Attack: Oh! Grab the mirror
8/24/23
You pull out the MIRROR. Your eyes are immediately drawn to its perfectly-reflective surface. It almost seems to reflect things with more clarity than they originally appear. With your KNOWLEDGE and ATTUNEMENT, you realize that this isn't an ordinary mirror. This is a mirror for reflecting magical energy.
A plan forms in your mind.
Defense: Taunt him while hiding behind the mirror
Azurius raises an arm towards the door, clearly attempting to get another shot on Trill. You leap up, letting out a shout to draw his attention. His eyes, burning blue, lock on your position.
"Silence!"
He shifts his aim towards you. Focusing all of his will to aim the shot precisely, he fires, and the crackling blue beam surges directly towards your face. With split-second timing, you raise the mirror to intercept the shot, and it collides with a brilliant flash. You dig in your heels as the force pushes you backward, but your plan is a success. The beam immediately reverses course, flying directly at Azurius.
The room erupts with blue light. A scream echoes.
Azurius is killed instantly.
COMBAT VICTORY!
And with his death, four centuries of raw, accumulated magical energy explode from his body.
Catwalks are torn apart like wet paper. Light bulbs pop. Furniture ignites. Rafters melt. It all happens in an instant, and you feel your body being tossed about by unimaginable forces.
Amid a cacophony of destruction, you begin to fall. You fall past the catwalks, though the foundation of the building, even deeper into the earth. Below you is a brilliant neon river of pure blue energy, the Blue Layline, radiating power to rival the surface of the Sun. Every cell of your body is resonating with this energy.
You fall father, and father. Closer, and closer. There's nothing you can do. You're going to fall into it.
Ever since you'd been given this quest, you'd idly wondered how you'd even interact with the laylines once you managed to reach them.
Your last though before impact is the hope that this is what you were meant to do.
And then you fall into the Blue Layline.
PROJECT W.H.R.L.D PART 1 COMPLETE!
NOW LOADING PART 2!
Attack: Prepare to attack, keeping myself ready
8/24/23
You ready your SWORD, looking for an opening. Azurius stares at you, his smile wide but his eyes pleading.
"Just leave! Let her suffer...in peace!"
You re-iterate that you can't do that. You're on a mission from the Lost Gods. Azurius raises an eyebrow.
"That's can't...be true. The Lost Gods failed our world. Abandoned us. You were led here...by false gods!"
Azurius raises a hand, charging another blast.
Defense: Be on high alert to dodge any more of those beams
As you prepare to dodge, you hear a voice behind you.
"Okay, so...bad news!"
You turn around. Trill is poking his head around the DOOR frame. He looks distressed.
"I couldn't find a button to call the elevator. I think we might be trapped down here!"
Before you can react, a beam of blue energy flies over you head. Trill dodges just in time as the beam blows the door off its hinges, sending them clattering across the rocky ground outside. Azurius lets out a scream of anger and pain, floating towards another section of the catwalks to get a better shot.
Trill is now hiding just outside the room. You can hear him wimpering to himself just beyond the smoking doorframe.
Too many more blasts like that, and Azurius is liable to bring the whole building down. You're going to need a plan, and fast. If your sword isn't cutting it, maybe there's something else in your inventory...
Attack: "You always knew it was...luckily, your job isn't murder." Attack the being with my sword
8/23/23
Trill is not reassured by the implication that your job is murder.
You dash towards Azurius and slash at him with your SWORD. He begins to hover higher in the air, and you only manage to take off a scrap of the bottom of his robes before he's out of your reach.
Sparking and jittering with blue electricity, he hovers to another section of the catwalks. Looks like he can only hover briefly.
Defense: "Go call the elevator, get zani down here. I was wrong, she's the best for this job." Draw the being's attention away from trill, then duck.
Trill nods.
"Okay!"
He runs out the DOOR.
You turn your attention back to Azurius just in time to see him fire a very bright beam of blue energy from his hand in your general direction. You duck, and the beam flies over your head, blasting a sizable hole in the wall behind you. You get the sense that if he actually manages to hit you with that attack, it'll be very bad news.
Azurius continues to twitch and spark. Whatever this magic is doing to him looks painful. And yet, he keeps smiling...
Command: "Welp. Think this one will be more dangerous than that shopkeeper?" Ready sword.
8/22/23
You push the door open, opting to confront the man directly. Trill looks alarmed by this, but follows behind.
The man finally turns to face you. His skin is deathly pale, and an impossibly-wide grin is plastered on his face. He spreads his arms wide in welcome.
"It has been long...since I've had visitors. Are you here to listen to her cries?"
You shake your head, not sure what he means.
"Then what brings you to this sacred place?"
"What brings you here? Who are you?"
The man looks up, not at the ceiling, but at the university high above.
"Centuries ago, I ran a university. I led...research projects, trying to learn more about the layline. But it was an impossible task. Her secrets are not ours to know. Her cries echoed into the sky, and we were punished. But I remain here, her faithful. I listen, and bear her witness."
You're still confused.
"Um, well...you might be excited to here that we're here to free your goddess."
"What?"
"Your cul-...Your 'faithful' believe she's tangled up in the Convergence, right? We're here to un-tangle it!"
The man shakes his head. You can tell his mood has soured, even though his smile remains.
"You can do no such thing. Her suffering...is sacred. She is precisely where she wishes to be."
You inform the man that you're going to be untangling the Convergence anyway. Now his disappointed smile has shifted to an angry smile.
"You...are blind to her truth."
The man spreads his arms and a crackle of blue electricity surrounds him. He begins to float into the air, blue beams and sparks erupting from his body. You can see a blue glow from under his skin, shining out through his eyes and mouth. Raw, blue, power.
"I have been her faithful for centuries! Her gifts flow through my veins! I am Administrator Azurius, and in the name of the Smiling One, you will never break my smile!"
Trill is hiding behind you as this light show unfolds.
"This man has absorbed four hundred years of layline radiation. Must be what's kept him alive, like a Runewalker. So, what's the plan?"
COMBAT START!
Trill lets out a weary sigh.
"Of course that's the plan..."
Command: "Zani? I trust you've got this? Trill is a magic user, so he's more equipped to take on magic. You're the best choice to be up there with ressa."
8/21/23
Zani looks frustrated. She clearly wanted to be here, but realizes you're right.
"All right. I'll keep her alive."
She points at you, oddly intense.
"Just don't screw this up, okay?"
You nod. Together, the three of you manage to drag Ressa back to the SERVICE ELEVATOR, tossing her onto the floor with a THUNK. The Elevator Construct looks slightly alarmed.
"OH DEAR! WHAT HAPPENED TO HER?"
"Magic interference."
"WOW! SO THAT EVEN HAPPENS TO NEWER MODELS? I FEEL SO MUCH MORE ADEQUATE!"
You and Trill step back and see the trio off. Ressa, face down on the floor, manages to give a weak thumbs up.
"DON'T WORRY! I'LL GET THEM TO SAFETY!"
The elevator doors slam shut. The heavy cable above it pulls taught and the elevator rockets into the darkness above you. You listen to the echoing whirs of the elevator mechanism until they're too far away to hear. Now you and Trill are alone in the darkness.
Trill breaks the silence. His breathing is heavy.
"I kind of wish I could go with them."
You reassure Trill that he'll be needed down here.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence. I...I'll help however I can."
Trill seems very nervous, but he puts on a brave face as the two of you return to the ajar DOOR of the laboratory. In the room beyond, the MYSTERIOUS FIGURE is exactly where he was before.
Oh wait, no.
He's standing now.
Slowly he starts to turn around, and the pattern on his robes glints in the blue light erupting from below. You realize you recognize the pattern, a swirl of distorted smiley faces. This is a worshipper of the Smiling One.
Command: Step forward...and don't try to attune, I think I'd get whacked off my feet if I tried that.
8/20/23
You cautiously approach the DOOR. Powerful magical energy continues to course through you, like a heavy drumbeat pounding through reality itself.
Peeking through to the inside of the facility, you see the ruins of an old laboratory. Defunct DEVICES line the walls of a large, circular room, in the center of which is a pit emitting a powerful blue light. You suspect that the Blue Layline is within that pit, just out of sight.
But the room isn't empty. There's a MYSTERIOUS FIGURE in tattered robes sitting on a catwalk overlooking the glow. His back is to you, but despite it defying all logic, you can tell he's definitely alive.
As you ponder how best to introduce yourself, you hear Ressa's voice behind you.
"Can't...do this."
You turn, Ressa has fallen to one knee.
"This magic...disrupts my...everything. Too weak...to stay...this close."
She collapses. Trill looks her over. She's still alive but barely conscious.
"We'll have to send her back up. And someone should go with her."
You look to Zani, then to Trill. One of them is going to have to take Ressa back to the surface to recover, while you and the remaining party member investigate the lab.
But, who to send back?
Command: "...yeeeeees?"
8/19/23
The Elevator Construct nods.
"GREAT! JUST SHOW ME YOUR FACULTY ID BADGES AND WE'LL BE ON OUR WAY!"
Zani glares daggers at the construct. It lets out a robotic chuckle.
"I'M JUST JOKING! I KNOW THEY'RE ALL DEAD! I'LL TAKE YOU TO THE LAYLINE ANYWAY!"
Zani calms herself as the four of you step into the SERVICE ELEVATOR. Trill looks the construct over.
"You seem...smarter than the other ones."
The construct strikes a proud pose.
"INDEED! I'M THE LATEST MODEL! AT LEAST, I WAS FOUR-HUNDRED YEARS AGO! ANYWAY, STAND CLEAR OF THE DOORS!"
The doors of the elevator slam shut rather violently, and the machine grids to life once again. You feel yourself descending rapidly.
The construct turns to you.
"SINCE IT'S YOUR FIRST TIME HERE, ALLOW ME TO SHARE SOME INFORMATION ON THIS LAYLINE RESEARCH FACILITY! WE ARE APPROACHING THE BLUE MANA LAYLINE, ONE OF FIVE LAYLINES THAT FLOWS BELOW THE SURFACE OF THE WORLD, RADIATING MAGICAL ENERGY AND FUELING ALL THE MAGIC WE USE EVERY DAY! MAGICAL ENERGY, OR 'MANA,' COMES IN FIVE DIFFERENT COLORS: BLUE, RED, YELLOW, GREEN AND PURPLE, BUT THE COLORS HAVE NO BARING ON THE MANA'S USE! ALL FIVE COLORS CAN BE CHANNELED IN THE SAME WAYS FOR THE SAME USES!"
"Huh, this speech is already out-of-date. The colors aren't quite the same. It's a little more complicated than that."
"ALL FIVE MANA LAYLINES ARE ENTANGLED UNDER THIS VERY ISLAND! THIS ENTANGLEMENT HAS THE SIDE EFFECT OF PUTTING THEIR FLOW MUCH CLOSER TO THE SURFACE THAN IT IS ANYWHERE ELSE ON THE PLANET, MAKING THIS ONE OF THE ONLY PLACES THAT UP-CLOSE RESEARCH ON LAYLINES CAN BE PERFORMED!"
"What's to research?"
"OH, PLENTY! FOR EXAMPLE, WE HAVE NO IDEA WHERE THIS MANA COMES FROM! THEORIES POSIT THAT THE LAYLINES ARE CONNECTED TO OTHER UNIVERSES, TYING THEM TOGETHER LIKE THREAD! WHILE THERE'S NO DIRECT WAY TO MEASURE THIS, STUDYING REVERBERATIONS WITHIN THE LAYLINE STRUCTURE MAY GIVE US INFORMATION ABOUT OTHER REALITIES, OR EVEN THINGS BEYOND!"
"Things...beyond?"
"AND WE'RE HERE!"
THUD! The elevator lands suddenly at the bottom of the shaft, knocking all of you off-balance. The doors slide apart, and your party steps out into...darkness.
In front of you is a wall of rusting metal, the side of a large structure that stretches into the darkness to your left and right. There are few features to it besides the slightly ajar METAL DOOR on the front of it. Above the door is a crooked sign, barely ledgable from decay, that reads "AZURE LABS" in faded blue letters.
The air is silent but electric. There's incredible power just below your feet.
Command: Oh, and grab the fucking sword
You have it. It's fine.
Command: "FUCK! RESSA!" Rush to ressa's side
You run over to Ressa. She's alive, but weak. Together with Trill, you help her back to her feet.
"What happened?!"
Ressa's voice is strained. She doesn't sound like she's in pain, exactly, just very weak.
"Hard to...explain. Call it...too much of...a good thing...I guess..."
"Is there anything we can do?"
"I'll be...fine. I just...won't be...much use...for a while."
The two of you try to help Ressa walk, but she shrugs you aside. She's able to walk on her own, albeit with a plodding shuffle.
You turn your attention to the room beyond the fallen DOOR. It's a fairly unadorned gray room, the only notable feature being a SERVICE ELEVATOR with a BUTTON next to it. Above the button is a small sign reading "FACULTY ONLY! ELEVATOR IS NOT FOR PUBLIC USE!" Before you can even take it in, though, Zani has already hopped into the room and pressed the button.
"Zani! Give us a moment!"
"What? I thought this is what we were here fo-..."
With a THUNK, the ground begins to shake. Ancient machinery, untouched for four-hundred years, grinds to life with renewed purpose. You hear something heavy being dragged up from the depths of the planet, with scrapes and creaks echoing a thousand-fold along its path. As the roar of the contraption rises to a fever pitch, the great elevator finally rises to your eyesight.
DING!
The doors slide aside, and you see a cheerful ELEVATOR CONSTRUCT smiling back at you. Unlike the others, this one has many colorful crystals jammed into its body, for reasons you can't quite fathom. It gives a polite wave.
"HI! GOING DOWN?"
Command: Give ressa the sword
8/18/23
You put a hand on Ressa's shoulder. When she turns around, you offer her the SWORD. Confused, she looks it over.
"How is that supposed to help me kick a door down?"
You tell her to trust you. Curious, she takes the sword in-hand. Her eyes widen, and you can tell she's experiencing the same invigoration that grips you when you hold the sword.
"Oh, I see."
Ressa's eyes are fixated on the blade. The flames within her head begin to swirl and flare. Her mouth curls into a wild smile as a plume of magnificently curling flame erupts from her scalp, reflecting off the blade and briefly bathing the hall in brilliant red light.
"So this is the sword of a goddess, huh?"
Ressa turns. Step by step, she calmly walks up to the DOOR, blade held at her side. The seams of her body are a radient red, with the exception of her blue arm, which is also glowing more brightly to suit the occasion. With a swift motion, she delivers a single standing kick to the door. In an instant, the door is blown off its hinges, collapsing backward into the room beyond with a deafening clatter.
The way is now open. Ressa smiles, turning to the three of you.
"Pretty cool."
Ressa is glowing even brighter, now. She looks down at the sword in her hand.
"Unfortunately, I need to drop this sword right now, or I'm going to die."
Ressa lets go of the sword. It clatters to the ground, and as it does, so does she. All the strength leaves Ressa's body as she collapses. The flame in her head shrivvled to glowing embers, she lies on the floor, barely moving.
Command: "Yeah. Let's do this."
8/17/23
Trill nods.
Your party in tow, you stride back into HALL B. You walk right past the TROPHY CASE, the odd RECTANGULAR CONTRAPTION and the PINBOARD for campus events, having no time for side-content or worldbuilding at the moment. The imposing DOOR labeled "FACULTY ONLY" stands at the far end of the hall, and for completeness I re-iterate that there's a small LENS next to it that presumably is for scanning faculty badges. You, however, have no intention of using it.
You command Ressa to take the door down, and she’s all too eager. With a charge, she slams her foot into the metal door. It shudders but does not buckle under the impact. Again, she kicks the door with all her might. The hinges rattle and the door is dented, but again, it still stands.
Ressa tries over and over, making scant progress. She seems to be enjoying the work-out, but it looks like she's just barely lacking the strength to fell the door...at least without it taking hours.
You'll need to give her a boost, somehow. Anything to amplify her force would probably blow this door right off its hinges.
Command: Hug trill, and hand him the ornate handgun as a sort of keepsake...we're unsure of what to do.
8/15/23
Trill takes the ORNATE HANDGUN, a slight smile crossing his face.
"This was one of the 'supplies' I paid her with. More of a gift, really."
His nostalgic smile fades.
"Trill?"
"Yeah?"
"I stand by what I said. From how you described it, that chick did a terrible job."
"Zani, shut up!"
"No, I'm being nice! Hear me out!"
Zani hops over next to Trill, her smiling mask beaming with reassurance.
"Look, it was her job to protect you, okay? Not the other way around! Don't beat yourself up over her getting her ass kidnapped."
"But...if I'd fought alongside her."
"We both know how that would have ended, Trill. Fighting isn't what you do, and that's fine. It's not my thing either."
"Hmm. I suppose so..."
"I've been on this island for a long time, and I've payed a lot of meathead adventurers to escort me to a lot of stupid-dangerous places, just like you did. Sure, plenty of 'em didn't make it back, but that's the job. It's ultimately not anyone's fault."
Trill is backing away.
"Okay, this started out reassuring but now you're kinda making it worse."
Zani hooks a thumb at Ressa.
"I mean, Ressa's probably going to die at some point in our adventure, and yeah it'll be sad, but we'll find someone else just like you found us."
"Hey!"
"Please stop."
Trill averts his gaze again. Zani sighs and grabs his chin, pulling him back to look at her.
"Look, my point is that she failed you, not the other way around. It wasn't your fault, okay?"
Trill nods. He seems to be more touched that Zani is trying to help him than by what she's actually saying. He smiles.
"Well, I suppose we have more pressing matters. Shall we delve into the Layline Shrine?"
Command: "I'm sorry, I don't know why I called ressa that. As for you, trill...gun lady was that friend of yours who lived in the cabin next door, wasn't she? I'm sorry.
Trill hangs his head.
"Yes. Her, um...her name is Jayde. I..."
"Is she your girlfriend?"
"No! She was..."
Trill lets out a long sigh. This is clearly a painful memory.
"Look, I knew I wouldn't make it far if I came to this island alone. So, I commissioned the services of a woman, an adventurer type like yourselves. I gave her some money and supplies and she promised to protect me on my journey."
"She didn't do a great job."
You elbow Zani. Trill shakes his head.
"I suppose it's true. She was taken when our ship was attacked. Our second day in port, those...symbol-face creatures climbed aboard and just...carried everyone off. I was only spared because I was the only one that..."
Trill winces. We've hit the actually painful part of the story. You assure him it's okay.
"...I was the only one that didn't try to fight. Everyone else grabbed their weapons and ran to the deck the moment we’d been boarded but I...I locked myself in my cabin and hid. And I just waited there, until...it was silent."
Trill stares at his feet. The endless crackling of the rainbow flames is the only sound.
Command: "Couldn't we just try and make research kick down the door again? Gun lady seems pretty occupied'
8/14/23
As you say this, you all collectively realize you can still hear the gunfire coming from the LABS building. You take a moment to listen. It's not stopping.
"Hmm. Well, I suppose that's true. Now would probably-..."
There's a loud crashing sound from the labs, then the gunfire resumes.
"...I was saying, now would probably-..."
There's an explosion sound from the labs, then the gunfire resumes.
Trill gives a long pause to make sure he won't be interrupted again. Satisfied, he resumes.
"Anyway, I was saying-..."
Suddenly, the woman in green crashes through a second floor window. A hail of broken glass rains down around her, and she lands on bended knee just a few yards away from you. She stands wearily, clearly exhausted from whatever fight she was in.
You ready your weapon as her gaze meets yours, but before either of you can react, great stone CLAMPS close around the mysterious woman's shoulders. Looking around, you see a SECURITY CONSTRUCT standing in the window the mystery woman jumped from, its arms extended like grappling hooks (not unlike Ressa's) and its hands grasping her shoulders tightly.
The woman struggles as the construct begins to reel her back towards it.
"Let...go..."
"ATTENTION STUDENTS! WE ARE CURRENTLY RESOLVING AN ACTIVE FIREARM VIOLENCE SITUATION! PLEASE SEPENTINE TO A SAFE DISTANCE UNTIL A FACULTY SAFETY ADMINISTRATOR DESIGNATES THE AREA AS CLEAR!"
A second construct appears in the window, this one firing its clamps around the woman's legs. She falls on her face as she's dragged towards them.
"I said...let go of me..."
She looks up at your party. And then, despite her face being covered in a mask, you see a sudden flash of recognition cross her face.
"Wait, Trill?!"
She begins to struggle harder. The gruff affectation on her voice falls away.
"TRILL! TRILL, HELP ME!"
Trill's eyes widen but he says nothing. He's frozen with surprize. In a moment, the screaming woman is reeled up into the window and disappears.
You hear a shriek and then...silence. It sounds like she's been subdued.
Trill hasn't moved. He has a look of total disbelief.
The entire courtyard is silent now.
Zani hands the BOMB back to you.
"Hah, I love when problems solve themselves. Now for some door kickin! Let's go, Research!"
"You don't get to call me that."
Command: Follow zani
8/13/23
You follow Zani into the COURTYARD with Ressa and Trill close behind you.
"Um, Zani? How are you planning to take that door down, exactly?"
Zani sighs and spins on her heel.
"The easy way."
Zani produces from her pockets a black, spherical BOMB. Patting yourself down, you realize it's the one from your inventory that you found all the way back in Bastion Sigmundius.
Ressa and Trill both react with alarm.
"I...I'm not sure detonating a bomb in a half-collapsed building is a good idea!"
"Yeah, as cool as it would be, I feel like the ceiling would just fall on us."
Zani groans.
"Well then you three wait here, and if I get crushed to death, you can go and treasure-hunt more crystals or whatever."
Zani turns and starts walking towards HALL B again.
Command: Shove the new crystal into reception person
8/12/23
You head towards the COURTYARD. Trill seems uneasy.
"Should we be worried about...whatever's going on in there?"
"I'm not."
"Oh...okay then."
You head through the COURTYARD into the LOBBY. The RECEPTION CONSTRUCT is standing attentively behind the RECEPTION DESK.
You present the DRIVE CRYSTAL and the construct immediately snatches it out of your hand.
"OH! THAT'S ONE OF MY MISSING DRIVE CRYSTALS! HOLD ON, I NEED TO INSTALL THIS!"
The construct unhinges its jaw and shoves the drive crystal deep down its throat. After coughing its hand back up, the construct twitches and gets a far-away look.
"PLEASE STAND BY! MERGING DRIVE INSCRIPTION ARRAYS!"
The construct violently jerks and flails in place. You hear a piecing, scratching sound from deep within its chest. After a few seconds of this, the construct snaps upright, resuming its reception duties with a big smile.
"THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE! NOW, CAN I HELP YOU WITH SOMETHING?"
Zani has clearly had enough of this.
"Just tell us how to get into the basement!"
The construct nods.
"THE BASEMENT CAN BE ACCESSED IN HALL B. TO GET THERE, JUST GO TO THE DOOR OPPOSITE HALL A IN THE COURTYARD AND LOOK FOR [basement directions 2]. ONCE YOU'RE IN, JUST [basement directions 3], AND THE ELEVATOR WILL TAKE YOU RIGHT TO THE BASEMENT. OH, AND OF COURSE [basement directions 2.5], BUT THAT SHOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM FOR YOU!"
The construct grins.
Zani is shaking with frustration.
"THAT'S THE SAME THING IT SAID LAST TIME!"
"No, this time it mentioned that the basement could be accessed in Hall B."
"WE ALREADY KNOW THAT!"
"Well, perhaps if we got the other two drive crystals..."
Zani stomps towards the door to the Courtyard.
"SCREW THAT! We're breaking the door down! This is stupid!"
Zani marches into the Courtyard, the lobby door slamming behind her. The three of you are left in stunned silence.
The reception construct leans towards you.
"LET ME KNOW IF YOU NEED ANYTHING ELSE!"
Command: Get up and head back into the hallway
8/11/23
You decide not to press your luck with wild magic any further, and head back into the LABS HALLWAY.
This hallway is mostly as it was. The door to the ARTIFACT STUDIES lab is still sealed shut, the SKELETON of a student is still face-down on the ground, the STAIRS to the second floor and door to the COURTYARD are still options, and the door to the ALCHEMIC STUDIES lab is in the distance.
The main difference is that you're now hearing gunfire.
There's some kind of fight going on in the alchemic studies lab, and considering you haven't seen anyone else with a gun, you can guess the green lady is in there with the second DRIVE CRYSTAL, but you're not sure who she could be fighting...
Command: "That's...better. back to business, then."
8/10/23
Fully refreshed, you take stock of your surroundings again.
There's still that strange MACHINE dominating one wall of the Wild Magic Studies lab. Taking a closer look, it appears the machine has a small CHAMBER into which objects can be placed. Next to this chamber is a large red BUTTON. You're not sure what the machine is meant to do, though.
In the back of the room, the CAGE labeled "LIFEFORMS" remains covered. You still hear movement from within, though despite all the excitement, it doesn't sound like you've agitated whatever's in there. They're still just toddling around, apparently.
There's still a TEXTBOOK on the DESK next to you. Looking it over, it seems to be an introduction to wild magic as a concept. If you read it, it would probably give you a better idea of what wild magic actually is.
But, since you don't sense any more drive crystals in this room, you could also just ignore all this and head back into the LABS HALLWAY.
Oh, and by the way, the sounds of a struggle have subsided from the floor above you. Maybe that green lady has fully escaped?
Command: Carefully try to get a lifewater potion
8/9/23
You pull a LIFEWATER POTION out of your inventory. Looking it over, you realize it's the one that green woman threw to you after shooting you in the leg. Hmmm, this is suspicious.
Popping it open, you swirl it around. It doesn't look like it's been poisoned or anything, not that you'd have any way to know. You take a sniff, and it has the same aroma of moldy root-beer that Lifwater Potion always has. Cautiously, you pour a tiny bit of the liquid on a burned portion of your leg, just to make sure it's legit.
WOUND reduced to Level 4!
To your relief (emotional and physical), it actually works. Weird, it looks like she threw you a for-real Lifewater Potion.
You empty the rest of the potion over the injured parts of your body, which is basically all the parts.
All WOUNDS removed!
Wow, that stuff is effective!
Attack: STAB IT WITH THE KNIFE STAB IT STAB IT STAB IT
8/8/23
With a rush of adrenaline, you stab the KNIFE into the deepest part of the creature's maw. The neon tubes that comprise its head whither and shatter on contact with the knife's blade, but the beast still lives and refuses to release you from its grip no matter what parts of it you break off.
Finally, your flurry of stabs is halted when a bendy neon tube extends from the monster's throat, wrapping around your wrist like a prehensile tongue. Your grip is weakened and, after a brief struggle, your knife is wrested away and swallowed.
You look around in a panic. You can't get your arms free to grab your SWORD, and though you've destroyed some of the creature's head-integrity, it still has enough of a mouth to keep holding you in place.
Defense: "HELP ME!"
You call for help. After a few seconds that feel like an eternity, you feel hands grab your ankles and attempt to pull you free. After a few fruitess yanks, the hands release your ankles, and a pair of stronger stone hands take over.
The creature, its strength faded, clamps down as hard as it can to keep you in its jaws. Thankfully, the heavy armor that got you into this mess at least keeps you from taking further chomping damage. Just as the strain on your legs is becoming unbearable, you're pulled free, flying out of the creature's mouth and tumbling backwards into Ressa's arms.
In a rage, the creature tries to crawl after you, but its even weaker than before. The lights in its center-mass have all gone out, and the lights in its head and limbs are starting to follow. You back away as the glow of life slowly fades from the creature, and you realize that swallowing your knife has done it in.
After a minute, the creature gives up its pursuit of you and rests its head on the ground. One by one, the rest of its lights go out, until it's nothing but a mass of twisted glass.
COMBAT VICTORY!
You reach into the glass tangle and retrieve your KNIFE. You also take another prize, the DRIVE CRYSTAL!
DRIVE CRYSTAL 1 added to inventory!
Trill sighs.
"Poor thing. I think it was just scared."
"Are you going say that every time we kill something?"
"No. I'm...getting used to it, unfortunately."
You look around. No more Drive Crystals here, but there is that odd MACHINE on the wall and CAGE in the back of the room that might be worth investigating.
Attack: Prepare knife
It's as prepared as it's gonna be.
Defense: "Throw me instead. I'll try and hit it in the face with this."
Ressa glances at the KNIFE uneasily. Even though her fear of magic has ebbed, you can tell seeing this knife up close still unnerves her. But, she regains her composure and nods.
The two of you pop up from behind the table. The creature is slowly advancing towards Trill, who is nervously but dutifully fulfilling his role as a distraction. He looks relieved to see the two of you drawing the creature's attention away from him.
Ressa grabs you by the waist and, with some effort, hoists you over her head. Immediately you realize a flaw with your plan. Strong as she is, Ressa is having difficulty lifting you in near-full platemail armor. The flames in her head are roaring from the strain, to the point where you're feeling a little toasty. Still, she powers through, shouting to get the creature to face her.
"Hey, chew on this!"
With a mighty heave, Ressa launches you forward towards the creature. It opens its giant maw wide, preparing to grab an easy meal.
Unfortunately, you don't quite make it. Ressa's throw only takes you about 90% of the distance, and you end up with only your head and shoulders inside the monster's mouth. The creature clamps down and begins thrashing you around by the torso, your legs flailing wildly. It's a distressing situation for the both of you, and the trashing and chomping take their toll.
WOUND increased to Level 5!
WARNING! When a negative status like WOUND or HUNGER reaches Level 5 or higher, you'll start to experience negative effects like pain and fatigue until the status is healed. If a negative status reaches Level 10, something seriously bad might happen!
A shock of pain shoots through your body.
But, you're still holding the KNIFE...
Attack: Prepare to do something really stupid
8/7/23
Okay.
Defense: Drag ressa behind a table with me, I have a plan
You pop your head up from behind the table to see Trill attempting to shove Ressa off of him. Neither appears to be having much success in what they're attempting.
Staying silent to avoid drawing the creature's attention, you wave your arms and beckon Ressa over. Ressa nods and releases Trill.
"Okay, new plan. You stay here at bait."
"What?!"
Ressa hops over the table and lands next to you, clearly excited by the prospect of an even stupider plan than hers.
"So what're we doing?"
Attack: Try to find something to climb up onto...don't climb onto it yet, just find something
8/5/23
You look around the room for higher ground. Obviously, the TABLES of the various lab stations could give you a boost, although that didn't seem to help Ressa too much when she tried it. There are also the OBJECTS suspended above the lab stations on chains, but they look precarious and not designed to be climbed on, especially by someone in platemail armor.
The covered CAGE in the back of the room labeled "LIFEFORMS" could be scaled with enough effort. This would actually give you a good jump-off-onto-the-creature's-head angle, given its current location. However, the fact that there's definitely something alive inside that cage gives you pause.
Or, if you're feeling really bold, there are small HOLES in the ceiling which could be used to hop all the way to the second floor, possibly letting you surprise-attack the beast. You won't be able to get up there without help, though, and there's also that ongoing struggle you've been hearing from up there. Definitely a risky play.
Defense: Hide behind a table
You duck behind a table while you weigh your options. Losing sight of you, the creature turns its attention to Ressa and Trill.
"Okay, here's the plan. I'm gonna throw you in its mouth, then you do a magic-y thing and blow it up from inside."
"No!"
"Come on! It'll be cool!"
"No! Get away from me!"
Sounds like you might need to take action, or something very stupid will happen.
Attack: stab nearest vine, let's see if it's aline or not
8/3/23
You approach slowly and manage to cleanly slice through a trashing vine. The vine shatters like glass at the point of impact, the light within blinking out in an instant. The rest of the vine, in turn, slowly cracks and shatters all the way into the creature's central mass.
Unfortunately, that's where the chain reaction stops. So, good news and bad news. It looks like the KNIFE can destroy individual vines, but it won't insta-kill the beast, at least not unless you can get a clear shot at its head.
Defense: scurry backwards, continuing to out-strategize a plant
You back away. The creature tries to drag itself towards you with its tendrils, its glassy body scraping against the tile floor as its massive head snaps at you angrily.
Ressa attempts to use the moment of distraction and charge the beast herself. She leaps from a nearby table with her sword held high. Without even looking, the creature instantly snatches her out of the air the moment she's in range, entangling her with its many neon vines. With a mighty whipping action, it tosses her across the room and into a far wall. The impact causes the wall to buckle and sends Ressa sprawling onto the floor.
Trill helps Ressa back to her feet. She looks dazed but uninjured.
Attack: Ready KNIFE
8/2/23
You're not sure if this thing's alive, but you're eager to find out.
KNIFE equipped!
COMBAT decreased to Level 3!
STEALTH increased to Level 1!
The creature shows no fear of the KNIFE. Wait, does it even have eyes?
Defense: Prepare to dodge out of the path of the vines
You approach the creature slowly, waiting for it to strike with its wiggling neon tendrils. You successfully manage to out-strategize a plant, and it lashes out in exactly the way you expected. You nimbly dodge to the side and manage to avoid any damage.
The creature trashes its vines in frustration. It's going to be hard to get in close while they're all whipping around.
Command: Drop off my wild-magic-twisted artifacts in here...except for the *former quill*, and stick my arms out again to continue the search.
8/1/23
You set the MEAT DIAMOND, MELTED STATIC and CHROME ORGAN on a lab station table, next to the TEXTBOOK. Even though the NONEXISTANT SNOWGLOBE doesn't exist, it can also be assumed to be on the table, now.
You hold out your arms, but the flames here are too strong for you to get any sort of reading. Zani perks up.
"Oh, right! I have a thing to do, now!"
Zani immediately sets about dousing the flames in the room with the WATERING CAN. She spins and twirls, splashing sacred water all over the place, putting out the fire in the most inefficient way imaginable. As she dances towards the back of the room, she waves at you.
"Hey, I think this is the crystal dealie we need! Hold on, this weird little creature has it."
Whatever Zani's chasing is too low to the ground for you to see, but she runs back and forth a few times in pursuit of some skittering creature. Eventually, she's blocked by a lingering patch of flame.
"Ugh, it's hiding in the fire. Lemme just..."
Trill has a sudden realization.
"Zani, wait!"
But it's too late. Zani unleashes a torrent of water onto the flame patch, dousing the fire...and the creature she was chasing. As the divine water seeps in, the creature begins to grow in size. Zani backs away as the creature rises from behind the tables, and you finally get a good look at it. It resembles a carnivorous plant, being a mass of writhing vines topped by a snapping flower head, and yet somehow the entire beast is made of glowing neon light tubes. Is it made of glass? Is it organic? How is it glowing? Clearly this creature is the product of wild magic.
By the time it stops growing, its massive snapping flower has reached the ceiling. It turns to you and let out a roar, and you see the purple DRIVE CRYSTAL clutched in its mouth. If you want it, looks like you have a fight on your hands.
COMBAT START!
Command: open the magical studies lab door
You head through the door to the MAGIC STUDIES LAB, tripping over the word "Wild" which has just fallen off the sign over the door, due to the struggle upstairs.
It takes a second for your eyes to adjust to the bright rainbow glow of the flames filling this room, but eventually you manage to see clearly. All around the room are various INDESCRIBABLE OBJECTS suspended from the ceiling from CHAINS over lab stations. Each object appears to be heavily twisted by wild magic, being a bizarre mix of shapes and properties found nowhere in nature. There's a time-stopped tentacle made of denim, a cactus made of human ears with thorns of unmelting ice, a ham made of mercury that appears to be facing in all directions at once somehow, and other nonsensical oddities.
On a table at a nearby lab station is a TEXTBOOK, strangely not burning despite being surrounded by rainbow flames.
In the back of the room is a tinted-glass CAGE labeled "LIFEFORMS." The tinted glass makes it impossible to see what's inside, but you definitely sense movement.
To your right is a CABINET that looks like it probably includes safety equipment.
To your left is a very STRANGE MACHINE taking up the entire wall, with a CLIPBOARD pinned to it that you can't read from here.
Command: Examine an evertin, trying to figure out how to open it
7/31/23
Fortunately, it's a pop-top! You manage to pop open an EVERTIN without issue.
This one is full of pickled strawberries in sesame seed oil. It's a true trainwreck of flavors, but not inedible. Not incredibly filling, either, though.
HUNGER decreased to Level 1!
You shake some of the other Evertins. By weight, it feels like every one contains something different, meaning they'll probably satisfy random amounts of HUNGER.
Command: aaaand back to attunin- actually, hold on. hand the watering can to zani. "congrats, your job is to get rid of the flames." *now* back to attuning
Zani accepts the WATERING CAN.
"Why do you need me to do thi-"
You hold out your arms.
"Oh, god..."
You focus on the energies of the drive crystal you felt before. Even with the flames subsided, it's still a little hard to feel anything in here. Still, with enough concentration, you manage to determine the feeling is coming from the WILD MAGIC STUDIES LAB.
You fall to your knees, exhausted. Using ATTUNEMENT too much can be hungry work.
HUNGER increased to Level 3!
Zani is idly putting out nearby flames.
"So, you pick up anything?"
You let Zani know there's a drive crystal in the Wild Magic Studies Lab. She groans.
"So we're not even going to Artifact Studies? Awww, that's where they keep all the cool, dangerous stuff!"
You glance at the locked vault door of the Artifact Studies Lab, and make a mental note that it's a good place to find cool, dangerous stuff.
Command: Start watering the flames
7/30/23
First things first, you pull out the WATERING CAN and set about making this entry hall more walkable. Just as before, the divine water puts out the roaring rainbow flames with ease.
To your surprise, you actually uncover some things under the flames. The first is a strange handheld MIRROR, still reflecting perfectly despite the frame being covered in ash. Not that you've seen a lot of them, but this is the purest, clearest, most reflective mirror you've ever seen. You can't help but think it will be useful.
