight waved goodbye, briskly walking away from the bar and out the front door. For the first time since she’d arrived on the plane, it seemed like things were working out okay.
She was so happy that she didn’t even care when she tripped and fell flat on her face on the way out.
———————
Rarely, Twilight found, was it the case that someone who said ‘you can’t miss it’ when giving directions was actually referring to something she couldn’t miss. But in this particular case, what she was looking for really was impossible to miss.
The path that she followed per the bartender’s directions led her down a road of increasingly pristine and elaborate buildings, until it terminated in a truly enormous circle surrounding a gargantuan fountain. Powerful jets of water sprayed forcefully from openings surrounding the basin, arcing in the air before landing in a crystal-clear pool. In the center of the basin was a pedestal, atop which rested a great marble sculpture of a sphinx, its wings spread wide and its eyes staring forward with unshakable resolve.
But even more impressive than that were the buildings that surrounded it. Calling them ‘a massive complex of archives’ could not have possibly done justice to their description. The great limestone buildings were each elegantly crafted, with flying buttresses, great arches, clustered columns, and towering spires tipped with gold. The central building dwarfed them all, an enormous work of architecture that was nearly as large as Canterlot Castle itself. The primary entrance was a truly gargantuan set of wooden doors, one of which was perpetually held open by an unseen force, allowing people to enter and exit without interruption. Above the doors was a circular window of stained glass, depicting an unfamiliar symbol: a triangular shape with a circular pattern of mazelike runes in the center, all of which was colored in distinctive shades of blue.
Aside from the buildings, Twilight noted that though there were dozens of people traveling across the campus at any given moment, most of them were human, and most of them were dressed similarly to one another. There were many of the silver-clad soldiers she had seen in the tavern before, but they were outnumbered by people who wore ornate white robes decorated with golden trim. Whether they were scholars or members of some other profession was unknown to her, but it was clear that they were all of considerably high social status.
With bated breath, she walked past the enormous fountain and through the door to the central building, just as she had been told. What she saw nearly unhinged her jaw.
Inside the building was easily the largest library she had seen in her life. Light from the central stained glass window illuminated massive shelves nearly a hundred feet tall, adorned with equally tall ladders attached to them on rails. Each shelf was lined with thousands upon thousands of books and scrolls, enough that Twilight could imagine spending centuries reading them and never reach the end.
Massive wooden study tables lined the halls, with library patrons diligently reading through their chosen material. Golems made entirely from books and scrolls patrolled the building, organizing and replacing the books on the shelves, some with the items that made up their own bodies. Just beyond the front door was a large circular desk, behind which were nearly a dozen librarians attending to checkouts and returns of several lines of people. Even further behind them was a massive marble slab, nearly as tall as the bookshelves, with directory information engraved in an enormous, bold font.
Twilight stood in place, her entire body numb as she stared at the scenery. She felt a silent shudder make its way up her spine, tears welling in her eyes from the nearly overwhelming sight. The only thing she could bring herself to speak was a single sentence, whispered in reverence.
“It’s... it’s beautiful...”
———————
It wasn’t long before Ral found himself well within the boundaries of the Tenth District. Navigating the streets and passages there was almost reflexive to him, the layout of the district being as familiar as the back of his own hand.
In a way it felt nostalgic, yet that nostalgia was tinged with bitterness. The Tenth was where he’d spent much of his youth, running from the Lyev and stealing whatever food he could to survive; if the Izzet hadn’t taken him in, he would have likely died on the inside of a jail cell. Yet despite the memories of the closest thing he had to a home, he got over being reassigned to another district very quickly. Or perhaps it was because of those memories.
Regardless, sentimentality wouldn’t get him anywhere. He had a job to do, and quickly.
Ral deftly made his way through the busy streets, a task made easier by pedestrians making an active effort to move out of his path. The garb of an Izzet guildmage was unmistakable, and few were brave enough to approach someone who could casually rip the laws of thermodynamics to shreds. The familiar route took him to a building advertised by a wooden sign with a frothy mug of ale painted on it.
