The Grand Clearing-Out

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"There are some things we were not meant to know, they say. But you wouldn't be down here if you took that seriously."

Beyond this point lie spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include midgame or minor Fate-locked content. Proceed with caution.

You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.


"THE BENENIMOUS MASTER OF THE BAZAAR, Mr. CHIMES, graciously invites YOU to take part in a NEW CELEBRATION of SUBTERRANEAN PURSUITS – the GRAND CLEARING-OUT!"[1]

The Grand Clearing-Out was a significant event of the first 1899, one that nearly sent the city tumbling into the depths once more.

Prologue

In her campaign to combat the Fingerkings, the then-mayor, the Viscountess of the Viric Jungle, witnessed the dream-snakes infiltrating the subconscious of the Stone Pigs, the slumbering, city-devouring engines of the Echo Bazaar.[2] In an attempt to imitate the dream-snakes' actions by stealing what appeared to be a weapon,[3] with the intent of using it against her rivals, she inadvertently stirred the Pigs from their slumber.[2]

The Masters of the Bazaar were far from pleased with her actions, and responded by abolishing the office of Lord Mayor entirely and issuing an ominous summons demanding her appearance before them.[4]

The disturbance caused by the Viscountess later set the stage for the Grand Clearing-Out.


The Grand Clearing-Out

"The MASTERS call on ALL LONDONERS to EMPTY OUT YOUR ATTICS and RECLAIM BURIED TREASURES from beneath LONDON'S OWN STREETS. Participants will be rewarded handsomely with THE SPOILS OF EXCAVATION."[1]

In the false-summer of the original 1899, a dramatic announcement from the Mr Chimes and other Masters appeared in the Gazette, urging Londoners to empty out their attics and reclaim hidden treasures from beneath the city's streets under the supervision of the Ministry of Public Decency.[5] The event quickly took hold, turning into a city-wide excavation frenzy.[6]

Mr Stones set up a shop near Moloch Street Station, where it sold items recovered from the dig-sites and confiscated by the Ministry to fund further excavations.[7] Londoners were encouraged to donate their unwanted items from their attics and basements to a Ministry collector,[8] which were then delivered to Mr Mirrors' shop,[9] managed by the Shopkeeper in Viric.[10] The Masters also hired diggers of their own (even a Hellworm),[11] and promised investors a share of the recovered treasures.[12]

Londoners of all walks of life engaged in the digging with great enthusiasm,[13] unearthing treasures, trinkets and objects of dubious value buried beneath the city.[14] Others assisted the excavation efforts by providing them with sustenance and supplies.[15] Occasionally, the digging reached the veins of the Bazaar,[16] and its lacre chambers,[17] leading to diggers experiencing strange whisperings.[18]

The Dig Sites

Multiple dig sites were established across London: near the Brass Embassy on Moloch Street; behind the Blind Helmsman; beneath the Singing Mandrake; at the University; and in Spite.[19]

Near the Embassy, a large hole was dug out, with a few unhappy devils monitoring the digging[20] and directing diggers away from the foundations supporting the Brass Embassy itself.[21] Fragments of documents were found, as well as (unsurprisingly) the scent of brimstone.[22] The excavation unearthed a ruin from the Fourth City,[23] more specifically, the structure was the Fourth City's own infernal Embassy, a grand pagoda called the Celestial Embassy.[24]

In Spite, the Ministry of Public Decency turned a derelict house into its makeshift headquarters, from where they coordinated a large excavation in the back yard.[25] This particular site wasn't filled with volunteers as the other sites, so the Ministry had to hire urchins and Clay Men to make up for the lack of man-power.[26] They dug up remnants of a previous Fallen City, mainly pottery and other stone stuff.[27] The excavation uncovered an ancient tunnel system dug by Clay Men, quite similar to London's own Clay Quarters.[28] The tunnels were called the Underclay Quarter,[29] where the Unfinished Men hid and ancient Clay Men go to be fused with the earth.