PURE MIRROR added to inventory!
Your other discovery is far less whimsical. In the back of the hall you find a SKELETON, its bones bleached from a few centuries of roasting, lying face down. At its hip you find a small BADGE labeled "Student #22384, Lula Teggs." You suspect poor Lula was caught in the initial...whatever happened to this school. Despite misgivings, you feel like this badge might be useful, too.
UNIVERSITY STUDENT ID added to inventory!
The entry hall can now be navigated safely. The sounds of a struggle from upstairs are ongoing. It sounds like someone's getting chased in circles.
Command: "Go for the first floor labs. I don't wanna confront that girl unless I gotta, and I think she's got the one on the second floor labs."
7/29/23
The team nods and allow you to lead the way.
You step through the door into the LABS and a rush of conflicting magical energies surges through you. Looks like this place was ground zero for the magical chaos overtaking the school, as the whole place is bathed in blinding rainbow flames. Navigating this place will be very difficult without putting the fire out.
Finding a safe place to stand just in side the door, you try to get a lay of the land. Much like the other buildings, it looks like most of the rooms are completely incinerated, but you manage to make out a few intact points of interest.
To the right is a large set of double doors, next to which is a plaque designating them as the WILD MAGIC STUDIES lab. To the left is a room sealed with a metal vault door labled ARTIFACT STUDIES. Even farther left, down a very inflamed hallway, is a room labeled ALCHEMIC STUDIES. There also looks to be a STAIRWELL to the second floor down that way.
Speaking of the second floor, for a moment you hear a loud CRASH coming from above you and a set of scuffling feet across the ceiling. Sounds like there might be some kind of struggle happening up there.
You hold out your arms to try to pinpoint the exact location of the DRIVE CRYSTAL, but there's way too much interference from all the intense magical flame.
Command: Smirk at zani as I stick my arms out again, focusing on the crystal's energy
7/28/23
"What? Oh, not this again!"
A chill runs through your outstretched arms.
As you close your eyes, you realize you can still see the drive crystal Trill is holding in front of you. You focus on it, allowing this new sight to attune to the frequency of the crystal's light. Your breathing slows to match the crystal's resonance. You feel your spirit harmonizing with the crystal, and slowly you begin to realize similar signals are coming from nearby.
ATTUNEMENT increased to Level 1!
Yes, you can definitely sense the location of at least three DRIVE CRYSTALS. There are two in the LABS in front of you, one on the first floor and one on the second. You also faintly sense a crystal in the DORMS behind you, though for some reason it feels blocked.
Turning your focus back to the Labs, you realize that the crystal on the second floor is moving, and considering its location it might be in the possession of the woman who just eluded you.
You open your eyes, announcing you know where the missing drive crystals are. Two in the Labs, one in the Dorms.
"So where to, first?"
"How about both? We could split up!"
"With that gun lady on the loose? I'd rather not..."
Ressa turns to you.
"Hmm. Well, you know where stuff is, so it's your call."
Command: "I'm still in better shape then I was before."
7/27/23
This response just confuses Trill.
You look up at the LABS WINDOW the figure disappeared through. No sign of her.
Trill steps in front of you, Ressa and Zani.
"Okay, the way I see it, we need a faculty badge to get into the basement, and if we find some of the reception construct's drive crystals it might be able to tell us where one is."
"And where do we find the drive crystals?"
"Well, they're crystals charged with magic, right? If we had one for reference, we could trace the energies they use."
Zani perks up.
"On it!"
Zani dashes into HALL B. After an awkward few seconds, she returns holding a glowing purple crystal covered in near microscopically-intricate runes. She presents this apparent DRIVE CRYSTAL to the group.
"Here you go!"
Trill regards the drive crystal with hesitation.
"Did you...rip that out of the janitor construct's head?"
"What? Of course not! Those things keep their drive crystals in their chest cavity."
Trill sighs and grabs the drive crystal. Staring at you intensely, he holds it up to your face.
"Okay, focus hard on this crystal. These are the magical energies we're trying to track down."
Ressa is confused.
"Track it down, how?"
He leans in towards you with a smile.
"I think you know what do to."
Command: Lunge at the figure, knife in hand, vicious
7/26/23
You charge across the courtyard at the figure, KNIFE drawn. As one might have easily predicted, your literal knife-to-a-gunfight strategy goes poorly, and a bullet tears through your leg before you can close the distance.
WOUND increased to Level 3!
As you stumble to the ground, Ressa charges past you, her sword held high. The figure fires two shots into Ressa's chest, but they simply bounce off her stone frame. Ressa brings down her sword, but the figure manages to dodge rather effortlessly, leaping and weaving over a few additional swings as Ressa tries to chase her down.
The figure leaps to the sill of a second story window of the LABS, out of Ressa's reach. Through the cold eyes of her mask, the figure looks to you.
"Please...leave. What do you think...untangling the laylines...will do? You aren't...helping anyone."
The figure looks at your wounded leg. With a sigh, she tosses a BOTTLE your way and disappears through the window. The bottle spirals through the air and lands in front of you, and you realize it's a LIFEWATER POTION.
LIFEWATER POTION added to inventory!
Zani and Trill finally come running out of HALL B to join you as Ressa helps you to your feet.
"Oh god, are you okay?"
Command: "Oh, so it's like that?" Spin around to follow ressa, knife in hand.
7/25/23
As Ressa slides around the corner and out the doorway to the COURTYARD, you follow at a sprint.
Entering the courtyard, you see the FIGURE dashing away, clearly attempting to escape to HALL A. Ressa holds out her blue arm and fires her grappling hand, catching the figure by the hair. She plants her feet as she reels the figure backward, but with enough twisting and turning the figure manages to break her grip.
The exhausted figure turns to the two of you, and you get a good look at the strange woman you've been chasing. Over her face is a mask, somewhat similar to Zani's but made of green malachite. Covering her arms and legs, you see the same glowing runes you saw on the bodies of Lord Fatalis' followers.
She speaks with a disarmingly cute-sounding voice, brought down with unnatural gravel, like she's trying very hard to be intimidating.
"Just leave...the laylines...alone...and no one gets hurt...okay?"
"...You've already shot me!"
"Yeah, and...you're fine."
Ressa grumbles to herself.
"...It still hurt..."
The figure draws her gun again and begins to back away.
"I will...be watching..."
She's making her way towards the door to Hall A, her gun trained on Ressa.
Command: "well, we tried. ressa, kick down the door. i'll hold you steady if you need it."
7/24/23
Ressa rubs her hands together.
"Nah, I can handle it! One good ol' fashioned door kickin', comin' up!"
Ressa squares off with the DOOR. She does a few leg stretches to limber up, visible dust drifting off her joints as she does. A calm falls over her as she prepares a perfect single blow, quickly sprinting at the door and...
...another loud pop behind you. A BULLET bounces off the back of Ressa's head with a twang, sending her stumbling forward. She's unhurt, but clutches the back of her head as she looks around.
"OW!! What keeps doing that?"
You turn around. The same FIGURE, having apparently run back in, once again retreats into the COURTYARD.
"Oh, no no no! You get back here!"
Ressa takes off for the courtyard at a sprint.
Command: "We're not students! We're here because the place is on fucking fire! We're here to stop the cause of the fire!"
7/23/23
Zani shoots you a confused look.
"We are?"
But you shush her. The SECURITY CONSTRUCTS take a second to process what you've said.
"OUR APOLOGIES! PLEASE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY SERVICES!"
"THREATS OF VIOLENCE BY EMERGENCY PERSONNEL ARE BEYOND OUR JOURISDICTION!"
"PLEASE, EVERYONE, SIMPLY STAY CLEAR OF THIS VIOLENT INDIVIDUAL UNTIL THEIR EMERGENCY WORK IS COMPLETE!"
"HAVE A SAFE AND STRESS-FREE DAY!"
The security constructs back away and disappear behind the opposite door. With a sigh, you turn back to the janitor construct.
"Now can you let us through? We're...emergency services I guess."
"OH! WELL, IF IT'S AN EMERGENCY, SURE!"
The construct cheerfully marches over to the LENS, bends down and puts an eye up to it, beaming a strange light into a mechanism beyond. The lens sparkles with recognition, and seems to be about to open the door, but...
...suddenly, a loud pop behind you. The light fades from the construct and it collapses to the ground, a bullet wound in the back of its head. You turn and see a FIGURE escaping into the COURTYARD, smoking gun holstered at their hip.
Your party stands, stunned.
"Well, campus security won't like that."
Command: Draw knife "your school is dead, nobody is coming, we're not students, let us through or you're going to die."
7/22/23
The janitor construct straightens its stance and spins its head.
"OH DEAR! WE HAVE A CODE 229 EMERGENCY: 'OVERSTRESSED STUDENT EXPERIENCING MENTAL BREAKDOWN AND ISSUING THREATS OF UNPROVOKED VIOLENCE!' I'M AFRAID I'LL NEED TO SUMMON CAMPUS SECURITY! PLEASE REMAIN STILL WHILE WE GET YOU INTO PROPER COUNCELING!"
The janitor construct's eyes flash bright red and a high-pitched signal echoes through the halls. At the far end of the hall, another imposing set of double doors bursts open, and a pair of SECURITY CONSTRUCTS emerge, racing towards you. Despite their giant size and snapping metal claws, they have exaggerated smiley-faces drawn on their heads, and their front and back torso have "CONFLICT DE-ESCALATION IN PROGRESS" written in dripping ink.
The pair stop in front of you, making rigid gestures of reassurance.
"HEY THERE, FRIEND! WHY DON'T YOU PUT THAT [unknown weapon] DOWN?"
"IT'S OKAY! YOU'RE JUST OVERSTRESSED! LET'S GET YOU SOME HELP!"
"INDESCRIMINATE MURDER IS NOT THE ANSWER! PLEASE TAKE DEEP BREATHS!"
"IF YOU NEED US TO, WE CAN DRAG YOU TO A BEHAVIORAL SPECIALIST!"
You stare at them. They aren't being aggressive, yet, though they're clearly waiting for you to make a move. While your party could probably take them, there are probably more where these two came from.
Command: "well, that mop isn't yours to keep, it's only a loaner and we kinda need it back...but also, please help us get to the basement."
The JANITOR CONSTRUCT shakes its head.
"I'M SORRY, STUDENTS AREN'T ALLOWED IN THE BASEMENT!"
"We're faculty."
"OH, OKAY! LET ME SHOW YOU THE WAY!"
The construct heads off, with your party following close behind. You're lead back through the lobby, into the courtyard. Along the way, you hear a conversation behind you.
"So...are you okay?"
"What do you mean?"
"It's just...I thought you had a phobia of magic. This place seems much more dangerous for you than the rest of us."
"Eh, I'm kinda over it."
"Over it?"
Ressa admires her new arm.
"Once I got my new arm, I realized...I can always be repaired. Even magic can't hurt me permanently. I was totally worried about nothing."
"Oh. So...I guess in a way, what I did to you was a good thing."
Ressa just glares back at Trill.
"O...or not! I'm...still sorry"
Ressa sighs with a faint smile as the janitor construct leads you onward. Glancing upward, you briefly see a FIGURE watching you from a high window in the LABS. You're not sure if it's a construct, but it doesn't really move like one...
You lose sight of the figure as the janitor construct leads you into HALL B on the opposite side of the campus.
Looking around, this appears to be a building for classrooms and lecture halls. Magical flames are thankfully a bit more sparse here than in the previous building, though navigation still must be done carefully. Proceeding down the hall, you pass a TROPHY CASE, an odd RECTANGULAR CONTRAPTION and a PINBOARD for campus events.
At the end of the hall, the construct presents you with an imposing door labeled "FACULTY ONLY" in large engraved letters. There's a small LENS embedded in the wall next to it.
"HERE WE ARE! JUST SHOW YOUR FACULTY BADGE AND THE BASEMENT ELEVATOR IS RIGHT THROUGH HERE!"
"F..faculty badge?"
The construct leans in, knowingly.
"YOU DID SAY YOU WERE FACULTY, RIGHT?"
You sigh as the construct lets out a chuckle.
"HA HA! YOU STUDENTS ARE ALWAYS PULLING SUCH HILARIOUS PRANKS, BUT I'M AFRAID THE JOKE IS CURRENTLY ON YOU! I KNEW YOU WERE STUDENTS! I WAS PLAYING ALONG AS A PRANK OF MY OWN, YOU SEE!"
Well, looks like you'll need a faculty badge to get through the FACULTY ONLY DOOR.
Command: Ok then... pull out the cultist robes, water them, and then stab them with the spear
7/21/23
Making good use of two equipment pieces you were never going to use anyway, you wet down the CULTIST ROBES with the WATERING CAN and stab them with the STEEL SPEAR to create a MAKESHIFT MOP.
On sight of it, the JANITOR CONSTRUCT holds out its hands once again. You hand over your creation and the construct waves it around.
"HMMM. AN UNUSUAL HEFT! LET'S GIVE THIS MOP A TRY!"
The construct places the mop to the discolored section of floor, then instantly pulls it back.
"SUCCESS! THE STAIN IS GONE! SORRY FOR THE DELAY, STUDENTS! DO YOU NEED ANYTHING?"
Command: "Why didn't I think of drinking one of the potions long ago?" Use the sword to carve one of the pipes out.
7/20/23
You swing your SWORD over your head. Even jumping, you can't quite reach the EXPOSED PIPES with your blade.
Remember, if you're ever strapped for ideas, you can consult your KNOWLEDGE for some suggestions. Here are a couple for free!
You recall one of your party members recently got an upgrade that might be useful in reaching those pipes.
But alternately, you might already have everything you need to make a makeshift mop, if you got creative with your inventory.
Command: "Hmmmm..."drink some lifewater potion while looking for a long stick
You chug a LIFEWATER POTION, which provides some real healing. You feel a great sense of relief, since you've been carrying some of these wounds for a while now.
All WOUNDs removed!
You look around for a stick. Unfortunately, any sticks of the wooden variety would have burned away long ago. You suspect the JANITOR CONSTRUCT'S mop likely met the same fate.
Looking up, you see some thin EXPOSED PIPES running through a collapsed section of ceiling, which could be used as makeshift mop handles in a pinch. They're a good five feet above your head, though, and pretty well fused into place. Getting them down could be a real operation.
Hmmm...
Command: "Wait! I have a job for you! I don't know if you can swe, but there's a lot of fire. Can you put the fire out?"
7/19/23
The Janitor construct looks around.
"UM..."
It finally looks back at you and smiles.
"NO!"
Trying to contain your frustration, you ask why not.
"THE FIRE IS BEING DEALT WITH BY THE CAMPUS EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM! I SUMMONED THEM [2.102e+8] MINUTES AGO, AND THEY SHOULD ARRIVE ANY MOMENT NOW! UNTIL THEN, PLEASE MAINTAIN A SAFE DISTANCE FROM ANY INFLAMED AREAS."
You groan and ask what this construct can do.
"I CAN PROVIDE DIRECTIONS, ASSIST IN ACCESSING OBSTRUCTED AREAS, GIVE INFORMATION ON UPCOMING CAMPUS EVENTS, OR HELP LOCATE LOST ITEMS! BUT FIRST..."
The construct gestures at a slightly discolored section of tile at its feet.
"THIS STAIN WON'T CLEAN ITSELF, SO I WILL NEED A MOP!"
You look around. No mops in sight. Perhaps you could find or...make one?
Command: "OK, so i guess it can go through walls. Guess it's up to wandering around aimlessly." Head off through the door.
7/18/23
There are four doors out of this room, so in the spirit of aimlessness, you select one at random. You walk through the door labeled "FACULTY" and find yourself in a predictably-burning hallway.
Most of this part of the building has been completely destroyed by magical fire. You suspect the heavy amount of paperwork done in this area resulted in a lot of ready kindling once the flames took hold. Peering through the doors that line the hall, the only two rooms that haven't been completely incinerated appear to be the STAFF LOUNGE and the DEAN'S OFFICE. Unfortunately, the Dean's Office door appears to be locked, though it looks like a solid force could bust the partially-melted door open.
As you consider your options, you back into a humanoid figure and wheel around in alarm. Standing behind you is a CONSTRUCT, though not the same one from the lobby. Upon sight of you, it does not speak, but it holds out its hands as if it expects to be handed something.
There's a brief pause as you stare into the construct's lifeless, crystaline eyes.
"ARE YOU BRINGING ME MY MOP?"
You shake your head. The construct drops its arms.
"OH! CARRY ON, THEN!"
Hm. Must be a JANITOR CONSTRUCT of some kind.
Command: "...welp, we tried. Time for my plan!" Stick my arms out again to feel for where the magic is coming from, in the hopes that it'll lead to the basement
7/17/23
You hold out your arms once again, trying to sense the location of the basement. Unsurprisingly, the strongest feeling comes from a downward direction. Your eyes closed, you move closer and closer to the source of this power. With every movement, the roar of raw energy gets louder in the core of your being. You're flowing to the source like water, letting the power guide you. Closer...closer....closer...
You are lying face-down on the floor.
"DO I NEED TO CONTACT [local medical center]?"
"No, it's fine."
Command: Take the first-aid kit. "You never answered my other two questions and now I'm genuinely curious."
7/16/23
You grab the FIRST-AID KIT. It's quite hot to the touch, and centuries of flame-adjacentness have left it welded shut. You won't be getting into this thing with your bare hands.
MELTED FIRST-AID KIT added to inventory!
You turn to Ressa and ask about your other two questions.
"Which ones?"
You specify, the peeling her fire off one and the burning your hands with her flame one. Ressa looks thoughtful.
"Ummm, you can't physically manipulate spirit fire. You need to channel it, like magic. You couldn't grab my spirit fire any more than you could grab...like...any fire. It's fire."
You nod.
"As for whether it'd hurt to touch: Yes."
You nod again.
"Technically, there are forms of spirit fire that are safe to handle, but I'm a Battle Construct so...y'know. I'm kinda made to hurt things."
Zani grumbles.
"Ugh, enough! This is why I hate school! Can we just find the shrine already!"
You sigh and return to the mission.
Command: "Hey construct? Um, do you know where the basement is? That's all we need, and then you can go back to resting."
"I'M SORRY, BUT ONLY FACULTY IS ALLOWED IN THE BASEMENT."
"We're faculty."
"OH, OKAY!"
The construct wheels around and points to the COURTYARD.
"THE BASEMENT CAN BE ACCESSED IN [b1 entry location]. TO GET THERE, JUST GO TO [basement directions 1] AND LOOK FOR [basement directions 2]. ONCE YOU'RE IN, JUST [basement directions 3], AND THE ELEVATOR WILL TAKE YOU RIGHT TO THE BASEMENT. OH, AND OF COURSE [basement directions 2.5], BUT THAT SHOULDN’T BE A PROBLEM FOR YOU!"
The construct turns back around with a bright smile. Zani sighs.
"Shoulda guessed."
Command: "...hey ressa? Can one...upgrade a contruct? Related question, is it possible to peel part of your flames off? Related Related question, would it hurt either of us if I were to touch your fire?"
7/15/23
Ressa shakes her head.
"Nah. Like I said, this thing uses totally different tech from me. Not compatible at all. See, I'm possessed of channeled spirit fire that animates my body and regulates my personality in a manner similar to a living soul. This guy's just jammed full of crystals covered in runes that give the illusion of a personality through a complex web of reaction triggers. Putting my spirit fire in him wouldn't do anything, just like plugging one of his crystals into my head wouldn't do anything. At least, nothing useful."
Zani tilts her head.
"Since when are you smart about something?"
Ressa shrugs.
"I was put together by a master construct-maker. When he channeled my spirit fire, I guess I got a bit of his knowledge jammed into me, too."
You look between Ressa and the CONSTRUCT behind the desk. The construct's movements are much more akin to a puppet than Ressa, who moves more-or-less like a human being (excepting the stone-hard skin). They barely seem to be the same kind of...thing.
Command: Water my wound. I don't know if the water can heal, but no harm in trying.
You pour the WATERING CAN on your burn. It soothes the pain, being water and all, but doesn't actually heal you.
The construct looks over at you, noticing your injuries.
"OH NO! ARE YOU HURT? DON'T WORRY, [injured party], I HAVE A FIRST-AID KIT RIGHT HERE!"
The construct reaches behind the desk and pulls out an ancient and half-melted FIRST-AID KIT, gingerly placing it on the desk.
Command: Water the fire
7/14/23
You pull out the WATERING CAN and begin to douse the surrounding flames. To your delight, this works perfectly. On contact with the divine waters, the flames immediately sizzle down to nothing.
Through doing this, you realize that the flames don't appear to actually be burning anything. They're just clinging to non-flammable surfaces and...existing, as though the fuel for them is coming from somewhere unseen. Perhaps the layline itself?
Extinguishing the entire room would be a serious undertaking, but you manage to at least clear enough of the floor that you can move around freely.
The CONSTRUCT, for its part, simply watches you do this with a placid grin.
Command: "Can you run a, uh...self-diagnostic?"
"A SELF-DIAGNOSTIC? SURE!"
The construct unhinges its jaw and shoves its arm elbow-deep in its mouth, feeling around. After a few moments, the diagnostic is complete, and the construct spits its arm back out again.
"OH DEAR! I SEEM TO BE MISSING SOME OF MY DRIVE CRYSTALS! SOME INFORMATION ABOUT [university name] MAY BE UNAVAILABLE UNTIL THEY ARE RETURNED. MY APOLOGIES, [applicable identifier]."
You turn to Zani and ask what drive crystals are. She shrugs, but Ressa pipes up.
"Hmmm. This is an old type of construct. Real old, like from before they even used spirit fire. This one's all crystal-based."
Ressa waves her hand in front of the construct's face and it barely responds.
"They're more like machines than people. Um...no offense."
"NONE TAKEN! IT'S TRUE!"
"Anyway, drive crystals are a kind of data storage these constructs use for...brains, basically. Without them..."
"ARE YOU ENJOYING THE [recent weather] WE'VE BEEN HAVING?"
You nod. For a second, you were worried this might be easy...
Command: Try and activate the construct
You make your way around the room towards the CONSTRUCT. Despite your best efforts to be careful, a tight squeeze through the flames leaves you with a singe on your leg.
WOUND increased to Level 4!
Unless something is done to put this fire out, it seems moving around this room could be a painful experience.
Regardless, you do end up in front of the INFORMATION DESK, the deactivated construct sprawled across it. Its body looks to be made of some kind of marble-like stone, though it's so covered in ash that it's difficult to tell. A few pokes from your SWORD fail to wake it up, so you take a look around for some kind of on-switch.
Eventually, your eyes rest on a small BELL on the desk next to the construct's body, labeled "Ring for Service." You shrug and give it a press. To your surprise, a pleasing ding echoes through the room, and the construct stirs.
With a start, the construct snaps to attention, a cloud of ash flying off of it and obscuring all but its bright glowing eyes. As you cough try to wave away the cinders, it speaks in a chipper voice.
"GREETING, NEW CLASS OF [date range exceeded]. MY NAME IS [unit name], AND I'M HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU MIGHT HAVE ABOUT [university name]! WHETHER IT'S [list of features A] OR [list of features B], I KNOW EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT [null value], SO DON'T BE SHY!"
Its speech concluded, the construct grins from ear to ear as the ash settles around it. It looks...eager to help.
Command: "Zani, I lost my memories, have 2 different voices in my head, and just mourned a quill. Stop telling me what I can't do."
7/13/23
"Wow, only two voices?"
Ressa pushes past Zani.
"Wait, do we not have that quill anymore?"
"Nah, it got hit with wild magic."
Ressa considers this with mild disbelief, then looks down at her new arm, glowing with soft blue light.
"What's wrong?"
"It's just...the guy who gave me this arm. He made me promise him something. He made me promise...I'd destroy that quill."
"What? Our quill?"
"Yeah."
"Wha...I...it...That doesn't make any sense! How did he even know about it?"
Ressa's still staring at her arm.
"I don't know. All he said was that it didn't belong in this world. It was a...mistake."
Zani is still very confused.
"Huh. Well...mission accomplished, I guess?"
Ressa seems lost in thought.
"Seems that way."
She nods and looks up at you.
"Forget it. Let's get going!"
And so, you set off to find a way to access the shrine.
Command: Feel for the magic just to annoy zani while I look for the basement
You hold your arms out as you head through the door to HALL A. Somehow, you can sense Zani rolling her eyes, without even facing her.
Beyond the door is what appears to be a lobby area. On the far wall is the ENTRANCE DOOR which opens to the outside of the complex. The middle of the room is dominated by a circular DESK with the word "INFORMATION!" written on it in heavily-peeled paint. There is, similarly, a half-melted "WELCOME NEW STUDENTS" BANNER hanging over the desk, which looks like it could fall at any moment.
There's an odd shape sprawled across the far end of the desk, which your KNOWLEDGE allows you to clock as a DEACTIVATED CONSTRUCT.
Navigation of the room will be difficult due to the roaring RAINBOW FLAMES covering many surfaces. Anything flammable in this room clearly burned away centuries ago, but the flames are somehow still blazing on their own.
There are also two other doors leading deeper into Hall A, one on the right labeled STUDENT RESOURCES and the left labeled FACULTY.
Command: Look for the basement/feel for the center or the magic
7/12/23
You hold out your arms again.
"NO! Stop doing that! Come on, we just need to search this building."
You ask Zani where to start. She looks around.
"Well, I've never been to the shrine before. Mostly I just raid the labs for weird magic stuff."
She turns to Trill.
"You're the college boy. Where do places like these keep their basements?"
"Um...under them?"
Zani sighs. After a bit of thought, she whirls around and points to the door to HALL A.
"I'm pretty sure there's a directory in Hall A, but who knows if it's still useful after three hundred more years of burning?"
You consider it. Looks like it's either that, or find a shovel.
Command: Feel out for the source of the magic
7/11/23
Even beyond the roaring rainbow flames, you can feel that this is a place of great magical power. You hold out your arms, close your eyes, and try to feel where these unfathomable energies are flowing from. Your breathing slows as you focus on the subtle waves of sensation traveling through your body. Upwards? Downwards? 20-degrees rotated forwards? You bend and twist in an attempt to triangulate the feeling. A silent roar is echoing through you but you can't...quite...tell from where.
Impossibly deep in concentration, you're startled by Zani's voice.
"What are you doing?"
You turn and explain that you're trying to feel where the magical energies are coming from.
"Oh, well I could tell you that. They're coming from...down. The blue mana layline runs directly under this building, so the shrine'll be somewhere under it, too. We've just gotta find a basement somewhere."
You glance around. No basement access in the courtyard. Hmmm...
Command: Follow trill
7/10/23
Without hesitation, you leap into the PORTAL after Trill. For a brief moment, you're engulfed in a seemingly-endless void of swirling neon mist, but quickly find yourself spat out the other end. As your feet hit the ground, you see Trill staring upwards in awe, his screams subsided but his breathing heavy. You follow his gaze, and realize where you are.
You are standing in the courtyard of a burning building, alight with magical fire.
On all sides of you, multicolored flames erupt from the windows and skylights of this whimsically-carved complex. Magical cinders, all colors of the rainbow, rain around you as plumes of black, etherial smoke rise into the sky. You feel your body blasted with heat, but also other sensations. Occasional drafts of cold, electricity, life and death all blow over you as well. This is magic, completely out of control.
You're so amazed by the sight, you don't even notice Zani and Ressa are standing behind you.
"Ohhhh, this place! I should've guessed."
Trill seems existentially terrified by what he's witnessing.
"Where...are we?"
Zani hops up on a metal BENCH, brushing aside some smouldering cinders, and gestures to the complex surrounding you.
"Well, it's a funny story, actually. A few hundred years ago, some wizards set up this magic college right over the Blue Layline. They thought it'd give them unprecedented access to magic in its rawest state. Let 'em study it up close."
"And...what happened?"
Zani leans in towards Trill, her masked smile somehow even wider than usual.
"They got just what they wanted!"
Zani skips around, indicating the flames.
"This here? This isn't wild magic. This is raw magic. Raw power, straight from the source. They pulled up juuuust a tiny bit of the stuff a few centuries back...and this place hasn't been extinguished since. Back when they built it, they called this place the Novacrux Institute, but we just call it..."
Zani finishes her dance with a flourish.
"...The Burning University!"
Zani slips beside you, and resumes watching the flames.
"Have you given that speech before?"
"Tons of times. I love showing people this place."
You look around. Nothing immediately looks like a Layline Shrine, not that you'd know what one looks like anyway. In fact, there's not much in this courtyard but magical ash, but there are four doors leading into the building proper. The door in front of you leads to HALL A and the door behind you leads to HALL B. A door to your right leads to the LABS and the door to the left leads to the DORMS.
Command: Whichever of ressa and zani's options is warmer. Let's go.
7/9/23
There's another pause.
"...I have no way of quantifying that."
"Let's just do my thing. Lakes are...warm, right? I don't actually have nerves, so I don't know."
"I mean, I guess the Village of Dolls probably has blankets or something. I think they're about equally warm, though."
Trill's shivering has intensified. He finally throws up his hands...
"Forget it! I'll decide!"
Trill runs over to the INGREDIENTS next to the CAULDRON. He begins pulling out GLOWING BOTTLES and examining them.
"Okay...we've got a preserved vector impulses, liquid modal catalysts, and I think these are pre-charged trace termini over here..."
He uncorks one of the bottles and sniffs it.
"Oh yes, made of dawnflowers, if I'm not mistaken."
Trill looks over the bottles, thinking hard, then slowly begins to pour them into the cauldron.
"Now, the shrines are over the laylines, so we'll lock the layline signatures as a terminus key-point, then use an ambiguated thermal heirarchy to stack-sort the vectoral potentiality, smooth the trace with a catalytic biterminal entanglement, and..."
Trill snaps his fingers, and a small spark falls from his hand into the swirling mix of neon chemicals. With a flash, a plume of smoke rises from the cauldron, parting into a hazy PORTAL. Unlike the one created by Lord Fatalis, however, what's on the other side isn't visible.
"...Off we go!"
Zani tilts her head.
"Where does it go?"
"If my alchemical skills haven't rusted too much, this will take us to the warmest layline shrine on the island...or thereabouts."
Zani sighs.
"Why do I get the feeling this thing's gonna throw us into a volcano?"
"Oh come, now. I at least know how to unstack thermal extremes from the potentiality matrix. Give me some credit."
"So it's safe?"
"Totally safe."
Zani pushes Trill towards the portal.
"Okay, then, you go first."
"Gladly."
Trill hops into the portal. He disappears immediately into a swirling haze, but you can hear him on the other side.
"Huh. Well, this place is definitely toastier tha-...AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
Suddenly, Trill is screaming.
Command: Nod, we've had enough distractions. It's time to fix the convergence. It's time to do our quest.
7/7/23
You strike a bold pose to signify your resolve.
There's a pause.
"...Um, okay. But, I asked where we should go first."
"The Village of Dolls should be pretty simple. Apparently the Shrine of Yellow Mana's somewhere around there."
"I vote for the one under Lake Crestfall. I went there while I was looking for you, and that place is really pretty."
Trill shudders.
"Right now, I just want to go to the warmest place on the island, wherever that is."
The three of them look at you. It seems you're the three-way tiebreaker, or perhaps you'd rather go to one of the other shrine locations, as indicated on the MAP.
Command: Bury the former quill, don't think of it as anything but the former quill
7/6/23
You pull out the former quill to bury it, but there are a few problems. Setting aside the fact that you can't use that item here, the more immediate issue is that this room has a hard stone floor which would be difficult to dig into even if you had a shovel...which you don't.
Absolutely determined to bury this former quill, you shove it under the pile of MAGICAL OBJECTS, letting them serve as an impromptu cairn.
You take a moment to mourn your loss of the QUILL. You never got to see what would have happened if you'd used it on the CUBE. Don't worry, you wouldn't have liked it anyway.
Command: Help trill...I don't feel like talking right now
You dejectedly head over to the twisted mass of silver that Trill is stuck inside. You can hear his muffled groans, and one flailing arm, but the rest of him is wedged too deep to make out.
You attempt to lift the silver dome, but it's very heavy. Seeing you struggle, Ressa takes the other side and lifts as well. Together, the two of you raise the silver and manage to shake Trill free. He tumbles out onto the floor, quickly scrambling back to his feet, as you and Ressa drop the silver dome with a thud that nearly fractures the floor.
Trill catches his breath and straightens his hair.
"Thank you."
His clothes now reduced to thin satin pants and a vest, he suddenly starts to shivver.
"Huh, I didn't notice how...cold it was up here."
"All the more reason for us to get out. You think you could whip us up a portal with that cauldron thingy?"
"Well, it's not exactly my field, but I could try. Where do we want to go?"
Zani turns to you.
"I assume one of the shrines, right?"
You consider it, pulling out the MAP.
Command: bury the DU-...bury the *former quill*, snatching it from zani, and give a moving epitaph
7/5/23
You attempt to grab the DUMMY from Zani, but it's already in your inventory.
You attempt to bury the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
Closing your eyes, you attempt to pull the object that was once the quill out of your pocket. You succeed, and pull out the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
Zani tilts her head.
"Huh. I've seen wild magic do crazy stuff to stuff, but something seems...different about this."
You ask what she means.
"Hard to explain. The forces acting on this thing feel weirder than wild magic, more fundimental. We might wanna hold onto it."
You look at the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
You head a muffled cry from Trill, who is now completely wedged within his SILVER ROBE.
"What's happening out there?"
Zani sighs.
"I think we need to help him."
Command: "..." mourn the quill.
7/4/23
Zani checks her pockets.
"Oh yeah, what happened to that thing?"
Zani pulls out the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
"Huh?"
Zani waves the DUMMY around, but you can't use that item here.
Zani tries to throw the DUMMY away, but you can't use that item here.
Zani looks closely at the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
"Yep. Worthless, now."
Zani attempted to deride the DUMMY, but you can't use that item here.
Command: "H...hi ressa. How've you been?"
7/3/23
"Oh, pretty good. Here..."
Ressa casually launches her new grappling hand at your collar, grabbing it and pulling you to your feet.
"So, funny thing. Since I was summoned to protect you, it turns out I just kinda...passively know where you are at all times."
You let Ressa know you're happy to see her, but she notices you keep staring at the blue arm at her side. It looks to be made from a completely different kind of stone than the rest of her body. It even glows blue, in contrast to her usual firey red.
Ressa holds it up.
"Oh, this! Yeah, I got it from the Gravekeeper in Grim's Landing. Y'know, the one that sign guy told us about? I had this whole adventure where I had to protect him from zombies, and one of them was actually his wife, and so I was protecting him while he made peace with her over her death...it was wild. Anyway, since he could do spirit-channeling stuff, he was able to power up this new arm for me."
You ask if the Gravekeeper made the arm.
"Oh no, a wandering tinker made it. The Gravekeeper and I found him holed up in a mausoleum. He was looking for something called 'spirit gems' so I had to go down into the undercrypt in order to...Well, I guess I don't need to explain the whole thing. I asked him for a cool grappling-hand so I whipped this up."
Ressa flexes her new appendage. Zani looks confused.
"And you did all of that in a few hours?"
"Hours? You three have been gone for like a month."
"WHAT?!"
"Yeah, once I got the arm, I started searching all over the island for you. Fortunately, I was kinda nearby when I finally sensed you again. Hauled ass over here and...looks like I arrived just in time."
Command: Examine the...the things that were hit by that magic...
You look over the objects in your inventory that were transformed by wild magic. They look pretty universally useless, now. Half of them are hard to even touch, as they don't seem to fully obey the laws of physical space.
Zani shakes her head.
"Now you've seen what wild magic can do. Honestly, we got off easy. Only our stuff got warped."
You hesitantly ask what it does to people. Zani looks at her hands.
"My skin wasn't always gold, you know."
You, Trill and Ressa all shudder slightly.
You look around to get your barings now that the fight's over. There's still a pile of MAGICAL OBJECTS that are presumably ripe for the picking. Trill probably won't be able to get out of his SILVER ROBE without help. There's the CAULDRON which is apparently surrounded by ingredients that can make a portal. The other obvious way out is the purple PILLAR OF LIGHT, but you're not sure how to set it to "down."
Attack: Kill it. We know how, by this point.
7/2/23
SWORD at your side, you leap at the final creature, executing a powerful slash at its golden symbol. A burst of light shocks through the room, but the creature remains unbroken. You pull back for another swing, but this time your foe is smart. It fires a blast at the floor beneith you, twisting a patch beneith your leg into a tangle of writhing-yet-inorganic purple vines.
You attempt to complete your swing but are pulled off-balance by the strange tendrils, falling to the ground. The creature stands over you, wild magic swirling around both hands. Trill screams but is still unable to pull himself from his hardened robes. Zani tries to draw the creature's attention, but it's not buying it.
The creature prepares to fire.
But, just then, a flash. The purple PILLAR OF LIGHT finally ejects its occupant. Behind the creature, to your amazement, you see Ressa launched into the air from the pillar of light's apex. Not only does she appear to be spoiling for a fight, but in this brief moment, you notice her arm has been replaced with some kind of...blue arm?
Your questions are partially answered when Ressa aims her new arm at the creature, firing her hand like a grappling hook and grapping its symbol face from behind. Still mid-air, she retracts the grapple and flies at the creature, cleaving its symbol in two with her massive blade.
Ressa now stands over you, the final creature slowly dissolving to dust around her feet. She smiles.
"How's it goin'?"
COMBAT VICTORY
Attack: Figure out a plan.
7/1/23
You remind Zani that she knows more about these creatures than you or Trill. She grumbles.