The bartender’s eyes lit up as Ral entered the tavern, and approached the countertop. “Well, if it ain’t Ral Zarek! It’s been a bloody long time since I’ve seen you around ‘ere! ‘Ow’ve you been?” In just three sentences, the goblin had managed to encapsulate his entire personality: mildly vulgar, yet unrelentingly cordial. It was no wonder he had become one of the closest things Ral had to a friend.
“I’m afraid I don’t have time for the usual bar visit, Gnib,” Ral replied. “I’m here because I need information.”
“Sounds like you’ve been awful busy these days,” said Gnib. “That draconic narcissist ain’t been working you too ‘ard lately, I ‘ope?”
Ral’s lips curled into a knowing smirk. “That depends entirely on what you mean. Either way, it’s not important right now. There’s a rare magical beast I’m pursuing, and I need to know if you’ve heard anything about it.”
“Sure fing,” said Gnib. “Can you describe it for me?”
“It looks like a pegasus, but it’s like no other pegasus you’ve seen,” said Ral. “It’s smaller, about the size of a pony, and has a rounded face, large eyes, and a single horn on its forehead. And its entire body is bright purple.”
Gnib gave Ral a quizzical look. “Sounds pretty strange, but can’t say I’ve ‘eard of anyfing like that,” he said. “Although, now that you mention it... I fink I might have met someone who could ‘ave been related to that earlier.”
Bingo. “What did you see?” said Ral.
“There was this strange ‘uman girl who came in ‘ere a while ago,” said Gnib. “Wore these weird-looking clothes I ain’t never seen before, and ‘ad a bit of a wobble when she walked, like she ain’t used to being on two legs. Then, no joke, she came up and started whinnying at me! Almost felt like giving ‘er a bag of oats right then.”
Ral’s fingers twitched slightly. It was worse than he thought: the extraplanar creature was not only sapient, it could disguise its appearance. His muscles tensed, and he placed his palm on the table with an audible thud from the weight of his gauntlet. “And what did you do? I need you to tell me as much as possible.”
“‘Ey, take it easy there,” said Gnib. “Don’t stress yourself out, you’ll live longer.”
“Dammit Gnib, this is important!” Ral shot back. “My entire livelihood is at stake here!”
“You wanna know that bad, eh?” said Gnib. “To be perfectly honest, there ain’t a whole lot else to say. When I asked her what she said, she cast some kind of spell, and then spoke to me in perfect Ravnican. She then asked me where the nearest library was, and I pointed ‘er to the Azorius archives. If my ‘unch is correct, that girl’s the same creature you’ve been after, probably using somefing to make ‘erself look like an ordinary person. Definitely knew more magic than a pegasus, that’s for certain.”
It didn’t take long for Ral to piece together all of the information. The creature’s appearance not only showed extraplanar origin, it was capable of divination magic advanced enough to translate from a language that didn’t even resemble humanoid speech. It could disguise its appearance through some form of illusion, and was intelligent enough to seek out, and presumably understand, written information about Ravnica.
He was no longer dealing with a beast of extraplanar origin. He was dealing with a planeswalker. And she was right in the middle of the largest Azorius building within twenty-five miles.
“Thank you, Gnib,” Ral said curtly. “I need to leave. Right now.”
“No worries, guv! Take care!”
Ral could feel the electricity coursing through his spine as he rapidly walked out the door, pushing himself forward with renewed vigor. He was only just able to restrain himself enough to avoid running at a full sprint.
———————
Informant's Gossip 1RR
Sorcery
Search your library for a nonland card, exile it, then shuffle your library. You may cast that card this turn.
Rumors are as valuable as they are fleeting.
I would play the card in literally every red commander deck ever.
8425524
I'm almost surprised red hasn't gotten a tutor effect like this, "temporary cards" have been a part of red's color pie for quite a few years now.
Woo, Chandra cameo! And a surprisingly cordial goblin too. Neat. I can't wait to see what happens next!
So, Twilight was eating worms?
It's bated breath
8425544
Thanks, fixed.
Is that like the only bar in the district or otherwise a magnet for people, or did that guy just get super lucky that Twilight wandered into the place to go for recent rumors?
