The Undertow: Session Twenty-Five

A Creature from the Realm of Dream has been stalking Mikansia from the very beginning, demanding her friend Jabez's sword. When Mikansia didn't give it the sword the Creature tortured Dale, one of Mikansia's friends, to steal the sword. It then turned the sword into a weapon capable of cutting into the world of Dream. The Creature came for Mikansia and the sword, putting her allies to sleep, backing itself up with a dragon. Mikansia has slain the Creature from Dream.

The Drones were coming. Nomi was bleeding out. Fish was being slaughtered by the real dragon. Mikansia pushed the carcass of The Creature from Dream off of her.

Yngvar appeared next to Mikansia. She jumped. Yngvar looked stressed. "Grab Fish, Nomi, and whoever else and get over to the Lone Keep, now! It's vulnerable and won't stay that way for long.

Mikansia gaped.

Yngvar smiled. "Akseli and Makirta send their love."

Mikansia's jaw worked. Her eyes moved elsewhere.

"Go! Fish needs you! Hand me Nomi, so I can heal her."

The buzzing of the drones announced their arrival. Mikansia threw Nomi through the hole and began her song of mending, so the hole in Dream could be closed. The soothing song closed the hole, but not in time. A buzzing insect the size of a horse blazed out the hole as it closed. Mikansia changed keys and began to sing the low and angry Song of the Sword. The drone dove at her with a harpoon-sized stinger. Mikansia dove to the side and cut the gigantic insect in half with a single swing. Ensio, Dale, Decima, Ember, and little Simone began to stir, groaning as they awakened from the sleep forced upon them by the Creature Mikansia had killed.

The whole earth shook as Fish was thrown bodily into the city of Vigilance, knocking over the front wall as if it was tissue paper. The hurricane that was the real dragon  coming in for the kill wrenched trees out of the ground, sending them spinning down the mountainside. Mikansia, Ensio, and Dale started to run, with Mikansia promising to explain everything later. They ran as fast as they could. Mikansia needed Fish to live. How else could they take down the Keep?

The rounded the corner to complete and utter desolation. Buildings were strewn apart like toy blocks. Fish lay in the remains of a flaming structure. His pitiful cries rocked the ground.  The glowing sword of Mikansia caught the dragon's eye as they came into view.

The dragon took a quick breath.

The inferno that roared over Mikansia's head blew through rubble, shaking the foundations of the earth. Mikansia's white hair caught alight, as did her clothes. It felt like the dragon had summoned the apocalypse itself.  The dragon grunted with exertion as the last bits of flame poured out of his mouth. Mikansia quickly put out the flames and looked to her right and left for Ensio and Dale.

She was in a world of ash.

Mikansia pushed the storm back down and stood up. The dragon was staring at her. Its eyes... nothing had more purpose. More depth. Knowledge. Attention. Mikansia needed to look away. She had to. She could not. She had to. Even if it was just a little bit.

The dragon's chuckle was an earthquake. Its footsteps knocked over the rickety structures around her. By the time it had gotten to Mikansia she thought the whole city would have collapsed. Her legs ached from the effort of standing. Her brain was scrambled. "Little one. Very, very little one" boomed the dragon. "Give me the sword."

Gritting her teeth, Mikansia began to hum. It turned to song. Her sword glowed even brighter. The dragon chuckled as Mikansia sang the Song of the Sword into its face, her voice swallowed up in the rumbling amusement of the force of nature before her. Every last part of her body hurt. Her knuckles, white with the effort it took to hold onto the sword, nevermind her knocking knees. Every last cell in her body wanted to just stay in the dragon's eyes, to give over the sword, to just lie down and die already.

Move.

Mikansia ducked, slamming the rainbow blade under the dragon, opening an enormous portal beneath it. It dropped above an open ocean of horrors. Mikansia transitioned into the Song of Mending, closing the portal on a pillar of hellfire.

Without pausing Mikansia ran over to Fish and cut a portal to Nomi, who was waiting in Dream. Yngvar had healed her with his essence, the same way he'd healed Dale before.

Dale was dead.

So was Ensio

No time to think about that. Move.

Nomi was holding Fish and would not shut up. "FISH! NO! WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU??" Mikansia's stomach twisted. This was going nowhere, what with Nomi screaming so.

