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The Martial Mediator

Among planeswalkers and those in the know, there’s a truism: No matter the plane, there will always, always be dragons. Crossroads is no exception to this rule. Along with all the other people and creatures who were brought there hundreds of years ago, dragons were summoned to do battle.

All sentient creatures share a common history, their ancestors (or themselves if the being in question is long-lived enough) brought to Crossroads against their will, but even still disagreements and disputes do still occur. With something as powerful as a dragon, these conflicts can quickly get ugly and dangerous. As a respected third-party entity within the political landscape of the land, the Magistrum will often send people to act as mediators to prevent them from escalating.

When asked to either go or send somebody capable of handling this latest incident, Enigma shocked and surprised a lot of his peers by recommending Edmund handle it. It’s true that the young man can be a bit of a hothead at times. And yet, it’s also true that before he was Enigma’s student, he spent much of his time looking out for the other children in his neighborhood, keeping bullies and other dangers at bay. Whatever else one might say about him, Edmund has the heart to ensure that all sentient beings are treated fairly and the strength to defend himself should it come to that.

As far as Enigma is concerned, one can’t expect their students to grow unless they allow them the freedom to make mistakes. To do otherwise would stifle their potential. Besides, he had faith in his apprentice.

This work from LittleBadWolf was posted back in February of 2022. Something I play around with often in short stories unrelated to The Case of the Titan Syndicate is the notion that outside of education, the people of Crossroads often petition the Magistrum in order to help them solve problems that local authorities are having difficulty handling alone.

And given the nature of the plane, there’s enough work to go around for students and staff to take part as well once they’re sufficiently qualified. It wouldn’t be required, but it is paying work that can help pay for luxuries outside the standard student necessities.

Edmund, with Enigma’s blessing, is taking one such job. A dangerous one, to be sure, but nothing he can’t handle.