Making cards from the story. Nice.
I am a bit surprised no Azorius Lawmage decided to nullify Twilight's enchantments though. I mean, they probably have a law against aliorn ponies wearing enchantments to look human and speak the language, and a way to know when it happens.
8425560
Sometimes a coincidence needs to happen to move the plot along. In an infinite multiverse, anything's possible.
(If you want an in-universe explanation, there probably aren't that many taverns in the Tenth District due to some bullshit zoning law the Azorius came up with.)
moar
i.imgur.com/fn84NtQ.jpg
8425571
Nothing wrong with a bit of nudging from fate!
Cue the misunderstandings!
8425524
Am I an evil person thinking its just the right tutor for a food chain deck?
I wonder, was Chandra just a cameo or is she going to be popping up a few times?
If so then will we see Jace? I think it be funny if two, Twilight and Jace, talked... Don't know why though.
Hmm. I'm not sure if that's Chandra or just an Izzet League member. I could see either enjoying a still-flaming cocktail. Also, in just a few thousand words, Gnib has greatly endeared himself to me. Nice work there.
Also, that's a fascinating card design. Possibly a bit too predictable for red, but it definitely seems to work. And it's absolutely disgusting with Eternal Scourge and Misthollow Griffin.
Now to see if Twilight can break out of her religious experience long enough to realize she's going to need to translate the written language as well.
8425568
Even the Azorius have to be aware that something's possible before they outlaw it.
8425531
Well, red sort of already does have an effect like this, but I would argue it's not as good.
gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=413674&type=card
8426112
Gamble is actually an incredibly powerful tutor. The randomness makes it less reliable, but one mana to search for any card is crazy efficient. It's practically an auto-include in every red EDH I build.
Well, at least she didn't get sent to a Dimir library.
Looking forward to whatever Ral has planned.
That card makes me happy... I would probably also include that in the few red EDH's I build but it would definitely become a staple of my Krenko, Mob Boss deck. Informant's Gossip for a Warp World anyone? And before anyone asks... Token creatures count towards Warp World's effects
Also... didn't think Chandra would be the first planeswalker Twilight would see. I'm a little confused as to why Ral wants to find Twilight so bad!
8425862
Well. Considering the Senate must handle other guilds, and the behavior shown by the Dimir, Izzet, Rakdos, and Simic guildmages, they might actually make laws fo the impossible, just in case it becomes possible.
They regulate everything they can.
8426246
Certainly, would still rather run the triple cost, zero randomness tutor instead. Red doesn't really have much access to tutors that are sure-fire guarantees like that.
8426565
The double dip into red makes it harder to play than Act on Impulse, but I can see the value of it in commander. I'd grab Sundial of the Infinite... Zirilian of the Claw as my commander.
8426388
Ral has gone through extremely great lengths to prevent any of the guilds from finding out the true nature of the multiverse, and an alicorn that brazenly displays herself to be a species not native to Ravnica jeopardizes that pretty seriously. Remember, Ral deliberately sabotaged one of the most important projects he's ever worked on just to keep his secret, he's just that dedicated to protecting it.
8426660
Ah! Thank you for clearing that up! See... Long time player of MTG but never decided to read any of the lore. So Ral's intent is probably malicious then... How interesting.
8426877
If you've ever played the Kingdom Hearts games, they have this policy called the World Order. Basically: The existence of other worlds must be kept secret from the inhabitants of any world you go to. Only a few of the upper crust are in the know (I.e. King Triton). Ral had to make sure Niv Mizzet, a dragon whose hoard is knowledge, never learned the truth otherwise it would be Nicol Bolas 2.0.
perfect for finding that dragon i need
You're killing me, man. You had her LITERALLY right next to Chandra, and there was no interaction...
I'll just go bury myself in working on one of my own projects... anxiously awaiting the next chapter...
What a nice goblin. Very polite, barely even condescending to Ral, and an accomplished drinkmaster.
I love it.