Yngvar was furious. "You dropped a dragon into Dream???? Of all places?? One of the most powerful beings in all of existence and you dropped it here? Where it can do the most damage?'

"Oh please, what was I supposed to do?? It was about to kill me and take the sword! What other choice did I have? A fat lot of help I had in making that decision at the time!" Mikansia only narrowly avoided rolling her eyes at Yngvar.

Yngvar paused and took a deep breath. "We'll just have to hope the Drones bring it down. We don't have time. What a mess!"

Nomi took a second to stop crying and came up to Mikansia. "Thank you. SO. MUCH. Fish means everything to me. Everything. Everything. To me."

Mikansia turned away, seething. "Oh, don't thank me. Our best bet at taking out the Keep is gone now, because your precious Fish couldn't handle himself!"

Nomi grabbed Mikansia's shoulder. "Hey, what was that??"

Mikansia whirled around, trying to throw Nomi over her shoulder. But Nomi stopped the throw right in its tracks, grabbing Mikansia by the other shoulder. "You really don't get it, do you? So what if Fish can't help us? You saved him! You did good! After everything that's happened, after all the things that have gone wrong, isn't it enough to just save. One. Just one. Person?"

Mikansia shrugged. "Doesn't help us achieve our goal."

A bitter laugh was all she got back in response. "Oh, I get it!" Nomi pretended to rub an eye. "Oh boo-hoo, woe is me! I lost my daddy figure! So I'm going to be all angsty and a total bitch! That'll show everyone I can't be messed with! Boo-hoo, I'll never get hurt again! Please oh please, grow up."

Mikansia waited.

"Tough shit! Bad shit happens. Make some good out of it! And, like it or not, that's exactly what you did. Gah, it's bad when dark elves have a better outlook on life than you!"

"... you done?"

Nomi took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm done. Let's go kill these bastards. But first? We need to hide Fish somewhere. The Drones will eat Fish before he's done healing. Decima can take care of him."

After they hid Fish in a nearby glade Mikansia went to find Decima.

She found Ember instead.

Who feel to her knees, shrieking. Because she didn't see Dale, her husband. She'd been looking for him everywhere and the fact that he wasn't standing with Mikansia, right there and then, told her everything she needed to know. And Mikansia's twinge of guilt was all that Ember needed to confirm her suspicions. She screeched into the heavens, hands grabbing at the dirt in front of her. Mikansia didn't move.

"Where are my husband and son?" said a soft voice behind her. Ember's screaming was all that was heard. "Where are my husband and son?" Decima repeated.

"We ran into the dragon unexpectedly. They didn't make it."

Decima stared at Mikansia a moment.

And then hugged her.

Mikansia stiffened. Decima smacked her on the back of the head and kept hugging her. "I'm proud of you. I'm proud of how they went. They were fighting the good fight. Thank you for being with them as they did that."

Mikansia pulled back. "We had to hide Fish. He's going to need a lot of help." She described to Decima where Fish was. Decima nodded.

As Decima turned to leave, for one fraction of a second, the mask dropped. Her shoulders slumped, her eyes glazed. She looked up, with a stare that was beyond weariness. "Please let me me know when you destroy that wretched keep."

"You won't see me if I fail."

"That makes sense to me." Decima walked over to her daughter-in-law and hugged the sobbing sixteen year old to her chest.

Mikansia turned to leave, cleaving another hole into Dream.

"Mama, what's wrong?" It was little Simone, Dale and Ember's three year old daughter.

The portal to Dream closed behind Mikansia with the Song of Mending before she could hear an answer.

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Beside the River of Truth: Set Up

One year ago Ultron almost took over the world. Using an army of drones Ultron broke into NORAD and almost launched a nuclear device. No matter how hard Iron Man and Spider-man tried to stop him, the launch was going to happen. Iron Man could reverse the hack and destroy Ultron... if only he could get to the control panel! So Peter Parker, the Amazing Spider-Man, sacrificed his life so that the hack could be reversed.

Tony Stark hasn't been seen publicly since.

But now Norman Osborn has come to Stark Industries. He has begun making aggressive moves against Stark Industries, buying up all the stock he can.... and Stark has done nothing to stop him. If nothing is done to turn Tony Stark back to sanity, then Norman Osborn will have taken over Stark Industries, right under Tony's nose.

