Adventure of Radigal the Bio-Alchemist

Radigal enters the crumbling emperor’s palace beneath cracked goldwork and drifting ash. Before the ruined throne, a young adult woman in black veils and lacquered scale armor, her lean build marked by a scarred knuckle and a silver chain at her throat holds the captive king by the hair, a hooked sword poised at his neck.

Courtiers press forward in jeweled robes, offering sealed promises and trembling purses. Around them, palace guards lock shields, while distant steel and frightened cries announce the empire’s enemies forcing toward the inner halls.

The captive king, an elderly broad-shouldered man with a lined face, close-cropped white hair, and a dust-stained crimson robe kneels beneath the broken imperial crest, wrists bound in silk gone gray with dust. The assassin’s blade settles against his skin as shadows surge beyond the bronze doors.

Radigal crushes an alchemical flask beneath his heel and sweeps the shards toward the shield wall. The agitated mixture hisses, releasing a pale, needle-fine smoke.

His integrated magical organs pulse beneath mismatched flesh, lending the concoction unnatural bite. Reckless handling makes the cloud burst wide, but the flasks hold enough volatile tincture to fill the hall.

The palace guards stagger apart, clawing at their faces as the stinging haze rolls between their shields. Courtiers flee beneath the cracked goldwork, leaving the throne exposed.

The veiled assassin turns the opening into judgment. Her hooked sword flashes once across the captive king's throat, and his bound body sinks motionless beneath the broken imperial crest.

She leaves the dead emperor behind and reaches the bronze doors through the coughing confusion. Their ancient bars yield, opening onto torchlit stairs beyond.