Arc 2, Session 1

After a relatively uneventful transatlantic flight from Paris to New York the group were immediately confronted with the real world impact of Emergence, in an effort to maintain a semblance of control the US had shifted significantly towards an isolationist driven foreign policy. This was readily apparent at immigration control, with soldiers were deployed in order to boost security levels. Alex and Annabeth were both selected for enhanced screening, while the remainder of the group were granted visas and allowed through. Enhanced screening for Alex and Annabeth consisted of a series of interviews and further checks. For Alex the interview turned out to have been a setup, allowing FBI Agent Samuel Jacobson to palm him a micro SD card before letting him on his way. Annabeth however was not so lucky, after being removed from the immigration queue she was led to an interview room and left, unattended for a number of hours.

Having been released from custody Alex made his way to the hotel before contacting Jason so they could look at the SD card. On it was a digital copy of the flyer for the American Museum of Natural History, advertising the “History of Spain in South and Central America” exhibition and in particular one artifact known as The Cusco Stone. With no sign of Annabeth, and no way of contacting her, Alex, Jason, Gregor and Flynn made plans to investigate the museum the next day.

Arriving at the museum the group had no issue finding the stone and upon reaching it found themselves apparently thrown back in time to the Battle of Cusco in 1533. In front of them was the Cusco stone, surrounded by Incan priests and atop it a freshly sacrificed body. As the priests dropped to their knees in apparent worship of the group Alex, attempted to revive the sacrifice, succeeding but only by drawing the life from two of the priests. Enraged, or possibly delighted, the head priest drove his knife once more into the heart of the sacrifice, killing him for the second time. Stepping forward to overlook the battle occurring below them the group all felt a familiar power, that of an em empowered, as the priest began to call down lightning. As the night lit up with the flashes of electricity history faded away again and the four found themselves back in the museum, lying on the floor around the Cusco stone.