Captain America thinks he can turn Tony around. Let's hope he's right.

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Slither: Session 5

Last time on Slither: After Kiva and Desarim fought with goblins on a rope bridge and Pella selflessly sacrificed her body to save the others. They went to an armory where they found Aram, an elf rather traumatized from his imprisonment by the goblins. They found a doorway to a room full of chanting goblins. When Desarim opened the door to explore more, he was promptly shot in the face and died instantly.

Kiva and Aram in shock from what they just experienced, try to regroup their thoughts, they hear a cage rattling in the opposite corner of the chamber and go to investigate. Approaching the cage, they find another human who simply just stated that his name is Toram and that he had been imprisoned there for as a long as Aram had been.

 The moment Toram finishes talking, the goblins rush the door. The new companions run out back across the bridge to the collapsed Trodgor chamber. Here, they see a glimmer of precious metal, Kiva convinces Aram and Toram to search the chamber, saying “we need gold from this place or we can’t leave”. They agree so they take a few moments to further explore the ruins of the room, until each person found at least one piece of treasure.

Afterwards proceed down a side hallway, having to cross near the remains of the trogdor in the process. The sight of this giant fallen corpse causes Aram and Toram to shudder in the fear but they press on anyway. The hallway turns into a wider chamber. Pausing for a moment, the group can hear some mysterious scraping sounds somewhere in the unseen depths.

Moving hastily, they explore further down the passageway, looking for a way safely back to the surface all while avoiding the source of the ominous sounds. The further they walk down the corridor, Kiva senses once again, the evil presence that has periodically revealed itself throughout this entire journey, only this time, the presence seems SO overpowering and strong, that every one of her companions senses it too. IN FACT, there seems to be a door at one end of the chamber from which this presence radiates. Shuddering they decide to go any direction but nearer to that Thing, whatever it was. The only other option was through a doorway opening to a set of stairs leading downward. Although not exactly the direction they wanted to head, the party begins descending the staircase.

  Halfway down the stairs, they hear growling.  Aram turns around for a moment but then decides that he’s more afraid of the malevolent presence than he is of the growling. He regrets this the instant he sees the source of the noise. A group of hungry looking goblins are crawling up the stairs towards them. However, these are no ordinary goblins. These creatures appear only half formed; their shape not yet fully coalesced. Thinking quickly, they use their makeshift weapons to shove the creatures quickly off the open side of the staircase avoiding a full-on fight. Toram takes a bite to the leg but otherwise, the party remains surprisingly alive and unscathed.

They get to the bottom of the stairs and realize to their dismay that it appears to be the spawning pit, filled with many more of the strange half formed goblins, only these are more rapidly taking form. Aram attempts to mislead the creatures with a spell of mirage, but due to an accidental misfire, the spell backfires leaving him uncertain if what he sees is reality or a hallucination. Racing past the goblins as fast as they can, they run through a doorway and shut it hastily between them and misshapen goblins spawning behind them. This room is quite different from the previous room, as the floor is covered with dank vegetation and water trickles through. After surveying the room, Aram decides to try to pull all the moisture out of the bricks, hoping this would indicate the source of the water and thus a way out of the dungeon. However, his spell is only successful in that it creates enough of a ruckus that all the goblins in the adjoining room are instantly alerted to their location. They burst through the once sealed door, now fully formed and ready for a meal. As Kiva and Toram draw weapons preparing for a last desperate stand, Aram gets a flash of insight and once again uses his spell to drain the water from the bodies of the goblins, instantly turning their enemies to dust.

A slow clap ensues, as all of a sudden, the malevolent presence makes himself known, finally revealing his physical form to the party. A Lich appears, what may have been a man once, long ago in a former life, now only a wizened old corpse, with the tail of a monstrous snake where his legs should have once been. Introducing himself as Xiximanter, he begins his diatribe “I have been down here centuries, conducting my research… what a pleasure to finally meet you after all the disturbances you have caused. However, I am a patient soul. I would be happy to let you leave this place in peace….provided you each provide me with a small vial of blood and assist me in finding three blue mushrooms from this room”

Aram arrogantly asked him “ why  can't you pick your  own mushrooms” 

The lich laughs and replied “ because I’ve no longer the sense to see, smell or  feel them” Aram and Kiva exchange a look, but decide this task doesn’t seem too onerous. They hurriedly find him the mushrooms he desired, digging through the strange vegetation with their makeshift weapons stolen from the armory.