In Veilgarden, under the cellars of the Singing Mandrake, diggers dug out a strangely cobwebbed tunnel leading down. They didn't find much treasure, and only encountered more webs and reports of chittering below.[30] Eventually, they reached a massive chamber filled with spiders of varrying sizes, some quite large. The Singing Mandrake almost collapsed by the digging, but the bar was shored up and its cellar became the entrance to the Spider Symposium, where the spiders hold (hopefully) never ending debates.[31]

In Wolfstack Docks, a mineshaft was dug out in the Blind Helmsman, which was staffed by zailors digging for treasure.[32] They found items from London, dated just after the Fall.[33] An old factory was eventually found, one that fell further than other factories during the Fall, and which has now been taken over by Rattus Faber.[34]

At the University, The Ministry commandeered a square lodged between two Benthic College buildings, where a hole in the ground was dug.[35] Students came up with various contraptions to make the digging process faster, but none were quite as efficient as a simple pickaxe.[36] At the end of the digging, a fragment of London's old prison complex was found.[37] Old Newgate was briefly used as the city's main correctional facility before New Newgate was built, but now in its abandonment, Old Newgate has become a playhouse for its inmates where they play another form of the game of Knife and Candle called Dagger and Flint.[38]

The Cracks

London suddenly experienced tremors across the entire city, which subsided as suddenly as it came.[39] The brief peace was not to last, as cracks and fissures spread across London,[40] the Stone Pigs were stirring beneath the city.[41] Doomsayers spread out across the city, proclaiming the apocalypse of their choice has come, meanwhile, rescue efforts were underway across the city, rescuing trapped Londoners. The Masters themselves were organising a meeting with important Londoners to come up with a plan to resolve the situation.[42]

At their private meeting, the Masters bickered amongst each other on what to do about the catastrophic awakening of the Stone Pigs. They explained that the Stone Pigs are seeking something beneath London—a "truffle," a "replacement for the heart they do not have."[43] And that the Bazaar itself is on the verge of destruction due to the Pigs' movements.[44] The festival, it turns out, was Pages' idea, a way to keep the Stone Pigs from their goal by encouraging excavation.[45] However, the scheme failed and the Masters pivoted to blaming the festival as the cause for the cataclysm rather than to admit the real reason was that the Stone Pigs' dreams were so easily disturbed.[46]

Since the Bazaar would be dead by the end of this if a solution isn't found and the Fifth City is not yet ready for dissolution,[47] the Masters decided that their only hope lies in the completion of a "Device to Preserve London",[48] a two-part mechanism: one half atop the Bazaar’s highest spire, acting as a resonating windmill or tuning fork, and the other buried deep below, designed to communicate with the Stone Pigs through the lacre.[49]

The Device

The Masters cleared-out a space in the lower floors of the Bazaar for the construction of the Device, each working in their own corner,[50] though some of them were notable absent.[51] Prominent Londoners contributed their fortunes to the completion of the Device, and were directly invited by the Masters to help in the construction itself.[52]

Deep below the Bazaar, at its lacre-vats, where the lower half of the Device is situated, Jervaise and Penstock descended below to ensure everything is functioning as it should be.[53] Some of the Masters meanwhile, have gathered above the Bazaar's highest spire and prepared to activate the Device[54]

As the device is activated, strange things happened. A note rings through the city, forming a storm above the city. Londoners experienced a shared dream, where anxieties and subconscious fears blended into a surreal carnival-like experience. This dream connected everyone in the city, allowing people to see the entire city at once—every person, every moment, inducing in them a brief sense of familiarity with each other.[55] Penstock and Jervaise were plunged them into the dreams of the Bazaar.[56]

Eventually, the dreams end. Penstocked pulled Jervaise out of the chamber before he could succumb to the fumes,[57] while those in the Highest Spire woke to a world seemingly unchanged. Mr. Fires, declared that the device must have worked, as "Nothing appears to be on fire, and we’re all still alive."[58]