"God, am I really going to have to be the smart one, again?"
You shrug. Zani points at you and Trill.
"Okay. Wizard boy, blow one of their heads off. As for you, um...I'll distract the symbol with your sword in it. You pull it out."
You and Trill nod, and the three of you spring into action. Trill force-blasts one of the creatures but only succeeds in knocking in backwards. The second creature attempts to grab him, but he reflexively fires a second blast which perfectly blows the second creature's face off. You start to get the sense that Trill's only dangerous when he's startled.
The final creature fires a blast of wild magic at Trill. Remembering you left the BOOK in Trill's inventory, you're briefly quite concerned, but the blast only succeeds in turning Trill's robe to solid silver, immobilizing him. Trill struggles to pull himself out of his metal vestments, but it looks like he's going to be locked down for a while.
Defense: Dodge any attacks, trying to lure them around and away so I can grab the sword
You and Zani flank the floating symbol holding your SWORD. It attempts to charge you, presumably to stab you with the blade, but it lacks the force to do anything but plink off your ARMOR. Zani grabs the hilt of the sword and begins to pull, lacking the strength to extracate the blade but at least managing to hold the symbol in place. You slide around behind the symbol and join her, the two of you pulling with all your might as the symbol struggles to escape.
You tell Zani to try pulling on the count of three. The two of you each place a foot on the symbol and, on your three count, pull with all your combined might. The SWORD is free!
SWORD equipped!
COMBAT increased to Level 4!
STEALTH reduced to Level 0!
You execute a quick spin, slicing through both the symbol that was holding your sword and the other newly-blasted-free symbol that was trying to sneak up behind you. The symbol fragments clatter to the ground on either side of you, wisps of golden light erupting to the sky.
There's only one creature left, now, but Trill is indesposed. You'll need to take care of this one alone.
Attack: Knife time! I know what to do, pull out the knife and get to work. It's still a blade after all.
6/30/23
You pull out the KNIFE.
KNIFE equipped!
COMBAT increased to Level 3!
STEALTH increased to Level 2!
You're immediately less sure about this than you were about using the SWORD, but you charge in anyway. Your concerns prove founded when the knife clashes against one of the remaining creatures' golden symbol-faces. While the knife is great for stabbling, it's not so useful for cutting. Lacking the leverage of a big, hefty blade, pressing the knife against the creature's face is about as effective as trying to slice through a chain-link fence with a box cutter.
For your trouble, you take a point-blank shot of wild magic to the face. You manage to turn your head just in time for the shot to collide with your HIDE HELMET instead.
HIDE HELMET was transformed!
HIDE HELMET has become CHROME ORGAN!
No longer a helmet, it tumbles off your head and into your inventory.
CHROME ORGAN unequipped!
ARMOR reduced to Level 5!
STEALTH reduced to Level 1!
Defense: [no input]
Unfortunately, you kind of expected that attack to finish them off, so you're not sure what your next move should be.
The second creature attempts to attack you with a normal-style punch, but even without your helmet, your ARMOR is still too strong for it to do much. For all their scary magics, these creatures are pretty weak, it seems.
You back up. Trill and Zani rush to your side, ready to help you take on these last two foes. Now you're the ones outnumbering them.
"So, what's the plan?"
"Blow their heads off."
"I don't think I could get them both in one shot."
Zani turns to you.
"Okay, new plan: You think of a plan."
Trill sighs.
Attack: luckily, fighting is something i've picked up in a hurry. attack the creatures
6/29/23
You charge towards the three still-bodied creatures, slashing into one of their face-symbols. Another shower of brilliant light scatters in all directions. Unfortunately, this symbol proves slightly tougher than the last, and you find your SWORD entangled in the wailing creature's face.
The other two turn to you, and you realize that even though you got the jump on them, picking a three-on-one fight might not have been the best plan.
You plant your foot on the chest of the creature you're currently struggling with and shove it away, separating its symbol face from its body. Wrapped around your sword, the stray symbol twists and struggles as you try to regain control. Try as you might, you can untangle your blade from the glowing mass of twisted gold.
The other two creatures realize you're in no position to defend yourself, and raise their arms to fire.
Defense: dodge the blasts if they come for me, zani and trill can handle themselves.
Out of options, you release your sword and roll to the side, letting the bolts of wild magic sail over you.
SWORD unequipped!
COMBAT reduced to Level 2!
One of the stray bolts actually hits the other floating symbol Trill was chasing, causing it to shriek and turn into a GARDEN RAKE, which falls to the ground.
There are only two creatures left, but you're presently unarmed, and they look ready to fire at you again. Meanwhile, the purple PILLAR OF LIGHT has begun to flash faster, possibly indicating the person using it is very close.
Attack: (the quill...) rush forward with the sword, ready to murder these pieces of shit.
6/28/23
Realizing the quill is gone, you cast a glare at the symbol-faced creature responsible. In an instant you're charging towards it, blade held high. Taking Zani's advice, you strike down at the golden symbol emblazoned on the entity's face, with intent to kill.
A shower of burning sparks flies from the point of impact. The symbol is hard as steel, but you've made a dent. While the creature is stunned, you swing again, bringing all your might down on the dented section and cleaving the symbol in half. The two bisected sections fly to either side, wisps of glowing light trailing off of them until they clatter to the ground as dead, gray metal. The creature's body immediately collapses into dust.
The other creatures react with shock. Even the one currently engaging Trill looks over with surprise. Trill capitalizes on this moment and blasts the creature through the chest with a flash of pure force, leaving a hole but not actually harming the creature.
"No, aim for the face!"
Trill takes a second to process this.
"Ohhhh! Okay!"
As the creature turns back towards him, Trill flashes another blast of force at the creature's symbol face, destroying its head and sending the glowing symbol flying through the air. After landing, the symbol starts to float around in a panic, is body similarly crumbling to dust at Trill's feet.
You turn to see the three remaining creatures trying to get some distance. They raise their arms and fire a trio of wild magic bolts in unison...
Defense: [no input]
...but, not at you, or even at Trill. For some reason, these creatures are still targetting Zani. However, this doesn't seem to be the best tactic. Now with her wits about her, Zani effortlessly twists and tumbles through the incoming storm of bolts, taunting the trio.
"Zani, be careful!"
"Not a problem! I may not much for fighting, but I can do this all day!"
Zani continues to dodge enemy fire. Behind her, a nightmarish spiral of colors, textures, and concepts is being formed by the endless hail of wild magic splatting against the back wall. Even if Zani can keep up this pace, it feels like only a matter of time before one of these shots creates...like...a black hole or a radioactive mist or something.
Trill is currently distracted trying to blast the (clearly not dangerous) floating symbol, so it looks like taking out the remaining three creatures is up to you, for now.
Attack: aim the wand at their faces and wave it around semi-randomly, hoping for something to happen
6/27/23
You hold out the STONEWEAVER'S WAND, hoping its power will somehow blast the creatures or deflect the incoming bolts of wild magic.
It does no such thing.
As you desperately wave the wand around, you only succeed in making it shift to different colors. One of the bolts of wild magic slams into the wand, causing it to twist and distort in your hand.
STONEWEAVER'S WAND has been transformed!
STONEWEAVER'S WAND has become a MEAT DIAMOND!
Defense: dodge roll to the right
Pivoting your plans once again, you dodge to the side to avoid the other two incoming bolts. You do this, notably, with complete disregard for the fact that Zani was hiding right behind you. She watches you roll away with a sigh.
"Of course..."
Zani attempts to dodge in turn, but doesn't quite escape the bolts of wild magic in time. As it did with you, the wild magic shocks itself through Zani's inventory, and you realize with dismay that her inventory contains the...
QUILL has been tranformed!
Though you see nothing, you can feel that the QUILL has been hit. You gulp.
For a brief moment, it's as though reality itself trembles around you. You lose all sense of time and place. You feel unreal, like a pointless sack of meat being controlled by unimaginably distant forces. You see the island. You see the shrines. You see everything you were meant to do, and you feel like it's all about to shatter.
[error type-0, please contact system administrator]
Project paused! Would you like to use an error handler?: resume
[process error: missing G-level asset (sy_world_raven_feather)]
Project paused! Would you like to use an error handler?: Y, qtrace_spindown
[implementing error handler: qtrace_spindown]
[spindown path traced! resolving]
But then, the feeling passes.
QUILL has become DUMMY!
Whatever just happened, it seems fine for now. Looking around, you see Trill has made little headway against his assailant, and the purple PILLAR OF LIGHT is still glowing as though a visitor is coming up.
Attack: attack the one chasing zani, trying to cut off its magic throwing arm as well.
6/26/23
You dash across the room and slash at the creature pursuing Zani. You manage to catch it off-guard and effortlessly slice off one of its arms, just like the one before. The creature recoils, uttering similarly distorted cries. Though it's hard to tell, the creature doesn't seem to actually be in pain, reacting with more surprise than anguish.
Zani bows, thankful. She leaps behind you once again, trying to shield herself from the advancing creatures.
Defense: [no input]
Despite your sudden display of fighting prowess, these creatures just keep coming. Unsure if you're even hurting them, you find yourself at a loss for what to do next.
One of the creatures from whom you'd severed a hand holds up their stump of a wrist. As you watch, the wrist splits apart into a set of finger-like appendages, effectively becoming a new hand, albeit on a shorter arm. The creature flexes its new fingers, clearly preparing to cast again.
Zani leans in, towards your ear.
"Their bodies are just gathered dust. Those symbols on their faces are the only 'real' part of 'em."
You nod and ask if these creatures have a name.
"People call them the Sigilkin. Weird living symbols. No one knows what they are, exactly. Been here since before this island was discovered."
If you have more questions, they'll have to wait. The advancing Sigilkin are wailing, and three more bolts of wild magic are headed your way!
Attack: "Ooookay time for plan B" prepare sword
6/25/23
Your SWORD is already equipped, so there's no need to ready it further. Still, you make a ceremony of pulling the blade from your inventory, its polished edge flashing in the moonlight.
As you hold the sword aloft, and invigorating feeling surges through your body. While using the KNIFE fills you with a strange, distant dread, you feel nothing but a thirst for battle when holding this brilliant blade in your hands.
A couple of the symbol-faced creatures turn to you, immediately clocking you as the biggest threat in the room. You smile as they advance.
Defense: Dodge back, trying to get out of the lines of fire
The advancing creatures raise their arms and fire bolts of wild magic in your direction, but this time you're ready. Weaving side to side, you effortlessly avoid the slow-moving projectiles, leaving them to crash into the wall behind you. One impacted section of wall turns into a patch of electrified ice, while another takes on the texture of cactus skin covered in oozing orifaces.
One creature charges you and attempts to fire at point-blank range, but you juke to the side and the wild magic whizzes past your head, striking a nearby TELESCOPE and twisting it into a recursive, non-euclidian shape which makes it difficult to look at.
Since you prepared your sword, you use the moment to perform an opportunistic strike on the creature that charged you. With a calculated swing, you slice off the creature's wild-magic-throwing arm. It wobbles backwards with inhuman balance, uttering garbled cries. The other two creatures who have their focus on you appear a bit concerned.
Looking around, one of the two remaining creatures is chasing Zani in circles at the far end of the room. Trill is firing electrified bolts at the final creature's center-mass, but it only seems to be immobilizing the creature rather than harming it.
You also notice that the purple LIGHT PILLAR that brought you here has started to glow brighter. It's possible someone is coming up here...
Attack: Murder time! Attack them with the knife!
6/24/23
You charge at the nearest creature and slash with the KNIFE. The blade opens a wound, but does nothing else. Beneath the creature's grey-black skin you see similarly colored muscle, but no blood. Are these things even alive?
Defense: [no input]
Unsure of how to defend yourself, you wait for the creatures to make their move. The one you attacked bellows horribly, its symbol-face sparking with anger.
As before, the creature raises its hand and summons a bolt of pure wild magic, tossing it in your direction. You dodge instinctively, but as you didn't plan this defense, it's a little too late. The bolt hits you in the hip and you feel it jolt through your INVENTORY. Infinite potentiality briefly twists your position, and you come out slightly different.
DUAL SCIMITARS have been transformed!
DUAL SCIMITARS have become MELTED STATIC!
SANDALS have been transformed!
SANDALS have become NONEXISTANT SNOWGLOBE!
Command: "...you're even stupider than you look. I was literally created to untangle the convergence, my mind was formed with that one task in mind if you consider how I've touched the divine, so, uh, no. Not a chance. Zani, ready the quill. Trill...uh, just get ready. We might just be able to *correct* a tragedy."
6/23/23
Trill (perhaps for the first time in his life) adopts a battle stance, the palms of his hands sizzling with cold sparks.
Lord Fatalis sighs.
"You know, I really thought you'd be cool. This is what I get for being nice, I guess."
Lord Fatalis starts to walk towards you, but you raise your sword, warding him back.
"Come no closer. I'm trained in five separate defensive arts, and my companion here kills innocent people for no reason!"
You shoot a glare at Trill. He shrugs.
"What? It's true?"
Lord Fatalis turns away.
"Well, I've never been much for fighting myself, so...I guess we move to Plan B."
He snaps his fingers, and the moonlight streaming in to the room fades. You look outside through the odd LENSES that surround the room, and see ghostly shapes circling the top of the tower. With a sudden crash, these figures burst into the room, shattering the lenses and scattering MAGICAL OBJECTS everywhere. You now realize that these are the same kind of SYMBOL-FACED CREATURES you encountered on the way to Grim's Landing. They flank Lord Fatalis, standing tall and willowy, the symbols on their faces aglow like burning gold.
Trill, having never seen these beings before, looks utterly baffled.
"What...are they?"
Lord Fatalis shrugs.
"I dunno. All I know is that they don't want to see the convergence untangled, either. These guys actually tipped me off about you."
Slowly, he steps aside, letting the creatures face you down.
"So...I suppose this is really between you and them, so I'll get out of your way."
Before you can react, Lord Fatalis leaps through the PORTAL to the university, which pops into rainbow smoke as soon as he's through.
You look back to the symbol-faced creatures. There are five of them, all looking ready to tear you apart. One of them raises a hand at Zani and lets out an incomprehensible scream. A battle cry, perhaps?
Zani slips behind you.
"We might be a little outgunned, here."
You tell her you'll take that into consideration, but for now...
COMBAT START!
Command: "...who *are* you?"
6/22/23
"Oh, I'm Fatalis. Um, I guess 'Lord Fatalis' actually. Welcome to this...hidden tower thing I have."
The three of you slowly get to your feet. Trill looks at Lord Fatalis with a cold rage in his eyes.
"What do you want with us?"
Lord Fatalis slowly slouches towards you, clearly trying to act friendly but with his deadpan voice failing to sell it.
"I, like...wanted to help you out. I've been watching you guys for a while now."
He gestures at the array of TELESCOPES and LENSES surrounding the room.
"You say you wanna go to Grim's Landing, but...y'know, I could do you one better. Check this out."
With a strange, loose motion, Lord Fatalis slips back over to his CAULDRON. He grabs a couple glowing BOTTLES from a side-table, holds them over the pot, and shatters them both in his hand. Glowing liquid, mixed with drops of his own blood, drip into the cauldron and unleash a pillar of multicolored smoke.
Lord Fatalis brushes a hand through the smoke, and it parts to reveal a PORTAL to a peaceful, faraway scene. You see a field of sapphire-blue grass, from which rises an odd collection of spires and towers connected by glass-enclosed skywalks. Dozens of robed magic students, in robes much like Trill's, walk with purpose between these odd landmarks, spellbooks in hand.
You can tell from the look on Trill's face. That's his university. His home.
"You, spellcaster, you wanna go back to your university, right? I could do that. Here it is."
Lord Fatalis points at you and Zani.
"And you two. I'm not...super sure what you're into, but I bet we could work something out. I've got a ton of magic stuff I could give you. Take your pick."
He gestures at his pile of MAGICAL OBJECTS. Trill's moment of stunned silence fades back into cold anger.
"And what is it you want?"
Lord Fatalis approaches again. He's trying very, very hard to be nice about this.
"Nothing! Like, literally nothing. I guess you'd say...more nothing than usual. Does that make sense?"
"No."
Lord Fatalis is now right in your face.
"It's just...this whole 'Untangling the Convergence' thing. Could you maybe...not?"
Zani's interest suddenly fades, much like Trill's.
"Oh, so that's what this is."
"I just...We just...have a good thing going here, is all. I happen to like the Land of Shadows exactly the way it is."
"How? This place is horrible!"
"It's only horrible to people who can't handle it. Stupid people, arrogant people, uncreative people...But cool people like us? We run this place! If you stop the flow of wild magic, this island is going to get all crowded and lawful and...normal. I'd just rather you didn't, is all."
"Not interested."
"Okay, well we'll get back to you, I guess. College boy, portal's open. You in?"
Lord Fatalis gestures at the portal. Trill looks at the university longingly, but sighs.
"Untangling the Convergence would be...the greatest breakthrough in the recorded history of magical studies. If I am ever to call myself a scholar, I...I must refuse."
Trill's eyes suddenly snap back up, enraged.
"Also you're runically animating people into servitude! I'm not accepting anything from you."
Lord Fatalis shrugs.
"It's not servitude, it's gratitude. They're all here because they want to be."
"I find that hard to believe."
Lord Fatalis walks away, chuckling.
"Typical scholar, I guess. All brains and no imagination."
He turns on his heel and points at you.
"So how about you, in the armor? I'll send you anywhere in the world you want to go, just...leave this island alone, okay?"
Zani and Trill look to you for solidarity on this.
Command: Draw knife. (Leave) no, we can't leave...we could try, but then we'd probably end up having to fight these guys.
6/21/23
Trill shudders looking at the KNIFE. The woman escorting you, however, looks completely unphased by the sight of it.
"Oh, there's no need for that. You're free to leave if you wish."
On a table nearby, an ornamental GLASS SKULL briefly glows purple.
"No, they aren't!"
The glow fades. The woman looks at the skull, then to you, with a sigh.
"Oh. Well, nevermind then."
The woman snaps her fingers. The entrance DOORS of the tower slam shut and a row of GUARDS files out to block them, all armed with glistening swords and spears. Above you swirls a flurry of activity as the various servants prepare themselves for your possible escape attempt. You feel like it's been some time since these people were given an order by their master, so everyone's taking this very seriously.
The woman escorting you puts her hand on your knife, trying to be reassuring.
"Please. I'm sure whatever the master wants from you is very important."
You look around. You seem to be almost infinitely outnumbered here.
Command: Draw knife. (Leave) no, we can't leave...we could try, but then we'd probably end up having to fight these guys.
Keeping the knife at the ready, you solemnly step into the purple PILLAR OF LIGHT, standing on a small pedestal surrounded by an immaculately-polished golden RAILING. Zani and Trill reluctantly follow.
At first, the light seems to do nothing but fill you with a slight, cooling numbness. However, when the woman escorting you places her hand on a railing, the runes on her arm briefly glow, and you fight yourself propelled upward through the pillar of light at incredible speed, dangling weightlessly as you spin your way towards the top of the tower. Before your eyes, floor after floor rushes by. You see SERVANTS preparing food, repairing tapestries and endlessly, endlessly cleaning. Here and there, you start to notice some servants appear to be in a more...decayed state than others. None are quite as far-gone as the Runewalker you encountered in Bastion Sigmundius, but you suspect some of these people might be getting close to that point.
Suddenly, your weight returns to you and you find yourself ejected from the top of the pillar, landing on an impeccably-polished hardwood floor. With two additional thuds, Trill and Zani land beside you.
You look up slowly, and realizing the top floor of the tower appears to be a strange OBSERVATORY. Mechanical LENSES and odd-angled TELESCOPES sprout in every direction, many inset with glowing gems and runic inscriptions, suggesting they've been magically-enhanced. Elsewhere in the room you see scattered NOTES, stacks of SPELLBOOKS, a pile of what appears to be random ENCHANTED OBJECTS (given their glow), and a giant CAULDRON surrounded by alchemical paraphernalia. You suspect seeing a place like this would give Ressa a heart attack, regardless of whether constructs have hearts.
At first, you believe you're alone, until a dark shape near the cauldron begins to stir. The figure turns to face you, revealing LORD FATALIS, tall, gaunt, and wearing a heavy purple cloak over black leather armor emblazoned with amethyst skulls. He's a fairly young man, but he'd cut an imposing figure...were it not for his slouched, dour posture and scraggly black hair tossed limply over one eye. Instead he gives the impression of someone trying desperately to look like an evil overlord, but only pulling it off from a distance.
He waves.
"Hey How's it going?"
Command: "..." come in, I guess, these don't seem like the type to take no for an answer
6/20/23
You step inside the tower.
The inside of the tower is clean, bright and lavishly-decorated. Elegant tapestries hang from the walls, freshly-cut flowers are arranged perfectly within their vases, and the foyer is lined with golden railings fitted on beautiful antique wood. Were it not for the incredibly unsettling purple skull imagery adorning practically every piece of furniture, this would be a very inviting place.
All around, you see SERVANTS tending to the tower's maintenance, keeping it spotlessly clean and watering the various potted flowers. All these servants have the same runes covering their bodies as the woman currently leading you through the foyer.
At the back of the foyer is a large, purple PILLAR OF LIGHT. Looking up, you see this pillar stretches all the way to the top of the tower, surrounded by a dizzying spiral of stairs, catwalks and balconies. The woman gestures towards the pillar.
"This will take you to him."
Trill and Zani look uneasy, not specifically about the pillar, but about this place in general.
Hesitantly, Trill approaches the woman.
"Umm, may I inquire about those...symbols...on you?"
She smiles.
"Ah, yes, the master's salvation. Were it not for these runes I would have died a...fool's death."
Trill shudders.
"So, are you saying you're...runically animated?"
The woman chuckles slightly, brushing one of the runes on her hand.
"I was an adventurer like you, once. Arrogant, thoughtless, charging into the darkest depths like I was invincible. The master found me at death's door, broken and twisted by this island's horrors. I never expected to open my eyes again, but when I did it was by the glow of these runes, drawn by his hands. He saved me."
Trill winces at this description.
"I...see..."
She spreads her arms to gesture at the many servants working the halls of the tower.
"All of us here have the same story, or at least something similar. He saved us, and we owe him our lives."
Very unsettled, Trill backs up next to you and Zani, speaking softly.
"We need to get out of here."
You ask what's wrong.
"...Are you serious? Runically animating a sentient being like this is bad enough, but without their consent, even? This is...very messed up!"
"They seem happy enough..."
"Runic animation isn't the same thing as life. These people are rotting from the inside. I...I don't want to meet whoever would do this to people."
Trill is motioning towards the exit while the woman continues to direct you towards the pillar of purple light.
Command: "Uh...none? We're just heading on our way, going to Grim's landing. That's all."
6/19/23
The guards share another concerned look. The GLASS SKULL is produced once again.
"They say they're headed to Grim's Landing."
A purple glow fills the skull again. The voice within sighs.
"Really? Okay, have 'em come in."
The guard pockets the skull again.
"Our master has agreed to aid you on your journey."
"I'm sorry, 'Master?' Who is this?"
The guards put their hands on their hearts, speaking in unison.
"The great Lord Fatalis, to whom we owe our lives!"
"Oh...god, have we stumbled on another cult, somehow?"
The guards start to answer, but the door behind them suddenly jolts open. Standing in the doorway you see a smartly-dressed woman with a beaming smile, her skin painted with the same runes as the guards. She holds out her hand.
"Our master bids you enter, travelers."
Strange as this all is, her friendliness appears genuine...
Command: Wave.
6/18/23
You wave to the GUARDS. They look confused.
"Shall we...y'know...say hello?"
You shake your head. You want to make sure they're not hostile first.
"You still have the knife, right?"
"Oh, for heaven's sake! We just met these people!"
"I know. It's just a precaution."
Seeing you're not immediately leaving, the guards share a worried glance. One of them pulls a GLASS SKULL out of his pocket, which glows an eerie purple when held. He speaks quietly into the skull.
"Sir, there are some...people down here. Are you expecting anyone?"
The skull rattles and begins to speak with a faraway voice.
"Ugh, let me take a look."
The glow leaves the skull. The two guards look up the tower, and you follow their gaze to see a distant ROBED FIGURE leaning out one of the high windows of the tower. The figure retreats, and the skull glows again.
"Huh. It's them. Weird. Ask what they want."
The skull's light fades once more as the guard pockets it. He waves you over.
"What business have you with our master?"
Command: walk off, angrily dragging trill and zani with me to go forward.
6/17/23
You grab hold of Trill and Zani and march deeper into the forest, the two of them awkwardly dragging behind you.
"Um...where are we going?"
You frustratedly reply that you're going forward. Trill nods uneasily.
You continue to march into the darkness, seeing nothing ahead but a deeper sea of trees. Behind you, the roar of the sea grows quieter and quieter, the cacophony of echoes dwindling into a distant, whispered scream. The farther you get into the forest, the more the color seems to drain from the grass beneath your feet, suggesting that even the small flora has petrified itself here.
Minutes stretch to hours. You are now in a monochrome forest devoid of color, lit only by moonlight of the purple, swirling sky above. Trill has opted to walk beside you while Zani, still being dragged, has fallen asleep. The trek is tiring, and you consider falling asleep as well, but you continue on.
HUNGER increased to Level 2!
And just when you're starting to believe that this forest is truly infinite...you see it.
A tree trunk dotted with points of light! No, as you approach, you realize it's not a tree at all! In the middle of a clearing, you find yourself at the foot of a stone TOWER. Tall and thin, the tower rises high into the sky, above the impossibly-distant treeline. How it can even stand is unclear. You definitely feel like there may be some magic holding it up.
At the foot of the tower, in front of a great wooden DOOR, are two GUARDS, standing silently and armed with SPEARS. They look in your direction as you approach, but say nothing. You notice there are SYMBOLS drawn on their skin, similar to the ones you saw on the Runewalker back in Bastion Sigmundius. However, these two don't appear to be mindless husks...at least not yet. They also aren't dressed like cultists, which is another relief.
Quietly, you ask Trill if this tower is in the BOOK's atlas. He quickly flips through it and shakes his head.
The guards are staring at you.
Command: Shut...SHUT UP! throw away the apple in anger.
6/16/23
You discard the APPLE.
But that doesn't get you any closer to escaping this place.
Your party is alone in a silent forest.
There is an APPLE here.
Command: Just start ignoring the construct and walk into the woods.
6/15/23
You proceed deeper into the forest. The CONSTRUCT silently gives you a small salute and continues on his way.
Slowly, he and his CART disappear into the darkness behind you. Step after step, you trudge deeper into the eerie silence.
The silent, gray tree trunks are getting more dense and labyrinthine. They're beginning to twist and entwine above your head as they stretch into the sky. There's still no sound of fauna, and the rustling leaves above are still barely audible for their distance.
You look around. The three of you are well and truly alone, with no landmarks in sight.
"We should turn back."
"I don't even remember which way is back."
"Well, we're not getting anywhere on foot."
"Oh, come on! This is the Land of Shadows! There's gotta be some crazy magic...whatever we can use around here."
The three of you look around. More silence.
Pure, endless silence.
"There...there has to...um..."
Zani sighs. She curls up against a TREE STUMP.
"...I'm starting to remember why I never come to this part of the island."
The three of you look around. Not even the shoreline is visible anymore. It's total darkness in all directions.
Zani looks up at Trill.
"So...you wouldn't happen to have, like...any portals spells would you?"
Trill sits on the tree stump.
"Zani, if I knew how to teleport, I'd be back at the University right now. Besides, I don't even have my spellbook, remember?"
"What spells do you know off-hand?"
"Basic self-defense, mostly. If you need me to blow another construct's limbs off, I could probably manage it."
You look down at the two of them. It looks like it's up to you to figure a way out of this place. Going in random directions isn't helping.
But...you can't shake a strange feeling...
Command: thi...think about...(DON'T THINK ABOUT IT)...listen closer(DON'T YOU DARE)...what is...something's wrong...
Now that you're fully alone with your thoughts, one thought in particular has been echoing in your mind, growing louder with every step into the silence.
What started as a stray intrusive thought has slowly intensified, like the roar of waves that still reverberates off the trees from every direction. It's a dark, visceral feeling piercing into your brain with claws of jagged steel, an inscrutable mania exploding from the deepest part of your being.
All saying one simple thing. One perfect truth.
That APPLE would probably taste pretty good. You should eat it.
Command: "...why did I steal this, I didn't think I was a kleptomaniac..."(don't think about it)"it's fine."
6/14/23
You reconsider your choice to snatch the STONEWEAVER'S WAND. After all, it's pretty useless to you. You just picked it up out of habit, like all the other strange objects you've collected over this adventure. You wonder if you should be a little more considerate of others.
EMPATHY increased to Level 1!
But you quickly put that thought out of your mind.
EMPATHY reduced back to nothing!
Command: Play catch by myself with the cube again
You decide there's no reason to avoid the approaching FIGURE. As you await its approach, you idly toss the CUBE to yourself.
Just in case the stranger is hostile, you try to strike a slightly tough, intimidating pose as you do this. Unfortunately, it's quite difficult for the cube to be intimidating. Zani shakes her head, and even Trill gives this display a look of mild pity.
The figure is close, now. It still hasn't looked up at you. You can now see that the figure is clearly a CONSTRUCT, and it's carting what can only be described as a PILE OF ROT. Whatever this cart used to contain, it has decayed into an unrecognizable mountain of decomposed...biomass. Strangely, you see glowing spots within the rot, but it's not clear what their source is.
The construct steps closer and closer, its head bowed with quiet strain as it pulls the cart along. You keep waiting it for it to acknowledge you. Step by step. Squeak by squeak of the cart's wheel.
And the construct just...starts to walk by the three of you.
Command: Play catch by myself with the cube again
Trill starts and tries to cover your mouth but it's too late. The construct stops and jerks upright, spinning its head to give the three of you a glowing white smile.
"Hello! I'm Mushroom Gatherer Final II!"
There's a pause. The construct's eyes, also glowing white, seem to stare right through you. You lightly ask what it is he's doing out here.
"Oh! I was designed to gather mushrooms, so that's what I do!"
You look at the pile of rot. You can see now that the very top appears to have some remotely-fresh MUSHROOMS, but the rest have all rotted away.
"Ummm, do you think you have enough?"
"Maybe! But I wasn't designed to count 'em, just collect 'em, so that's what I do!"
"Who are you collecting them for?"
"The Stoneweaver! He looooves mushrooms!"
"Well, shouldn't you...bring these to him?"
"What? No! I wasn't designed to bring them back, just to collect them, so that's what I do!"
The construct chuckles.
"It's a pretty big design oversight, if you ask me. But, I wasn't designed to second-guess the Stoneweaver. I was just designed to colle-..."
"Yeah, we get it. That's what you do."
"It's what I do!"
Zani gives a heavy sigh.
Command: "Trill? Do you know how to use a wand?"
6/13/23
Trill looks at the STONEWEAVER'S WAND you're holding.
"Not if I don't know what it does, no. Wands like that have a pre-designed spell imprinted on them. They only do one thing, and I don't know what that wand's 'thing' is."
Sighing, you ask if there's any way to find out.
"Well, I could study it to try and reverse-engineer the runes, but that could take hours and I'd still only have an educated guess. Knowing how you do things, I'd recommend just tapping it on stuff until something happens."
"Now you're speaking my language!"
You glance over at Zani.
Command: Snatch the quill from zani to fiddle with
Zani effortlessly hops away. It doesn't look like your AGILITY is high enough to catch her.
She waves the QUILL.
"No no no, I'm keeping this. Whatever it is, I don't trust it. Besides, you've got like half a dozen other magic dealies to play with. Why don't you use that watering can to solve a puzzle or something?"
"Ummm...should we be worried about...whatever that is?"
The three of you turn towards the SOUND coming through the trees. The light footsteps and heavy creaking are getting closer and closer.
In the distance, you see a humanoid FIGURE pulling a CART directly towards you. It's hard to tell what the cart is carrying, but whatever it is, it's piled VERY high.
The figure doesn't seem to have noticed you yet, but in a few more steps that will likely change.
Command: "Yeah...the woods. Let's go."
6/12/23
You opt to move on, following a dirt path from the Stoneweaver's HUT into the dense FOREST that stands just inland from the BEACH.
Unlike the Erstwild, which was teeming with slithering horrors beneath every shadow, this forest is eerily still. The TREES here are massive, stretching dozens of stories into the sky, their leafy canopy hard to even see from the ground. With the rustle of leaves so high above you, the most promanent sound in the forest comes from the waves of the nearby ocean, echoing off every trunk and surrounding you with a dull and unsettling roar. You're genuinely unsure if this is the most peaceful or terrifying place on the island so far.
You ask Zani where this is.
"Hmm. Well, I almost never came up here. This place is super boring. There's hardly any wild magic, even. If this place has a name, no one ever told me."
Trill looks through the BOOK.
"Apparently it's called the Spirewood. It's so-named because the trees here absorb minerals en-masse to toughen their bark, making them partly petrified while they're alive."
"How do you find that in there?"
"Well, the only reliable way to search the book is with images, so I just scanned the pages for something that looked like the map we have. Turns out there's a whole atlas of the Land of Shadows in here."
"What?!"
"It's a bit light on details, though. All I could find about this place was the name. And besides, there's no guarantee this book is academically sourced to begin with."
You look around. For a forest, this place is remarkably empty, and points of interest are scarce. You see a faintly GLOWING MUSHROOM on a stump nearby, some PETRIFIED STICKS that could serve some use, and a FALLEN STATUE that looks like one of the statues from the beach.
But you aren't alone. You hear a SOUND in the distance. Light footsteps, combined with a heavy creaking noise, are slowly approaching from the shadows.
Command: Fiddle with the quill, trying to think of a way to get out of here
You don't have the QUILL right now...
Command: steal the wand...for some reason?
6/11/23
You pick up the WAND. You sense a strong power coursing through it, almost making it feel heavier than it should be.
Right now, the creases of the wand are glowing with the same sandy-color that flows through the Stoneweaver's body. However, you notice that moving the wand around causes it to briefly change to different colors. The color appears to be related to the motion you do, but you can't figure out the precise connection.
You've never used a wand before, so you're not sure what you're supposed to do with it. Well, into the inventory it goes.
STONEWEAVER'S WAND added to inventory!
Command: hand the book to trill, he's the most likely to actually remember to look up the stuff we see and he's on our quest.
You give the BOOK to Trill and he accepts it warily. Looking down at the cover, he gulps.
Zani tilts her head.
"What? It's a book of infinite knowledge. Isn't that kinda your thing?"
Trill cluches the book to his chest and sighs.
"Anyone who studies arcana deeply enough will tell you there are many things in this world best left unknown. I shudder to think what a book like this could reveal if...recklessly consumed."
Suddenly, a quizzical look crosses his face.
"Although..."
Trill opens the book and looks something up. He glances at Zani, then to you, then back at Zani and closes the book again.
Zani stares at Trill.
"What?"
Trill considers his answer...
"Like I said, some things are best left unknown. Now, we were headed for the woods, correct?"
Command: [stop erasing us from the nar-]get a sudden onset headache "ow, fuck...let's just...do what he says, i guess...i just wanna...get to ressa again..."
6/10/23
With a hand to your head, you manage to straighten out your intrustive thoughts once again.
WILLPOWER increased to Level 2!
You, Zani and Trill all say your goodbyes to the Stoneweaver and head outside. Emerging from the hut's cozy glow, you once again find the the island's oppressive purple sky swirling above you.
Even though it was a short visit, you feel like you were in there for a while, so you take stock of your surroundings once again. Next to the Stoneweaver's HUT is an unlit FIREPIT with a closed BASKET and a nondescript WAND resting beside it. Further towards the shore is a TELESCOPE, currently pointed inland.
From here, you could return to the BEACH, still inexplicably covered with creepy statues, or head to the inland FOREST in an attempt to find your way back to...somewhere recognizable.
Command: Shove trill forward
6/9/23
You push Trill towards the Stoneweaver, reminding him that he said he had questions, too.
"Huh? Oh! Well..."
He nervously turns to the Stoneweaver.
"I suppose the main question I had was...who are you?"
"Eh? Did I not introduce myself? Oh, sorry. I'm known as the Stoneweaver. I'm something of a wizard, though I only specialize in the bending and shaping of the earth, hence the nickname."
"I see. Classically trained?"
"What, like from a school? Nah, we didn't have big, fancy magic universities when I was your age. I learned everything from my grandma."
"Oh. How...cute. And why did you come here?"
"Same reason anybody does! Adventure! Treasure! Cheap thrills! You may not guess it now, but I was a reckless young man, once. I figured, 'What's the worst the most dangerous island in the world could do to me? I'm gonna show it who's boss!' Turns out the worst the island could do was force me to watch as my entire adventuring party was torn apart by unspeakable chimaeras in a gravel pit…so…I guess the island won that one. But, when I found that tablet, I knew there was...something here. There was the potential to do something extraordinary. So, I found the most secluded, monster-less place on the island and set up this hut, waiting for...someone who could assist me."
"And where exactly are we?"
"Yeah, I was going to ask that, too."
"Oh! Right, you don't know! Sorry! Lemme see that map of yours."
The Stoneweaver looks over your MAP and taps his finger on the northwest side of the island.
"This map is fairly crude, but you're about here-ish. You'll notice it's safely inconvenient to everywhere."
"So how do we get anywhere from here?"
The Stoneweaver looks thoughtful.
"I recommend looking around the woods just inland. There might be someone who can help you."
"'Might be?'"
"I dunno if they're there right now. If not...this island's crazy. Maybe you'll find a magic portal or something."
"That's not very helpful..."