 “This is fine thank you greatly” says the Lich.  Toram gives a sample of blood from his leg wound as requested.

However, if the party expects this to win their freedom, they are sadly dashed of these dreams. The Lich turns to them all and says “Unfortunately this isn’t enough, but I will make you an offer. I’ll let two of you live if one of you stays behind forever” Toram, half mad with pain from his wounded leg and desperate for any hope of healing, immediately offers himself up as tribute to the others. Aram immediately objects and offers himself up as tribute to replace Toram. Kiva also voices objection, not wanting to see them both die. There are several minutes of arguing on who will stay behind and stubbornly Toram prevails and insists “I’ll stay behind, if the others go free”

“Excellent and yes of course” the Lich states, a small cruel smile almost cracking the wizened face.

 The next thing Toram knew, he is teleported to another chamber where he finds himself strapped to a torture bed surrounded by goblins. He says “Oh crap” and realizes it’s going to be a long eternity. Kiva and Aram are able to leave the dungeon in silence and after dividing up the spoils of the dungeon they go their separate ways. 

May the Power Protect You: Lauren Shiba (SS Red, Part Two)

Lauren is the strangest character I've played so far. I didn't have much all that much experience with her, so after part one was complete I contacted the Heroes of the Grid facebook group and asked to show my post to people who had played Lauren more than I had. I was pretty confident I had a stellar post, even one that could have been definitive for the character. Hey, I get to have dreams and aspirations too!

The responses I got back really took me off guard.

Because most of the fine folks who looked at part one told me that they didn't play Lauren that way at all! They used Lauren as a leader to buff and then occasionally jump in to kick ass. That wasn't the part that floored me though. What floored me was that they confirmed that my experience with Lauren was completely and utterly valid, they just didn't want to play that way with her. And that they were grateful that the character was designed with such depth that they had the option to play it their way.

Lauren's character ability doesn't necessarily mean that she's using energy on herself, she could use it  to donate energy confidently, secure in the knowledge that you'll be getting that energy back at the end. Disciplines could not only be used for other's rolls but that was their preferred usage of the card! Every part of the Lauren buffalo could be used to give others the break they needed to shine.

I don't make this post because I disagree with them. I made this post because I was a bit gobsmacked by what was said. The whole time I've played Lauren I was unable to see the character any other way than what I wrote in Part One. That was just what I saw. When I showed what I had written I was wondering if I had seen everything, but I wasn't expecting the level of difference that I heard.

I am struck by just how freaking flexible this game can really be, to allow for that level of dialogue between players. This is such a good thing! The game is already developing enough depth to where such conversations can happen. As the game continues and as we talk about more characters (particularly Zeo) we'll find this becomes more and more pertinent. How I play Zeo Red may be very different than how you play Zeo Red, for instance. Or Phantom Ranger. Or whomever. For ten cards there's a lot of depth of these newer characters, and Lauren is the harbinger of that. And I'm so excited.

The point is that my original vision for this series, to provide subjective input for how I've used the characters and enjoy them, has become more relevant than ever. Because there isn't just one way to look the characters we have coming out now. And as time goes on that will become more and more true, and we may eventually start getting characters for whom there are almost as many ways to play them as there are people. We're approaching an era where true player diversity is not just an exception, as it was with the core box, but the norm.

And I welcome that with open arms.

Marvel Champions: Dr. Strange Review

So it's not been much of a secret that Dr. Strange is incredibly strong. Everyone outside the US has been raving about this character for awhile. So, being in the US and all, I finally got my copy! As always, this review is about whether or not I think the deck is viable out of the box and my initial impressions of the character. I'm certainly not good enough at this game to provide any real in-depth analysis. But I can certainly talk about playing the deck out of the box!

The actual character cards for Doctor Strange are... crazy. Just nuts. He covers practically every base, even allowing you to grab cards out of your discard pile, as well as covering a lot bases. Playing the deck I felt like I usually had an answer for anything that was coming at me. Strange's actual deck lacks any and all forms of damage dealing. In fact, his actual deck, while it's good, isn't anything earth-shattering.

It's that freaking Invocation deck that makes Strange just bonkers.

