After much wandering and chasing, the Titanian war band has ultimately followed a "J" path from Titania, southward past Bosch, dipping into the northern part of Himaat, and then north and west again, finally to reach the woodlands of Himar.

Of course, the route is no longer travelled by sand trireme. Along the way, Kensington the Korv corsair has had to make use of a Dromodon-pulled wagon, hired Drokars, ferries, and – of course – occasionally just having to rely upon his own two wings.

The Titanians have proven to be resourceful in conquering the encountered terrain. Once the last grain of sand of the Himaat was left, they tore down their triremes and converted them into wagons. When river-crossing was necessary, they came up with various ingenious and/or hazardous ways to get across the river – by water, by bridge, by cord … or by air. Now, the Titanian horde is at the base of a great cliff, with no convenient trails to wind upward. They have set up camp, and a constant din of hammering and ratcheting and all sorts of other Titanian noises (along with plenty of shouting) give testament to their location and determination to do … well … SOMETHING.

The Korv himself looks down from the top of the cliff smugly, surveying the Titanian encampment from his lofty perch. "Might be int'restin' ta see 'ow they top thissun. It'll prob'ly take a while, though. I wonder why they be so fired up ta get up here, anyway?" He casts a cursory glance at his surroundings.

Rusty sand and rock stretches out across the top of the plateau, marked with countless craters and rifts. The wind blows the sand, sending cascades falling off of the cliffs. Surely, in time, all this sand will be down there in the woods, and there will be nothing but barren rock up here. The sunlight catches something beyond, however – bright blue spheres floating in the sky, emblazoned with the colorful crest of some merchant trader family. In normal times, an airship in these parts headed in this direction would most likely be en route to port in Elamoore … but Elamoore would be many, many feet under all of this rock now.

As the shadows cast by the boulders and rifts slowly shrink away, the morning sunlight catches something that glitters, further into the elevated red desert. And then something else. And something over there as well. Like diamonds in the sand, shiny surfaces reflect and refract the morning glow. First a tower full of crystal, then a desert full of … who knows what? What other oddities await this corsair before he finishes his mission?

Puffs of steam and smoke rise from the Titanian encampment … accompanied by several flashes of light.

Kensington studies the merchants in the distance, the glittering over the sand reflecting in his eyes. He gazes back down at the busy Titanians and their odd contraptions. "There be time, yet," he muses to himself. "I'd best wing o'er t'those traders an' tell 'em t' raise anchor fore these brutes run 'em down. I… " The sudden activity gives the Korv pause, and he squints down at the Titanians. "What in th'-… ?"

From the Titanian encampment, a great monstrosity emerges … It looks for all the world like the mother of all vermites! Except that this gargantuan pest seems not to breathe air, but instead belches out white clouds of steam and gusts of black smoke! Slowly and deliberately, it extends a shining chitinous claw … and digs into the base of the red cliff, sending showers of rocks falling back into the camp (and sending Titanians scurrying for cover). Then, another talon rises and does the same. Screeching noises emit from the vermite – a great racket which sends scores of birds and Creens flying in fright from the Himarian woodlands and into the sky.

"Great spittin' Dagh inna stingin' waashu canoe!" The bird gapes at the monster, then regains his wits and claps his beak shut. With a heave, he throws himself off the cliff, aiming to glide toward a copse of woods he instructed his guide to wait with the drokkar.

At the same time that Kensington leaps off of the cliff, another black winged form launches from the blue airship, descending at the same pace. It's an odd effect … almost like a shadow of Kensington being cast on a curtain of the Himarian landscape.

The diving corsaire pays little heed to his double for the time being, making a beeline for the wooded copse. "'Ey, tracker! Shake a leg! I didna believe they could do it, but th' shaggy brutes are scalin' the cliffs inna giant vermite! Keep pace with 'em, I gotta warn some poor blokes what're in their way ta get outta it!"

"HYAH!" The tracker wastes no time, getting his Drokar team moving! At least with all this racket, he needn't be concerned much about stealth.

Satisfied, Kensington banks in a tight circle, and makes for the top of the cliff again as speedily as he can manage.

The avian makes it to the top of the cliff, far outpacing the slow climb of the great bug. There is no sign of the other black flier.

Suddenly, there IS a sign of the other black flier … as he shoots up the cliff face, making a beeline for Kensington's position!

The corsaire watches the other aerobat cautiously, squinting to try to make out some detail. He maintains his heading, but ducks his head, poking the tip of his beak into the chest pocket of his vest. He comes up again, and a (mostly) white handkerchief trails from the tip of his bill, fluttering in the wind.

The other avian appears to be a big black Vartan. One with a faintly visible, light-colored slash running diagonally across his chest.