"Look, fancy boy, I did my part three hundred years ago. All you need to do is get to those shrines. Now get moving!"
Question: "What is my name"
6/8/23
The Stoneweaver thinks hard.
"You know? I'm not sure you ever told me your real name. As I remember, I used to just call you 'Wanderer.'"
"You never told us your real name, either."
"I didn't? It's-..."
The Stoneweaver proceeds to make an odd stone grinding sound.
"...How do you spell that?"
"It's just like it sounds."
"Forget it."
Question: "Why am I hearing voices?"
"Voices? Hm. How long have you been hearing them?"
You explain that, since you became fully aware, it's sounded like there's something guiding you.
"Well, you never talked about voices before, so maybe they have to do with the divine artifacts. Then again..."
The Stoneweaver puts a hand on your shoulder.
"It could be that this is...how you think. Sometimes, our impulses can feel like another voice within ourselves. It might just be the nature of how you think things through."
You ask what exactly that means.
"I'm just saying...maybe don't fixate on it too much. Just let it be a part of you."
You're not sure where this advice is coming from, but it feels oddly sound.
Question: "Do I have loved ones?"
"I asked you before the ritual and you said you didn't. Since you came to this island alone, I'm going to guess it's true."
Question: "How old am i?"
The Stoneweaver sighs.
"Oh, I'm terrible at judging these things. I dunno...mid-to-late 20s? Look, everyone between about 22 and 35 looks the same to me."
"How old do you think I am?"
"You? No idea. I figured you were some, like, weird teenage runaway."
"...I've never felt more flattered in my life."
"How old do you think I a-..."
"We're not doing more of this!"
"Aww..."
Question: "How old am i?"
The Stoneweaver moves to the window.
"I've made this island my home, Wanderer. After living like a hermit for over three hundred years, I'm not sure I could go back to civilization if I wanted to. But, if I'm correct, and untangling to Convergence actually works..."
He turns to you with a beaming smile.
"I'm not gonna want to leave! This place will be a paradise, just like the tablet shows!"
Trill raises an eyebrow.
"Tablet?"
The Stoneweaver looks around, suddenly realizing he's left out an important part of the tale.
"Ah, yes! Allow me to show you!"
Quickly, he moves his tea set aside and rips the tablecloth off the table by which you're seated, revealing the table to actually be a giant stone TABLET covered in ancient etchings.
You all gather around the carving. It's a simple drawing of seven humanoids standing below lush palm trees. There are clean waterfalls, succulent fruit and adorable fauna all represented. Under the ground beneath it all are five lines in perfect parallel.
"This here...is an ancient tablet. Trust me, I know rocks, and this one is older than...pretty much anything on the island by a long margin. And look! It depicts this island, with the Convergence below, but all five laylines are flowing in harmony."
You ask what it means.
"It means that the Convergence wasn't always tangled. Something happened! Something was done! And hopefully, that means it can be undone!"
Trill traces a finger over the carving.
"This would also imply that...there used to be people on this island. What happened to them?"
The Stoneweaver sighs.
"No idea. But, it's a safe bet that what happened to them and what happened to the Convergence are related."
Trill nods. You can tell he's taking copious mental notes.
"So...why ask the Lost Gods for help?"
"Well, it was a long shot. The Lost Gods abandoned this world long ago, perhaps even before this tablet was carved. But, I figured if they created this world, that means they created the Convergence as a pure, untangled thing. So, perhaps they'd have an interest in seeing it restored to how it was."
The Stoneweaver puts an arm around you.
"And hey, it worked! The gods sent you back here with artifacts of divine power to set this island right."
You sigh, explaining you still don't know how to use them.
"Sounds to me like you've barely tried! Those Layline Shrines should be where these artifacts show their true potential."
Excitedly, the Stoneweaver throws his front door open.
"Now, let's get out there and save this world!"
"Oh, you're coming with us?"
"No! I meant 'Let's' in more of a commanding sense. I'm staying here. I'm a very weak and tired old man."
And so, you gather your things and prepare to leave...unless you have any further questions for the Stoneweaver.
Command: "Ah, fuck, so that's not gonna be good." Hug him, I guess?
5/28/23
You give the Stoneweaver a hug, and much to your surprise, it's not spine-crushing at all. In fact, he feels quite weak and frail, to the point where you worry pulling away too fast might take one of his forearms off.
He turn to Zani, his face beaming.
"And Zani! You survived the stasis ritual."
"Was that...not guaranteed."
"Um...of course it was!"
"Speaking of surviving, what the hell happened to you?"
Stoneweaver looks at his hands and sighs.
"Oh, this. Well, three hundred years is a long time to wait. I got old, and as parts of my body failed, I replaced them with construct prosthetics until...well, there was no more to replace."
"Why didn't you just statue-fy yourself."
"Are you serious? That spell's insanely dangerous!"
Zani crosses her arms as the Stoneweaver looks around guiltily.
"Um, I mean...for people of my size."
Zani sighs.
Command: "also, do you know how to uncurse an apple that came from a cursed tree? or at least destroy it without letting the being inside it out?"
You hold up the APPLE and the Stoneweaver glances at it.
"Not my area of expertise. Now, if you want me to make an...apple...construct...I can't even finish that sentence."
Stoneweaver shakes his head.
"Wait, why are we talking about apples? The Convergence! The quest! Tell me everything!"
"Hey, easy, EASY! That little trip gave our friend some serious memory loss. Didn't even recognize me at first. You might need to slow down."
"Yes, I was told the ritual...changes a person. It's not just memory loss. When you touch the divine, you come out different than you went in."
The Stoneweaver sits you down. Over the next few minutes, you explain everything you can remember, starting from the white room. You tell him about the artifacts, disarming the traps, meeting Ressa, fighting the Runewalker, escaping the ghostly figures, landing in Grim's Landing, meeting Trill, killing the cultist, using the QUILL to displace Trill from reality-...
"Wait, what!?"
You explain how it seemed like a good idea at the time. You finish the story with your arrival on the beach. The Stoneweaver sighs.
"So, you haven't actually gone to any of the layline shrines, yet?"
You shake your head.
"We're working on it."
"Well, I already waited three-hundred years for this, so I guess I can't rush you."
He stands, walking over to a stove to put on a tea kettle.
"But, with your memory being what it is, I imagine you have a lot of questions."
"I have some, too!"
"That's great, kid. Anyway, I'm going to put on a pot of tea. Let's catch up. You ask me anything about this island or this quest that you want!"
You think hard...
Command: "do you think the apple curse might still happen if i use the knife? it tends to get rid of most...organic material."
5/28/23
"Oh, for the love of god…"
Trill has his head in his hands.
"Yeah, I don't think the organic part's the part you worry about."
You look at the APPLE. It looks like it would absolutely hate it if you used the KNIFE on it. That would destroy the curse immediately and save the world. It wouldn't at all be the same thing as eating it, which would also destroy it, but...not...the same way. You should do it.
Command: Knock on the door
You rap your knuckles on the great stone DOOR of the HUT. You're very lucky the armor you're wearing comes with gauntlets, because that would hurt like hell otherwise.
From inside the hut, you hear an odd, earthen clattering. Something very large and very...rocky is moving around in there. After a second of coughing, it speaks in a hoarse voice.
"What is it you want?"
The three of you look at each other.
"Ummm...we want to know where we are."
"Nowhere! Nothin' here but me! If you want magic or treasure or whatever, turn around where you came."
Zani looks a bit confused.
"Hey...um...this is going to sound weird, but why is your voice familiar?"
"...The hell kind of question is that?"
"I mean, I just feel like I've heard your voice before, only that's impossible because I've been a statue for three hundred years."
The being inside the hut pauses, then scrambles towards you. Before you can react, the great door is thrown open, and you see a massive humanoid CONSTRUCT standing on the other side. His body is made of hardened, earthy stone, and a light the color of sand courses through his bulky frame. As he looks down at you, the intricate segments of his carved mouth curl into a smile.
"Why...it's you!"
And in an instant, you realize who you're talking to. This is the STONEWEAVER, your old adventure companion and the one who set up this quest three hundred years ago.
Your memory is still hazy, but you remember one thing clearly. He wasn't a construct the last time you saw him. So...that's weird.
He opens his arms for a hug.
Command: Snatch the apple. "It's been trying to make me eat it, ya know."
5/26/23
"Okay. I wouldn't."
You make it clear you won't eat the apple. Everyone knows better, though.
"Still, as a scholar of magic, I am curious what the enchantment on it actually does."
"We could trick someone into eating it."
"Y-yes, but keep in mind, it might not just be a blight on the person who eats it."
"Huh?"
"The enchantment on that apple is an intricate one. Whatever it is, people don't weave curses like that just for kicks. It could do something far worse than you're expecting."
"Like...?"
"Like releasing something. Something that should..."
He looks at the apple. It sparkles at him in the moonlight.
"...stay sealed."
You shove the apple in your pocket. You'll eat it later probably. It's not like it's sealing anything.
Command: "Anyway, zani, trill's agreed to join us full-time on this quest. Let's go to that hut."
You decide the HUT looks like the best option and lead the party that way.
As you weave through the many, many STATUES, their purpose still remains a mystery to you. There's such a wide variety of them, and they don't all look like adventurers or denizens of the Land of Shadows. In fact, most of them just look like...ordinary people.
Out of the corner of your eye, you keep swearing you see statues in the distance move slightly, but it's probably a trick of the light.
"So, um, I'll say it. I'm sorry. I don't know why…what I did teleported us to the middle of nowhere. I thought changing the runes would just move what's-his-name."
"Trill! And if I had to guess, I'd say it's because the runes were showing relative position. By changing them, you changed my position, but also yours...relatively speaking."
"Oh. That makes sense."
"No, it doesn't, but it's the stupid kind of over-literal logic that quill thing seems to work on."
When you finally reach the hut, you see it's no ordinary thatch-and-sticks operation, but is quite intricately carved out of the living rock of the shoreline, with smooth curves winding up its bulbous shape to a twisted chimney that extends into the sky.
Scattered around, you see a TELESCOPE pointed towards the island, an unlit FIREPIT next to which a stone BASKET rests, and what appears to be some kind of stone WAND with a faint blue glow.
Or, you could knock on the hut's heavy stone DOOR.
Command: "The knife doesn't *just* murder people. It can break axe traps, provide a deterrent, get into chests..."
5/25/23
"I feel like that's true of most knives."
Command: Play one-handed catch with the apple by myself while waiting for zani to wake up
Trill suddenly grabs it out of the air, giving it a very close look.
"Hmmm..."
You warn Trill that the apple is cursed. You're lying, of course. The only thing the apple is cursed with is a smooth flavor that can't be beat.
"Yes, I know it's cursed, but I want to see what kind of curse. I'm a magic scholar, after all."
Trill turns the apple over in his hand. Mmmm, apple turnovers sound like a great idea right about now.
"Fascinating. Whatever enchantment is on this apple, it's woven deep, right into the cellular structure. This apple wasn't simply cursed. It was grown cursed, like it came from a cursed tree."
You ask what the curse does.
"It's too intricately woven for me to pull apart, at least without my spellbook. You don't still have that, do you?"
You shake your head.
"Didn't think so. Zani, did you grab it?"
"Nah, I'm not into books."
"Hmm, well I guess that's...ZANI!"
Zani chuckles, giving a theatrical bow.
"Yep, I'm awake. Now where are we?"
You sigh, admitting you have no idea. Zani looks around, taking in the sky and looking inland for landmarks.
"Well, the sky's the same, so I think we're still in the Land of Shadows but...I don't recognize this place at all."
It doesn't look like you'll get much done standing around here. You could head toward the HUT, or go INLAND.
Command: "Buddy, you got dragged along, you're part of it. Also, that knife...it's gotten us out of a few rough spots."
5/24/23
"Yes, murder can do that. I'm aware. It doesn't mean I have to be okay with it."
Trill looks around again.
"As soon as I know where I am relative to the University, I'm going home. I want no part in...whatever you're doing here."
You explain that you're here to untangle the Convergence.
"...I'm sorry, what?"
You start to explain that the Convergence is-...
"Yes, I know what the Convergence is. I'm a scholar of magic. What was that other part? What do you mean 'untangle' it?"
You explain about your quest, the artifacts and the shrines. As you talk, Trill's eyes widen. All his apprehension melts away, and by the end of your speil, he's practically vibrating with excitement.
"W-...w....Why didn't you SAY SO?! This is the most incredible thing I've ever heard! You're saying we might actually bring balance to the Convergence, right here? Right now? And...I could bring a report on it back to the University?"
You nod. Trill grabs you by the shoulders.
"I don't care who we have to kill anymore! I’m in! Let's do this!"
He considers what he just says and sighs.
"I'd...still rather not kill anyone, though. Just...honestly."
You pat him on the head, understandingly.
Command: Check *to make sure everything in my inventory is still there*
You look through your inventory again. Everything is accounted for, except for the QUILL. It seems Zani is still holding it…
Command: "eh. i was never one for gen...wait, hold on, lemme-" check all my inventory.
You look through your inventory. The only object that seems immediately useful is the APPLE, but only in the sense that you should eat it, or get someone else to. You should do that immediately.
Unfortunately, your KNOWLEDGE stat isn't high enough to do the thinking for you. You'll have to pick something to use yourself.
Command: "also, here." hand BOOK to trill. "and they're not fringes of reality, they're just...voices. voices in my head."
Trill looks at the BOOK you're offering him.
"What's that?"
You explain that it's a divine artifact that seemingly contains all the knowledge in the world. Trill's eyes grow wide. He grabs the book and starts thumbing through it.
"This is...incredible. I don't understand any of it, but...you were entrusted with something like THIS?!"
You note that the book isn't as useful as it seems. It's so complicated it can only be searched with reference images, and a lot of information immediately relevant to this quest is conveniently missing. Trill sighs, clearly realizing how impenetrable the book is with every page. He closes the book and hands it back to you.
"You hold onto this. This is your quest, not mine."
You nod and take the book back.
"But if you want to give me that horrible death-tortune knife so I can throw it in the ocean, I'll take that."
You tell him you'll...think about it.
Command: "Oh, You're awake now."
5/23/23
Hearing your voice, Trill's eyes dart open. He scrambles to his feet, looking around wildly before finally settling his gaze on you.
"It's you! You’re here! I'm here! I'm not in...that place anymore! Ohhh, I'd hug you if I wasn't still incredibly angry at you!"
Trill calms down and takes in the new surroundings.
"But where...are we?"
You shrug. You ask if this is the place Trill was trapped.
"No, it was nothing like this. Hmmm."
Trill knocks on the forehead of a STATUE. No response. It's solid stone.
Command: "Can you hear *them* too?"
"The what? Oh, you mean those...other commands? I heard them while I was...there, but I don't know where they were coming from."
Trill suddenly puts a hand on your shoulder.
"It's probably best we not think about any of that too hard. Trying to comprehend the fringes of reality rarely goes well."
You aren’t entirely sure what he means, but you give a slight nod. Trill smiles and whirls around, pointing at Zani.
"Changing the subject, is she dead?"
You point out that she's breathing, so probably not.
"Hmmm. Best to wake her up gently. Any ideas?"
Command: "Great, we froze time."
5/22/23
You consider the possibility you’ve frozen time. However, the waves are still moving perfectly fine. It’s possible these STATUES are actual statues.
Command: "Welp, might as well do something useful until they wake up...if they wake up." Look up the smiling one in the BOOK
You open the BOOK and try to find some information on The Smiling One, using the smiley-face symbols you've been seeing associated with the cult for reference. It takes you a while, as it's a fairly generic symbol to base a religion around, but eventually you find a section on the cult itself.
Apparently, the "Vigil of the Smiling One" is less of a traditional cult and more of a strange phenomenon that occurs in the Land of Shadows. For unknown reasons, certain individuals who come to the island find themselves almost immediately plagued by visions and intrusive thoughts about a being known as The Smiling One, calling the victim to the deity's service. Those of weak mental fortitude will give themselves over to this entity right away, but seemingly anyone so afflicted by this eldrich power will eventually lose themselves to it.
Those who fall to the entity's service become part of the "Vigil of the Smiling One" seeking out similarly-afflicted individuals with whom they can worship their new deity. Forms of worship include the dedication of prayer, property and even one's own body to the entity, as followers will slowly cover everything they own with sacred smiley-faces, up to and including their skin. Indeed, the entity seems to ask for nothing more than fervent worship.
Generally speaking, the cult is considered harmless. They have no tenents of blood sacrifice or violence against non-believers. Even so, more zealous individuals have been known to take "heresy" against The Smiling One very seriously when confronted. Any attempt to remove a convert from the cult (or the island) will be met with great fury both from the individual and their new allies.
As for the "entity" itself, there is much debate (outside the cult) as to whether it exists at all or is some manner of mass-delusion brought on by the ambiant wild magic of the Land of Shadows. The consistency of accounts between affected individuals (even before they properly become cultists) suggests that there must be some truth to the myth, but the realty remains obscured by the cult’s frequent mad ravings.
The Smiling One's legend, according to the cult, is simple. She was a goddess, betrayed by her jealous pantheon, and sealed beneath the Land of Shadows where she would endure unimaginable torture for all eternity. The twisted laylines of the Convergence bind every part of her body, crushing her bones, strangling her breath, and making even the beat of her heart painful. And yet, though it all, "She is Smiling." She is a being of pure positivity and light, and nothing can break her spirit. The cult believes that, with just a fraction of this endless positivity, they can be made immortal and endure any hardship, just like their goddess.
The book concludes, in a bit of a harsh swerve, by saying that The Smiling One absolutely does not exist, and that all of the preceding was included for the sake of academic archival.
Huh.
Trill stirs a little.
Command1:Hand the quill to zani
Command2:"Yeah, just for that, I'm going to use more artifacts without even looking them up in this book."
Trill rolls his eyes.
"I'm sure you are. Wait, what book?"
You're not listening. You hand the QUILL to Zani who eagerly snatches it out of your hands. She skips over to the MAGIC CIRCLE and begins tracing a finger along the rainbow runes that surround it.
"So, these runes show your current chrono-spacial-whatever coordinates, right?"
"Y-yes?"
"So if these runes were changed, you'd be sent somewhere else, right?"
"Uh, no. Not at all. That's not how this works."
"Okay, but let's say I have a special ink that lets me functionally rewrite reality however I want. Would it work then?"
Trill's eyes widen.
"I'm sorry, WHAT does that quill do, exactly?"
"No idea! Let's find out!"
Over Trill’s protests, Zani begins marking over the runes with the quill. Slowly she traces the black ink over the colored lines, and as she does so, a horrible sound of static echoes through the room. The magic circle itself begins to twist and distort in ways that make it difficult to look at, but Zani is undeterred. She writes faster and faster, the ink starting to run down the side of the wall as a sickening sludge.
As you watch, the neon hues of the gemchalk lines begin to blend with the ink, flowing and spreading through the liquid until the whole wall is lit with a fluorecent nightmare of shifting colors. Zani finally stops writing and steps back, shielding her eyes.
Zani backs up next to you. You ask her if it's working.
"Ummmm...possibly?"
The glowing colors begin to spread along the walls. The brightness is making it impossible to see. You close your eyes as you and Zani are engulfed in a torrent of rainbow.
You awaken in a strange place.
You're on a beach, surrounded by STATUES. These statues depict people of all kinds, from all over the world. They appear to be going about their day, eating, walking, having conversations. All these actions are frozen in time, and there's no sign of life here but the crash of the waves, and a small, illuminated HUT in the far distance. Though you're surrounded by friendly faces, this shore has a truly eerie loneliness to it.
Oh, also Trill and Zani are here, unconscious.
Command: "I, uh...I'm not sure you have to eat. Maybe we could fashion a golem to put you in."
5/21/23
Trill’s despair gives way to rage.
“You’re already the golem I’m trapped in!”
Ressa throws up her hands.
“Okay, this is getting annoying. I think I have a plan to get Trill out of there, but you’re gonna need to give me that reality-breaking quill thing of yours.”
Trill cocks his head.
“Reality-breaking quill thing?”
"Yeah, it's what we used to…do this to you."
Trill looks apprehensive. You're also a bit unsure of the idea. You still don't fully understand how the QUILL works.
Command: Explain what this quill is.
You tell the group about how you found the quill, briefly summarizing your experience in the white room. Trill just shakes his head.
"Well, that doesn't help much. Really, you shouldn't use enchanted objects without first getting a firm understanding of how they work, preferably through peer-reviewed academic investigation."
"Ugh, why are we helping this nerd?"
You explain you just want him out of your head.
"Look, college boy, we broke reality to put you in there so we've gotta break reality to get you out. Sound reasonable?"
Trill sighs.
"I suppose if there are no other options."
Zani turns to you.
"Gimmie the quill."
Command: "You're part of me now, trill. Part of the voices in my head. Welcome to the pack."
5/20/23
Trill’s despair is turning into panic.
“No! No, there has to be…something! This place is completely empty! I don’t think I can survive in here!”
Command: pick up the spellbook, and start flipping through it, looking for a way to restore ressa's arm.
You open the SPELLBOOK and begin looking for something that can repair Ressa’s arm. Unfortunately, all the spell names are stupidly technical, and the chapter on constructs alone is 212 pages long, so it’s unlikely you’ll be able to decipher the correct spell without Trill’s help.
Speaking of Trill, he’s still shouting.
“Would you put that book down and listen?! What am I going to eat? I can’t conjure food from nothing!”
“You can’t? I thought that was a wizard thing.”
Trill sighs.
“Look, I’m more of a scholar of magic than a caster, all right? I know a few spells, but mostly I just study magical phenomena. That’s why I came to this island! I just…wanted to bring back some interesting findings to the university…”
“And, you got stuck outside reality. Count yourself lucky. I’ve seen waaaay worse happen to people around here.”
Trill hangs his head. He looks on the verge of tears.
Command: Help Trill. Please.
You want to help Trill, but you can’t think of how. You’ll need to be more specific.
Command: "You're the one who acted like a coward. Death is a part of this shit, and we weren't ever gonna get through to that cultist. You haven't seen the shit we have, you don't have the right to judge us."
5/19/23
Trill sighs, his reply deadpan.
“Great to see you, too. Move aside.”
Command: "besides, trill, you've been in my head. don't play like you haven't. i know i'm not alone in this mind of mine, and i know you've seen my it, maybe even met *them*. can you really hold yourself to such a high standard?"
Trill really isn’t having this.
“Yeah, whatever. Move aside.”
Ressa leans her head in.
“Also you owe me an arm! Let’s not forget tha-…”
Command: I SAID “MOVE ASIDE!”
You instinctively jump to the side, shoving Zani with you. Trill thins his eyes in focus, and following his gaze, you realize he’s looking into a MIRROR on the opposite wall next to the door.
“Okay, now the runes of the circle should have shifted to show my current chrono-spacial-planar coordinates. All I have to do is read them, and we’ll know where the hell you’ve sent me.”
“And then what?”
“Then I…figure the rest of it out! Now stop distracting me. I’m trying to read these…”
Trill’s eyes widen. He stares at the runes of the circle in complete shock. You see his eyes move in a circular motion, reading again and a gain.
“Wait…what? No, that…that isn’t possible. It doesn’t make any sense.”
You ask where the runes say Trill is. He pauses, clearly unsure how to even phrase it.
“It says I’m…here. Like…right here, exactly. This very spot.”
“You mean you’re in the room with us?”
“I mean I’m exactly where the circle is, somehow. The runes show the target’s location relative to where the circle is drawn, but here…they’re the same. Zero distance. I-…I’ve never seen anything like this.”
Slowly, you see despair creep into Trill’s face.
“I don’t…know what it means. I don’t know what to do.”
Command: Eat some of a jar of brineshrooms, and wait for the magic-focused voice in my head to tell me what to do next
5/18/23
Looking at the CIRCLE, you’re not quite sure what to do next. You pull out another JAR OF BRINESHROOMS and munch on them while you wait for inspiration to strike you once again.
All HUNGER removed!
Ressa peeks around the doorframe.
“Are you done yet?”
“No, we’re still trying to figure out how to…Wait, what is this spell supposed to do, anyway?”
You shrug. Apparently it will help to locate Trill, but you’re not sure how. Zani looks a little concerned.
Command: Hmmm, “trace-reference…?” Oh! It needs something of mine so it can find me. Hold my spellbook in the middle of the circle.
Right on time, inspiration hits once again. You grab the SPELLBOOK and place it in the middle of the magic circle, holding it against the wall. Immediately, a ripple of light passes over the circle, signaling its activation.
Slowly, the lines of the circle begin to shift. They bend and twist, colors weaving in an intricate dance. Faster and faster they bend and interlock, forming a complex series of spinning rainbow symbols. You step back, holding the spellbook which appears to no longer be needed for the process to continue. All around the room, the strange while flames of the CANDLES shift to wild hues in concert with the vortex of color on the wall.
And in the center of this chromatic storm, an image forms. A blurry silver shape gradually comes into focus. As the wildly-spinning colors settle into a sequence of slowly-orbiting runes, the image resolves, and you’re looking at the face of TRILL. Recognition flashes in his eyes, and you realize he can see you, too.
He looks relieved for a second, before realizing how much right he has to be angry with you, at which point his face settles into a glare.
This is a bit awkward.
Command: "The chalk!" Pull the gem chalk out of...wherever we've been storing it
5/17/23
You pull the GEMCHALK out of your pocket and confirm it does indeed match the colors in the SPELLBOOK.
Zani nods.
“Oh yeah, I guess that is a magic circle. Not sure what it does, but let’s draw it!”
Ressa, for the record, has now backed completely out of the room.
You start to doodle the circle on a blank section of wall next to the DESK.
Command: WAIT! Circle-casting is a very precise and subtle art. You need to make sure you copy the circle in the book exactly, okay?
Realizing the potential danger an ill-drawn magic circle might present, you opt to slow down and copy the circle in the book as precisely as you can. The design is incredibly intricate, being made of five total lines (one of each color) that interweave and interlock in dozens upon dozens of ways to form a single, coherent circular shape.
It’s very slow-going, since you’re both not a spellcaster and not much of an artist besides, but you manage to stay focused. By the time the circle is fully-drawn, you’re tired, hungry and your brain needs a serious rest. Mostly, though, you’re hungry.
HUNGER increased to Level 1.
But now the magic circle is complete. And…nothing happens. You look through the book to see what the next step is, but the wording is frustratingly technical. It seems you need something called a “trace-reference artifact” to serve as your “metalocus antipoint” in the middle of the circle. But…what does that mean?
Command: Flip back to the start of the book
5/16/23
You flip the SPELLBOOK back to its very first page.
At the top of the page, you see the triangular insignia of the Sapphire Mountain School of Applied Magics and Spellcasting, their name helpfully written in a circle around the insignia itself. Below, you see a personalized introduction written in fancy script.
“Salutations, TRILLIONIMOUS LUMINESTRO THE THIRD! It is with great pride that the Sapphire Mountain School of Applied Magics and Spellcasting bestows upon you this comprehensive and personalized spellbook for your continuing education. You have proven yourself capable and responsible enough to be trusted with the advanced magical knowledge contained within these pages, a feat that few of our attendees can claim. But, do not take this honor lightly, TRILLIONIMOUS LUMINESTRO THE THIRD. As a classically-educated spellcaster, you now represent the values and dignity of your institution. As such, we ask that you treat all the knowledge contained herein with the maturity and gravity they demand. Deep within these pages, you will find spells of terrible power, presented more for the sake of archival and education rather than actual use. We believe you are mature and trustworthy enough to be given this heretofore forbidden magical knowledge, and we only ask that you do not make us regret our decision. Read these words, heed the warnings, explore the mysteries of magic and become the brilliant spellcaster you are destined to be.”
Zani is reading over your shoulder.
“Aw, cool! They’ve got forbidden spells in this thing? Look up ‘full cerebral domination,’ that one’s really funny.”
Command: No! No one’s casting cerebral domination! Flip it back to 729 and let me think!
You flip the book back to page 729. You still don’t know what to make of any of the diagrams.
However, you do notice one thing. The large multicolored circle symbol in the middle of the page is made up of five colors specifically: red, blue, yellow, green and purple. Those are the five colors of mana layline you’re trying to untangle. But, you can’t shake the feeling you’ve seen those five colors somewhere else, too…
Command: Look around room 2
5/15/23
Struggling to your feet, you wearily step into ROOM 2.
The room is remarkably tidy compared to the state of the surrounding ship. It’s pleasingly lit with CANDLES that burn with a strange white flame, and even looks to have been recently swept and dusted.
There’s a well-made BED on one side of the room and a closed WARDROBE on the other, but what you want lies on the DESK by the far window. Sitting there, illuminated dramatically by candles, is an intricately-decorated silver SPELLBOOK. It’s bound with a scaly leather that has an odd metallic sheen, and is criss-crossed with metal clasps that look like they might be real silver.
Ressa gulps. The mere sight of the spellbook seems to have given her a chill. Zani gives her a sideways glance.
“It’s just a book, Ressa.”
“Yeah, that ‘book’ probably taught wizard-boy the spell that blew my arm off. I’m not going near it.”
“Can you even read?”
“I don’t know.”
You gently tap the cover of the book with your finger. It doesn’t immediately appear to be trapped or cursed.
Command: I’m back! Did you find the-…AH! My spellbook! Okay, I want you to look up “Orthagonovariable Backtrace Metalocus Predivination.” It should be on page 729.
You lift the heavy cover of the spellbook and turn it to page 729. There is indeed a section on Orthagonovariable Backtrace Metalocus Predivination written right here! The description reads…
“Orthagonovariable Backtrace Metalocus Predivination (often shortened to Orthagonovariable Backtrace Metalocus Prediv) is a powerful but limited type of scrying magic that allows an individual or object to be located virtually anywhere in time and space, even crossing planar boundaries, so long as they metaphysically ‘belong’ in the same chrono-spacial-planar location as the caster. To put it simply, if an individual has been recently ‘displaced’ from your time, planet or reality, Orthagonovariable Backtrace Metalocus Predivination can be used to locate them for rescue, virtually regardless of where or when they are. This is a useful tool for assisting spellcasters who may have recently undergone teleportation shock, contracted causal delinearization syndrome, or even those unfortunate enough to experience full planar divestment. Spellcasting instructors are advised to keep themselves well-versed in this practice. After all, accidents happen!”
Below this are a bunch of diagrams you don’t understand, all surrounding an intricate image of a multicolored circle. In this moment, you realize a key flaw to your plan. You don’t know the first thing about casting magic!
Command: "Ressa? Can you help me kick open the door?"
5/14/23
Ressa considers it.
“Ordinally, it’d be no problem, but it’s a lot harder to shift my weight properly with only one arm.”
You offer that you and Zani could brace her. Ressa gives a sideways glance at Zani’s spindly limbs, and you offer a replacement suggestion that you could brace her. Ressa seems uncertain, but nods.
Placing your hands on Ressa’s back, you hold her steady. Ressa puts her foot against the door, draws it back and counts to three. You hold your breath.
…only to have that breath knocked out of you when the kick sends Ressa flying backwards with incredible force, crushing you against the opposite wall. Your thick ARMOR manages to absorb most of the impact, which might well have been fatal otherwise, but you still hear a few worrying crunching sounds from the direction of your bones.
WOUND increased to Level 3!
You fall to the floor, coughing. You roll around, gasping for breath Ressa and Zani stand over you.
“OH GOD! Are you okay?”
Still too breathless to talk, you hold up and hand to show you’re fine. Ressa still looks worried, but Zani just spins on her heel towards ROOM 2.
“Hey, it’s open!”
Turning your head, you see that the door has indeed been kicked off its hinges. You accept that as a silver lining to your pain.
Command: Wait, one of the numbers just changed. Did you do something?
With Ressa’s help you kicked open the door to ROOM 2 and gained access to the spellcaster’s secret hideaway, but you suffered an injury in the process.
You nod. That is indeed what just happened.
Command: Go back to cabin two and kick open the door
5/13/23
You kick the door to ROOM 2. It gives slightly, but it’s a long way from breaking. It would take a lot more kicking to bring it down, and you get the feeling that such a great exertion would leave you very hungry.
Command: Where am I now? “Stats Equip System?” Is this some kind of puzzle? And why is my…name written here? Does this number mean something?
If you ever need help with a puzzle, try consulting the BOOK or using your KNOWLEDGE skill to intuit an intended solution!
Command: Pull open desk drawer
5/12/23
You pull the DESK DRAWER open and find two bags inside.
The first bag is a small SACK OF COINS. For some reason, you can’t help but notice that the sack is the exact same silver color as Trill’s robes. It almost looks like the same material. The sack is tied with a little white drawstring with a note attached, just reading “Thank you.”
The other bag is a pouch of JERKY. It’s not fresh but it looks perfectly edible. In fact, it might be the most appetizing thing you’ve seen in the Land of Shadows.
Well, except for the APPLE. The APPLE still looks a lot tastier, and you should eat it.
Command: I hear some voices clearly, but others are muffled, like only one or two can get through at a time…
That’s not a command I recognize.
Command: Take gun
5/11/23
You pick up the ORNATE HANDGUN, attempting to observe proper gun safety as you turn it over in your hand. Unfortunately, you never learned gun safety, so you just move it very slowly and hope for the best. It’s quite stylish, the chromatic metal being engraved with a rainbow of abstract patterns.
Looking at the outside, there doesn’t appear to be any way to open the chamber or insert a clip, so you’re not sure how you’re meant to load it or even check if it is loaded. You look to Zani and Ressa for advice but they just shrug.
“Guns aren’t really my thing.”
“Yeah, and my knowledge of firearms is about three hundred years out of date, apparently. I’ve never seen anything like that.”
You look the gun over again. This could be useful, but you’ll need to be careful with it until you figure out how it works. Slowly and deliberately, you holster it in your inventory.
ORNATE HANDGUN added to inventory!
Command: Seriously, why am I hearing other voices? Are they talking to me? Hold on, I’m going to look around here a little.
You look around for voices, but see nothing but Zani and Ressa staring back at you, confused.
Command: Retrieve the knife, but put it away.
5/9/23
You enter ROOM 3 to find the KNIFE embedded in a BRIMMED HAT, which has almost entirely turned to toxic ash by the time you arrive. You pull out the knife just as the last of the hat dissolves. It’s a shame. It looked like a pretty cool hat.
Aside from some other scattered clothing, there isn’t much of note in this room. The BED is messily unmade and there are some INACCURATE MAPS of the Land of Shadows laid out on a DESK. There might be something interesting in the CLOSET or DESK DRAWER, but there’s nothing worth taking in sight.
Command: Oh right, this was…her room. Check out that closet. There might be something useful in there for getting a door open.
You open the closet. Hung up are a series of COLORFUL CLOTHES for a stylish adventurer. Looks like she was about a head shorter than you, though, so there’s nothing in your size, not that most of it looks especially practical anyhow.
More interestingly, on a small shelf at the bottom of the closet, there’s an ORNATE HANDGUN.
Command: take out knife, ready to slash the door
5/8/23
With a now practiced efficiency, you pull out the KNIFE, its terrifying aura palpable even in this dark hallway. Ressa backs away, reflexively.
“I’m never gonna get used to that.”
As you consider slashing the DOOR, your KNOWLEDGE causes an important thought to cross your mind. This door is clearly made of the same wood as the rest of the ship. If you were to impart the knife’s power of death into the door, there’s a non-zero chance it could spread, turning the entire ship to dust with it.
Of course, you have no way of knowing if this will happen, but you can’t shake the feeling…
Command: Ugh, that horrible weapon again. Throw it away!
You suddenly and reflexively toss the knife to the side. Ressa barely dodges out of the way as it flies down the hallway, bouncing off a doorframe and flying into ROOM 3, out of sight.
“What the hell was that for?”
You shrug. You’ve been no stranger to unusual compulsions since you woke up in the Land of Shadows, but you can’t help but feel they’ve been getting…unusual-er lately.
Command: enter the cabins
5/7/23
You step over the discarded BONES and tipped FLAGONS and make your way through the door to the ship’s CABINS.
The hallway beyond is dark and stuffy, lit only by the moonlight streaming in from outside. It would be eerily quiet were it not for the constant creaks and bends of the wood echoing from all directions. There are a number of doors here, each leading to a different guest cabin, as well as STAIRS downward to a lower level. It appears this ship was mostly designed to ferry passengers, though you wouldn’t call the accommodations luxurious.
The doors are as follows…
ROOM 1’s door is ajar, and you can see the room beyond was very lived-in, with the walls covered in maps and plans and the floor covered with discarded provisions. Though there’s only one bed, you see two additional bedrolls splayed messily across the floor.
ROOM 2’s door is closed, but there’s a faint light coming from around the frame. It’s the only other light in the hallway.
ROOM 3’s door has seemingly been kicked off its hinges. There are some scattered clothes in the room beyond it, but it’s much less messy than Room 1. If there’s anything worth seeing in there, you’d have to search more closely to find it.
ROOM 4’s door is closed, but when you get close to it, you can hear something moving behind it.
And the final door, at the back of the back of the hallway, is helpfully labeled CAPTAIN’S CABIN.
Looks like you’ve got a lot of options, here!
Command: My cabin is…or was…Room 2. Go in Room 2.
You try the knob for ROOM 2 but it’s locked tight.
Command: Oh right, they key. It was…in my pocket. DAMN IT ALL!!
I don’t know how to DAMN something.
Command: Search for the spellbook
5/6/23
You check the docks for anything resembling a spellbook, but there’s not much here.
Command: No, not here! It’s in my cabin! Board the ship!
You decide that SHIP looks like the most promising place to begin your search. Although there’s only an unstable PLANK connecting it to the dock, you manage to climb aboard carefully and without issue.
