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Storm-Tossed now rides the Winds of Jazz
In July of 1791, in the town of Carpentras in southern France, there was a poor bar singer, never paid according to her talents, but content with what she had nonetheless. When she signed a contract with a richer patron, the illiterate singer trusted his word that she would be allowed to sing. And she was - just not for anyone else. Distraught at being locked into a bargain which took her beloved music from her, the singer dreamt of music, of a saxophone in the night. She bargained with the Worm Funktastic, one of a very few to take on such a monstrous task and live. Composing a song to the Worm Funktastic, she convinced her patron to allow her to sing for him and an audience of his friends. From the first note, Spinebearers poured from the ears of her listeners, flooding into the room until the corpses had become headless and shredded. Freed from her contract at last, she sent the Spinebearers into the streets of Carpentras, ushering in the Age of Jazz in the Third History.
From there did the power of Funk ferociously spread throughout the land, consuming the weak of mind and empowering the musically gifted. Impossible reports started to filter through to Paris, which initially dismissed them as counter-revolutionary ravings, but was soon forced to come to terms with the events in the south. At the same time, news of what was was unfolding reached the other Hours. Several Hours took an immediate and personal interest in the happenings, brazenly and openly offering to help mortals defend against the onslaught, in defiance of the centuries-old unspoken code of minimal interference of the Mansus. Desperate men and women called upon the More-Opened to free them from the torment of the earworms, or begged the Ferric Brand for the changes that would allow them to resist the lethal tunes, with terrible consequences for all. The Succulent Glow began to multiply its terrible deals, promising salvation but consuming them body and soul. The spread of despair also served to empower the Perennial, which also began to take an interest, seeking out those who still struggled to resist to bring them under its power. [[The Storm-Tossed]] did not intervene directly, but lent its favour to the mortals caught up in the destruction, growing in strength as the chaos spread. Also {{FNORD}} happened.
But not all Hours approved of this overt display of power, and after traditional methods of containment proved insufficient, they hastily mobilized their forces for what was nominally a policing operation, stopping just short of an all-out war against their fellow Hours. [[The Cub]] quickly captured and sequestered the Worm Funktastic, which offered little resistance, and sequestered it in [[the Den]] where it was made to await judgement while the clean-up process was underway. [[The Spirarch]] spread her branches further into the Histories than ever before, assuming direct control of many of her followers in order to mobilize her forces and rally people to her side, siding with the French Republic to offer a rational counterpoint to the madness. [[The Bright Tapestry]] weaved webs of hitherto unseen complexity, enmeshing disruptive thoughts to pacify those most affected by the jazz and turning their minds' eye to the Glory instead. [[The Hunter]] was also given free reign to hunt down the leaders of the movement as it wished, particularly the singer at the root of the whole incident, who was to be most harshly punished for her transgressions. Also {{FNORD}} happened.
