Session 75: The First Few 300 Miles
General Summary
Correcting for Failures
The session began with an attempt to access a darkened Mothlight Tree. Doing so required some resources to be spent and for a particularly challenging magic stuff to be had. Agave attempted to make the connection as you all stepped through ALT's portal. The connection was unstable, however, and the tree you stepped out of was at the edge of the darkness rather than the intended tree deep within. You considered going back in to try again, but it was brought to your attention that Agave can simply teleport thanks to their helmet and an item he acquired from The Lost Oasis. A risky move considering the unknown properties of the storm beyond, but the plan went off far more successfully than the previously attempted magic. When you next opened your eyes, you were standing in the familiar town of The Lost Oasis, though the antique shop you had gotten this item from was closed, as were many other businesses, and the Beetlefolk that walked past you seemed uneasy and strange. While they mostly resembled what you had seen during your last visit, there were some alterations. "Veins" of light could be seen glowing from beneath their skin and carapaces, and their eyes were varying degrees of glowing as well. Their flesh and chitin had lightened to different shades, and many of them seemed to be avoiding you. Similar to the Goblins that had been corrupted by the Spiraling Dark, these beetles had been altered by some force of Light.It became apparent during your journey through this place that the dark storm you had seen from the outside was not touching this place at all. In fact, looking up toward the sky, you could see that a small dome had encapsulated the entire town and the pit it resides in. From beyond the dome, you could also see the darkness rushing past. Agave, hoping to understand what was going on here, began inspecting the sand. He felt a connection to something here, the land most likely, and he was able to channel some magical energy to perceive what he was feeling. He was able to see that something with the sand he had lifted, and something within the ground where it had been taken from, was glowing brightly. Light permeated the ground and all the people in this area. An absurd amount of Light which seemed to be preventing any darkness from getting inside. Furthermore, the Light seemed to create a path where it had been coming from, as if seeping from some central location. You all began to follow Agave as he followed this path, and it soon became apparent that the citizens of this town were going in the same direction. As you made turn after turn following a familiar path that some of you recognized to lead towards a certain church, more and more beetlefolk began to appear as well. At one point, Frode began conversing with a pair of them as you continued to follow Agave's lead. Not much was learned besides that they were in line to get food, particularly for some sort of stew-like mush. The sound of a bell ringing could be heard, and as it grew louder, it was soon accompanied by the feint sound of prayers being shouted into the streets.
Soon the church came into view. A familiar priest was the source of the prayers you could now clearly hear, and the bell came from high in a steeple. You waved to him, and he waved back while continuing to ladle bowl after bowl for these hungry villagers. He did not stop shouting but watched as you approached, and you finally saw that his body had been horribly mutated...possibly by the initial arrival of the darkness, or perhaps by the Light that now drenched this place. You greeted him and began asking questions, but he didn't stop shouting. Instead, another face grew from his left side and began speaking to you. This other face was incredibly calm, welcoming, and in sheer contrast to the deafening voice coming from his head. He explained, as he ladled more bowls of stew, each with their own chunk of meat, that the darkness did come here, but that his prayers for the Light to protect his people were answered. The Light supposedly came from deep below, it rose up through the ground and into the church, and he felt it swell within him. He spread the Light to his people, and it protected them against the Darkness. He also clarified that the King, Ohrsecte, left shortly after the rest of you departed on his mission. The King headed Southeast, the vary direction of your Home Base.