Aftermath

After Londoners awoke from the shared revelry facilitated by the Device, the cataclysm seemed to have ended, and the Stone Pigs were put to sleep again. The city began to rebuild and life went back to normal.[59] Mr Wines threw a bevy of revels to celebrate the survival of the city.[60]

The Viscountess, the figure responsible for stirring them up in the first place, returned to London. She was rumored to have managed to strong-arm the Masters into dropping the matter entirely — likely through intimidation, wielding whatever power she had taken from the Pigs' dreams.[61]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 The Grand Clearing-Out: An Announcement is Made, Fallen London
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Offer an explanation, Fallen London "The Fingerkings have [...] Slithered in and stolen weapons from those dreams. I thought that I could follow them and take something, too. A weapon to use against them. [...] It did not work, of course. I should have realised that." [...] the Viric Jungle seems darker than usual; foreboding, almost. Something is awake within it, and it's not done stirring."
  3. ↑ Ask about the sand-choked dream, Fallen London "The Ophidian Gentleman grimaces. "The Viscountess engages in the favourite pastime of all cats: Going where she shouldn't. [...]" And what of the weapons the Fingerkings retrieved from the dreams of the Stone Pigs? Is what the Viscountess claims true? "'Weapon' is a very... feline way of thinking about things.""
  4. ↑ The (Former) Lord-Mayor of London, Fallen London "This morning's Gazette announces the departure of the […] Mayor […] By determination of the Masters, the election of a replacement has been indefinitely suspended, 'to prevent a Further Tragedy'. […] The Viscountess […] is reportedly taking an extended holiday […]'"
  5. ↑ The Grand Clearing-Out: An Announcement is Made, Fallen London "As you pick up today's edition of the Gazette, you are struck by a garish advertisement. It takes up nearly the entire front page. Everything else is squeezed into one sickly column, with a single surviving headline ('MAN-EATING CHASM OPENS UNDER MOCKING HILL'). The advertisement reads: THE BENENIMOUS MASTER OF THE BAZAAR, Mr. CHIMES, graciously invites YOU to take part in a NEW CELEBRATION of SUBTERRANEAN PURSUITS – the GRAND CLEARING-OUT! The MASTERS call on ALL LONDONERS to EMPTY OUT YOUR ATTICS and RECLAIM BURIED TREASURES from beneath LONDON'S OWN STREETS. Participants will be rewarded handsomely with THE SPOILS OF EXCAVATION. And then, at the very bottom, in minuscule print: The Ministry of Public Decency reserves the right to inspect, confiscate, destroy, censor, censure, or condemn any items retrieved from Beneath London's Streets."
  6. ↑ Ask a passing urchin for more information, Fallen London ""You don' 'ave a pickaxe? E'ryone's got a pickaxe." It seems this new fashion has taken London overnight."
  7. ↑ Mr Stones' Pavilion of Subterranean Delights, Fallen London "'THE WONDERS OF THE EARTH, UNCOVERED,' proclaims a banner. The attendant tending the stall seems rather less enthusiastic as she explains its contents to you. "All these items were recovered from beneath London's streets and surrendered – er, donated to the Ministry of Public Decency, to aid in funding further excavation.""
  8. ↑ Clearing Out your Attic, Fallen London "A Ministry Auditor is impatiently standing outside your door, asking for you to throw out all of your unwanted knick-knacks."
  9. ↑ Visit the Marquee of Mystification, Fallen London "Mr Mirrors has once again put up a large pavilion near the sunken tower of the House of Chimes. Some of the items reclaimed from Londoners' attics and basements are for sale within."
  10. ↑ The Shopkeeper's Marquee of Mystification, Fallen London "As the Masters are preoccupied with the treasures being extracted from the ground, the Shopkeeper in Viric has taken over the Marquee. "By the request of Mr Mirrors," they claim. "What are you buying?""
  11. ↑ Fuel the excavation with hellworm food, Fallen London "The Masters have obtained the services of a Hellworm to aid in excavation. Its appetites are specific."
  12. ↑ Investing in Excavation, Fallen London "Not all workers are volunteers – some have been hired. And there are other costs: tools and materials. The Masters are selling shares of whatever is found below."