On board the ship, you see what appears to be the remains of a party held on the deck. There are discarded FLAGONS, empty CASKS and the BONES of various roasted meats littering the floor. From their state of decay, it looks like this party was held many weeks ago, and no one returned to clean the place up. Nothing here appears useful or edible outside of a couple indeterminate BOTTLES OF ALCOHOL sitting precariously on a swaying table.
From here, there’s an entrance to the CABINS at the back of the ship and an entrance to the HOLD at the front of the ship. There are also steps leading to the elevated BOW (that’s the front part) and STERN (that’s the back part where the wheel is) of the ship’s deck, which are difficult to see from your current vantage point.
Command: Also, is there someone else here with me? I’m hearing other voices, but I can’t make them out.
You look around, but there’s no one on the ship but you, Ressa and Zani.
Command: "We're looking for a spellbook."
5/5/23
With his rickety signboard arm, Clockwise taps his lantern thoughtfully.
“Hmmm, a spellbook? I can’t say I have much idea where to find one of-…”
Command: Oh! My spellbook, of course! That might have answers. Go to the docks!
Struck by…sudden inspiration, you say goodbye to Clockwise and head to the DOCKS. Clockwise is a bit confused, but shrugs and folds back up as you walk away.
Passing under the ominous archway that serves as the seaside entrance to Grim’s Landing, you find yourself on a rather unstable dock made of brine-soaked planks of driftwood. The ocean air is sickeningly salty, and a spritz of stinging brine splashes onto your boots with every lap of the waves.
There are two vessels docked at this pier. The first is a large SHIP that looks to have been abandoned fairly recently. It’s made of sturdy wood with a strange green hue, and the writing on the side reads “S.S. Beautiful Zylen.”
The other ship a small FISHING BOAT that’s clearly been abandoned for years. Its metal frame is more rust than solid, and its so corroded by time that it likely isn’t even seaworthy anymore. Still, there’s a strange glow coming from within its cabin…
Command: Go to the residences. It's time to steal a book.
5/4/23
You head back through the PLAZA to the RESIDENCES.
This part of town is eerily still, now. The crooked domiciles that line the streets are all boarded up, crumbling, or both. It doesn’t look like you’ll find much of value around here. Looters have probably picked most of these places clean.
The only remaining points of interest are an INN and a strange, multicolored HUT. Both of them are heavily boarded-up, but they appear to be the most untouched buildings in the area.
Command: Ugh, I already looked there! There’s nothing in those buildings but rats. Go back to the Plaza! Maybe you can find my…body, or something?
You go back to the PLAZA. The cobblestone is cold and clean, with no sign of anyone who may have recently disappeared.
You hear a rustle of clicks and clacks as Clockwise, the signpost construct, unfolds himself once again. The flaming eyes within his lantern head regard you calmly.
“I couldn’t help but notice you look rather lost. Are you looking for something, or someone, perhaps?”
Command: "Well that didn't work. I guess commands just sorta disintegrate....guess I gotta, I don't know, draw research a new arm?"
5/3/23
Zani thinks hard.
“Well, if we really need to fix her, the only other spellcaster I know around here is the Stoneweaver.”
Your ears perk up. Somehow, you’re sure you’ve heard the name Stoneweaver before, but you’re not sure where. When you ask about it, Zani and Ressa give you a look of surprise.
“Wait, you really forgot that, too? The Stoneweaver’s the guy who set up this whole quest! He’s the one who sealed you in that room so you could meet the gods or whatever!”
“He’s the person who made me.”
“And the person who statue-fied me. Near as I could tell, you two were friends before all this. You really don’t remember him?”
You struggle to remember. You definitely knew someone called the Stoneweaver at some point. But…everything before that white room is such a blur for you now. With a sigh, you ask where the Stoneweaver is. Zani just shakes her head.
“Um, probably dead. It’s been three hundred years. I know the guy was super-magical, but that’s a long time to stick around…especially here…”
You start to ask another question, but Zani continues.
“Besides, last I saw, the dude lived on the total ass-end of the island. Like, basically the exact opposite side from where we are.”
You sigh. That doesn’t sound like much of a lead. So, what to do next, then?
Command: Back up, did you say you were trying to use some kind of control magic on me? That’s VERY illegal!
You back up.
You’re now back in the SHOPS area with the PLAZA right in front of you. The cultist’s strange STORE is still glowing invitingly, but there doesn’t appear to be much else of interest around here. Behind you, the ROAD out of town leads to a fork a short distance away.
Command: Wait, why did you just back up? Is it because I…? Huh. What…is this…?
You wait. Nothing seems to happen. Looks like this town is very well deserted, now.
“Guys, I’m still worried about that nerd we exploded. I feel like…we did something really bad…”
Command: "Or maybe he fucked up and smudged it. OK, in the future, pin them down first."
Zani chuckles.
“I could have told you that.”
But her chuckles are hollow. The truth is, the two of you can also feel that something is off…
Command: "i...uh..." panic and draw 'LOYAL' on his forehead, hoping it seeps in or something
5/2/23
You apply the QUILL to Trill’s forehead, the thick black ink flowing freely, and he immediately freaks out.
“What? What the hell are you doing?”
Before you can finish writing, Trill manages to swat your hand away, completely smudging the ink with his hand in the process. He looks at his ink-covered fingers with confusion and alarm.
“What…is this…?”
As Trill stares at his hand, the ink begins to spread, flowing through the cervices in his palm. Just at the ink originally overtook that white room, it spreads into thick wet tendrils of pigment that begin to spiral down his arm. Trill furiously tries to wipe the ink off on his clothes to no avail, for the ink just seeps hungrily through the fibers of his robes. The ink on his forehead flows to surround Trill’s screaming features as he slowly backs away. Even as he appears to scream, you seem to hear it coming from all directions, with multiple voices. It’s as though the chorus of the world is screaming all around you.
Trill is covered in ink. He twists and convulses. He pulsates and churns. He expands and unfolds. He becomes and undoes. He ______ and _______.
Trill is not un-standing where he wasn’t before. You see Trill but sight won’t see around the direction you aren’t not seeing him. There Really Isn’t Light Left. Trill trills trillingly trillst the trilled entrillment. If Trill plus Trill equals Trill then Trill is Trill in the sense that Trill isn’t the Trill of Trill as understood by Trill.
A skittish magic student stranded in the Land of Shadows. He knows more about magic than just about anyone else you’ll meet. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean he’s [SYSTEM CACHE EXCEEDED]
You, Ressa and Zani are alone in the plaza. You all look around cautiously.
“Where…did he go?”
You shrug. You have no idea either.
“Well, I guess we know not to use the quill anymore. So, what do we do ne-…”
Command: Hello? What the hell did you do to me?! Where am I?
Wondering where you are, you take a look around. You’re currently standing in the PLAZA. From here you can go to the RESIDENCES, the SHOPS, the GRAVEYARD or the DOCKS.
But…you already knew that, did you…?
Command: last resort? LAST RESORT? "we have so much power in our hands. now c'mon, it's time to convince that wizard." head out for the docks
You head out the door, with Zani and Ressa following behind you.
“Look, you don’t even know what that quill thing does. Last time you used it, it didn’t do anything. At least…I’m not…completely sure it did anything.”
Unconvinced, you head towards the DOCKS. In the distance ahead of you, you can see that Trill hasn’t even made it to the docks yet. He’s walking very cautiously, checking all his corners. As you catch up to Trill, you’re still in the PLAZA, with the docks a few yards ahead.
When he realizes you’re approaching, he turns to you cautiously.
“What? What else do you need?”
Command: "zani, now why are you concerned? we're the heroes, and if we need to get our hands dirty and be a little less perfect to save the world, what of it? we certainly can't save the world with our main fighter missing a[EXCESSIVE COMMAND LENGTH]
5/1/23
Zani sighs.
“Trust me, I get all that. It’s just…that thing you’re holding…”
Her eyes are locked on the QUILL.
“Something about it. I just get the feeling it’s something we’re not supposed to use. Like, it’s something we weren’t meant to have in the first place. Normally I’m all for screwing with forbidden artifacts. I mean, why do you think my skin is made of gold, now? But this…it’s just the strongest aura of Do Not Touch I’ve ever felt.”
Ressa raises an eyebrow.
“Really? I don’t feel anything.”
“Hmmm. Maybe you need to have a brain.”
“The hell you just say to me?!”
“I’m just saying, you physically don’t have a brain! Maybe it works different!”
As Zani and Ressa continue to argue, you look down at the quill. You’ve definitely felt a sense of incredible, but almost excessive power coming from it. You feel like using it to solve any problem would be like swatting a fly with a thermobaric warhead. Perhaps it should be saved for a last resort?
Command: "his loss. we could have used a spellcaster..." loot scimitars
4/30/23
Zani puts her hands on her hips, incredulous.
“I think, by definition, that makes it our loss more than his.”
“Yeah, don’t we need him to fix my arm?”
You shrug, casually picking up the SCIMITARS. Turning them over, they don’t appear to be enchanted or anything. They just have creepy smiles etched into their blades, is all.
DUAL SCIMITARS added into inventory!
Command: "and with...the quill…we might just be able to to use him still." grab Quill
You pull out the QUILL. Zani immediately looks very, very concerned, but doesn’t seem to want to say anything. Maybe she’s afraid to give you ideas…
Attack: "She tried to kill us first" slash her face with the knife
4/29/23
“Did she? She pulled out some swords, but she was mostly just standing th-”
You’re already gone. The KNIFE at your side, you slash at she shopkeep’s face again. This time, you hit.
Still in Ressa’s grasp, the shopkeep drops her SCIMITARS and clutches her face, screaming. From the jet-black slash across her face, tendrils of decay and death begin to spread. The tendrils grow down her body, flowing between her scars and enveloping her with sickly shadows. Her skin twists and bubbles, her hair withers and falls off in clumps. It’s as though she’s experiencing every way there is to die all at once, age, disease, trauma, exposure, and all the twisted ways that magic can end a life as well.
Ressa lets go as the shopkeep stumbles into the center of the room. She barely looks human anymore. She looks more like a husk than the Runewalker did. And yet, a rictus grin is still plastered on her face.
She stands there, clearly in pain but no longer able to do much of anything. Your party members seem at a loss, until Ressa taps you on the shoulder.
“I think we may have to…put her out of her misery.”
Attack: Bludgeon
You lightly hit the shopkeep with the flat edge of your sword. She immediately explodes, sending toxic dust in all directions.
Defense: Dodge
But fortunately you dodge out of the way. The DUST OF DECAY falls to the floor next to the shopkeep’s SCIMITARS and falling STEEL CHESTPLATE.
COMBAT VICTORY!
Congratulations! You’ve completed another combat challenge! You’re getting pretty good at th-
“No! Stop it! What the hell did we just do? Are you people insane?”
Trill stomps into the middle of the room, his usual cowardice having suddenly given way to fury. He seethes through gritted teeth as he looks accusingly from you, to Zani, to Ressa.
“She was attacking us, dude.”
“No she wasn’t! Weren’t you listening? She thought we were attacking her! That’s the only reason she pulled out her-…”
“She was in a cult, too.”
“So? That doesn’t mean she’s evil! At worst it means she’s just crazy! I dealt with cultists at the University all the time. Most of them are just people that need friends!”
You put a hand on Trill’s shoulder but he jerks away. It seems you terrify him most of all right now. He slowly backs towards the door.
“Look, I don’t…think I want to do this anymore. If you find anyone who can get me off this island, tell them I’m at the docks.”
He looks around the room one last time, his eyes again resting on Ressa.
“Sorry again about the arm.”
And with that, Trill slips out the door.
Defense: "ressa was actively pissing you off, and was the one who blabbed, it's only reasonable to assume you'd be gunning for her."
4/28/23
The shopkeep is given pause, and looks a little confused.
“Uh, okay. I’m not sure why y’all are arguing with me about who I was going to attack, but…I s’pose I understand yer…reasoning a bit better. Wait, what the hell’re we even doin’?”
The shopkeep spins around and buries one of her scimitars in the door, blocking the exit of Trill, who was trying to sneak out while you were arguing. Trill leaps back in surprise, sparks reflexively shooting out of his hands.
“And don’t you go nowhere, neither!”
“Um, okay.”
As the shopkeep struggles to pull her scimitar out of the door, Ressa seizes the opportunity, dropping her BLADE and getting the shopkeep in a headlock with her remaining arm. She looks to you to help.
Attack: Use KNIFE, slashing at her, not caring whether I break her or her scimitars
Attack: slash with KNIFE, ressa's discomfort be damned
You pull out the KNIFE, the sickening amethyst aura of pure murder immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the room. You run at the restrained shopkeep with the knife at your side, ready to slash.
Ressa trembles but holds firm. You slash the supernatural blade across the shopkeep’s chest. Ressa screams as the blade comes within inches of her remaining arm, but still doesn’t let go.
And…nothing happens.
You hit her armor. Her armor can’t die.
But suddenly, there is a change. Her floral dress, with a large slashmark on the front, begins to wither and rot. As you watch, it dissolves into black wisps of decayed fabric and falls off her body, revealing the skin of her arms and legs is covered in very painful-looking smiley-face scars. The sight of her scars makes the shopkeep start laughing uncontrollably.
Trill pops up behind you.
“Might I make a simple suggestion?”
You nod, not taking your eyes off the shopkeep.
“I’m starting to think this woman might just be a bit confused and mentally-troubled. I’m not sure I feel right about all this…lethal…ness. Is there any way we can just restrain her or knock her out or something? I always heard that when you get into combat, your priority should be to end it. Escaping the danger or subduing the target are just as valid as lethal force, and might even have some advantages.”
You thank Trill for the advice and wait for a second. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem that advice was important enough to justify a stat increase, but it’s still useful to know.
Attack: Slash at the face, trying to slash her mouth and shatter her smile for real
4/27/23
You dash in and swing your sword towards the shopkeep’s huge smile, but she catches your blade between her scimitars. You strain, but you can’t break through her guard, and she forces you backwards while cackling madly.
“Wow, guess y’all really were in need of combat trainin’. You don’t even know that it’s best to think of physical and magical combat styles as inherently opposed. Martial enemies, or enemies that rely on brute force, are much easier to take out with magic than swordplay, whereas magical enemies tend to be easily felled with a simple blade. In a more general sense, attacking an enemy with the same weapon or combat style they use is often the least effective way of fighting them, unless you’re already much stronger than they are.”
She shoves you away and you struggle to regain your footing. You didn’t do any damage, but that was pretty good advice.
COMBAT increased to level 3!
Defense: Taunt, try and draw her attention away from the others
The shopkeeper just snickers, slowly advancing.
“Aw, trust me honey, I was already gunnin’ for you. To be honest, unless an enemy seems to be specifically targeting one of your allies, your defensive action should come with the assumption that the enemy is going to be attacking you. Obviously there are exceptions, especially when fighting groups of enemies which will likely each target a different party member, but don’t be afraid of commanding a simple block or dodge because you’re not certain you’re going to be the targ-…”
CLANG! Ressa brings down her broadsword on the shopkeeper while she’s engrossed in her…bizarre speech. Unfortunately, the swing took all of Ressa’s strength, not leaving much left for aiming, so it barely misses the shopkeep’s head and bounces off her bulky armor. Even so, it’s enough to stop the shopkeep’s advance.
Again, though, that sounded like useful advice…
COMBAT increased to level 4!
Command: "Welp, looks like this combat training is a bit impromptu." Draw SWORD
4/26/23
Trill backs away, visibly trembling.
“Now, hold on! Maybe we can talk about this!”
“Less talking, more swords!”
Ressa pulls out her BLADE with some effort. It’s a great two-handed broadsword, and while she’s managing to hold it up with only one arm, she’s clearly straining to do so. You ask if she’s going to be okay.
“Yeah…I’m…totally…good. I…use…my…sword…one…handed…all…the…(cough)…time!”
The shopkeep looks around the room, her smile wide but her eyes wild and paranoid.
“This is a purge, ain’t it? You’re tryin’ to wipe out all Her faithful, huh? Well, you won’t take me down easy! The Smiling One has endured unimaginable suffering and a thousand lifetimes of humiliation, but her strength, her unwavering happiness, it courses through my veins!”
The shopkeeper spreads her arms wide, seeming to almost rise off the ground.
“Do your worst to me, heathens! Rend my body! Torment my mind! But you will NEVER. BREAK. MY. SMILE!!”
COMBAT START!
Command: push forward the APPLE, three EVERTINS, and the CUBE
"this cube has magical abilities even we haven't figured out, and the apple was perfectly preserved in a cult basement."
4/25/23
The shopkeep’s eyes suddenly dart to you when you say that last part.
“I’m sorry. Did you say a cult?”
Zani suddenly looks very nervous. Ressa casually leans against a wall.
“Yeah, there was this weird smiley-face cult under Bastus Sigma-whatever. We…kinda took care of ‘em, if that’s worth anything to you.”
Ressa shoots the shopkeep a finger-gun. The shopkeeper chuckles, and unnervingly, doesn’t stop chuckling. Her laughter grows louder and louder as her smile grows.
“Honey, I think y’all are a touch misinformed. The Vigil of the Smiling One ain’t no kinda cult.”
Zani is edging towards the exit. Ressa and Trill finally put together that something is wrong, as the shopkeep slowly starts to advance.
“In fact…why…it’s the only truth there is!”
The four of you all turn for the exit, but with unnatural speed, the shopkeep slides in front of it. From under her armor, she pulls out two SCIMTARS, with cute eyes drawn on them to make their curved blades look like giant smiles.
“Now, did I hear right that y’all have been messin’ with Her followers?”
Command: knock on the desk
4/24/23
“Money ain’t much good ‘round these parts, honey. We deal in trade. Foreign currency ain’t worth nothin’ but its novelty value, which can admittedly be high.”
“I see, well, we…”
“Y’all ever see the coins they use in the Vermillion Sands? Got the wildest pictures on ‘em. Real pretty.”
“I…can’t say I’ve seen that…”
“Aw, and up in the Garden Canyons they use these cute little crystal things for money. Make a little tink-tink-tink sound. Always put a smile on my face.”
Zani taps Ressa on the shoulder.
“Hey Ressa, do you still have that knife?”
Ressa elbows Zani.
“Quiet! This lady’s clearly just lonely. I know a thing or two about that.”
Sensing this situation is getting away from you, you clear your throat. Everyone turns to you, and you re-iterate that you’re looking to buy the LIFEWATER POTIONS, the COOKIES, and any combat training this shopkeeper can provide. She nods.
“Huh. Well, let’s start with the tangibles. Y’all want the potions and the cookies, yeah? Then make me an offer!”
Command: knock on the desk
4/23/23
Not seeing any kind of service bell, you just knock on the counter, hoping to summon whatever…thing you’re hearing.
THUNK! The four of you turn as the door suddenly slams shut behind you. Beside the door is the SHOPKEEP, who was apparently…standing behind it? Her outfit is hard to parse at first, until you eventually realize she’s wearing a floral dress over a steel chestplate, giving her an oddly bulky appearance despite seemingly being a slender young woman. She grins from ear-to-ear as she glides to the center of the room.
“Well howdy! First customers I’ve had in dang near a month’s time! Y’all just roll into town?”
“Um…kinda.”
“Well, I know our little neighborhood may seem gloomy right now, but if you’ve got something to trade, I’ve got just the stuff to turn those frowns upside-down.”
She pantomimes a frown turning upside-down, for reference. She then points at Zani.
“‘Cept for you. You’re smilin’ already.”
“This is just a mask.”
“And ma’am, it is a beautiful one. Tell me, could ya’ bear to part with it?”
“Not for sale.”
“Aw, I gotcha. If I had a winnin’ smile like that I’d hold onto it, too. Haha.”
With a bizarre nimbleness for someone wearing steel, she hops beside the counter and indicates her wares.
“So, what y’all in the market for?”
Command: "or, failing combat training, some loot." open the door
The DOOR is indeed unlocked, and with eyes on a cautious swivel, your party enters the strange shop.
The inside of the store is a nightmare of colors, softly lit with glowing CRYSTALS of an indeterminate nature. All along the walls are distorted designs of rainbows, teddy bears, and various other adorable creatures, all with beaming smiles on their faces.
The actual merchandise of the store is presumably against the far wall. “Presumably” because there don’t seem to be any prices listed on anything. Perhaps it’s some kind of barter system. Anyway, most of what the store has for sale seems remarkably useless for adventurers in such hostile territory. There are GREETING CARDS, STUFFED ANIMALS, SNOW GLOBES, POSTERS, SCENTED CANDLES, PICTURE FRAMES, WICKER CRAFTS and other highly-impractical goods. You can’t help but wonder, how is this the one store that’s survived in Grim’s Landing?
Only a few things look useful. There are three bottles of LIFEWATER POTION for sale, a couple bags of COOKIES which could serve as rations in a pinch, and a weirdly out-of-place LASSO that could have a number of uses.
There’s no shopkeep to be seen, but you definitely hear movement coming from…somewhere.
Command: "i'm sorry, i'm not exactly...stable." go to the shops.
4/22/23
That statement doesn’t seem to fill Trill with much confidence, but you’re already on the move. Unwilling to risk seeing a fingerbug up-close, you head through the PLAZA to the northern SHOPS district of Grim’s Landing.
Like in the RESIDENCES, most of these building are boarded up. With some concern, you note that a couple of the boards appear to have bite marks on them. Oh, and some even have…acid burns? Or char? Whatever it was that raided this town, you’re not sure you want to meet it.
However, there is one store that looks almost unnervingly normal amidst the gloom. At the far end of the shopping district, right by the road out of town, stands a shop covered in warm lights and colorful decorations. The sign above the door reads “MERRI’S ALL-SMILES EMPORIUM!” and is bordered with images of smiling cartoon animals frolicking in a field of rainbows.
Your party seems to be having…mixed reactions.
“Okay, I don’t trust this for a damn second.”
“Aww, I dunno. Those are really cute drawings.”
“I’m sorry, what are we doing here?”
“Looking for combat training.”
“And we’ve come to the…rainbow store?”
“Yeah, apparently the shopkeep here’s a real badass.”
“Huh. I’ve never seen them. I didn’t even know this shop was here.”
The sign on the DOOR says “We’re always open!” but it’s not too late to turn back…
Command: "ok ressa, trill, do you know where the arm's been blown to?"
4/21/23
“I know. It’s been blown to ‘bits.’”
“Yeah, it’s basically dust now. Again, very sorry about that.”
Ressa waves her smoldering shoulder, limply.
“It doesn’t matter anyway. If my arm had been broken normal-style, I could patch myself up with any kind of stone. But, since I was dis-armed with magic, my whole spiritual aura-whatever is messed up, and I can’t even do that.”
You ask how it can be fixed. Ressa hangs her head.
“No idea. Ask the nerd. I dunno how this stuff works, just that it works.”
Trill, standing, looks lost in thought.
“We need to repair her aura. For that, I’m going to have to channel psychic energy.”
“So, what, just think at it?”
“No. Well, actually yes, but I don’t know how to do it that way. The only psychic energy I know how to channel comes from apparitional resonance.”
You sigh and implore Trill to just say ‘ghosts.’
“Sort of. We don’t need the ghosts themselves, just the residual energy they leave behind.”
You nod. Looks like you’ll need to stay on the lookout for ghosts.
Command: start
You give the signal to start.
Everyone just sort of stares at you.
“Start what? Where are we going?”
You consider the situation. There doesn’t seem to be much of interest left around here, but there’s still the SHOPS, the GRAVEYARD and the DOCKS to explore.
Command: "fuck....ok, so we're gonna have to fix your arm, heal this dude, prepare some plans and maybe get someone to teach us how to fight. ey cube, you got any tips? didn't think so"
4/20/23
The CUBE remains inert.
Ressa sighs.
“Okay, I’ll be totally selfless, here. The ‘boy genius’ probably needs healing first.”
You nod in agreement. Turning to Trill, you ask how his wound can be healed while the stasis spell is still active.
“It can’t. I’ll have to break the spell first, but…I’ll start losing blood fast once I do, so we need to make this quick.”
You discuss the situation with the team for a moment. Eventually, you devise a plan. Trill will break the spell, Zani will pull out the DAGGER, and you’ll pour on the LIFEWATER POTION all in three swift movements. Ressa will…observe.
The three of you get into position, you with a Lifewater Potion uncorked, Zani with her hand on the dagger’s hilt, and Trill with his hands glowing cautiously.
“Okay, are you ready?”
Command: start
You give the signal to start.
Trill weaves his fingers swiftly and intricately until, in a flash, a small shower of quantum sparks falls from his wound. You aren’t sure what they’re actually called, but calling them “quantum sparks” seems right in the moment.
Trill suddenly starts gagging and whimpering, his face turning red. Looks like about an hour’s worth of stabbing pain is hitting him all at once.
SWIP! Zani pulls out the dagger with an almost-concerning deftness. She even gives it a little spin on her finger, but no one is able to appreciate this. Trill’s wound has begun to bleed, and bleed heavily. Looking at his face, the pain is clearly intense, and the color is starting to drain.
You splash the Lifewater Potion on the wound as swiftly as you can. Almost immediately, the cut begins to close, glowing with a light that is indescribably both green and pink at once. Trill’s face relaxes slightly and his breathing evens out. Gripping his rapidly-healing stomach, he falls to his knees.
Finally, Trill flops onto his back, catching his breath.
“Th…tha…thank you…”
Zani turns the dagger over in her hands.
“Wait…isn’t this the dagger you got from that shed?”
“Yep, and I’ll be taking that.”
Ressa snatches the dagger out of Zani’s hands. Still sprawled on his back, Trill watches Ressa uneasily as she tosses the dagger to herself, one-handed.
“Um, you mi…might want to…wash that off.”
“Nah, it looks cooler with your blood on it.”
“Oh. O…okay. So, I suppose I’m part of your adventuring party now, per our deal. Where to next?”
Command: "ressa! come out! did you stab this dude? apologize to him!"
4/19/23
The footsteps pause, then Ressa pops her head out from around the corner.
“Oh hey, you woke up! I was just looking fo-…”
Ressa suddenly notices the man huddled behind you. The moment she sees him, her face twists into immediate rage.
“…YOU!”
Ressa comes charging out from behind the building, running towards the man in a fury. As her full body comes into view, you realize what has Ressa so upset. Her left arm is missing, and going by the glowing scorch-marks on what remains of her left shoulder, it looks like it was blown off with magic.
The man is quaking behind you.
“OH GOD NO! KEEP IT AWAY FROM ME!”
You sigh as Ressa crashes into you. Fortunately, due to your heavy ARMOR and ENCUMBERANCE, you’re dense enough to form a solid barrier.
Ressa struggles, reaching out for the man as you hold her back. The man backs away, terrified.
“Lemme go! That guy blew my damn arm off!”
“Wh-? Only after you stabbed me!”
“Only after you startled me!”
You and Zani both shoot Ressa a look. She slowly realizes how absurd that sounded.
“But…like…he really startled me!”
You sigh. As Ressa appears to have calmed a little, you let her go. The man, cautious, stops backing away.
“Look, I don’t want any more trouble. Maybe I should just leave.”
You shake your head.
Command: remove the dagger from the man "you're ours now. i've adopted you into the party."
You tug on the DAGGER but the stasis spell holds tight. It seems that nothing about the status of the wound can change while the spell is active.
“AHH! What are you doing?”
You explain you were trying to pull out the dagger to heal the wound with Lifewater.
“You have Lifewater? Oh wow. That’s rather rare around here. Are you sure you can part with it?”
You ask that, in exchange, he join the party. Ressa is staggered to hear you say this.
“What!? This twerp?”
“Well, he is a scholar. Maybe I can finally stop being ‘the smart one’ again.”
“But…but…”
Ressa wiggles her shoulder stump, looking at it sadly. You nod and tell the man that, in addition, he’s going to need to help fix Ressa’s arm.
“Oh, of course. She’s part of the group, I see. ‘Ressa,’ is it? I’m sorry, I’m not used to battle constructs having names.”
“Bet it’s better than yours, nerd. What do we call you?”
Ressa does her best to fold her arms with one arm. The man takes an uneasy bow.
“Um…Trillionimous Luminestro the Third…b-but you can call me Trill.”
“Yeah, I was right...”
TRILL joined your party!
Command: "Oh, you're not a zombie." Sheath knife
4/18/23
You put your KNIFE away. The man breathes a sigh of relief.
“Um, yes. Sorry for startling you. I’m just…in need of medical attention, as you can see.”
He indicates the DAGGER lodged in his stomach again.
“Yeah about that, why isn’t it…y’know…killing you?”
“Oh, I was able to cast a minor spell of stasis on the wound.”
“Wait, you’re a wizard?”
“I’m a spellcaster…kind of. I’m more of a scholar of magic than a user of magic, but I know how to weave a few enchantments.”
You ask how long that stasis spell will hold. The man gives his wound a worried look.
“Maybe an hour? Any more than that and the localized stasis will have restricted too much blood from my brain for me to stay conscious. When I pass out, the spell will break, and the pressurized back-flow of blood will likely erupt from my body.”
He’s getting panicked again. His focus is going off into space as he contemplates his fate.
“Then right before I die the pain will shock me awake just in time to feel a horrifying numbness overtake me. My limbs will grow cold as my brain screams for…”
You forcefully pat him on the shoulder and tell him to calm down, saying you’ll find a way to heal him. He sighs again and nods.
“Thank you, stranger.”
Command: "have-....have you seen a girl? armour covered, pretty loud, flames on her head?"
The man looks around.
“Hmm. I can’t say I’ve seen anyone like that around here. Friend of yours?”
You nod, explaining that your companion Ressa was last seen headed this way.
“Well, if your friend is in this part of town, she’d best be careful.”
“Why? What’s going on?”
The man turns around, his eyes scanning the streets as he speaks in hushed tones.
“I’m not sure where it came from but…there’s a rogue battle construct stalking these streets right now. I bumped into it while I was scavenging for food, and I barely got away with my life.”
You and Zani exchange a look.
“A battle construct?”
“They’re summoned warriors created from stone and spirit fire. They’re often created in large numbers to siege castles and other-…”
“Yeah, I know what a battle construct is! I was just-…”
Suddenly, the man’s posture stiffens. You can see the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he silences Zani.
“Shhh! Listen!”
You listen hard. Around a corner, a couple blocks north, you hear heavy stone footsteps. The man panics again and races behind you and Zani, gripping your shoulders with white-knuckled fear.
“Oh god! It’s coming! It must have heard me!”
The footsteps grow louder…
Command: Draw swo-KNIFE
4/17/23
You reach for your SWORD, but in your panic, you’re only able to grab your KNIFE. You hold the knife up as defiantly as you can, its deadly aura almost dripping off the blade.
The figure freezes, throwing its arms into the air, and you finally see it for what it truly is. It’s…just a long-haired young MAN in silver robes. He seems to be in a panic, and your knife isn’t helping. Breathing heavily, he backs away.
“GAAHH! Not you, too! Please, I’ve already been stabbed once today!”
You look down. There is indeed a DAGGER lodged in the man’s stomach. The wound isn’t bleeding, but it doesn’t look healthy. You start to realize this man was probably coming to you for help.
His eyes are trained on your knife.
“Is this a robbery? Who are you? Where did you come from? Is that a golden clown monster behind you or is the bloodloss kicking in? Oh god, am I dying? Are these my last words? Ohh, why can’t I think of anything poetic right now?”
His panic just keeps getting worse…
Command: go to the residences. ressa, food to maybe steal, and beds to crash in? it almost sounds too good to be true.
4/16/23
“Oh, it is. Most of those houses are infested with fingerbugs.”
You very cautiously ask what fingerbugs are, but Clockwise just shrugs.
“Don’t worry about it.”
You shudder, but opt to head for the RESIDENCES anyway, if only to track down Ressa. As you head off, Clockwise waves to you.
“I’ll be here if you need me, now!”
Clockwise retracts his jointed signboard arms, folding up into the shape of a normal signpost once again.
As you follow the cobblestone street into the town’s residential area, you’re overwhelmed by an eerie calm. The decrepit, boarded up houses stand silently in the night breeze. Without even the rustle of grass within earshot, it’s a truly lifeless place, the definition of a “ghost town.” And yet…you can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching you from the darkness. Someone or…something.
Zani is walking a little closer to you than normal. It’s validating to know that this place is even giving her the creeps.
Suddenly, a rustle of clothing! A flurry of movement! SOMETHING is rushing at you from a side-alley, and whatever it is, it doesn’t look like Ressa!
Command: "uh, we're looking for our friend, she's a battle construct, and we're looking for someone to teach us how to fight."[and maybe some food](or a place to sleep)
4/14/23
Clockwise clears his throat nervously.
“I see. Well, I’m not sure I can help with any of those…”
“Let’s just start with the construct. Where’d she go.”
“Ah yes, the construct that landed with you. She saw you two were injured and, I presume, went off to find medical help. She headed that way, towards the residences.”
Clockwise points his signs west, indicating a district of run-down hovels that are apparently known as the RESIDENCES.
“But, um…”
“But what?”
Clockwise sighs.
“I’m afraid you were unconscious for over an hour. Your construct friend left for the residences, but by now she could be just about anywhere. All I know is that she didn’t come back through here.”
You nod and thank Clockwise for the info anyway. You also ask about if there’s anyone in town who could provide combat training. Clockwise looks thoughtful.
“Hmmm. I can’t say I know of anyone providing that service around here.”
“Look, all my friend needs is a crash course in the basics. If there’s anyone alive in town right now, they probably know enough about self-defense to be helpful.”
Clockwise taps his lantern-head, thinking hard.
“Anyone alive…anyone alive. I think…I can think of three.”
With a snap, Clockwise points his signboards to the north, towards a district of boarded-up SHOPS.
“There’s a single shopkeeper running a shop for travelers to the north. She’s survived a number of monster raids, so she likely knows a thing or two about defending herself. But, to be honest, I get a very unsettling feeling from her. I can’t quite put my signboards on it, but…I’d be careful if you go seeking her advice.”
Clockwise twists his signboards to the east, towards a road leading to an ominous GRAVEYARD.
“There’s also the keeper of the graveyard. He’s our town’s one permanent resident, other than myself I suppose. He’s very friendly, but his graveyard is another matter. As you probably know, the dead rarely stay dead around here.”
Clockwise twists his signboards to the south, pointing to the DOCKS.
“There’s also someone living in a ship at the docks. The ship arrived with a full crew, but I believe only one soul remains. I haven’t seen them in a while, but there’s a light in one of the cabins, so it seems they’re still there. I suspect, whoever they are, they’re just waiting for another ship to come along and rescue them.”
Clockwise turns back to you.
“And that’s the grand tour. If you have any more questions…well, I’m not going anywhere. Haha.”
You look around at Grim’s Landing. Considering what you were told, it seems that Ressa is likely somewhere in the RESIDENCES, and there are three people living in the SHOPS, the GRAVEYARD, and a ship at the DOCKS respectively that might be able to help you learn to fight.
But where to go first?
Command: examine signpost
4/13/23
As you take a step towards the signpost, a pain shoots through your leg, causing you to stumble. It seems your armor absorbed most of the fall, but not all of it.
WOUND increased to Level 2!
It’s not too bad, though, and you make your way to the foot of the SIGNPOST. It’s a tall central pole with arrowed signboards branching off of it in all directions, topped off with a shining lantern. Unfortunately, as you scan the signboards, most of them are too faded to read or list names that mean nothing to you.
Zani joins you, rubbing her temple
“Did you see which way Ressa went?”
You shake your head. You’re about to ask Zani if she knows her way around town, when suddenly a strange, atonal voice interrupts you.
“Zani? Zani, is that you?”
You look around with a start, but see nothing. The plaza is seemingly empty, and yet that voice sounded very close by, almost like…the signpost said it?
“Child, my eyes are up here.”
You look up the signpost to the lantern above. The flames within the lantern have formed themselves into the shape of two floating eyes, gazing calmly back down at you. You back up slowly as the entire signpost begins to shake. The pointed signboard extend on jointed wooden limbs, and the post itself begins to bend and twist with a spine-like flexibility.
You’re quite taken aback as you realize what you’re seeing. This isn’t a signpost at all. It’s a construct!
Zani’s face lights up.
“Wait, Clockwise? You’re still here? But it’s been like three hundred years!”
The construct, apparently named Clockwise, gives a complicated shrug with its many signboard limbs.
“Well, it hasn’t been without its troubles. But how about you? Where have you been?”
“Eh, I was a statue.”
“Ah, I see. Gorgon, was it?”
“No, actually I agreed to-…well, it’s a long story. How’re things lookin’ here at Grim’s Landing?”
Clockwise looks around.
“Hmm. Well, I fear you’ve caught us in a bit of an ‘off-season.’”
He leans down and does an exaggerated whispering pose at you.
“(That means everyone’s dead.)”
Zani sighs.
“Aw, dammit, of all the times. Is there anyone kicking around here?”
Clockwise scratches its lantern-head.
“Um, a few scattered souls, I suppose. What exactly are you looking for?”
Zani turns to you.
“At this point? What are we looking for?”
Command: do what zani says
4/12/23
You struggle for breath. You have enough air in you for another go, but this had better work. Putting the FLUTE to your lips again, you play the notes backwards as Zani instructed. Once more, the winds swirl around you.
The result is, perhaps, rather predictable. The direction of the winds is reversed. Instead of pushing your pursuers backward, a series of strong gusts now push the cart forward. This proves markedly more effective, as the cart is a less-resistant object, and is also already going downhill.
The cart accelerates faster and faster. The howl of wind around you drowns out everything but your bizarre backwards melody. You look back and see the creatures are having a difficult time keeping pace, receding farther and farther into the distance. Eventually, the cart is moving so fast that Ressa’s legs can’t even keep up. She gives up running and tucks herself into the cart with you and Zani, sending the three of you free-rolling at incredible speed.