See, there's a side deck that Dr. Strange has with him, of five cards. You flip the top card over. It can be cast by paying the resource cost on it, effectively giving you an additional card in your hand that you can use while you're in Hero form. Most of the time you just discard the card and then flip over the next top one, but it's not terribly hard to figure out how to manipulate the spell deck. And they're all incredible. There's literally a card that lets you swap out a condition on a target for any condition you want. Any. The Crimson Bands of Cyttorak does -and I quote, keep in mind this costs you two resources to do it - "Stun an enemy and deal 7 damage to it. Place this card in the Invocation deck discard pile"

7 damage. With a Stun. For two resources.

And before anyone says "Yeah, but it circulates back to the Invocation Deck discard pile!" there are cards in Dr. Strange's deck which allow him to keep this deck on top of the Invocation deck and keep using it. Dr. Strange can hit with this sucker a good two or three times if he's lucky.

And that's exactly what I did.

Ultron never saw me coming.

So much scrap.

So if you know what you're doing Dr. Strange is probably the strongest hero we have right now. But how does the rest of the deck play? I'm really not a fan of pairing Dr. Strange with Protection, which is what the default deck does. I personally ground against it the whole way. Don't get me wrong, the cards in this deck are the absolute friggin' bomb, and I immediately cannibalized most of the Protection cards in here for my Spider-Man Protection (making it a thousand times better!). There are may be people who would enjoy Dr. Strange as an entry into the hobby, but I know I sure wouldn't.

That being said the Protection cards are just amazing.

Swords and Strongholds: Review

Do not be fooled. This game is evil.

Don't let the simple-ish components, which feel really good to touch and play with, fool you. This is a knock-down, drag-out brawl.

The board is too freaking small and it's on purpose. Magnificent bastards.


 So the set-up of the game is kinda like checkers or chess, but with cards. There are four pawns a side, black and grey, and they move on the intersections of the board, as opposed to the squares. You must move a pawn one intersection a turn. You may play a card. There are three types: swords (which let you move in an L shape and pushes other pawns, including your own), strongholds (you settle into a square and lock up all intersections adjacent) and diplomacies (either switch spots with the closest enemy pawn OR pull the nearest enemy stronghold out of said stronghold).

You are either trying to put a stronghold in one of the opponent's back corners or take all his pieces.

Both are a pain in the ass.

Play is deceptive. It looks like a simple game... until your opponent swaps positions with you and you realize you're very close to losing. Or until you've got half of your pieces in stronghold and realize that you've completely locked the board up, but you're afraid to come out of the stronghold, as that might allow your opponent to win... but you need those pieces. Damnit. There's a push and a pull and some unbearable tension you just have to accept if you're going to play this game. And if you don't want choices that are genuinely hard to endure then I really can't recommend the game. There are no real good answers, just a tight board, not enough pieces, and a game that goes on precisely as long as you're afraid of screwing up.

This is not a game for the feint of heart. If you don't like direct confrontation and want ways to weasel out of conflict I cannot recommend it. But if you're OK with charging head-forward, ready for a mousey brawl, then I think you'll have a great time. I like that style of play, and find that this game serves that taste quite well.

For everyone else I'd be snarky and recommend chess, but chess can be pretty cut-throat too!

The Undertow: Session Twenty-Four

The cult of The Lone Keep must fall! Mikansia and Nomi, determined to end the vile Keep's existence, have acquired a working star map so they can intercept the orbiting Keep. But first, they have to drop off some of their compatriots at the human city of Vigilance.

Vigilance was partially elven built, for the purpose of keeping the demonic The One in the Deep imprisoned. Mikansia had always been a bit skeptical that humans could keep the Elven Inimicai secured, but The One in the Deep wasn't running around and creating havoc anymore, so who was she to argue? And it was a beautiful city, with its red-roofed white-walled visage shining in the sun. It would probably look better with the dark black of the Void for a sky, not this ridiculous blue, but still, at least some humans had taste. Vigilance was atop a mountain, surrounded by mile upon mile of mountainous forest. Decima had asked that she and the girls be dropped off a little ways outside the city, as they didn't want to spook the population.

Fish was asleep before he landed. Everyone else fell off him, in a heap. Everyone else, except for Mikansia. The walls of Vigilance were before her; the vast forests of the northern Étranger Mountains behind her.