  13. ↑ Help with the digging, Fallen London "Londoners of all stripes have brought shovels and pickaxes beneath the streets. Join them."
  14. ↑ Help with the digging, Fallen London "Every so often, excitement mounts when something is unveiled: a fossil, a buried treasure, a limb still attached to its partially-deceased owner. Someone tries to start a rousing work song, and is promptly embarrassed when no one joins in."
  15. ↑ The Opening of a Chamber, Fallen London "Another wall falls; another abandoned sub-cellar or buried Fourth City building is revealed. As thanks for your help in keeping the crews of volunteer excavators fed, the Ministry will let you take first pick of the spoils."
  16. ↑ In Their Wake, Fallen London "Your digging has uncovered a strange tunnel beneath the earth. The wall at the very end seems to... breathe, softly pulsating."
  17. ↑ Something vile, Fallen London "You choke and cough – this chamber is filled with harsh fumes. You have to hurry out of the tunnels, retching. It will only be hours later, when you taste ammonia on your tongue and feel a deep longing that you can't place, that you realise what you have breathed in."
  18. ↑ Reach out and touch it, Fallen London "It's warm, blood-warm, a living thing. The tunnel is terribly dark; darkness encroaches the edges of your vision. [...] No – there's nothing there. It's just a wall of stone and earth. But there's a lingering scent of ammonia that makes you dizzy; best move on."
  19. ↑ Ask about the dig sites, Fallen London "From speaking to the packs of Londoners with digging implements, it seems that there are five major excavations: near the Brass Embassy on Moloch Street; behind the Blind Helmsman; beneath the Singing Mandrake; at the University; and in Spite."
  20. ↑ Digging Behind the Brass Embassy, Fallen London "A large pit has been opened in the street behind the Brass Embassy. A few Devils mill around the hole, unhappily monitoring the progress of the excavation."
  21. ↑ Beneath Moloch Street, Fallen London "A shaft of light shines down from above – gas lamps and false-stars. But the tunnels leading off in all directions are dark. A few concerned Devils direct Londoners away from digging in directions likely to hit the foundations of the Brass Embassy."
  22. ↑ Look into these tunnels, Fallen London "A ring of brass the colour of mahogany was recovered early on in the digging. Papers and files are commonly found, too, though they are often too damaged to read. And it's hard to ignore that the tunnels have the faintest scent of brimstone."
  23. ↑ Find out what's below (Moloch Street), Fallen London "The newly opened passage leads into a tilted doorway: an entry into a ruin that sank unevenly beneath Moloch Street. Inside is an antechamber with lacquered walls. This is a ruin from the Fourth City! But its construction is unmistakeably infernal, with brass accents and crimson colours."
  24. ↑ Seeking Documents in the Sunken Embassy, Fallen London "The Celestial Embassy was once a grand pagoda, looming above the rooftops of the Fourth City. When London fell, the Embassy was buried deep below the earth. Its many levels now descend far underground."
  25. ↑ Digging in Spite, Fallen London "The Ministry of Public Decency have claimed a derelict house. From this makeshift headquarters, they are coordinating a large excavation in its back yard."
  26. ↑ Beneath Spite, Fallen London "A shaft of light shines down from above – gas lamps and false-stars. But the tunnels leading off in all directions are dark. Not as many Londoners have chosen to come dig in this part of the city. The Ministry makes up the shortfall by gifting shovels to enthusiastic urchins and hiring Clay Men to help with the heavy lifting."
  27. ↑ Look into these tunnels, Fallen London "The tunnels here have delved deep into the Earth, and they have uncovered remnants of a previous Falling City: Stone blocks and clay bricks of unfamiliar make; the odd fragment of a stone tablet or potsherd."
  28. ↑ Look into these tunnels, Fallen London "No – this is an older place. A tunnel excavated by Clay Men long before London fell. Monolithic architecture; the scent of loam and dust."
  29. ↑ Descend to the Underclay Quarter, Fallen London "The Clay Men have always dug tunnels beneath London, and the Cities which fell before it. Many have been abandoned; many more forgotten. This one is old indeed, but still in use."