Your song crescendos as your breath finally fails you, and one final gust of wind launches the cart off of a small hill. As you go airborne, you look back, seeing the three strange creatures finally break their pursuit, standing in bewilderment as you sail into the distance.
Though you’re briefly relieved, as you start to plummet towards the ground, the reality of your new situation sets in. You, Ressa and Zani all begin to scream.
The next thing you remember is a deafening crash.
You open your eyes. You’re alive, and at rest. You sit up and realize you’re in a gloomy town PLAZA. All around you are shabby buildings with boarded-up windows, fallen signs for long-dead businesses, and flickering lamps which struggle to maintain their enchanted promise of burning forever.
You hear pained coughing. Zani appears to have just awoken as well. The two of you sit in the shattered wooden shards of what was once your cart, looking around. Rather worryingly, Ressa is nowhere to be seen!
A block away, you see a rotten archway leading to a waterlogged pier. The archway has the only readable sign around.
GRIM’S LANDING
“Oh, we’re here!”
You just glare at Zani.
“What?”
You sigh, and the two of you stand. The only thing of note in this plaza is a tall SIGNPOST in its center, atop which an ornate lantern shines defiantly in the gloom. Might a good way to get your barings.
Command: grip knife within the bag as a precaution [potential corrupted input expunged]
You pull out the KNIFE, holding it at the ready in case any of these creatures get too close.
Command: flute desperately, while pulling out the cube as a makeshift throwing weapon
You also pull out the CUBE, holding it at the ready in case any of these creatures…reach the…middle-distance, maybe?
Next, you put the FLUTE to your lips and begin to play. You hear a low roar, and the wind that sweeps across the sickly field begins to dance and swirl around you. As your improvisational playing slowly finds its melody, you command the winds to blow your pursuers backwards.
The creatures are slowed, the billowing darkness that envelops their bodies being forced back in massive plumes, but undaunted. Despite hovering over the ground, they manage to maintain the internal propulsion to keep moving forward.
One creature raises an arm above its head, and a strange energy gathers around its shapeless hand. This energy somehow seems to be hundreds of colors and patterns at once. You can tell it isn’t changing, but every second you look at it, your brain interprets it in a different way. With an awkward flick of the wrist, the creature sends this ball of…something towards the cart. It lands just short of you, and where it lands, the ground is suddenly twisted in bizarre fashion. Rocks, tendrils, flames, ice and branches all erupt from the point of impact, spiraling around each other and then bursting into multicolored dust.
Continuing to play, you shoot Zani a confused look.
“Yep, that’s wild magic. Pure potentiality.”
PAAHH! You’re out of breath. The winds slow and your pursuers start gaining again. You ready the cube.
“Wait! I have a less stupid idea! Once you catch your breath, play that song again, but backwards.”
Panting, you look at Zani incredulously, but she definitely seems to think this will help.
Command: Try and fail to remember the last thing I ate that didn't come out of a jar. Maybe the tiny town can serve as something of a base of operations, at least for now. The Village of Dolls is right here nearby, after all. Go to Grim's Landing.
4/11/23
You opt to go to Grim’s Landing, telling Zani it would be nice to get some fresh food. She stares at you for a moment, then calmly pats you on the head.
“Oh, you…sweet, sweet child, you…”
Zani hops back in the cart and the three of you continue down the left path. The road slowly curls around the edge of the lake, winding its way down to the southern coast. You look out over the strange landscape of fallen walls and mutated husks. Rather ominously, some of the figures you see huddled around these fallen structures look almost human. You see emaciated humanoids huddled in small circles, watching you from crumbled rooftops, or just staring into space.
One silhouette in particular, twitching in a doorway overlooking the road, is so distressing you find it hard to look away. Zani sees your worried look and leans over to you.
“Don’t worry, it’s just a zombie. Lots of those around here. They’re pretty harmless…if you don’t get close.”
You try to calm yourself, but then the figure turns to you. You see, emblazoned on its face, a strange cross of burning light. As the creature sees you, it lets out an unearthly scream, and suddenly begins floating off the ground.
The sight of this gives Zani a start.
“Wait, that’s…that one’s not a zombie!”
The creature lands a few yards away, and you see it more clearly. It’s tall and lanky, with wispy limbs trailing off its swollen, distorted frame. And, it seems its body wasn’t merely in silhouette, but rather it’s enveloped in shadowy smoke, the glowing symbol on its face emitting a harsh light that’s hard to look at. Slowly, it begins to glide towards the cart.
“Uh…Zani?”
Ressa is indicating the opposite direction of the creature. You turn around, and see two more of them are approaching your cart from the other side.
“Swords at the ready, hero!”
“No! Actually no! We need to get out of here, now!”
“Why? What are these things?”
“Very. Magical.”
In an instant, Ressa grabs the handles tightly and starts running. The three creatures give chase, hovering calmly but managing to match speed with the cart.
Zani turns to you.
“We need something to slow ‘em down!”
Command: Put away the CUBE and QUILL. Boy, this is something... Let's try to get this under control until we can get to Grim's Landing. Maybe if there's some safety there, we can investigate further.
You put the QUILL away and your anxiety fades. You’re not sure what fate you just avoided, but you feel like you made the correct choice. You also put the CUBE away, but unlike with the quill, nothing about the cube makes you feel anything ever.
You muse about your desire to get to Grim’s Landing, and as if on cue, your surroundings suddenly shift. The dense walls of monstrous trees give way to a sprawling, moonlit field of sickly purple grass. It appears the three of you have finally emerged from the Erstwild, and from this vantage point you can see the entire shape of the Land of Shadows’ southern half. The land is dotted with various ruins, most of which have nearly crumbled to dust, overgrown with grotesque flora and misshapen fauna, and the island’s southern portion surrounds a massive still-water lake in the shape of a grinning mouth.
“Well, here we are, my old stompin’ grounds.”
“What’s this place called?”
“This part specifically? If it’s ever been given a name, I don’t think anyone’s lived here long enough to make it stick. I mostly know it as ‘up that way,’ in the sense of ‘We lost half of our expedition team up that way.’ Hehe.”
Ressa slows to a stop.
Looking around her, you see the dirt road you’ve been following is forked in front of her, splitting into two paths. There’s a SIGN pointing in each direction, but they’ve been too heavily mangled by local beasts to be legible.
Zani leaps out of the cart and motions to the two different directions.
“Okay, kids, here’s our chance to change course if we wanna. The left path goes to Grim’s Landing, where we might find some allies to brush up our terrible combat skills, if there’s anyone alive over there. The right path goes to the Village of Dolls, my personal favorite part of the island, (though a lot of people find it existentially unsettling) and home to one of those Layline Shrines we’re looking for.”
You consider your options. Down the LEFT PATH, you see a small, ruined port town with precious few lights on. Down the RIGHT PATH, you see a strange collection of jagged buildings all bent and twisted around each other, dominated by a clock tower with a glowing face.
Hmmm, which path to take?
Command: [do it](we can't)[it's the only way](we can't think about it)[we have to](we can't)[there's no other choice](there's no way we can)get a sudden headache trying to consider the idea
4/10/23
Fortunately, you’re resistant enough to intrusive thoughts that you incur no actual damage from this conundrum.
But…you’re still holding the CUBE and QUILL.
Maybe you should put them away.
Command: "it's nice getting to just relax for once...." put the cube away
4/9/23
You place the CUBE back in your inventory.
Command: invesigate all items that have never been equipped or used, excluding the cube, to determine what they do
You’ve already given everything in your inventory a glance, so there’s not much more to be learned about most of them without actually using them. But, you do a little more investigation anyway.
The BOMB you picked up from the dead adventurers appears to be an ordinary, light-fuse-and-get-away explosive, with no weird or magical properties. You reflect again on how strange it is that this is the only weapon the adventurers had on them. Then again, it probably would have done a number on Ressa, so maybe it’s all they needed.
The contents of the EVERTINS remain a mystery, but you take this moment to actually count them. You have six.
The CULTIST ROBES appear to just be ordinary cloth with no magical properties. Unless you plan to blend in with the cult, they won’t be of much use to you.
The RUNESOAKED ROBES and RUNESOAKED HOOD both smell heavily of potion reagents, and have clearly been enchanted in some way. You get a slightly different smell off each of them, so maybe the enchantments on them are different.
The STEEL SPEAR also harbors a mystery enchantment of some kind. As you wave it around, you occasionally feel a slight force pulling it in different directions. It’s a bit like waving around a gyroscope, the feeling that something else is very subtly acting on it.
The NORMAL APPLE is normal. And it’s juicy. And it’s delicious. Nothing weird about it. Just a great apple.
Command: prick myself with the tip of the sword, then debate letting a drop of the quill ink enter my bloodstream(stop thinking about it-)(you're not suposed to think about it)
You successfully suppress an intrusive thought, and don’t actually prick yourself.
WILLPOWER increased to Level 1!
With your newfound mental fortitude, it’s become much easier to not think about things.
Command: draw on the cube's spiral with the quill
You pull out the QUILL and begin tracing it along the CUBE.
Actually, no, you don’t do that.
You pull out the CUBE and QUILL, but hesitate to use them together. As you try to put the quill to the cube’s spiral, a deep anxiety overtakes you, like you’ve been pushed to the edge of a sharp cliff. You’d be combining two magical forces you don’t understand, one which nearly broke your brain last time, and the other which is a complete mystery to you.
You can force yourself to do this, but…do you really want to?
Like, REALLY want to?
Command: pretend to try and hypnotize zani with the cube
You move the CUBE in a circular motion in front of Zani’s face, waving your other hand in a manner you believe a hypnotist would.
Zani suddenly straightens, staring at the cube intently. Her gaze follows it back and forth, her breathing becoming slow. Surprised, you ask Zani if she’s actually in a hypnotic trance right now. She looks thoughtful for a second, then sighs and slumps back down.
“Nah. I really tried to be, though. That would have been cool if it worked.”
Ressa stops and puts down the CART handles, turning to the two of you. The shift nearly makes you fall forward, but you maintain your balance.
“Okay, I need to look at this cube.”
“Wha-?”
Ressa leans in close, observing the cube from all angles. The flame in her eyes casts soft light across the cube’s surface as she takes it in. You rotate it in your hand so she can have a complete view. With every twist, she nods quietly to herself.
“What are you doing?”
“Seeing if it’s even magical. Y’know, ‘cause I’m made of magic. I can do that.”
Ressa backs away, her face completely puzzled.
“So, what’s the verdict?”
“It’s…harmless?”
“…said with a question mark?”
“Well, it’s weird. I can’t get any sense of what it is, only what it isn’t. It’s not dangerous, it’s not powerful, it doesn’t open anything, it’s not containing anything…”
A strange tritonic growl echoes out of the woods. Ressa immediately picks the cart handles back up.
“Oh, right, we need to be moving.”
Ressa continues to run along. You regard the cube again. Doesn’t look like it’s secrets will be revealed here…
Command: "..." continue playing with the CUBE(don't think about it)
4/8/23
You pull out the CUBE again and spin it in your hand. It feels exactly the same as it always has.
Zani looks over at you again.
“What…is that? I keep seeing you throw it at things, but it never does anything.”
You explain that it’s one of the divine artifacts you were given, but it doesn’t seem to have any special properties, unlike the others.
“Gimmie.”
Before you can react, Zani has grabbed the cube out of your hand. She inspects it closely, taking note of the blue spiral symbol on one side.
“Huh. I feel like I’ve seen this symbol somewhere before. It almost looks like the universal symbol for blue mana, but on the other hand, it’s…just kind of a spiral.”
She tosses the cube back to you.
Command: "also, zani...i think i was...possessed by you? or your mask, at any rate. it, uh, happened before i saw you, you seemed fairly...rocky. i had on the mask until there was an....arguement, if you can call it that, between your mask and my sword."
4/7/23
Zani gives you a side-eye as you continue trying to explain this strange moment.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. But…”
Zani trails off. You ask her to continue.
“Nah, it’s nothing. I’m sure it was just some wild magic that got in your head for a second. Happens all the time around here.”
Zani goes back to looking at the stars. She seems intent on ending this conversation. For now, you decide to oblige.
Command: "...ressa, what did you think would happen when you fought the person who came into the tower, if you lost?"
“Uh, I dunno, I’d die?”
You note she seems unbothered by the idea.
“Of course I’m bothered by it, but I’m a Battle Construct. We all die in combat eventually. We don’t have to like it, but we accept it. It’s what we do.”
You mention that she’s freaked out any time anything that could kill her has been nearby.
“Well yeah, I have self-preservation programmed in. Wouldn’t be much of a soldier if I didn’t. ‘You don’t win wars by dying for your country’ and all that stuff.”
“Who said that?”
“Dunno. Must have been put in my head when I was made.”
Ressa continues to run along, but perhaps slightly slower. It seems you’ve given her something to think about.
Command: switch steel helmet for hide helmet
You take off your STEEL HELMET and put the HIDE HELMET on instead. You suddenly feel much more aware of your surroundings. Given the horrifying nature of your surroundings, this isn’t a strictly positive thing.
HIDE HELMET equipped!
ARMOR reduced to Level 6!
STEALTH increased to Level 1!
ENCUMBRANCE reduced to Level 3!
Command: "zani...how do you feel about us? it seems like half the time you're cheerful and excited, and the other half you just want this to be over so you can go away."
4/6/23
Zani does a little flourish.
“Yep! I’m just full of surprises, aren’t I?”
A beat passes. Zani realizes no one found that amusing. With a sigh, she slumps back down.
“Look, it’s like I said. I’m not used to being ‘the smart one.’ Normally, in a group like this, I’m just tagging along, stealing a few shiny objects here and there, and making passingly incisive jokes about the current situation.”
“You tell jokes? Since when?”
“Since before I got saddled with a three-hundred-year-old robot that was also somehow born yesterday!”
Ressa just chuckles at this. Zani lies down, looking at the stars, thoughtful.
“I’m not a leader, but with you two, it kinda seems like I have to be, ‘cause for the first time in my life I’m on a quest I actually care about.”
You nod.
“Ugh, listen to me. I’m getting less funny by the minute.”
Command: play one-person catch with the cube
You successfully throw and catch the CUBE thirty-nine times before getting bored. The cube itself remains a neutral entity in its treatment.
Command: "We're going to Grim's landing. Sorry zani, I misspoke the name, hehe..."
4/5/23
“Got it! Grim’s Landing! Let’s go!”
Ressa starts to run, but skids to a stop again, causing another near-tumble for you and Zani.
“Wait, where is that?”
Zani sighs. She turns to you.
“Gimmie that map of yours.”
Without waiting, she snatches the MAP out of your inventory. Pulling out a small selection of pens that she apparently had on her, she scribbles a few things down on it. Once done, she holds up the map for you and Ressa to see.
Command: (Don't think about it((something is wrong with us(((us? Me?)))shut up))don't think about it)
You think you catch a glimpse of ______ out of the corner of your eye.
But you didn’t actually see anything.
You’re fine.
“Okay, so we’re in the little circle in the middle right now, and this road will lead us to the southeast where we can go to either Grim’s Landing, the Village of Dolls, or double back towards the heart of the Erstwild.”
“Gotcha. What’s this other stuff?”
“Well, the Burning University is where the Blue Layline Shrine is, and the Red Layline Shrine is up in the Crag Highlands. Purple is, to the best of my knowledge, at the bottom of Lake Crestfall, but it hasn’t been seen in a while.”
You ask why the map somehow looks less detailed now than when Zani took it.
“Look, I highlighted the parts that are important. If more places become relevant, I’ll add them back on.”
You take the map back with a grumble. You tell her we’re still on for Grim’s Landing.
“Great! That’s…forward! I can do that!”
Ressa takes off running, this time keeping her stride, and the three of you finally slip under the canopy of the Erstwild.
The air around you grows colder, and the comforting darkness is now cut by impenetrable shadows. All around, you hear the sounds of creatures slithering, creaking and wailing. The trees above you twitch and shudder as you pass, some even opening sickly eyes in their knots to watch you go by.
All along the path, TORCHES are planted, their bases glowing with telltale red runes that suggest they’re enchanted to burn forever. The torches provide little light in the darkness, but seem mostly positioned to keep the denizens of the deeper forest at bay.
You settle in. It seems you’re safe for the moment, and while Ressa is running at a remarkable speed, this trip could still take a while. This might be a good time to ask some questions and get to know your party members a bit more.
Command: check to make sure my items are all okay(don't think about it), and that i didn't break the gemchalk somehow(don't think about it)
You pat yourself down. Your inventory seems to be unharmed. Even that perfectly-ordinary APPLE you’re carrying doesn’t have a scratch on it.
“Why did you pick that up? It’s obviously got some kind of weird curse on it.”
You pat Zani on the head and wordlessly put the apple back in your inventory.
Command: see if there's a way to record our adventures so far in the BOOK(*don't think about it*)
You flip through the book for some empty space, but it’s pretty full. To your disappointment, there’s no section for writing down notes or codes in the back.
Command: "zani...ugh, nevermind. let's just get to grim's hollow."
“Wait, don’t you mean-…?”
“Just go with it. Hero’s been through a lot.”
With all of Bastion Sigmundius now fully destroyed behind you, you walk down the ROAD leading into the FOREST beyond.
Beyond the great stone GATE, you find a run-down STABLE. The stable itself is in complete disrepair, and there isn’t a horse to be seen, but you do notice a sturdy wooden CART sitting out front.
Ressa suddenly perks up.
“Hey, I’ve got an idea!”
Ressa hops over to the cart. With a wide stance, she bends down and picks up the two handles at her sides. She shoots you and Zani and beaming smile.
“Climb aboard!”
“…What?”
“You said we needed transportation, right?”
You and Zani approach the cart. There are even a pair of ratty cushions in the bed of it to sit on.
“So, what? You’re just gonna pull us?”
“Yeah! Why not? I can run really fast when I’m not having to…y’know…keep pace with meat-people.”
You shrug at Zani and climb into the cart. Ressa beams another grin at Zani, who sighs and climbs in after you.
Barely is Zani seated before Ressa leans into a sprinting stance, causing the whole cart to shake.
“All right! Ressa train’s leaving the station! Woo woo!”
“No, wait, hang o-…!”
Ressa dashes, pulling the cart towards the maw of the forest. Twisted twigs and mutated leaves race towards you…but then Ressa almost immediately skids to a stop as quickly as she started. You and Zani are nearly ejected from the cart by the force.
“Wait, where are we going, anyway?”
Zani grumbles.
Command: LOOK UP QUILL in BOOK
4/4/23
While Ressa admires the WEAPONS, you take another glance at the BOOK to see if there’s any information on how this QUILL actually works.
You find a picture of the quill near the start of the book, but annoyingly, all the text on the page has been blotted out by the very same black ink the quill uses. Indeed, there’s a giant ink stain covering the page which seems to be flowing…from the illustration of the quill itself, somehow.
You close the book and notice that Zani has been staring at you. The moment your eyes meet hers, she looks away and tries to be inconspicuous.
Command: put the quill away(don't think about it) and examine the weapons....and maybe wipe the gemchalk away
There’s no GEMCHALK to wipe away. There never was. Probably.
You join Ressa in perusing the WEAPON selection, and ask her if anything’s caught her eye.
“Well, my sword’s already cooler than all of this stuff, but I could maybe get some use out of this one.”
Ressa picks up a small iron DAGGER.
“Y’know, for if I get caught off-guard or whatever. Just give ‘em one of these! Siss-ah! Hh-ya! SWI-sah!”
Ressa makes more mouth-sounds as she continues to wave her new toy around. Looking over the weapons yourself, none of them appear to be of excellent quality, or even consistent design. Very likely, this town didn’t have a blacksmith, and just amassed these weapons from whatever they could trade or scavenge.
Command: Since I am not particularly trained in weapons, take the nicest SPEAR that is available.
The nicest spear available also happens to be most well-crafted weapon of the bunch. Standing in a corner of the shed is a STEEL SPEAR with an ornate shaft and a very shiny spearhead. Though the spear is wedged between two tables, you manage to pull it out with little effort. You look down at the spear and turn it over in your hand. It’s covered in intricate patterns that seem to have no particular meaning, but look very cool.
Ressa looks apprehensive. You ask if she can sense magic coming off this thing. She nods.
“Only a little, but it’s there.”
As you’re considering whether to bring the spear along, you feel the floor shift slightly. Then, with a rumble, there’s a slight buckle to the walls. The three of you look at each other, slowing realizing that the spear separating those two tables was the one final support keeping this shed from collapsing in on itself.
“Um. Run!”
The three of your dive out the back door of the shed just as the heavy metal roof collapses down onto the crumbled walls, likely crushing whatever was left inside beyond repair. You stand and dust yourself off. It seems you’ve chosen the spear, then.
STEEL SPEAR added to inventory!
Command: draw a door on a wall of the shed that isn't cracked
4/3/23
You move around to the back of the SHED, which is currently the sturdiest wall of the four. As Zani and Ressa watch in confusion, you pull out a purple piece of GEMCHALK and draw a door on the wall. You trace the lines carefully, making them as straight as possible, and after a few minutes you step back and admire your handiwork. A perfectly-drawn door of glowing purple lines.
You wait for something to happen.
And wait.
And put your hands on your hips expectantly.
And continue to wait.
Eventually Zani pipes up.
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s how gemchalk works.”
You sigh, and move to erase the chalk outline.
However, just before your hand reaches the illustrated door, a thought overtakes you. Gemchalk isn’t the only writing implement you have on-hand. There’s also that QUILL with the strange black ink, the same black ink that drew the MAP of this place. You pull out the quill and turn it over in your hand. Somehow, the ink still hasn’t dried.
“What’cha got there?”
“Yeah, what…do you have there?”
Without answering, start to trace the quill along the wall, following the same lines you drew with the gemchalk. As you slowly draw the quill up the side of the shed, the ink finds purchase, spreading with dark tendrils and blotting out of the purple lines, replacing them with a darkness so black it stands out even in the moonlit night. Zani looks a little uneasy. You complete the final circle on the doorknob and your drawing is complete.
But, in this moment, you find yourself rather confused. You realize you’ve been drawing on the door to the shed this whole time, not the wall.
Or…wait…this is a different door, on the back of the shed. There’s a door on the back of the shed. Was this always here? You try to think, why were you drawing a door when there was already a door here? Could you not see the door before? No. You saw it. It was always here. But then…what were you drawing? You distinctly remembe-…
“Oh, cool, a door!”
Ressa walks through the door, which is totally unlocked.
“Guess they forgot to lock this one. Man, were we overthinking it, eh?”
With some trepidation, you step through the door. You’re inside the shed. Huh.
Looking around, you realize that you’re in a small armory. There are quite a few WEAPONS and ARMORS stored here. Most of the armor doesn’t look like it’s your size, or is too rusted to be of any use. However, there are quite a few weapons located on racks around the room. Listing them all would take too long, but suffice it to say, you could take pretty much any kind of weapon you want from this place.
Command: try and look up the mystery bulb
4/2/23
Unwilling to waste your BRIGANDVINE, you look through the BOOK for more ideas, this time trying to find info on the MYSTERY BULB you found in the tavern basement.
You first try to find the smiling face drawing on the bulb’s bag, but it doesn’t appear to be anywhere in the book. You pull out the bulb itself and see if you can find any pictures of it, and you find one…almost. On closer inspection, despite clearly being related, the bulb pictured in the book has a slightly different shape and coloration than the one you’re holding. Reading up, you realize why.
Apparently these bulbs are genetically engineered to hold magical energy, which they release when planted. Using a combination of science and enchantment, each bulb is uniquely bred to hold its specific spell. For this reason, they’re sometimes referred to as “bottle seeds,” as they hold magical energy for release in a similar manner to a potion.
There’s a section in the book detailing the breeding of these bulbs, which you look through to see if you can determine the kinds of magical energies your bulb was bred to hold, but it proves too technical for you to parse.
So, long story short, it seems your mystery bulb is designed to do something very magical once it’s planted, but you won’t know exactly what it does until you try it.
Command: "Alright then, I just figured you're the only one of us that knows....anything, really." Look up safe demolition tactics in BOOK while holding ressa back with one arm
3/31/23
You thumb through the BOOK. It’s a little difficult to find what you’re looking for, as the book primarily uses picture references. Scanning for any images of cracked walls, you find some sections on proper wall maintenance, tips for finding hidden passages in burial chambers, a history of the Wall Crack Art movement that arose in the 8th Age (which is fascinating, and you get a bit hung up on it) and a section on “visual conveyance” which is totally meaningless to you.
You throw down the book in frustration. As though the book has taken pity on you, it falls open to a surprisingly relevant passage about unconventional uses for BRIGANDVINE. Apparently, a wall of full-grown brigandvine can be strong enough to support a heavy roof, and in some remote forest cultures, brigandvine is used as building material.
You ponder this. Planting enough brigandvine to support the shed’s roof would likely require all the brigandvine seeds you have left, which might be a waste. But, it looks like that’s the only hint the book is going to give you for free.
Command: shove zani in front of me "you're the smart one!"
Zani shudders.
“Wow, that’s a terrifying notion. I don’t think I’ve ever been called ‘the smart one’ before.”
She whirls around.
“Look, I’m just the tour guide, okay? I dunno anything about…demolitions, or whatever you’re expecting me to do, here.”
She hooks a thumb at Ressa.
“I mean, if you want a wall taken down, she seems like the one to ask.”
Ressa nods.
“I’ll do it. Put me in, coach, I’ll do it right now.”
Command: "oh fuck-" jump in suprise
3/30/23
You jump to the side as the TOWER collapses. With your limited peripheral vision, this causes you to immediately collide with Ressa.
“Wah!”
Surprised, Ressa’s warrior instincts kick in and she immediately kicks you into the wall of the SHED. You’re flattened against the stone as your armor clatters around you.
“Oh! Sorry, pal!”
Unharmed but very disoriented, you stumble backwards, holding your head to regain your senses.
Zani just…sighs at this display.
You look up. There’s now a large CRACK in the wall of the shed, just to the right of the door. The wall is still standing, but with the right impact…
Command: poke the side of the shed
You poke the crack in the wall. With just a light tap, it grows slightly larger. The entire SHED shudders slightly.
So the good news is, this crack might be your ticket inside. The bad news is, unless you’re very careful, the whole shed’s coming down, with the heavy metal roof potentially crushing whatever’s inside.
You’ll have to pick your next move carefully. (Well…assuming you care what’s in the shed.)
Command: sneeze
You sneeze.
…
…
The TOWER to the left of you collapses in on itself, becoming a pile of rubble much like the tavern.
Command: Lift the visor of the STEEL HELMET and eat from the jar of BRINESHROOMS until satisfied.
3/29/23
Steadfastly refusing to simply remove your helmet for this, you open the small visor in the helmet’s front and proceed to cram BRINESHROOMS through the slit into your open mouth. The cavernous size of the helmet, at least for eating purposes, requires you to really jam your hand in there in order to reach your lips, but you manage it with effort. The shrooms themselves are salty, savory and juicy. Since brineshrooms pickle themselves from within, they have a very unique texture compared to traditional pickled mushrooms, but they’re tasty and manage to hit the spot.
HUNGER reduced to Level 2!
Hmmm, but you’re still hungry, though…
Command: eat....eat a selection of brineshrooms
Without a thought, you pop open another JAR OF BRINESHROOMS and shove them into your mouth as well. At this point, your fingers are pruning from the brine, but you need to satisfy your stomach before you can move on.
All HUNGER removed!
With a heavy clang, you pat your armored belly. You’re finally sated, and you make a vow to keep closer track of your hunger. You get the sense that from this point onward, your hunger will increase when battling or performing strenuous tasks. If it gets high enough, you will become weaker and might suffer additional penalt-…
You shake your head clear. What keeps doing that?
Command: examine shed
Before you leave, you decide to go back to the SHED near the TOWER, since it clearly had something interesting locked up.
As before, the shed is the one building that doesn’t look a feather-tap away from collapsing. It’s made of stone, with a locked METAL DOOR on the front and METAL SHUTTERS closed over the windows. Examining the door more closely reveals a NOTE written on a scrap of leather. The note reads…
“SPARE KEY IN TAVERN. ASK BARTENDER.”
Slowly, you turn to the unsortable pile of wreckage beside you that was once a TAVERN.
Dammit.
Your options appear to be either digging through the infinite tavern splinters, which will be fruitless (unless you can think of a way to do it faster,) or bashing your way inside the shed. While the shed is sturdier than the TOWER is and the TAVERN was, a solid kick from Ressa could probably bring down a wall…at the risk of damaging whatever’s inside.
Command1: "which way to grim's landing, then? maybe we can hit one or two of the shrines on the way there!"
Command2: "So does your knowledge of these shrines extend to a recommendation of where to go first?"
3/28/23
Zani looks around.
“Hmmm. You want my advice? Well, the Shrine of Green Mana is technically the closest to here, but I’m not sure I’d recommend going there first. It’s deep in the heart of the Erstwild, which is the big forest running through the island’s center. All the forest’s biggest and weirdest mutants hang out around there. Given the…state we’re in, I don’t know if we’re ready for it.”
You ask what she does recommend.
“Well, I’d say we should either go to Grim’s Landing, which is in the southeast of the island, or look for the Shrine of Yellow Mana, which is in a place called the Village of Dolls. The Village of Dolls is…weird, but not especially dangerous, at least by the standards of the Land of Shadows. I actually used to live there when…um…actually, that’s a long story. Nevermind.”
You nod.
“Look, let’s worry about this when we actually decide to leave. I mean, we could take off right now if you want. Don’t feel like you need to do everything in an area before you move on.”
“…Why did you say it like that?”
“Say it like what?”
You tell Zani her voice got all weird for a second.
“No it didn’t.”
Well, it’s probably nothing.
Command: "and zani? even theives can use a dagger."
“Yeah, that’s called ‘murder,’ not ‘fighting.’ Murder’s a lot more simple.”
Command: Take out a jar of BRINESHROOMS, open it, and give it an adventuresome sniff.
You pop open the BRINESHROOMS and give them a sniff. The adventuresomeness of the sniff is debatable, mostly because you’re wearing a massive metal helmet and have to really huff in order to get anything. True to their item description, they definitely smell like pickled mushrooms.
The scent reminds you that you haven’t eaten anything since…your first clear memory! Suddenly you’re feeling very hungry!
HUNGER increased to Level 4!
Command: Equip plate Armour
3/27/23
Looking through the armor you’ve collected, you decide to go with the heaviest and toughest set available to you.
PLATEMAIL SUIT equipped!
PLATEMAIL SUIT increased ARMOR to Level 3!
PLATEMAIL SUIT increased ENCUMBRANCE to Level 2!
STEEL HELMET equipped!
STEEL HELMET increased ARMOR to Level 5!
STEEL HELMET increased ENCUMBRANCE to Level 3!
STEEL BOOTS equipped!
STEEL BOOTS increased ARMOR to Level 7!
STEEL BOOTS increased ENCUMBRANCE to Level 4!
It takes some doing, and a little help from Ressa, but you finally manage to cinch yourself into the heavy platemail suit of armor. It’s not the easiest to move around in this thing, but you feel very protected.
Ressa smiles, looking you over.
“Wow. Okay, now you look like a warrior. Hey, can I punch you?”
You tell her to go ahead.
“Awesome!”
Ressa punches you in the stomach. Your armor clatters as the impact reverberates through your body, but you’re unharmed. Ressa has a big smile on her face.
“Hell yeah. That’s cool.”
Command: "if we, uh... if we untangle the convergence, will people start coming back and thriving?"
“Why are you asking me?”
You wave an arm in Zani’s direction and explain you were asking her. With your head fully covered by the helmet, it’s harder to express who you’re speaking to.
Zani shrugs.
“What’d you say? ‘Thriving?’ I dunno. Right now the bar we’re aiming for is ‘not devoured by unfathomable shadow mutants.’ Whether or not people ‘thrive’ is a little beyond the scope of this quest.”
You express to Zani that it would have been perfectly acceptable to just lie and say “yes.”
“Oh. Well then yes.”
Command: "also i've never really fought before, i don't remember anything beyond waking up in a room with multiple objects, including your mask."
Before Zani can respond, Ressa chimes in.
“Yeah, technically same. I’d never been in a fight before this either. I’ve just been waiting to fight for centuries.”
Ressa taps her head.
“I’ve got programming, but no experience. So maybe cut us a little slack.”
Zani paces with a thoughtful pose.
“Hmmmm…then maybe we should add that to our to-do list…”
“Add what?”
Zani stops and points at you and Ressa.
“Finding someone who can teach you two knuckleheads how to fight for real.”
“Shouldn’t you learn to fight, too?”
Zani adopts an exaggeratedly innocent pose.
“Oh no no no, I’m more of a puckish trickster type! You’re the big strong sword-swingers.”
Ressa sighs. You ask Zani if there’s anyone on the island who could teach you to fight.
“How should I know? I’ve been a statue for three hundred years! Buuut, if you’re looking for people who are both alive and sane, our best bet would be to head to Grim’s Landing. It’s the port people come through when they arrive on the island. Smart people just set up shop around the dock and don’t venture any further. There might be a fighter or two down there…if they’re not all dead, which is sometimes the case.”
You nod, which is not at all visible within your helmet. You’ll have to keep GRIM’S LANDING in mind…
Command: hug ressa and zani "holy-holy-holy-h-h-h-h...that was..."
3/26/23
Zani seems confused and a little unsettled by your sudden outbrust.
“Man, it was just a crazy guy covered in magic marker. If that’s all it takes to freak you out, we’re gonna have some problems.”
Zani steps away, thoughtful.
“In fact, I’m a little concerned about you two…”
Ressa thins her eyes.
“Me!? Wait, what’d I do?”
Zani sighs.
“Runewalkers are super weak! They’re like…weaker than people, and two of you bozos couldn’t even take one down!”
Ressa starts to object, but pauses, realizing Zani’s right. Determination suddenly fills her face.
“So…what? I need more training or something?”
Zani leans against the SHED.
“Look, don’t ask me to be the responsible one, okay? I’m a weird golden clown monster thing, and by most metrics, I’m probably half-crazy. All I know is that us three idiots are the best hope there is of untangling the Convergence, and all things considered, that hope’s not lookin’ too hopeful.”
Ressa nods.
“Well, I guess my fighting skills do have three hundred years of rust to kick off.”
She pulls out her sword and advances on Zani, grinning.
“But… you’ll spar with me, right? For the good of the team?”
“Hey hey HEY! Keep that thing away from me!”
Ressa playfully chases Zani in circles for a while. After what you went through, you can’t help but chuckle a little. You call the two of them over and hug them again, this time in a more positive and affirming way. They both seems to appreciate it.
As you look over Bastion Sigmundius, Zani suddenly shouts at you.
“Oh! I can think of one piece of advice. PUT SOME FREAKIN’ ARMOR ON! STOP JUST COLLECTING IT! YOU NEED TO ACTUALLY WEAR IT FOR IT TO DO ANYTHING!”
Zani falls to her knees, panting. Apparently that’s been bothering her for a while.
Command: go to the cliff
The three of you head to the CLIFF. Looking out over the ledge, this looks like one of the highest points on the island, and you can see it sprawling in every direction around you.
Taking in the scenery, you realize just why this place is called the Land of Shadows. It’s all incredibly dark, with most of the greenery mutated to an ominous violet hue. The deep silver-blue glow of the moon shines off the three lakes that surround you, serving as the only real source of light, but only tinging the edges of the island’s strange, silhouetted forms.
Zani looks very calmed by the view, the cool wind blowing through her cloaks.
“Man, I’ve missed this place.”
Ressa looks…less enthusiastic. She’s looking down at the FOREST below the cliffs, made of horrible twisted trees, some of which have sprouted eyes and…tentacles? The bent, sickly fauna that slithers between them isn’t any more inviting.
“It’s like a nightmare.”
“Yeah, a really cool one.”
Zani puts an arm around you.
“Okay, so you’re probably wondering where we’re supposed to be headed, huh?”
You nod.
“Well, the good news is, you’re not the first idiot-…em, ‘hero’ to try to untangle the Convergence. A bunch of wizards tried to do it about a thousand years ago, and while they failed hilariously, they did manage to dig out some shrines that might be useful.”
You ask about the SHRINES.
“Well, they’re called Layline Shrines, and there’s five of ‘em, one for each of the mana laylines that are all tangled up under the island. They let ‘ya get at the flow of mana directly.”
You ask where these shrines are.
“Glad you asked! I happen to know where all of the shrines are. And before you ask, yes, that’s the main reason I was chosen to be your little guide. Okaaaaay, soooo…”
Zani looks around. She points to a strange, crooked VILLAGE to the south.
“Down there is the shrine of Yellow Mana.”
She points to a BURNING BUILDING across a lake beyond the village.
“And over there is the shrine of Blue Mana.”
She spins around and points to a craggy, mountainous area to the northeast.
“Somewhere around there is the shrine of Red Mana.”
She points to a small lake to the northwest.
“The shrine of Purple Mana is under that lake there.”
Ressa doesn’t appear to be looking forward to that one. Finally, Ressa hooks a thumb at the ROAD out of Bastion Sigmundius.
“…And the shrine of Green Mana should be just down the road! You got all that?”
You nod, but…you’re still confused. You ask what you’re meant to do at these shrines.
“No idea! But, I assume those objects you collected from the gods are meant to do something to the laylines, sooooo if you want direct access, the shrines are the place to go.”
You look out over the island. Suddenly, this quest is starting to take shape.