I'm a bit late, but I just want to say that the card at the end of this chapter is essentially a Diabolical Tutor that puts the card into face-up exile instead of your hand. Granted, you can't just save that tutored card for later, so it's not strictly the same, but I would still say that card you made is a pretty clear break. Red generally doesn't tutor unless it's looking for an instant, a sorcery, or a dragon.
What I would do instead is have it exile the top three, four, or five cards of your library, then you get to cast one of those cards until the end of the turn (you choose which card at the time you play it). It's not as powerful, but I think it fits the flavor of the card better (you never know what you'll find out from gossipers), and it's a much better fit for red (you burn through some of your potential options, but in exchange you get to look for something that's useful right now).
Oh, and good job with the chapter. I find it kind of strange that her spark didn't auto-translate for Twilight, but I suppose that horse biology is pretty different from most humanoids. Except minotaurs, probably.
8440611
I'd disagree, if for no other reason that mono-Red's been moving in a pretty clear direction towards "temporary draw" effects that let you exile cards and then cast them this turn. I actually don't think that this is as much a break as you'd imagine: it's designed explicitly around red's general playstyle, which is to use cards as soon as you get them, sacrificing long-term advantage for short-term utility.
You're correct that red doesn't generally get tutors, but I designed this card to be a viable option for mono-red EDH, easily the weakest color in the format. It's meant to fill a niche that red has historically lacked without breaking from red's general color pie, in the vein of red's go-to enchantment removal Chaos Warp. The card that you suggested would still be useful, but it would also be nearly indistinguishable from a number of recent cards that do the same thing. As it stands, the only thing mono-red really has for tutors is Gamble.
Wizards has deliberately left the exact mechanics of translation in MtG ambiguous, specifically because of the amount of "wait, this doesn't make sense" moments it would introduce if you think about it for too long. The way that I'm approaching it here is that each individual planeswalker has their own unique mechanism for translation: some of them translate any language they hear or read subconsciously, while others have to make an active effort to do so. The planeswalker spark is a highly individualized form of magic and no two planeswalkers use their abilities in exactly the same way.
8440670
It's nice that you want to help mono-red EDH out, because you're right - it is the least powerful type of deck (Krenko notwithstanding) in that format, precisely because the length of EDH exacerbates Red's weaknesses. Red will primarily either win fast, or doesn't win at all (except maybe for Ashling and Feldon).
But with that said, I believe that it is important both that colors remain distinct from each other, and that colors have weaknesses. These are both important for a simple reason: they encourage you to play more colors. Each color has its limits, but those limits can be overcome with the addition of other colors.
However, as I understand it, any color can tutor specifically for stuff that they care about (except Black, which of course just tutors). For instance, Goblin Matron tutors for goblins, Sarkhan's Triumph tutors for dragons, and although it's a bit old, Imperial Recruiter looks for creatures with power of 2 or less.
Therefore, I think it'd be perfectly possible to make a Red card that looks for an instant or a sorcery. It's not as powerful as the kind of card you originally made, but it's definitely more in-color.
Or maybe I'm wrong, and only letting you play the card until end of turn, or it stays in exile, is at most a strong bend for Red. I'd still think it's undercosted at 1RR.
8441213
I'd initially had the mana cost at 2RR, but the "only this turn" restriction actually made it significantly underpowered at that cost. Assuming you hit a land drop each turn and aren't doing mana ramp shenanigans, the absolute earliest that Informant's Gossip would be useful would be turn 4. Spells that you're most likely to want out of it would probably cost at least three mana, which would make it useful at turn six.
Upping the mana cost to four would force you to play around the card with significantly more waiting, which just isn't a part of red's ethos. As it stands, I think three mana is the right cost to keep it relatively fast but ensure it isn't too broken.
8441550
Fair enough, I suppose.
I just want it to be said that "Informant's Gossip" would be a 4 of in every restore balance deck
I'm enjoying the fic so far, but holy cow, Informant's Gossip is kind of a busted card. :P
Red's biggest thing is being impulsive. I think tutoring a card goes completely opposite to that.
Ayyyyy, Chandra cameo!
This story continues to be wonderful.
8774742
Na. a tutor to exile and 1 turn use is on theme for red. especally izzet.