  30. ↑ Look into these tunnels, Fallen London "The tunnels beneath the Singing Mandrake have yielded relatively few artefacts of note. But they do have a recurring problem with cobwebs, and more than one digging Londoner has reported a chittering noise from below."
  31. ↑ Head Into the Cellars, Then Further Down, Fallen London "Mr Chimes' grand clearing out broke the earth beneath the Singing Mandrake (narrowly sending it teetering into the depths). The pub has been shored up, and a permanent – if narrow – entrance remains at the back of its cellar. Will you descend beneath, to the Spider Symposium? Perhaps you wish to check that it is in no danger of finishing its debates. Or perhaps you want to participate."
  32. ↑ Beneath the Blind Helmsman, Fallen London "A shaft of light shines down from above – gas lamps and false-stars. But the tunnels leading off in all directions are dark. Many zailors, lured by a promise of underground riches, have come down into the tunnels to try their luck. Most of them seem comically unfamiliar with how to use a shovel."
  33. ↑ Look into these tunnels, Fallen London "The tunnels here are filled with a noise of machinery. The bulk of excavated items seem to originate in London – whatever is buried here must have sunk into the Earth with the Fall, if not more recently."
  34. ↑ Head Far Beneath the Blind Helmsman, Fallen London "Following the tunnel leads to an old London factory – one that fell deeper than the rest of the city when it was pulled into the Neath. In the dust and chaos, it was forgotten by all but the Rattus Faber. They claim that, under the legal principle of adverse possession, it is now theirs."
  35. ↑ Digging Behind the University, Fallen London "The Ministry of Public Decency has commandeered a square lodged between two Benthic College buildings. The square is now a hole in the ground, surrounded by removed dirt and cobbles."
  36. ↑ Beneath the University, Fallen London "A shaft of light shines down from above – gas lamps and false-stars. But the tunnels leading off in all directions are dark. Eager students test out digging contraptions of their own design; sensible Londoners make altogether more progress with pickaxes."
  37. ↑ Find out what's below (The University), Fallen London "Fragments of London's old prison complex have been found before, of course. But this section seems to have detached and sank during the Fall, becoming an underground maze of tunnels lying somewhere west of the University, towards the Shuttered Palace."
  38. ↑ Hunt Bees in Old Newgate, Fallen London "What was once a house of correction is now a home to chaos. Old Newgate, sealed away in 1875, has been left to its own devices. Its usage as a prison in the Neath was brief. Bees haunt the ruined tunnels now, a relic of some practice that took place in the prison; it is said Hell will pay handsomely for their recovery. In Old Newgate, the inmates rule the prison, where they compete in an ancient game: Dagger, or Flint? Mr Iron's prohibition was not heard here. The prisoners play for bees; to catch them, you will need to join the game."
  39. ↑ Steady yourself, Fallen London "The building itself shakes with you. Londoners scurry towards the nearest fixed object; a gangly urchin falls on the ground in a practised roll; a gentleman in an oversized top hat clings to a lamp-post for dear life. And then, just as suddenly, it's over. Busy pedestrians resume their walks, carriages move again. All appears to be well."
  40. ↑ The Stone Pigs Awaken, Fallen London "This is not a localized disaster. All of London is riven with cracks and gaps in the earth. Something stirs below."
  41. ↑ Stare into this newfound abyss, Fallen London "The light of the gas-lamps and false-stars doesn't reach deep into the newfound canyon, but at the very bottom, something stirs: something large and serpentine, like a great worm slithering beneath the earth. As it moves, the earth under your feet moves."