Command: plant a brigandvine next to the rubble
You plant a few brigandvine seeds next to the WOOD PILE and water them with the WATERING CAN just as before. In a few moments, a wall of vines erupts from the ground and wraps itself around the pile, thickening into a tough green shell with handholds perfect for climbing.
Given that there’s probably nothing else to do in this basement, the three of you successfully climb out of the HOLE and find yourself back among the three two BUILDINGS on the edge of Bastion Sigmundius. The TOWER and SHED look unchanged, though the recent collapse of a nearby building may have made the Tower ever-so-slightly more precarious.
In addition, on the other side of town there’s still a CLIFF overlooking the island which would be a good way to take in your surroundings. There’s also the ROAD out of town, which from this angle you can see appears to have a STABLE standing just beyond the main gate.
Command: start shoving rubble into under the hole
3/25/23
The three of you begin grabbing DEBRIS from the stairs and making a pile near the HOLE. Luckily, you didn’t plant the VINES in such a way that they completely obscure the rubble, our else this wouldn’t work.
It’s awkward work, but eventually you have a WOOD PILE that just about reaches the ceiling, right next to the hole. Conceivably, you and Zani could escape right now by climbing the pile. However, it looks a little too loose to support Ressa’s weight…
Command: Plant a few BRIGANDVINE seeds near the rubble pile and water them with the WATERING CAN.
3/24/23
Fortunately for you, the floor of this basement is mostly packed dirt, so it isn’t too hard to bury some brigandvine seeds in the shallow earth right next to the RUBBLE that covers the stairs. Zani watches this in confusion.
“Um…you do know that seeds generally take a long time to grow, right?”
You tell Zani to wait for a moment. Pulling out your WATERING CAN, you shower the seeds with crystal-clear water, which is thirstily absorbed by the parched earth.
Seconds pass…
And then, the ground shifts! Tiny sprouts appear from the soil, slowly finding their way to the pile of debris. With unnatural speed, you see the sprouts extend into massive vines, weaving their way up the side of the rubble in a thick lattice. By the time the VINES have reached the ceiling, they’ve formed a sturdy wall.
And then…growth ceases.
You, Zani and Ressa stare at the vine wall, and you admit you had hoped the vines would do a little more to clear the rubble. Zani looks thoughtful.
“Ohhhh, ‘brigandvine!’ I think I’ve heard of this, actually. It’s a kind of thick ivy that’s really useful for climbing. It’s called brigandvine because it’s good for breaking into places.”
“Wait, isn’t a ‘brigand’ someone who…like…ambushes people on mountains and stuff?”
“It is, but the person who named it ‘brigandvine’ didn’t know that and thought it was just a synonym for ‘burglar.’ By the time it caught on, it was too late to correct it.”
“Oh, huh. So…how does this stuff help us?”
“Well, I don’t think these vines are gonna help much. But if we could find a way to make the brigandvine grow up towards the hole, we’d be able to get out of here easy.”
Unfortunately, the hole is in the middle of the room, with no immediate walls around it. The brigandvine will need something to climb in order to get up there. Hmmm…
Command: take seed bags
There are specifically four BAGS OF SEEDS on the shelves. You take them down one by one and inspect them.
The first bag is labeled “BRIGANDVINE” and has a picture of vines growing up the side of a castle wall.
BRIGANDVINE SEEDS added to inventory!
The second is labeled “PYREBLOOM” and has a picture of a burning flower on it.
PYREBLOOM SEEDS added to inventory!
The third is labeled “MEATCAP” and depicts a red mushroom that’s…bleeding?
MEATCAP SPORES added to inventory!
The fourth just has a cartoony drawing of what looks like a smiling berry on it. Notably, unlike all the creepy smileys on the cult paraphernalia, this drawing is actually very cute. Also, this bag doesn’t contain seeds, just one very large BULB.
MYSTERY BULB added to inventory!
Zani looks over your haul.
“Hmmm, can’t say I recognize any of these. They look imported. They’re a little too…whimsical to be local goods.”
Command: Pocket the food items and give the TOWER a closer look.
You turn your attention to the CANS. The weird glow around their seals makes you unsure if you should touch them. Zani sees your hesitation.
“Oh, don’t worry about those. Those are just evertins. They use magic to preserve their contents forever. If anything in here is edible, it’s gonna be whatever those cans are hiding.”
You question the name.
“Evertins? Like…’ever’…’tins.’ Like ‘forever cans.’ They’re cans that last forever.”
You nod. Looking at the seed bags, you ask if everything is named by just cramming two words together. Zani shrugs.
“How else do you name things?”
You sigh.
EVERTINS added to inventory!
Finally you take a look at the APPLE, standing clean and pristine on the shelf. You, Zani and Ressa all regard it with suspicion.
“I…wouldn’t eat that if I were you.”
“What is it? Some kind of everapple?”
“I don’t know what it is. You can take it if you want, but stick to brineshooms if you get hungry.”
You grab the apple, pointedly not eating it.
NORMAL APPLE added to inventory!
As for inspecting the TOWER, that’s a little tricky. You’re still trapped in this basement, and the only obvious way out is the HOLE in the ceiling through which you entered. The hole is a little above jumping height, especially for Ressa, so you’ll need something to give you a boost if you want out of here.
Command: "...how the..." loot
3/23/23
Zani shrugs.
“‘How the’ what? It was a braindead husk that worships smiley-faces. That wasn’t exactly a mastermind plan.”
You sigh and take a look through the door. Rather anticlimactically, the room on the other side appears to be a pantry for the (former) tavern above. Most of the remaining food has decayed. What remains is a few BAGS OF SEEDS, some CANS with a slight glow around their seals, and perhaps most bizarrely of all, a perfectly fresh-looking APPLE.
Considering how old all this must be, you’re not sure if you want any of it.
Command: "why were you so scared of the knife, ressa? you're stone, it's meant to kill flesh."
You hold up the KNIFE for Ressa to examine, but she looks wary.
“Probably ‘cause it’s magic.”
You respond with confusion, so Ressa elaborates.
“Physically, Battle Constructs can take a beating all day, but magic… That stuff can mess me up permanently. I’m not really made of rocks, y’know. I’m ‘made’ of the magic holding the rocks together. If anything disrupts that, I’m in real trouble.”
You nod understanding. Looks like you’ll need to keep Ressa away from magic going forward. Zani looks over her shoulder at her.
“So…you are aware that the Land of Shadows is…like…the epicenter of wild magic for the entire planet, right?”
“Um…not in…as many words. Is…is that a thing…?”
Zani goes back to inspecting the pantry.
“Eh, you’ll probably be fine.”
Ressa looks very concerned. She eyes the knife again.
“Could you put that away?”
You tuck the knife back into your inventory.
Attack: whack runewqlker away with the cube
3/22/23
As Ressa runs past, you pull out the CUBE and bash the runewalker in the side of the head with it. The cube adds absolutely nothing to this action. You’re effectively just punching.
The impact knocks the runewalker sideways, sending Ressa spinning on her heel. As the Runewalker spins back towards you, you bash it again with the cube and send it (and Ressa) spinning in the other direction.
Ressa pirouettes away a few steps before managing to right herself. Shaking off dizziness, she turns to face you with a look of pure frustration.
“Stop DOING that!”
So intense is her frustration that a burst of flame erupts from the top of her head when she shouts, blasting the runewalker in the face. The runewalker screams in terror, and surprisingly, it seems like this was exactly what was needed to make it let go. With a wet thud, the creature falls to the ground and Ressa is finally freed. With hurried steps, she stands beside you and readies her blade once again.
“Let’s finish this!”
The runewalker shudders to its feet, enraged. It unleashes a scream that echoes through your bones. As it slowly approaches, lurching step after lurching step, its stature suddenly seems gigantic. You brace yourself as it raises its arms.
Defense: [no input]
But before it can attack, Zani slides in front of you.
“Heeeeey, big guy, check this out!”
The creature nearly brings its fists down on the three of you, but when it sees Zani’s face, it suddenly freezes.
“Yeah! Look familiar?”
Zani points at her head, indicating her gleaming, golden comedy mask. The creature’s eyes widen. You look around at the smiley face motif all over the room, Zani’s plan suddenly coming into focus.
“This is what you worship, right? A smiley face? Kiiiiinda like this? Hm?”
The creature lowers its fists, staring in amazement.
“the…Smiling…One…?”
“Yeah, it’s me, The Smiling One or whatever! Your goddess is here! This gal! 100% real!”
Ressa shoots you a somewhat uncomfortable look, which you return. The runewalker, overtaken with emotion, drops to its knees, its intimidating stature suddenly deflating. It lowers is head, and its voice trembles as though it’s on the verge of tears.
“…Smiling…One…”
Zani pats the runewalker on the head.
“Yes, and your goddess is very proud of you. You’ve kept the faith alive for centuries down here, and you even tried to kill a stone heathen in my name!”
“Hey!”
“As the greatest of all deities, I hereby declare that you have earned yourself a wonderous reward…in the afterlife.”
The runewalker looks up and cocks its head in confusion.
“Yeah, that’s what you cult freaks are about, right? Eternal paradise…transcendental enlightenment…you’ve earned it! Great work!”
The runewalker looks lost in thought. Zani bends down, putting her face right up to the creature’s.
“Now…you can go to your reward. Enjoy it.”
The runewalker nods slowly. It bows its head in prayer, a look of incredible calm coming over it.
“…thank…you…”
The creature lets out a great sigh, and the glowing symbols that covered its body fade. In an instant, the runewalker’s body pops in a burst of horrible black bile, and it is reduced to a pile of rotten ooze and bones.
You and Ressa stand in stunned silence.
Zani spins around and does a victory pose.
“Yay, we did it!”
COMBAT VICTORY!
Ressa, the shock passing, looks aghast at everything she just watched.
“What the hell…?”
“Not a moment too soon, eh? I am ready to get out of here.”
Zani walks up to the DOOR the runewalker burst in through. She motions for you and Ressa to join her.
“But before we go, lets see if that thing was hiding any goodies back here, hm?”
Attack: attack with *my knife*
3/21/23
You pull out your KNIFE and run at the creature, which is still perched on Ressa’s back. However, the moment Ressa sees your knife, radiating with the divine power of MURDER, she begins to freak out.
“No no no! Keep that away from me!”
Ressa beings to run around the room in a panic, the runewalker now awkwardly flopping behind her and trying desperately to regain its balance.
Defense: keep my guard up
Unsure of what to do, you watch as Ressa runs madly in circles, swatting her sword in the direction of the runewalker but not having the leverage to land a clean hit. The runewalker, with its legs wrapped tightly around Ressa’s waist and its body completely off-balance, is unable to do anything but flail and moan. It’s clearly just as distressed as Ressa is.
"GET…OFF…YOU…DAMN…WHATEVER YOU ARE…AAARGH!!”
“smiling…help…”
Around and around they go. Eventually, you notice the Zani is now standing next to you.
“Well, this is stupid.”
Zani hooks a thumb at the runewalker.
“Hey, if you can knock that thing off her back, I think I have a plan that could get rid of it.”
Attack: slash it
You slash at the runewalker with your sword, driving the blade into the creature’s collar. You break the skin, but as black, bilious blood oozes from the wound, you find your sword stuck in its gooey flesh. The runewalker howls in pain as you struggle to pull your sword free.
“join…join her…”
You plant your foot on the runewalker’s chest and manage to kick it away, freeing your sword. Now the blade is heavy with sticky bile.
Defense: protect zani
You look back at Zani but you don’t see her behind you. Scanning the room, you see she’s already hiding under the TABLE. She gives you an innocent thumbs-up.
The runewalker doesn’t seem interested in her anyway. In your moment of distraction, it pulls a KNIFE out of its robe and charges you.
“she…she is…”
As the creature closes in, Ressa rushes to intercept, shoulder-checking the crazed monstrosity and trying to knock it off balance. Unfortunately, her gambit fails and the runewalker immediately gets one of its impossibly-long arms around her. The two of them struggle, and the creature manages to slither onto Ressa’s back, riding her around as she stumbles left and right, and (fruitlessly) trying to plunge the knife into her stone neck.
“false…false…”
“DAMMIT! Get this thing…OFF ME!!”
While the knife won’t do much to Ressa, it doesn’t look like she’ll be able to get free without your help.
Command: ready sword ready sword READY SWORD "this is bad this is very bad"
3/20/23
You stand alongside Ressa and hastily ready your SWORD. The two of you stare down the door as the loud banging continues.
With one final crash, the door bursts open, and a bizarre monstrosity spills into the room. It’s shaped like a human…almost, but its body is bloated and distorted, longer than it should be in impossible ways. Its skin is the sickly blue of a long-drowned corpse, and it’s covered in glowing symbols like the ones that line the walls.
With an uncanny shudder, the creature gets to its feet. Its unhinged jaw flaps sickeningly as it bellows. In this moment, you notice it’s wearing a robe like the ones hanging on the wall.
“she is smiling…she is…she is…”
Ressa’s breathing is hurried.
“What the hell is that?”
“It’s a runewalker.”
“A what?”
“It’s a person who tried to, in the parlance of another world, ‘cheat code’ themselves into eternal life. Those runes on his body will keep the flesh alive forever but…as these types always find out…that’s not really the same thing as living.”
Ressa calms down. A cool focus fills her eyes.
“So what do we do? Kill it?”
Zani shakes her head.
“He’s already dead. He just needs…convincing.”
COMBAT START!
Command: grab some rubble and move it aside
You try to clear the STAIRS by pulling away some of the wooden debris. With Ressa’s help, you manage to put a dent in it, but the large pile of rubble above comes crashing down to fill in the section you cleared. The stairs were fairly central to the building, so the largest pile of wreckage is stacked directly on top of them. It doesn’t look like you’ll be getting out that way.
Command: "don't judge me, zani." take all objects, they could be useful later
Zani shrugs.
You first look over the CEREMONIAL ATTIRE hanging on the wall by the stairs. It’s a set of identical robes with strange gold and purple patterns on them. Grabbing one of the robes and flipping it around, you see a large smiley-face design on the back. You decide to take a robe for yourself.
CULTIST ROBE added to inventory!
You ask Zani and Ressa if they want a matching set, but they emphatically refuse. As you turn away, you notice that one of the robes appears to be missing.
Moving to the table on the opposite wall, your eye is drawn to the GLOWING CHALK. There are five colors of it, red, blue, yellow, green and purple. Comparing the colors, it looks as though the glowing writing all over the walls was written with this chalk.
“Ah, that’s gemchalk. Wizards use it to make magic circles and stuff.”
You don’t have any knowledge about how to do that, but you decide to pocket the chalk anyway.
GEMCHALK added to inventory!
Next you pick up the SPECTACLES. They look fairly normal, but the lenses have an odd, unnatural rainbow tinge to them. Even though wearing another person’s glasses is mostly a quick way to throw up, you decide this pair is worth further investigation.
ODD SPECTACLES added to inventory!
Finally, the JOURNAL. You were saving it for last, because something about it gives you the creeps. It has the same smiley-face symbol on the cover as the robes, but this one is scribbled and sketchy, twisting it into an even more uncanny grimace. As you thumb through the tattered pages, you see a lot of strange runes and diagrams, lined with hastily-scrawled rants in a handwriting that’s impossible to decipher. Only when you near the end of the journal do you see something comprehensible, written carefully and evenly, like a poem or prayer.
HER FLESH IS BOUND
HER BREATH IS DROWNED
HER HEART IS CHAINED
HER MIND IS DRAINED
HER BONES ARE WRONG
HER DEATH IS LONG
You read these words slowly. Every one feels like it burns itself into your mind. You turn the page, and are met with a twisted collage of smiling faces. Mouths and eyes meld together in a sickening fractal of grins. And in the center of it, four more words…
BUT
SHE
IS
SMILING
Something about this fills you with dread. Ressa, who was reading over your shoulder, starts to back away.
“I…I don’t like this. Let’s get out of-…”
BAM! Something hits against the DOOR at the far end of the room. The three of you turn, freezing at the sound. BAM! Another knock at the door. There’s something back there, and as you listen, it starts to speak.
“she…is…smiling”
The voice is low and gasping, barely human. Whatever this creature is pounds on the door again.
“SHE…IS…SMILING”
Ressa readies her sword.
3/19/23
Command: "more like i don't trust myself. i don't know much, but i know i'm prone to mood swings." dig through the rubble
You explain to Zani that your reason for destroying the tavern was really that you don’t trust yourself, given than you’re prone to mood-swings. Zani returns an uncertain nod.
“Clearly.”
The two of you dig through the wreckage until you manage to find an approximately Ressa-shaped hole in the tavern floor. Jumping through, you land in the basement, and are suddenly assaulted by a swirl of brightly-glowing colors.
The stonehewn basement is covered, ceiling to floor, in luminescent MARKINGS in a rainbow of hues. Lining every surface, you see a mix of otherworldly writing, attempted summoning circles and, perhaps most distressingly, deranged human writings saying things like “LISTEN TO ME!” and “WHAT AM I DOING WRONG?”
Ressa looks particularly freaked out by all this, but Zani simply shrugs.
“Oh, this? This is just cult stuff.”
“…Cult?”
“Yeah, people who spend too long in the Land of Shadows can sometimes develop…weird ideas about why it is the way it is. As you can see, it’s a way of thinking that doesn’t really go anywhere.”
Slowly, your eyes adjust to the neon madness. You notice one TABLE has a collection of GLOWING CHALK, a pair of SPECTACLES and a JOURNAL on it. On the opposite wall, there’s a collection of CEREMONIAL ATTIRE. Finally, on a third wall, there’s a RED DOOR that doesn’t appear to be an exit. It’s covered in a strange, half-finished SUMMONING CIRCLE.
Oh, and speaking of exits, the actual exit STAIRS are densely covered in wooden debris. The clearest path back outside is the HOLE you fell through, but you’ll need a boost of some kind to get through it.
Command: pick up rock and throw at tavern. don't need to be getting any ideas
You throw a loose rock at the TAVERN as hard as you can, aiming to take out one of the awning supports. It bounces off harmlessly.
Ressa chuckles and starts walking away. Before you can ask where she’s going, Zani slides in front of you.
“Uh…are you trying to knock down that building? There could be supplies in there.”
You explain that you don’t trust this group around a tavern, but now that she mentions it, searching the place for food and equipment couldn’t hurt. In the middle of your explanation, though, Ressa’s voice rings out from above.
“Hey! If you wanna knock this building down, you’ve gotta put more force into it.”
You and Zani look up and see that Ressa has scaled a tall stone PILLAR beside the tavern.
“Watch this!”
You and Zani wave your arms to stop her, but it’s to no avail. Ressa leaps from the pillar and delivers an earth-shaking elbow-drop directly onto the roof, crashing through floor after floor with a horrible clatter. Within seconds, the entire building collapses into splinters around her. You shield your eyes from debris and shrapnel.
When the dust clears, you don’t see Ressa within the wreckage. You and Zani climb through the shattered boards and try digging around.
“Uhhh, you alive in there?”
You hear Ressa’s muffled voice from below.
“Yeah. So, fun fact, this place has a basement, and…um…you might want to take a look at this.”
Sounds important, but you’ll need to find a way down there, first…
3/18/23
Command: Approach BUILDINGS and try to get a peek inside
You and Zani hop over a couple of ruined walls as you approach the nearby BUILDINGS. Ressa is too heavy to hop, so she just kicks a couple sections of wall over as she follows you.
These three buildings are the only structures of Bastion Sigmundius that are still standing, though this honor appears tenuous. They look like any one of them would crumble to dust with one good jolt. You’ll need to be careful if you plan on entering them.
The building on the left is the remains of a TOWER, its outside painted with a pattern of stars and runes. It’s the largest structure, and therefore the one you should be most worried about falling on you. Taking a peek through the ajar wooden door on the tower’s front, you see glints of multicolored light and wisps of neon smoke. Definitely something magical going on in there.
The middle building is a SHED. It’s the most structurally-sound, but also the most fortified. The door is locked and the windows are barred. But, on the plus side, that means there’s probably something valuable in there.
The building on the right is hard to identify from the outside. It’s two stories tall, and unlike most of the buildings around here, it’s made of rotten wood rather than crumbling stone. If it’s really over three-hundred years old, it’s kind of impressive it’s standing at all, honestly. A peek inside the front archway reveals tables, chairs, and a counter. So this was clearly a TAVERN or some kind of shop. Possibly both.
Ressa looks a little distressed. This clearly isn’t the world she imagined was outside her room.
“So what…happened to this place?”
“Heh. What didn’t happen to it? Zombies, mutants, wild magic…There was no ‘one thing’ that brought down Bastion Sigmundius. They endured one crisis after another, like everyone around here does, until eventually too many were dead to keep the torches lit. The survivors just packed up and left, leaving yet another ruin behind.”
“Damn…”
“But it’s not all bad. It means this island’s covered in free stuff! So come on, let’s get to lootin’.”
3/16/23
Command: move forward, pushing ressa to the front just in case
With this room picked clean, all that remains is the far set of STAIRS, eerily lit with the silver glow of the moon.
You begin to climb. The walls on either side of the stairway are cool smooth stone, occasionally fractured by twisted, unnatural roots that have cracked through over the centuries. And at the top of the stairs, a stone archway, with only the sky visible beyond. As the three of you press on, you subtly position yourself behind Ressa, just in case there’s one final trap ahead.
But you needn’t have worried. You emerge into the cool moonlight, the dark purple sky above churning with shadows. The chirps of strange insects fill the air, and the wind is howling in the distance, but overall the scene is quite peaceful.
Looking around, you realizing you’re standing in stone RUINS. Whatever this building was, it’s now in too great of disrepair to identify its original purpose. Perhaps it was a church? Or a castle? Or a fortress? With the altars and towers and tattered standards, it seems to have elements of all those things and more. The underground crypt from which you emerged appears to be the only part of this place that’s still relatively intact.
Zani whistles.
“Wow, someone did a number on this place while I was statue-fied. I mean, it was already a crumbling ruin, but this is way crumblier.”
You ask where this is.
“Like I said, it’s a crumbling ruin. But formerly, this was Bastion Sigmudius, a pillar of hubris built right in the center of the Land of Shadows. Like everything else, it didn’t last too long.”
You ask Zani where we go from here.
“Well, the Land of Shadows isn’t huge, but if we’re going to be traveling, we should probably find some transportation. There’s probably something around here we can use.”
You look over the ruins. Past some crumbling walls, you see a small collection of BUILDINGS that are still standing, but only barely. In the opposite direction there’s a CLIFF that could give you a good look at the surrounding area. And beyond a fallen archway, there’s a ROAD leading into the distance.
3/15/23
Command: Check if the DEAD ADVENTURERS have anything of use, or any indication of what their intention was... Respectfully
You roll the DEAD ADVENTURERS over and have a look at them. They appear to be human, and since you’re able to recognize that, it doesn’t look like they’ve been dead for very long, either.
Notably, despite them being killed by a flurry of magical arrows, their equipment seems more-or-less intact. From the looks of it, the arrows didn’t actually pierce their armor, but through sheer volume managed to strike through gaps and weakpoints to bring them down. Clearly, they were under the impression the arrows couldn’t hurt them until it was too late.
Zani pipes up.
“Not from around here.”
You ask how she can tell.
“They look too normal. Must be from another land.”
“Huh. Shame they came all this way just to die."
Zani sighs and shakes her head.
“Add ‘em to the pile, I guess. This is what happens to pretty much everyone. They come to the weird magic island looking for cool glowy trinkets or whatever, and it always ends the same.”
You stare at the bodies, then back at Zani.
“You thinking what I’m thinking?”
Command: loot the dead adventurers
“That’s the spirit.”
You search the bodies. Curiously, they don’t seem to have weapons on them, but they are definitely prepared for a trip, with rations and health potions at the ready.
JAR OF BRINESHOOMS (x5) added to inventory!
LIFEWATER POTION (x3) added to inventory!
Strangely, though they aren’t armed, you do find an explosive tucked into the pocket of the robed one. Looks pretty powerful, too, not that you know much about bombs.
BOMB added to inventory!
Now for their equipment. You decide to leave the trio their dignity and only take their outermost armor. The ARMOR BODY yields a set of heavy platemail. This stuff will turn you into a walking tank, though the “walking” part might be debatable.
PLATEMAIL SUIT added to inventory!
STEEL HELMET added to inventory!
STEEL BOOTS added to inventory!
The LEATHER BODY is wearing a very stylish outfit, helpfully cut in a way that gives the wearer a full range of movement, but leaves only the essentials protected. Definitely the armor of someone who doesn’t expect to be hit by anything anyway.
LEATHER TOP added to inventory!
HIDE HELMET added to inventory!
FLEETFOOT BOOTS added to inventory!
The ROBE BODY’s outfit is hard to parse, as it’s more of an odd collection of patterned cloth draped over a spindly frame. Notably, these robes don’t appear to have been punctured by the arrows at all, suggesting they might be self-repairing. A quick sniff confirms a very strong potion-y smell coming off the cloth, so they’re definitely steeped in something magical.
RUNESOAKED ROBES added to inventory!
RUNESOAKED HOOD added to inventory!
SANDALS added to inventory!
You don’t feel comfortable taking any more off of them.
3/14/23
Command: Use the FLUTE to bend the arrows as before, and have Zani crawl underneath, drag the robe body off of the far side before locking the trap.
You turn to Zani to explain, but she holds up a hand.
“No, no, no. Look, it’s very simple. Just play the flute to bend the arrows upward, then I’ll crawl underneath and pull that body off the pressure plate, then you lock it on this side and cross over.”
You…thank Zani for coming up with such a brilliant plan.
Recreating the same determined ballad as before, you use the FLUTE to conjure a small updraft on the PRESSURE PLATE, pushing the flow of MAGICAL ARROWS upward. Zani, with inhuman flexibility, gets onto her stomach and begins to slither her body to the other side of the storm. The opening below the arrows is very small, and a couple of them even scratch Zani’s brightly-patterned outfit, but she manages to progress largely unscathed.
Ressa looks at you and stifles a chuckle, then back to Zani. You can tell she just thought of something really horrible she could do in this moment, but has chosen to refrain.
Zani reaches the other side of the pressure plate and clears the arrow wall, popping up with a flourish and taking a bow. Not a moment too soon, as you’re totally out of breath once again. You drop the flute and gasp for breath, not even watching as the pressure plate lifts. You hear the constant magical glinting of the arrows finally die down, and the room is silent.
Ressa pats you on the back.
“I’ll get that lever.”
Ressa pulls the TORCH and locks the pressure plate in place. You look up, and see that Zani is how standing on the pressure plate, perfectly safe.
“See? I told you it was simple!”
Zani does a little dance. You notice Ressa, still holding the lever, briefly consider another really horrible thing she could do right now, but again choose to refrain.
So now you’ve got a disabled TRAP, three DEAD ADVENTURERS, and a set of STAIRS lit by the moonlight outside. Ressa puts an arm around you.
“Great work. Let’s get outta here.”
Command: try to water the arrows?
You can’t really get a good angle to pour the WATERING CAN onto the wall of flying MAGICAL ARROWS. The arrow wall doesn’t go all the way to the ceiling, but it’s still decently taller than you are.
You splash some water in the arrows’ direction and…accomplish little. It almost looks as though the arrows briefly turn green when the water touches them, but nothing about their properties changes. They hit the opposite wall just as hard and dissolve into sparks in the same way.
Even the PRESSURE PLATE doesn’t react to the water.
“What are you even doing?”
It looks like Zani’s getting impatient. Maybe she or Ressa have an idea…
3/13/23
Command: thrust the cube in the direction of the arrows
You toss the CUBE into the flurry of MAGICAL ARROWS.
Immediately, the cube becomes caught in the crossfire, plinking back and forth through the air as the arrows collide with it every which way. A few arrows are even deflected in your direction, but you only need to weave slightly to avoid them.
With one final, atonal PWANG sound, the cube is launched back out of the arrow swarm, spiraling through the air and bouncing off Zani’s face.
“Ow.”
You pick up the cube off the ground. Not a scratch on it. Neither the cube nor the arrow trap have been changed in any way.
3/12/23
Command: Consult with Zani and the BOOK about the CUBE and its possible function.
While the CUBE does have an entry in the BOOK, it’s just a blank page with a large, detailed sketch of the cube on it.
You ask Zani if she knows what the cube does, but she shakes her head.
“I don’t know what any of that stuff does.”
Command: Determine whether Ressa can safely drag the bodies off of the switch.
This warrants a closer look at the DEAD ADVENTURERS, so let’s get into that, first.
There are three adventurers lying face-down on the PRESSURE PLATE at the moment. One is wearing heavy ARMOR, one is wearing stylish LEATHER, and one is wearing elaborate ROBES. The ARMOR BODY and LEATHER BODY are closest to you, so close that you could actually grab them without putting yourself in danger. The ROBE BODY, on the other hand, is lying on the far side of the pressure plate with a full wall of MAGICAL ARROWS between you and them.
You ask Ressa to pull to two closer bodies off the pressure plate.
“No problem, chief!”
Ressa effortlessly (perhaps a big callously) yanks the Leather Body off the pressure plate and drops it at your feet. The Armor Body requires a bit more effort, but fortunately, Ressa’s strength pulls through, hoisting the massive frame to the back of the room. The Armor Body clatters to the ground behind you, and Ressa raises her arms in brief celebration of a good lifting session.
Now you’ve got two corpses and 2/3rds of the pressure plate clear, but the Robe Body is still weighing the plate down. You ask if Ressa could survive the arrows to make it to the other side.
“Pretty sure those arrow things would kill me.”
She taps the Armor Body with her foot. If platemail couldn’t resist the arrows, her stone skin likely wouldn’t fare much better. Looks like that one will require a different approach.
Command: name the construct melissa
The construct considers it.
“Hmmm. It has a nice sound, but that other name sounded tougher. What was it again?”
“Gidura?”
“Right, Gidura. Now lemme see here.”
She becomes lost in thought, staring into space as she weighs her options.
“Melissa…Giruda…Gelissa…Megudra…Girelissdra…um…Megelsa…hmm…Giressa!”
“…What?”
“That’s my name! Giressa! That’s what I’m going with!”
Giressa’s eyes shine. This is clearly an exciting moment for her.
“Hell yeah! You’re standing before the world’s first self-naming Battle Construct, Giressa! Oh, but you two can shorten it to ‘Ressa,’ since we’re friends.”
“…W-…why not just call yourself Ressa the-…”
You welcome Ressa to the team.
3/11/23
Command: try and flute the arrows away
You put the FLUTE to your lips and begin to play. It’s tuneless at first, but slowly, a jaunty freestyle melody begins to flow. Zani looks confused, but the construct immediately begins to clap along.
As you play, you feel a small gust of wind blow past you. This gust becomes a steady breeze, and as you continue to play, motes of dust begin to swirl around your body, as if your song was commanding the very winds themselves.
Curious, you change your tune to a determined ballad, trying to direct the winds towards the MAGICAL ARROWS. You feel the winds extent outward, and the flow of arrows begins to distort. With some mental effort, you manage to create a small updraft on top of the PRESSURE PLATE, causing the arrows to arc upward slightly as they fly. Since there’s no natural wind to command in this area, the effect is very minor, but it’s enough that someone could safely crawl underneath the arrows now.
BUHH! You’re out of breath! The winds cease and the arrows return to their usual flightpath.
Looks like you can only keep playing for a short time. But, you’ve learned you can use the flute to slightly redirect the swarm of arrows in a direction you desire. That’s gotta be worth…something, right?
3/10/23
Command: slash the holes with the knife
Um…
It’s possible your mental image of what’s happening is a little off. The HOLES are recessed into the stone walls on either side of the PRESSURE PLATE. There isn’t really anything to slash, and you’d likely take a MAGICAL ARROW to the arm for trying.
You consider using the KNIFE to plug one of the holes, but it’s not really the right shape for that, and besides, there would be about a hundred other holes to deal with.
Command: ask the construct what they identify as, gender-wise
She looks confused at first, but then thoughtful. This is clearly something she’s never considered in her three-hundred year life.
“Hmmmmm…”
She pats herself down.
“Well, I’m sculpted like a chick, which…yeah, that’s pretty cool, so let’s go with that.”
“Is that…how it works for constructs?”
“It is now!”
Command: Look for a lever or way to disable the trap since we are on the "safe" side.
You spin around and examine the wall behind you. You don’t immediately see any kind of mechanism, but…
“Ah! Right! The locking mechanism!”
Zani glides over to the wall and pulls on a TORCH to the left of the door. The torch lowers on a hinge and you hear gears shifting below you.
You turn back to the PRESSURE PLATE but…nothing happens. It’s still depressed and the MAGICAL ARROWS are still flying.
“Wait…hang on…”
Zani toggles the torch up and down a few more times. The pressure plate shifts up and down a tiny bit with each pull, but nothing else happens.
“Should something be happening?”
Zani sighs.
“No, I get what’s going on. The locking mechanism just locks the pressure plate in place, so it can be safely crossed without activating the trap. But, since the trap is already active…it can only be locked in an active state.”
You…express that that’s a really stupid way to design a security failsafe. Zani shoots a side-eye at the construct.
“Well, the same person who built this also built her, so draw your own conclusions.”
“Hey!”
You turn back to the flurry of arrows. Looks like the lock won’t be much help right now.
3/9/23
Command: slash the arrows with the sword
You slash your SWORD through the hail of MAGIC ARROWS. You manage to cut through a few, which fall to the ground and dissolve into harmless blue sparks. Unfortunately, there still seems to be an unlimited supply of arrows flying out of the holes in the walls, so this was about as effective as trying to stab a waterfall to death.
“Damn, I really thought that would work. Now I’m out of ideas.”
3/8/23
Command: "Well I think you need a name before you leave this room... What do you think about Gidura?"
“Gi…du…ra? Where the hell did that come from?”
You shrug. It just sounded fitting. The construct mulls it over.
“Let’s see. Gidura. Sounds kinda like a name a dragon would have, so that’s points in its favor. Not an especially attractive name, though…”
“You just said you didn’t care what your name was!”
“Well yeah, but I was asked my opinion…”
You hold up a hand. We can brainstorm a few more things before she decides.
Command: Use the SWORD to carefully prod the door open. "So what's all this about a trap?"
Using your SWORD, you poke the FAR DOOR open. Immediately, you see a flurry of blue lights in the adjoining room, along with…oh…
…oh dear.
Lying in the middle of the room are three DEAD ADVENTURERS. They’re lying face down on a gigantic PRESSURE PLATE that spans the middle of the floor. Above their bodies, an endless stream of blue MAGICAL ARROWS fly back and forth from small holes in both walls.
Looks like these three triggered a trap, and since they died on the switch, the trap is now stuck in the “on” position. This poses a problem, because it means there’s a wall of endless high-speed magical arrows bisecting the room, preventing you from reaching the far STAIRS. From the moonlight cast upon the stairs you can see, that definitely looks like the exit.
Gidura, or…I guess she’s still an unnamed construct, looks completely devastated.
“Wait, you mean…people DID get in here?! People actually tried to break into this crypt and I didn’t even get to fight them? Oh, dammit, DAMMIT!!”
You look to Zani. She points to the arrows.
“This is the trap I was talking about.”
You thank Zani for her contribution.
3/7/23
Command: Approach the FAR DOOR. Determine whether it is locked.
As you approach the FAR DOOR, you don’t see any kind of lock on it, but you do realize there are some strange sounds coming from the other side.
With a cacophony of whooshing, clanking, and magical glinting, it almost sounds like there’s a fight happening. But no…it’s too rhythmic and repetitive to be a fight. Perhaps there’s some kind of machinery at work?
You look at Zani but she’s just as confused as you.
“There’s another trap in there I was going to warn you about but…I dunno what that sound is.”
You look to the construct, but she also shrugs.
“I’ve literally never been outside this room.”
You listen a few moments longer. The rhythmic commotion of whooshing and clanking and magical glinting continues, with no signs of stopping or changing.
Command: let her come along. "your arguing will be funny."
The construct pumps her fist.
“YES! Who’s got two thumbs and still has a reason to live? This gal!”
The construct steps out of the rubble and takes her place in the group. Zani sighs.
“Well, I guess we could use some muscle…”
The construct gives Zani’s arm a squeeze.
“You got that right.”
“Don’t touch me.”
Command: also, shout to the sky for a companions section to my status screen
You don’t actually do this, because that would be too meta, but yes a PARTY screen will be added since you have an actual party.
ZANI joined your party! (Now that it’s an official party)
??? joined your party!
Oh, speaking of which…
Command: Ask the construct if she has a name, and whether she can try to keep her more violent urges under control...
She nods.
“Yes and no! Er, I mean…’no and yes.’ I mean…um…I don’t have a name…and I forgot the second half of your question already!”
“You don’t have a name?”
The construct chuckles dismissively.
“Of course not. I’m a Battle Construct. We don’t get names. Usually people make hundreds of us to siege castles and stuff, not…like…hang out. But, if you wanna give me a name, go ahead.”
Command: look up construct in book
Thumbing through the BOOK, you find a section on Battle Constructs, with a picture that looks almost exactly like your new companion, flaming hair and all.
Apparently, Battle Constructs are statues that are animated with the power of Spirit Fire, magical flame of concentrated psychic energy which, when alchemized in a very specific way, can serve as a sort of “artificial soul.” Effectively, a Battle Construct is a collection of rocks that are possessed and manipulated by an artificial ghost. This makes Battle Constructs particularly difficult to destroy, because no matter how much damage their physical body sustains, they can be repaired quite easily as long as their Spirit Fire still burns.
As one might guess, the simplest way to kill a Battle Construct is to douse their Spirit Fire, specifically the mane of flame that burns on the tops of their heads. That’s probably why the construct you were fighting freaked out when you pulled out a divinely-enchanted WATERING CAN…
3/6/23
Command: try and help the construct
You start to dig through the RUBBLE.