Now Truly Into the Darkness
Much debating was had as to whether these people should be left alone or somehow removed from this situation. It was decided that anything done would likely just result in them being in a worse place, and you all started to head for the tunnels out of town. Along the way, you each stopped to steal or perhaps acquire some chains with hopes of tying yourselves together in case the darkness tries to separate you. Though, before you can actually step into this darkness, there were further debates as to whether or not someone should scout ahead first. Each of you seemed to have something that could benefit anyone that scouted, and it was eventually settled with all of you venturing forth into the unknown. The tunnel was largely uneventful aside from some strange discoveries about this new phenomenon. First, as you moved through it, you did notice that a slight breeze was moving through the walls of this tunnel. It was like the rock wasn't even there. This wind moved perpendicular to the direction the tunnel moved, and it was in line with the glimpses of space in this darkness you could sometimes see thanks to your torch and a bit of magic. Additionally, this wind seemed to move at a much slower velocity than what was visually being perceived. While you saw the darkness rushing past you with great force, what you felt was just above a gentle breeze. With a torch lit, all of you could see that the walls of this cave had been stained black, covered with some oily, powdery substance which you had seen a couple of times before. The light of the torch reflected off the slight, white sheen that this substance had which helped to see some details, edges of objects and so forth. ALT, however, with their strange astral vision was able to see something different. They were able to see through this darkness and perceive the world closer to what it had truly become: white, colorless, drained of any color and barely perceivable details. Just what in the heck was goin on here, ehhh?Shortly after entering this darkness for the first time, Hysteria also received a message. The last time this voice had been heard was during the encounter with Ilven, and, at that time, it was accompanied by visions of a Black Banner. “At last…I have been waiting for you for so long. Do you serve me? Or …do you serve a chained up old fool? Do you not desire power? Do you not desire to save your people?" Hysteria took a moment to reply, but their answer was eventually in the affirmative. Their plan being to trick the disembodied voice, to find a way to it, and their ruse succeeded. The voice, menacing or not, was shocked to hear that Hysteria would actually agree. Its skepticism led to it providing additional information on the off-chance any trickery was afoot. "Know this, Hysteria: He. Abandoned. Us. I am merely taking up His mantle to provide a service. A service needed by our people, as you understand. Please, join us, become better than you are now, better than you were before…better than when you thought you were serving Him. It’s always been me, Hysteria, I’m just more open about it now…and I have more power, of course." Hysteria had questions about this, particularly if this voice had been abandoned by the Patron as well. The voice confirmed this, and it revealed itself to be none other than a jester named Anguish. After finishing with this discussion, Hysteria was provided some minute guidance towards this "Anguish" person as another wind began to blow at their back. You now had a bit of a compass towards your target.
You took a moment to breathe and get your bearings, and Agave spent some time seeing what happens when food is placed in the darkness. He first tried throwing some rations into the areas not illuminated by your torch, and, as the torch was moved further forward, he was shocked to see his ration crumbs were completely gone. There was no sign of them from what any of you could tell, and it didn't look as though they had rotted into a nasty pile before vanishing either. No, they seemed to have simply vanished without a trace. Next he tried placing it on the ground and leaving it in the light for a few minutes to see if what happened could be observed. Like a mirage in the desert, images of far off places appeared to shimmer and refract on the observable portions of this darkness. You all were able to watch and see as some snowy, tundra-like environment passed through the area in front of you. The ration was, from what could be gathered, "taken" by this other location. With this in mind, you pressed on, but you had a bit more concern as you did so. The tunnel eventually ended and you arrived in the Badlands. It was hard to tell exactly where you were due to this darkness, but a potential hit could be heard flapping through the air before the sound of a whale suddenly reverberated around you. A whale? Its song unfamiliar to some of you, but ALT was able to explain that it is a large water-dwelling mammal. So what was it doing here in the arid wastes of the badlands? More wings flapping, and a massive air current rushed over you as some massive creature flew past at immense speeds. Wings continued flapping, though much smaller than what you had heard before, and a pair of eagles shrieked at you as they dived. You had a quick encounter against these eagles and a Flying Killer Whale, but it should be noted that the eagles turned into dangerous black oozes after they died. Many questions were asked as to where this whale came from though. Did it always have wings? Was it originally aquatic but the darkness changed it? Did it fly in this area before or did the location-carrying winds bring it here?
The Nexus Tower
After this combat you continued your steady progress through these dark, maddening winds. Your survival skills and your knowledge of nature and the arcane all helped you continue heading in the right direction, and the wind blowing at Hysteria's back didn't hurt either. The hours of journey eventually brought you to yet another strange sight. You saw a small, tower-like structure, more of a gazebo really. It had six sides, five of them being walls and one being an entrance. Mosaics made from some glistening material managed to pierce the darkness and you were able to see that they formed a spiral on each side of the tower above each arch. The entrance was on the southeast side of the “tower”, and you could barely make out some of the interior walls. You decided to venture inside to learn more. Several of the walls were ignored as the wall in the direction you were already heading seemed to be the most important. It showed the image of a tundra shimmering as if on a liquid mirror. At the center of this tundra was a black banner which seemed to be familiar to Hysteria as they had last seen it when they were braving Thera Relovut to confront Ilven. When this banner last appeared it drenched them in a viscous, oily ichor while the voice of Anguish spoke within their mind. This banner, this flag, it was important, and you all quickly moved through the wall to find yourselves in the very tundra you had seen depicted on the Tower's wall. Within this new area, you were unable to see very much due to the usual rules of this darkness. The torches you had been imbuing with magic did illuminate some of the area, but you could tell there was still much you couldn't see. Chanting could be heard coming from unseen creatures beyond your vision, and the wind of this spiraling dark continued to rustle the nearby flag.
In-game Date:
Daulok 31, 308
Daulok 31, 308
Report Date
02 Jul 2023
Primary Location
Secondary Location
Landmark
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