  42. ↑ London in Disarray, Fallen London "This is not a localized disaster. All of London is riven with cracks and gaps in the earth. Something stirs below. The doom-sayers and madmen have left the Square of Lofty Words to fan out across the city, proclaiming that their preferred apocalypse has come to pass: The Stone Pigs are awake, or the Sixth City is imminent, or Storm has risen from his slumber, or Salt has turned his gaze towards the city. But all around the Fifth City, ingenuity and grit is on display: Londoners cross the fissures on bridges improvised from long wooden slats or old horse carts. Volunteers descend into the sinkholes to look for survivors (and the motile deceased). Enterprising sorts sell lengths of rope and climbing pitons out of wheelbarrows. Rumours circulate of a meeting between the Masters and prominent Londoners – where they will announce a plan to fend off whatever newfound disaster this is."
  43. ↑ Recall what you saw beneath the Greyfields winery, Fallen London "Pages sighs. "The Stone Pigs do not have a heart," it says. "But it is not apocryphacious to say that they are seeking a replacement for the heart they do not have." Could such a thing really exist beneath London? "We may have miscalculated as to the infectiousness of the Heart," says Wines. "Perhaps some of its spores have... taken root.""
  44. ↑ A Conclave of the Masters, Hastily Assembled, Fallen London ""There will not be a next city!," bellows Fires. "The Bazaar is being torn apart by the Stone Pigs' imminent escape." A pile of paper, stone slabs, and copper tablets have been laid on a table made of pockmarked rock: the Tragedy Procedures, assembled in their entirety."
  45. ↑ Inquire about the Clearing-Out, Fallen London "Fires: "The Procedures provide for excavating the earth around the Bazaar in this eventuality, to keep the Stone Pigs from finding what they seek. The festival was Pages' harebrained idea." "By my calculations, Londoners sped up the rate of excavation by several orders of magnitude", mutters Pages, sullenly. [...]"
  46. ↑ Inquire about the Stone Pigs, Fallen London ""They have been roused from their sleep for some time. Their dreams were disturbed", adds Spices. "Though it may be useful to let London think that their awakening was caused by the Clearing-Out." Pages seems unsettled at this suggestion."
  47. ↑ A Conclave of the Masters, Hastily Assembled, Fallen London "There will not be a next city!," bellows Fires. "The Bazaar is being torn apart by the Stone Pigs' imminent escape." A pile of paper, stone slabs, and copper tablets have been laid on a table made of pockmarked rock: the Tragedy Procedures, assembled in their entirety. "The timetable was accelerated considerably, outside of our control," says Pages. "There is no time to prepare London for dissolution." It reacts to a piercing stare from Fires. "...even if we were all agreed to move forward with such a plan."
  48. ↑ Inquire about a solution, Fallen London "'I HAVE MADE PLANS FOR A DEVICE,' writes Iron, flipping the blackboard over to display a diagram that makes your eyes itch. "We will need London's help," says Fires, "if the city will even show us that gratitude." Spices: "To repair the damage in Parabola is... outside our abilities, for the moment." It seems vaguely embarrassed to admit this. "Hence this... Device to Preserve London.""
  49. ↑ Examine the plans for the device, Fallen London "The Device is a two-pronged thing. One part, high up in the Bazaar's highest spire, resembles – in function, but not in shape – either a windmill meant to harness the wind, or a tuning fork meant to resonate with a vibration. The other half resides deep below the bazaar. That part is meant to convey something to the lacre; and through it, hopefully, to the Stone Pigs."
  50. ↑ Building a Device, Fallen London "The Masters have cleared a space in one of the lower floors of the Bazaar for their feverish work: tables have been pushed against the walls and covered in optical instruments, machine tools, or vials of toxic liquids. As they work, the Masters don't speak – in fact, they hardly acknowledge one another."
  51. ↑ Inquire after the other Masters, Fallen London ""Mr Cups has locked itself in its tower," growls Wines. "Neither it nor Mr Stones will cooperate with our scheme to protect London." "Mr Hearts is busy with the work below, in the depths of the Bazaar," claims Apples. "It is rather important work, and Mr Hearts must not be disturbed." And Mr Mirrors? "Ah, well, you just missed Mirrors," says Wines. "Indeed, Mirrors was here just before you arrived," adds Apples."