There was something up in the sky; its wings were too leathery to be a bird, Mikansia could tell from even that far up. As it came closer it brought a hurricane that dwarfed anything Fish could ever summon; an actual dragon, surrounded in flickering oranges and blues. Mikansia had to back away from the corona of flame and steady herself against Fish's unconscious bulk. On its back was the Creature from Dream, green scales shining in the early morning light. All its voices could be heard; various voices, various tones, as the real dragon landed in a miniature earthquake.

"Give me that!"

"So many generations! Wasted!"

"I've earned it!"

"How dare you!"

"DIE"

"You first!" Mikansia drew the rainbow blade that the Creature had made from Jabez's sword. She had lost it once; she would never lose it again. Dragon or no, Mikansia would not run.

Twelve orcs came running up from behind the dragon, using the flaming whirlwind as cover. So did a werewolf.

Mikansia sighed. And cut a hole into the realm of Dream. That was one of the sword's powers.

She was back in the impossibly bright fields. She knew she had less than a moment. So Mikansia focused on a memory: she had left Nomi, back when their compound had been invaded by pathetically insane Zaina. Mikansia had no way of knowing if Nomi and Fish were going to make it out at the time. Mikansia didn't want to admit she still felt guilty about it.

But she had to.

And she sank into that guilt.

She'd never live up to the debt she owed Nomi.

"You rang?" Nomi stood beside her, with a bit of a mocking smile.

"You fell asleep"

"I did?"

Mikansia nodded. "Apparently extreme danger bores you."

"Oh please! That's just not-"

"I hate to interrupt and rush. But we're getting attacked by a dragon."

"A real dragon?? Fish isn't a real one. He hates being re-"

"Could you please pull Fish out of whatever dream he's in so we don't get roasted???"

"Oh, right. Real dragon. Got it."

The real dragon stuck its head through the hole. The furnace from hell opened. A hill popped up in front of the pillar of hellfire. Mikansia was startled. She had barely even seen the movement of the dragon before the fire had unleashed; how the hell had she reacted so fast, especially in someone else's defense? Fish rocketed from the sky of Dream, plowing into the real dragon's face. They rolled out of Dream and into the waking world. They rolled down the mountain, kicking up trees and hills and boulders and whatever else was unfortunate to get in their way.

The werewolf jumped through the hole in Dream. Mikansia diced him so quickly the werewolf was forgotten in the rough draft of this post, no I'm not kidding this wasn't even a freaking fight. 

Erhem. Sorry.

Three orcs ran into the hole, eager and ready to avenge their compatriot. Mikansia barely even looked at them as their heads went flying in a rainbow-blood flash of light. Nomi whistled, finally registering what had just happened. Mikansia was a bit smug. She wasn't at Krakeru's level. But still.

Fish went flying through the air like one would punt a ball.

KABOOM

A nearby mountain peak went up in a debris cloud. The real dragon's hurricane wasn't too far behind. "FISH!! NO! YOU BASTARD!!!" Nomi ran out the portal, screaming at the top of her lungs.

A blade entered Nomi's ribs. She fell over. The blade stayed. Blood exited. From around the corner of the hole stepped the Creature. He reached into Dream and a new sword appeared in his claw.

"So much time."

"Waited long enough."

"Please."

"DIE!" Mikansia lunged as The Creature swung down at Nomi's leaking form. Mikansia rushed through the hole in Dream, impossibly fast. Four orcs and their swords popped between Mikansia and The Creature's descending blade.

Mikansia hadn't moved as fast or as gracefully as Krakeru. She blocked five blades at once, so quickly there was only one loud ringing sound. No, Mikansia had not been as fast as Krakeru in that moment.

She had been faster.

The Creature and the four orcs stared at Mikansia. For just one second nobody moved. And then all five foes lunged at Mikansia. Spinning out of the way of The Creature's lunge, Mikansia swung once.

The four orcs fell in half, blood spraying over The Creature and Mikansia. There wasn't a mark on Mikansia's shining blade.

With a series of guttural screams and yells The Creature lunged at Mikansia, knocking her back into Dream, through the hole; the rainbow blade was sticking out through its back.

Nomi twitched. She wouldn't last much longer.

Mikansia could hear a buzzing as she got up. It was the giant insectoid keepers of Dream. And they wouldn't be merciful to whomever opened that portal.