  52. ↑ Supply Mr Iron with a Breath of the Void, Fallen London "After you make your delivery, the Masters bid you to stay and help with the device's construction. It is difficult, complex work – fitting machine parts, helping distill noxious concoctions, working out eye-watering equations. Singing to the machine as it grows, sometimes."
  53. ↑ Descend through Penstock's Wicket, Fallen London "The Masters will throw the switch at the highest level of the Bazaar. You meet Jervaise at the door to Penstock's Land Agency. "Someone had to verify that all was well downstairs," he says, halfway embarrassed. "Wouldn't you rather be upstairs with them?" Penstock meets the two of you inside. The elevator ride down is long, slow, and silent."
  54. ↑ The Highest Spire, Fallen London "At the top of the the highest spire of the Bazaar, there is a small chamber. It is nowhere as large as the grand apartments of the Masters; it has been filled with crackling, hissing machinery that makes the space even more cramped. Two metal spikes have been placed at an angle through one of the upper windows, poking out through the domed ceiling like makeshift lightning rods."
  55. ↑ The Dreams of London, Fallen London "Something stirs in the clouds, above. Something stirs within your dreams. How long have you been asleep? You're still staring at the city from the highest spire of the Bazaar. But you can see everything, every detail: urchins playing hide-and-seek in the rubble; a gentleman in Veilgarden chasing after his top hat, blown off his head by the unexpected wind; manicured fingernails in Ladybones Road, ravaged with nervous bites over the last two days. More than that – you are seen. The people down at street level are looking back at you, and at each other. There is a brief moment of total recognition."
  56. ↑ The Dreams of the Bazaar, Fallen London "You are in a dark, warm space. There's nothing here to see, and nothing to hear; you would feel entombed, but your limbs flail in empty space, insensate. The only thing that gives you a sense of direction is a variation, a gradient, from your toes to your head. You are halfway submerged in something warm and viscous. Like a wick being dipped in wax in a chandler's shop – the image comes to your mind unbidden. There are other vague impressions filling the void: your nostrils flare as cold, dry air blows into them, painfully. A feeling of snakeskin on your skin. A tingling of nerves misfiring; specks of sensation too small to quantify or qualify."
  57. ↑ Try to wake from this dream, Fallen London "The dream you've intruded upon is being modified, somehow. Tuned to resonate with a different note. But you awake before you can fully understand – upstairs, in Penstock's Land Agency. It seems Penstock himself dragged you and Jervaise up the elevator when you started to lose consciousness."
  58. ↑ Awake, Fallen London "At some point you must have collapsed to the floor; you're lying on your back, staring at the domed ceiling of the spire chamber. "Is it done?" you hear one of the Masters asking. "Did it work?" Fires glances at you, then out through the window at London. "It must have," it says. "Nothing appears to be on fire, and we're all still alive." The chamber soon empties of Masters, and you are left to descend, alone, back to the streets of London."
  59. ↑ The Aftermath of the Great Sink of 1899, Fallen London "After very nearly being swallowed up by the Earth (again), London slowly recovers. Streets that were riven with cracks are patched over; buildings that collapsed are rebuilt."
  60. ↑ A Return to the Revels, Fallen London "With the resolution of the crisis, Mr Wines has taken it upon itself to organize a new barrage of revels. This one takes place in a townhouse commandeered for the purpose, after the proprietress fell into a sinkhole and crawled out two days later ready for the tomb-colonies."
  61. ↑ Learn what has happened, Fallen London "The rumour has spread among the many factors, auditors, neddy-men, commissioners, and other hangers-on of the Bazaar: The Viscountess has brokered some quiet deal with the Masters. What leverage she has remains a mystery – but it presumably relates to her exploits in Parabola. Speculation has it that she came to the Masters not with an offer, but with a threat."
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