“Oh, for the love of…”
Zani does a head motion that makes very clear she’s rolling her eyes under her mask.
You manage to shove some of the heavier chunks aside, having better leverage than the struggling construct beneath. The remaining pile of rubble rumbles, and the construct pops out with her arms raised and a joyous expression.
“HELL! YES! Man, I spent THREE HUNDRED YEARS wondering what my first fight would be like, but WOW!”
She steps forward and offers a hand.
“Hey, thanks for helping me get that out of my system. I REALLY needed it.”
Without hesitation she immediately pulls her CONSTRUCT’S BLADE back out of your inventory and starts shaking off the VINES. Zani sighs.
“Okay. Great job. Can we go?”
Zani turns towards the FAR DOOR once again, but the construct holds out her hand.
“Well, hold up.”
“What now?”
“Am I…y’know…coming with you?”
Zani sighs.
“You’re just a guard statue. Why would you be coming with us?”
“Well, protecting this human is the thing I was created for. It’s kinda my only reason to live.”
“You…You were just trying to kill-…”
“Untrue! That was honorable combat between two skilled warriors. Likely not something you would understand…”
“The hell does THAT mean?”
You should chime in to break up their argument. Having a skilled fighter along could be useful, but she and Zani might not get along. Should you accept her offer to join you?
3/5/23
Command: "Hey, hey! Settle down under there. Are you alright?"
You hear the construct’s muffled voice in the affirmative. The RUBBLE shifts slightly as she struggles, but she’s buried pretty deep. It doesn’t look like she’s going to escape any time soon without your help.
Zani sees you thinking about it.
“Ugh. She’s caused enough trouble. Let’s just get outta here.”
She indicates the FAR DOOR, which seems to lead to the ENTRANCE CHAMBER of the building you’re in.
The construct’s struggling intensifies.
Attack: spray water in her general direction
The WATERING CAN can’t exactly “spray” water, especially not from your position. However, that does give you an idea.
In a last-ditch effort to protect yourself, you hold up the watering can in front of your neck. As the construct again tries to jab at you, the tip her blade becomes immersed in the water. She looks on, confused, as VINES slowly start to grow along the blade of her sword, up towards her arm.
Realizing what’s happening, the construct releases her blade in alarm and steps backwards. Unfortunately…she steps a little too far back…
Defense: pray
Just as you’d hoped, the surprise causes the construct to step back directly into the path of the crumbling PILLAR. At this exact moment, the final structural crumbs holding up the pillar give way and the pillar begins to fall.
The construct looks up just in time to see the massive stone tower land directly on her with a deafening crash. You shield your eyes as rubble and dust erupt throughout the room.
A minute passes and the chaos subsides. There is now just a mountain of stone RUBBLE in the middle of the room.
COMBAT VICTORY!
CONSTRUCT’S BLADE added to inventory!
Zani pokes at the rubble as you get to your feet.
“Huh.”
Suddenly, the rubble begins to shift! Someone under there is moving! Zani reels back with surprise. Is…is the construct still alive?
3/3/23
Attack: Attempt to douse the flame on her head with a splash of water from the hole on top of the WATERING CAN
The moment you pull out the WATERING CAN, your opponent stops short. Her eyes lock on it and her expression shifts from battle-lust to sudden terror.
With a flick, you splash water towards her head in an attempt to douse the flame. She shrieks and blocks most of the water with her forearm, the rest splashing on her face and armor. Almost immediately, you see a small amount of moss grow on the portions of her stone body that the water has soaked into.
She puts her arm down and stares at you, her terrified face twisting back into a mask of rage. You thought she was angry before, but this is a new level. Looks like you really got to her with that last move.
Defense: Bring the sword to a defensive position and try to glance her blows off, avoiding the full brunt
You ready your sword, but unfortunately, you’ve angered her into a much more dangerous state. She raises her blade high and brings it down onto you with all her might, the force nearly bringing you to your knees as you barely manage to block. But she doesn’t stop. She rains strike after strike onto you as you try to back away. With every deflection, her breathing gets heavier and her eyes wilder.
Seething with frustration, she kicks you in the chest, sending you sprawling onto the ground. She puts a sword to your neck
Zani looks worried.
“Uhhh, okay! I think you win! Can we stop…trying to kill our…person?”
In other news, that pillar is still crumbling. Fortunately, from your prone perspective, you can see that it’s not actually supporting anything but open sky. Still, if it comes down, you don’t want to be the one under it…
3/2/23
Attack: Wait until after her next strike with the two-handed sword, then make a swipe at her eye(s?) with my sword as she brings her sword back into position to swing again.
You hold back, waiting for the construct to swing again. She pauses, too, apparently having had the same idea, or at least expecting you to go on the offensive after her last whiff.
The stare-down doesn’t last long, though. Seeing your hesitation, she wildly swings at you again. The long reach and wide sweep of her blade makes it difficult for you to dodge-and-counterattack the way you intended, so you end up backing away from a couple more swings while you wait for your opening.
Frustrated, she charges forward again. You take this moment to strike quickly, jabbing the point of your sword directly in her glowing left eye.
She screams and lets go of her sword, but quickly catches it in the air before it falls. She swings at you a couple more times, grunting with pain and frustration, but you hold her at a distance by shoving the tip of your sword (and her eye) farther away from you.
So now your sword is…poked in her eye. She doesn’t seem to have any meat in there, being a magical construct, but this is clearly causing her some kind of pain.
Defense: Heeding Zani's warning, anticipate that the pillar can't take much more and be ready to move to the center of the room where the ceiling has already collapsed in the event it breaks.
As she continues to flail at you, you use your sword (still jabbed in her eye) shove the construct closer to the center of the room. Not a second too soon, it seems. With ominous clattering, cracks are starting to spread across the damaged pillar.
At this point the construct realizes she can just…like…back up to free her eye from your blade. She does so, and while she’s still visibly reeling from the pain, it doesn’t look like you’ve done her eye any permanent damage.
3/1/23
Attack: Strike at the figure's sword hand when she attacks
It’s a two-handed sword, so…that’s kinda just “her hands.”
As she draws back for another swing, you thrust your sword at her hands in an attempt to disarm her. You manage to poke the hilt of her sword hard enough that it slips from her grasp, but unfortunately this leaves you in a very awkward position stretched out in front of her. She takes advantage by kicking you hard in the stomach. By the time you’ve recovered your breath, she’s recovered her sword.
Defense: Attempt to stay near a PILLAR, moving around it as needed for cover
As she goes in for another strike, you back towards a pillar such that she can’t get a good angle to swing at you. Undeterred, she simply swings as hard as she can anyway, missing your head but taking a chunk out of a pillar. You hope that this is simply a sign that the pillars are fragile, and not a sign that she has the strength to cleave a mountain.
Zani shouts from a safe distance.
“Dammit, be careful! If you bring the roof down it could kill all of us!”
You shrug at her.
”I wasn’t yelling at you!”
Command: Draw the SWORD and whisper a brief prayer to Bludletta... Do I know one?
You draw your SWORD. You didn’t read any prayers to Bludletta in the BOOK, but you did read an old saying among warrior bards, “Drawing your sword is prayer enough.”
You see the faintest smirk creep across the FIGURE’s face.
Zani puts a hand on your shoulder.
“Oh! Don’t worry about her. She’s here to protect you!”
You give Zani a confused look.
“This whole place was made to protect your body, y’know, while you were on your little extradimensional space-god journey. She was summoned to stand guard of the inner chamber, just like I was recruited to…um…well, provide exposition I guess.”
Your defenses almost drop, but in a moment, the figure whirls around and charges at you with her sword raised. She slashes, and you manage to block just in time, your blades clashing and a shower of sparks flying between you.
The figure’s burning eyes stare into yours. She doesn’t seem friendly.
Zani, alarmed, leaps behind the figure and tries to pull her off you.
“Hey what the hell?! This is the…the person! The one we’re protecting!”
The figure elbows Zani in the stomach, sending the harlequin reeling backwards, then speaks with the fury of a wildfire.
“I…don’t…care.”
The figure presses harder and you’re sent backwards. You land on your feet and steady yourself as she raises the tip of her blade towards you. You back away as she slowly advances.
“Three…hundred…years! I was created three hundred years ago to guard this chamber. For three hundred years, I’ve protected you while you were on your journey. Do you know how many people I’ve killed? Do you know how many intruders I’ve had to fight off just to keep you safe?”
You shrug. The figure’s speech suddenly becomes more frantic.
“ZERO!! In THREE HUNDRED YEARS not a SINGLE person so much as set FOOT in here! Do you have ANY idea how frustrating that is for a Battle Construct?! To be starved of combat for THREE WHOLE CENTURIES? I haven’t even MOVED in that time! All I could do was feel my body slowly crumble, and my blade slowly dull just from time itself! IT WAS HORRIBLE!! So you know what?”
Her tone returns to one of pure fury."
“I don’t care anymore! I don’t care who you are, and I don’t care why I was created. Two hundred years in, I made a vow. No matter WHO comes into this chamber, NO ONE is leaving without a fight! NOT EVEN YOU!!”
She’s absolutely seething, breathing furiously through clenched teeth as she continues to advance.
You stop backing away.
You take a fighting stance. A massive grin spreads across the figure’s face.
“HELL YEAH!”
She charges at you once again.
Command: ready SWORD
COMBAT START!
2/28/23
Command: Move beyond DOOR into next room
Thankfully, the heavy wooden DOOR isn’t locked. You open it and step through, but stop short when you see what’s on the other side.
The room beyond is large and circular, with great stone PILLARS going up to the ceiling. This room is also in much worse repair than the room you just left, with chunks of wall and pillar crumbled to rubble in various places, and a hole in the ceiling through which moonlight is pouring in.
But none of that is why you stopped.
In the center of the room is a FIGURE with her back to you. She’s a tall woman, with a sword at her side, dressed like one might imagine an Amazon warrior. You’d describe her as “statuesque,” except for the fact that her skin and armor are literally made of stone, so that might be too on-the-nose.
For a moment, you take her for another statue, but the moment you step inside the chamber, a burst of flame erupts from the top of her head. From this blaze, lines of firey-red energy trace themselves down her form, filling the cracks and seams of her armor in intricate patterns. Slowly, she begins to move, and you hear what sounds like her drawing breath for the first time in decades. A blast of heat hits your face as the whole room radiates with her energy.
She lifts her sword and slowly turns her head to the side. Her burning red eye sets on you.
Looks like she heard you come in.
2/27/23
Command: Look to Zani for approval
Zani nods.
“Yeah, this is pretty much what I meant."
Command: Sink KNIFE into remaining AXE handles
With renewed confidence, you use the KNIFE to disarm the next two swinging AXES in the same manner as the first. It’s strange, though. Even though this wood is long-dead, the dark energy definitely causes it to writhe as though it’s in pain, just like the chest.
You trigger the last five axes and disarm them in succession as well. Heavy blades clatter across the floor left and right, until your path to the other side is finally clear. Now you’re standing on a floor of useless pressure plates, surrounded by scattered axe blades, with twisted rods of wood flailing pathetically above you.
Zani claps her hands.
“Now that’s what I call not solving puzzles! Let’s get outta here.”
The DOOR is right in front of you…
Command: Attempt to sink KNIFE into wooden AXE handle
You hold out the KNIFE as the nearest AXE swings towards you. As the axe whizzes past your face, the knife embeds in the wooden HANDLE. You let go and step back as the axe continues to swing. Before your eyes, the same tendrils of death that destroyed the chest begin to radiate from the knife’s blade. Darkness surrounds the axe handle, and you feel a deep foreboding well in your stomach. The handle twists, bends, and eventually snaps, sending the axe head crashing to the ground and the knife with it.
You pick up the knife. That’s one axe down. You could probably do that with the rest of them.
You open the BOOK and see if you can find any of the symbols you noted on the OBJECTS you’re carrying with you. To your surprise, you find them all in a specific section. Apparently, the symbols correspond to a pantheon of deities known as the LOST GODS. They’re believed to be the creators of this world, but for some reason, they abandoned this planet and its people many millennia ago.
The symbol on the cover of the BOOK represents Stelios, the God of Stones. He was worshipped by scholars as a protector of history and knowledge.
The symbol on the WATERING CAN is the holy mark of Zylen, Goddess of Water. She was the most commonly-worshipped of the pantheon, as the embodiment of the harvest, growth and nature.
Among the many intricate carvings on the FLUTE, you find the cyclonic symbol of Sforzando, the God of Wind. He was a god of the arts and creativity, and was specifically known as the god who gave the world music.
You don’t see a symbol on the SWORD, until you realize that the hilt itself is shaped like the symbol of Bludletta, Goddess of Fire. People would pray for her favor before great battles, not specifically as a goddess of war, but as the avatar of strength, heroism, courage and victory.
Like the sword, the KNIFE doesn’t have a symbol on it, but vaguely resembles in its entirety the symbol of Sil, God of Shadows. A feared deity, said to represent death itself. Sil was worshipped only by mad cultists and edgy teenagers.
The MASK on Zani’s face appears to correspond to Mirthena, Goddess of Happiness. Mirthena doesn’t have a specific holy symbol, but was often associated with gold, and represented by masks of various expressions. Records of Mirthena are…strangely contradictory. Some seemed to view her as a goddess of love and a bringer of joy, while others viewed her as a temptress seeking to drown people in their vices.
You don’t see the spiral on the CUBE anywhere in the book, but by process of elimination, the cube probably corresponds to the last god in the pantheon, Quadris, God of Forcefields. Very little was known or written about Quadris, other than that he apparently guarded “the secrets of the universe.” Apparently, there was much theological debate as to whether Quadris existed at all.
Zani looks over your shoulder.
“What’cha reading?”
Command: LOOK UP the symbols on the ARTIFACTS in the BOOK.
Command: headpat zani
You close the book and pat Zani on the head.
“Um…okay. You can tell me later I guess?”
Command: equip sword
SWORD equipped!
SWORD increased COMBAT to Level 2!
Command: slash trap with sword
You swing the SWORD wildly at the TRAP. You hit a couple PRESSURE PLATES and manage to set off two more AXES, so now three axes are swinging.
That was a decent idea, but you’ll need more of a plan. Is there any specific part of the trap you want to attack?
2/26/23
Command: break the trap harder
Unfortunately, you have no idea how to go about doing that.
Zani chuckles.
“Come on, you’re carrying artifacts of divine power. If they can’t even get us past one cartoonishly-oversized axe trap, we’ve got bigger problems.”
2/25/23
Command: Ask Zani: "Who am I? How do you know me?"
She cocks her head to one side, a bit confused.
“Hm? What do you me-…OH! Right right right! I was told your memory might be a little weird when you got back.”
She steps away from you and begins digging through her pockets.
“I was given something for precisely this. Lemme just…see here…ah!”
She pulls out an earthtone parchment and unrolls it. For dramatic effect, she jumps back up onto the statue pillar as she begins to read.
WELCOME YE TO THE LAND OF SHADOWS! WITHIN THE-
“Geez, do I have to read ALL of this? Well, whatever…”
WELCOME YE TO THE LAND OF SHADOWS! WITHIN THESE FORSAKEN LANDS, DEATH AND MADNESS RULE ALL, AND THE HISTORIES OF A THOUSAND FAILURES ARE TRACED INTO THE STONE OF OUR RUINED SPIRES.
FOR YOU SEE, THE LAYLINES THAT GOVERN THIS WORLD’S MAGIC ALL CONVERGE UPON THIS ONE LAND, MAKING IT A PLACE OF INCREDIBLE…BUT UNCONTROLLABLE POWER.
ALL WHO HAVE COME HERE SEEKING TO HARNESS THIS WORLD’S GREAT MAGICS HAVE FOUND THEMSELVES BOUND, TWISTED AND ENSLAVED BY THE POWERS THEY SOUGHT TO CONTROL. MAGIC, YOU SEE, IS THE POWER OF CHANGE, AND THOSE WHO GRAPPLE WITH MAGICAL FORCES GREATER THAN THEMSELVES WILL INVARIABLY FIND THEMSELVES CHANGED…MUTATED INTO IMPOSSIBLE FORMS, OR WORSE. AND YET, THE WORLD’S ARROGANCE KNOWS NO BOUNDS. MORE WILL COME, AND MORE WILL SUFFER.
BUT, THERE MIGHT YET BE HOPE.
IT IS BELIEVED BY SOME THAT THE CONVERGENCE, THE PLACE WHERE THIS WORLD’S LAYLINES MEET, IS ITSELF TWISTED IN AN UNNATURAL WAY. WERE THIS CONVERGENCE TO BE UNTANGLED, THE LAYLINES BROUGHT TO HARMONY AND BALANCE RESTORED, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT SANITY COULD RETURN TO THIS PLACE OF MADNESS.
AND SO YOU, (POINT TO HERO) HAVE TAKEN ON AN IMPOSSIBLE TASK!
CALLING UPON DIVINE POWER, YOU HAVE DIVED INTO THE INFINITE, FAR FROM OUR REALITY. YOU HAVE RETURNED WITH ARTIFACTS BLESSED BY THE GODS THEMSELVES, WITH THE BELIEF THAT THEY MAY GIVE YOU THE STRENGTH OF THE HEROES OF LEGEND. WITH THESE ARTIFACTS, IT IS HOPED THAT SOME WAY TO RESTORE THE BALANCE WILL BE FOUND.
IN A LAND SCARRED BY THE HORRORS OF ARROGANCE, YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE MOST PRIDEFUL PATH OF ALL, BELIEVING THAT YOU CAN BRING THIS ISLAND’S UNIMAGINABLE POWER TO HEEL. YOU WILL LIVE FOREVER AS A HERO, OR DIE A FORGOTTEN FOOL. THESE LANDS CARE NOT.
Zani rolls up the parchment.
“Ya get all that?”
You’re lost in thought. As she read those words, the memories began to flow back into your head. Yes, yes you are trying to untangle the Convergence and restore balance to the Land of Shadows. You did travel to the realm of the divine to beseech the assistance of the Gods. And these weird objects you’re carrying…are they the artifacts? It’s still hazy but…you think you’re starting to understand.
Zani puts her arm around your shoulder again.
“Pretty cool, huh?”
Command: ask the harlequin if the mask really listened to my admonishment
She chuckles.
“Well, it’s a mask, so probably not. But, y’know, I’m sure someone was listening.”
She winks, though you’re not sure how you could tell she winked through the mask.
Command: ask zani if she's ever seen a strange sword
Zani looks around.
"In a place like this? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a NORMAL sword! Everything’s just as crazy around here as when you left.”
Command: examine something that doesn't exist
You attempt to examine something that doesn’t exist, but since it doesn’t exist, you fail.
Zani gives a knowing chortle.
Command: ask zani for help with the puzzle trap
Zani spins on her heel to look at the TRAP.
“Right right, that thing. Well, what you want to do is-…”
She pauses when she sees one AXE is already swinging freely.
“Oh. The puzzle’s broken. You tried to brute-force it didn’t you?”
Zani steps on the two safe plates towards the third row, but gets scared and acrobatically leaps back to the edge when the axe swings in front of her. She sighs and, with a spin, puts an arm around you.
“Ugh, well, I don’t think we’ll be getting past it the normal way, now.”
You both watch the axe continue to swing. You ask if she has any ideas.
“Hmmm, nothing specific but, if it’s already broken, maybe we could…y’know…just break it harder?”
2/24/23
Command: Ask HARLEQUIN: "Who are you?"
She spins around.
“Zani Vigaltas, at your service! I was chosen to be your faithful guide upon your return to this world.”
She leans against a wall.
“If you’re wondering why a weirdo like me was chosen, I’m just as confused as you are. Then again, not a lot makes sense around here, does it?”
Command: Ask HARLEQUIN: "What were you expecting me to put into your hand?"
She looks confused by this question at first, but then quickly shows realization.
With an exaggerated flick of the wrist, she points to her face.
"My mask, of course. I would have put it on my face myself, but hey, you did it for me! One less step!”
Command: Explain to myself/narrerator that the sword was merely an attempt to affect the narrative tone, and stealth is more useful long-term
Again, you get no response, but you feel like someone somewhere is listening.
Command: Examine literally everything in the room
You decide to give things a closer look.
The PRESSURE PLATES are made of polished stone. Given that they react under the weight of the cube, the mechanism under them must be incredibly sensitive. On a close inspection, all the pressure plates are identical, so there doesn’t appear to be a way to discern a path through them just by looking at them.
The AXES are heavy and sturdy, with blades of sharpened steel and wooden handles the size of tree trunks. They’re secured to the wall by metal clasps that look hinged to open and release them when triggered. Every blade is about the same height as you, for perfect bisection.
The HINGE to which the axes are connected is, when you look closely, a complex series of metal gears. Since the ceiling is a good 30-ish feet high, you can’t get a great view of exactly how this gear system works.
The STATUE loosely resembles a figure in robes, but is so worn by time it could be just about anything with enough imagination. Weirdly, the statue looks much older than the trap mechanism behind it. It almost looks older than the crypt itself. Its only discernable feature is an outstretched hand, looking as though it’s waiting to be handed something.
Oh, and at the far end of the room, on the other side of the trap, is another DOOR. I suppose that might have been obvious, but just confirming yes, that’s the exit to this room.
And that’s absolutely everything you can examine in this room.
You toss the CUBE onto a PRESSURE PLATE behind the one you confirmed was safe. To your delight, it clicks down safely, too!
But which way would the path go next? Standing on the newly-confirmed-safe plate, you drop the cube onto the plate beyond it.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t go so well. The AXE on the left wall releases and swings violently across that row of plates. The cube is thankfully just small enough to go underneath without a scratch, but you wouldn’t have been so lucky.
The axe swings back the other way, and…does not secure. To your dismay, the axe is now swinging back and forth across this third row perpetually. Looks like whoever designed this trap didn’t want it to be brute-forced.
So…um…now you have a swinging axe to deal with. You grab the CUBE and retreat to the edge to reconsider your options.
Command: Continue using the cube to test pressure plates
Command: Place the MASK on the STATUE's face
You jam the MASK onto the STATUE’s face and, to your surprise, it stays there. There’s a brief pause, but you can feel on the back of your neck that something is happening. The mask glows slightly, and as tendrils of golden light behind to spiral out of it, you can see whatever energy was contained within start to flow into the stone figure.
The statue rumbles. The eyes of the mask glow brighter. The hand of the statue’s outstretched arm bursts open, revealing shining golden skin beneath the stone. As you step back, the statue slowly crumbles away, and a new individual is revealed.
Before you stands a HARLEQUIN, with golden skin the color of the golden mask. Her outfit is a wild collage of colors and patterns, and in her eyes glows a faint golden light that pierces into your soul.
She steps down from the statue pedestal and steps on catlike tiptoe towards you, clapping her hands together and rubbing them excitedly.
“Oh my! Is it time for us to play already? Where DOES the time go?”
2/23/23
Command: examine the in the hallway
The PRESSURE PLATES are arranges in an 8x8 grid. Each row of pressure plates has a corresponding AXE waiting to the side.
Picking randomly, you toss the CUBE at the third plate from the left on the row closest to you. It lands with a clatter, and the pressure plate slowly depresses beneath it.
You hold your breath and…nothing.
Surprisingly, that one appears to be safe! You pick up the CUBE.
Command: re-equip knife
I-…
…okay.
KNIFE equipped!
KNIFE increased COMBAT to Level 1!
KNIFE increased STEALTH to Level 1!
Well done.
Command: throw the cube at one of the plates
I don’t see an in the hallway here.
Command: Look around
You decide you should probably get your bearings after what just happened, so let’s re-assess.
You are in a large stone hall, resembling a crypt. The air is dense and silent, with a low mist hanging over everything.
You emerged from a room with a barred WINDOW overlooking a strange and twisted land, an empty SARCOPHAGUS and an overturned stone TABLE.
At the far end of the room is a large mechanical TRAP of giant AXES connected to a HINGE on the ceiling. There’s a checkerboard of PRESSURE PLATES beneath them that will likely cause you to be sliced in half if navigated incorrectly.
And in the middle of the hall is a stone STATUE. Its figure is rather indistinct, clearly worn with time, but its hand is outstretched. It almost looks as though the statue wants something.
And that’s it.
There's a 0000000 in the corner of the hallway.
You put the KNIFE away and pull out the SWORD!
SWORD equipped!
SWORD increased COMBAT to Level 2!
It’s up to you whether this makes you any less bored.
Command: Equip sword, in the hopes of getting something other than the boredom of a room
Command: unequip mask, then re-equip it, in a ploy to regain that absurdity
You try removing and re-wearing the MASK.
MASK equipped!
MASK increased EMOTION to Level 5!
MASK equipped!
MASK increased EMOTION to Level 5!
MASK equipped!
MASK increased EMOTION to Level 5!
You don’t feel any differently. It doesn’t look like it’s going to have…THAT effect on you anymore.
But maybe you could put it on someone else, hm?
Command: fine, examine the [REDACTED]
You
You
You
You
You
Dismissing unknown element call…
I don’t see a [REDACTED] here.
Command: admonish both the sword and the mask for arguing
You express your disappointment with the SWORD and MASK. Neither of them respond, but you feel as though your words have not gone unheard.
Command: examine the....thing?
I don’t see a…thing here.
Command: Examine contraption
As you approach the CONTRAPTION, it becomes clear that what you’re looking at is actually a TRAP.
Lining the walls of the hall are a series of AXES connected to a central HINGE on the ceiling. On the floor, a checkerboard of obvious PRESSURE PLATES are positioned in such a way that they will clearly release the aforementioned axes into your aforementioned self.
Given the number of pressure plates, it’s likely there’s an untrapped path through them. Hmm. It’s a puzzle, clearly. But who would even put something like this here?
Command: equip sword briefly, then re-equip knife
Oh, goodie.
SWORD equipped!
SWORD increased COMBAT to Level 2!
You wave the sword around. Once again, you feel like an amazing badass or whatever the sword made you feel like last time. THE MASK EXPLODES OFF YOUR FACE No, that’s doesn’t happen. You unequip the sword just like YOU TAKE THE MASK OFF FIRST No! You’re just going to take the sword and THE MASK BECOMES A Shut up!
You drop but don’t the sword and mask no not the sword mask stays on sword makes you drop it no break no stop it 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Closing active channel…
Adjusting vector permissions…
Reformatting active disseminations…
Compiling…
Compiling…
Compiling…
You shake your head. You still have the MASK on your face and the SWORD in your hand, but you feel much more normal. Now what were you doing? Oh, right, you were only going to hold the sword briefly. You switch back to the KNIFE.
KNIFE equipped!
KNIFE increased COMBAT to Level 1!
KNIFE increased STEALTH to Level 1!
Back as you were. Despite that outburst, nothing seems to have changed besides there being a [REDACTED] in the corner of the room, now.
Command: flute
You flute. Nothing in the area responds.
Command: attack bars
You swing the KNIFE at the metal bars. Unfortunately, it’s not nearly as effective against metal as it is against wood. Your slashes bounce off harmlessly.
2/22/23
Command: Look out WINDOW
You take a look out the WINDOW, a rush of cool night air hitting your face.
The world before you looks twisted, strange, and more than a little dead. Your current location appears to be a forest of gnarled trees, their branches bare and their bark contorted in hideous mutations. Though no life can be seen out there, you hear the rustling and gnashing of unimaginable things into the decaying underbrush.
The sky above is a sinister but admittedly attractive shade of violet, with a grand moon of polished stone bathing the land in soft, mournful light.
In the distance, you see what appear to be signs of civilization, a VILLAGE built at odd angles, and a large BURNING BUILDING on a hill.
Unfortunately, the window is barred, so it doesn’t look like you’ll be getting out this way.
Command: Unpin MAP from DOOR and take it
Now that’s thinking!
You grab the MAP and take a good look at it. It definitely depicts a (small) continent in the shape of a smiley face. More specifically, the smile resembles the comedy theatrical mask you’re currently wearing. Is this a map of where you are?
Notably, on the spot where you booped a nose onto the smile, you now see a drawing of a prominent stone structure. Hmmmm…
MAP added to inventory!
Command: Find fallen MASK
You didn’t actually lose it. It just fell off your face. It’s still in your inventory.
Command: Equip mask
Really? You want to do that again? Yes, it’s a fantastic idea and you do it right now.
MASK equipped!
MASK increased EMOTION to Level 5!
Ah, finally you’re back to normal. Are there any secret messages in this new room that the MASK might reveal? No? Great, you didn’t expect there would be.
Command: Open door
You continue your hotstreak of interacting with the only obviously-interactable thing available to you, eager to see where this thrilling adventure takes you next.
Oh look, it’s another nondescript stone room! At least this one’s larger! You enter a huge stone hall, windowless and deathly still. You can hear the whistling of wind, but it’s probably just from the WINDOW in the room behind you. Huge stone pillars keep the worrisomely heavy-looking stone ceiling aloft. The hall is lit with a row of half-melted candles lining the walls, and an eerie mist hangs in the air wherever you look. If this is a crypt, you wonder why it’s necessary to make a resting place for the dead look this deliberately spooky.
At the far end of the hallway is a strange wood-and-stone CONTRAPTION taking up the hall’s entire width and height, but in front of that is a very neutral-looking STATUE in the vague shape of a person. The statue has its hand outstretched to you.
Command: Look inside SARCOPHOGUS
Drumroll please…
…
…
…It’s empty!
Oh, you realize the sarcophagus is this room’s equivalent of the CHEST, which was also empty. So, an empty thing got turned into another, thematically-consistent empty thing. Metaphysics!
2/21/23
Command: Draw on the BLANK MAP with QUILL
Hmm, a writing implement and a blank sheet of paper. How did you ever guess?
You pull out your QUILL and draw a great big smiley face on the MAP. Your ARTISTRY is only Level 1, but it looks okay. Boop! You dot the nose, and your masterpiece is complete.
As you step back to admire your work, the image…changes. The ink begins to spread and flow. Your simple lines unfold into intricate patterns. Spiderwebs of ink coalesce into rivers, mountains, forests and valleys, with your rough doodle slowly weaving into a complete portrait of a smiley-face shaped continent you’ve never seen before.
Oh my, and now it seems the entire room is shaking. It was so subtle you couldn’t even tell when it began, but now it’s so intense you can’t even keep the MASK on your face. Your MASK clatters to the ground, and you realize the spread of the ink hasn’t limited itself to the paper. Strands of ink envelop the door and begin pushing their way along the walls. On the floor and ceiling, too, more and more darkness creeps its way towards you. You back away from the door, but there’s nowhere to run. Inky blackness is slowly covering the room, and the light is starting to fade.
You curl into a ball as the strands of ink converge on you. The room goes dark.
You are in shadows.
But then…moonlight? You open your eyes. A WINDOW has appeared on the wall beside you, and suddenly things are illuminated once more.
Looking around, though, this doesn’t look like the same room you were just in. The dimensions are the same, but the walls, floor and ceiling are all dusty stone. Where the ruined chest once lay is now an open SARCOPHOGUS, and the upturned table is…well, it’s a different-looking upturned TABLE (made of stone this time!)
Perhaps most importantly, though, the DOOR is now real. It’s made of solid wood, with a wrought-iron handle, and a detailed MAP of a smiley-face-shaped continent pinned to it.
2/20/23
Command: what
You stand around confused, but that’s not especially helpful, hm?
Come now, doesn’t anything in your inventory seem useful right about now?
Command: Speak the command word: Xyzzy!
2/19/23
Nothing happens.
Command: Open Door
You poke at the two-dimensional image of a doorknob on the wall but, as expected, nothing happens. The DOOR is more just a series of lines framing the blank MAP on the wall.
Command: Look up
The ceiling is the most featureless part of this room, and that’s saying something.
Command: Upend table
With a mighty heave, you toss the TABLE onto its side. It lands with a THUD that echoes through the room for several seconds.
…
That would probably have been more impressive if you hadn’t taken everything off the table first.
Command: Equip mask
You put the MASK up to your face. Surprisingly, the inside is even slightly perfumed, filling your nose with a pleasingly sweet (though unidentifiable) scent.
MASK equipped!
MASK increased EMOTION to Level 5!
As you look around the room, suddenly your situation seems much more deliciously absurd. A featureless room? An old-time treasure chest? Is this an adventure or the worst escape room ever? You can’t help but laugh.
Wearing the mask doesn’t reveal any hidden symbols or passages, but I suppose that would actually be creative, hm?
2/18/23
Command: Take Mask
You already have the MASK. Duplicate actions cannot be processed.
Command: Examine watering can (then take it)
You pick up the WATERING CAN. It’s a simple metal watering can painted green, almost looking hand-made. On the side is a green droplet-like emblem you don’t recognize.
Inside, the surface of some fresh water sparkles. It’s quite inviting, and as you stare at it, you realize you’re a little thirsty…
Command: Drink from watering can
You put the lip of the watering can to your lips and take a sip. You considered pouring the nozzle-end into your mouth, and while that would have been funnier, you’re really just thirsty. The water is cool, fresh and pure, and after one sip you feel incredibly refreshed.
But…you feel something else, too. You feel the water flow through your body. You feel it course into your muscles. You feel it fortify your bones. You feel every part of you made ever-so-slightly stronger by this strange, supernatural water. With that said, actually feeling your bones being strengthened was also a deeply unsettling experience, so you’re not especially inclined to do that again.
VITALITY increased to Level 1!
WATERING CAN added to inventory!
You’re carrying quite a few things at this point. You’re starting to lose track of them all! Looks like you might need a little help!
STATUS SCREEN UNLOCKED!
Command: Take mask
You take the MASK.
MASK added to inventory!
…um.
You realize you should probably also inspect the mask, so you pull it back out. It’s a theatrical comedy mask, and quite entrancing to look at. The face is plated with pure gold, and the inside padded with velvet in a dizzying swirl of colors. While the mask’s expression is cheerful, something about it looks almost too cheerful.
Even so, this mask has an undeniable CHARM to it.
Command: Find exit to room
The exit is presumably the DOOR. You attempt to open it to be certain, but find you can’t interact with it at all.
As it turns out, the door is completely two-dimensional, like it’s drawn onto the wall. There’s no actual knob or hinge to interact with. It’s 100% flat.
So, it might be more accurate to say that this room doesn’t have an exit.
Command: Examine sword
You’re so happy you did this.
This is easily the coolest SWORD you’ve ever seen. The blade had been polished like a mirror, the bright red hilt is emblazoned with an emblem of dazzling flame, and the blade looks sharp enough that it could cleave any of these other stupid OBJECTS in half without getting a scratch.
You grab the sword and hold it aloft, looking like a total badass. Just having this thing in your hands makes you want to FIGHT someone. You make it your number one goal to get out of this room and find a battle to join.
SWORD added to inventory!
You calm down a little once the SWORD is no longer in your line of sight. Joining a battle is no longer necessarily your number one goal.
You can do whatever you want.
Command: Take quill
You pick up the QUILL. The tip appears to be dipped in fresh, black ink somehow. You don’t see an inkwell in the remains of the chest, though.
QUILL added to inventory!
You hear a slight CLACK from the direction of the table. Looking over, the SWORD is rocking back and forth as though it just moved a little. Huh.
Command: Attack chest with knife
You turn back to the chest and, despite something in the back of your mind telling you not to, pull out the KNIFE.
KNIFE equipped!
KNIFE increased COMBAT to Level 1!
KNIFE increased STEALTH to Level 1!
You stand over the chest and slowly raise the knife above your head. With both hands, you plunge the knife into the wooden lid, dropping to your knees and putting your full weight behind the blow. The violet blade punctures the wood effortlessly, barely making a sound on impact.
Silence…and then….
The wooden frame of the chest begins to slowly twist and writhe. Black veins of sickly darkness extend from the point of impact, gradually covering and binding the chest. The way the wood deforms, it almost looks as though its in pain. Fortunately, an object like this can’t scream. Eventually the planks are bent to the breaking point, and with sharp cracks, the chest shatters into ruin.
You stand over he fractured wood. You have a strange feeling, as though you’ve done something very terrible and yet very correct.
Kicking aside some broken planks, you notice the chest’s contents, a black QUILL pen. Looks a bit like a raven’s feather.
But why was this in a locked chest?
2/17/23
Command: Examine flute, give it a little toot
The polished silver FLUTE glints spectacularly as you pick it up. In this moment, you have a dizzying realization that this room has no visible light source. Everything is more-or-less evenly lit in a way that seems normal if you don’t think about it, but now you are very much thinking about it. You feel thankful you had such a mentally-stimulating moment with the BOOK a moment ago, as a lesser mind might have gone mad from this realization.
But anyway, back to the flute. It’s very artful in design, and covered in intricate circular patterns. These patterns seem to be illustrating…wind? Or perhaps, waves? They’re fairly abstract.
Curious, you put the flute to your lips and try to play. Despite knowing nothing of flutistry, a very pleasing chord rises from the instrument. After a little more noodling, the basics of how the instrument works come to you with surprising ease. You’re starting to feel like you could actually PLAY a tune with this thing.
ARTISTRY increased to Level 1!
FLUTE added to inventory!
Command: Try not to dry heave knowledge, and pick up the neat looking cube
Despite a mild headache, your mind feels safely expanded.
KNOWLEDGE is still Level 1! It’s fine!
As for a neat looking cube, you don’t see a neat looking cube in this room. There is, however, a completely ordinary CUBE resting on the TABLE. You pick it up and see nothing of interest about it, beyond a blue spiral pattern on one side. Huh.
CUBE added to inventory!
Command: take knife
You grab the KNIFE and freeze. Your eyes lock with the blade, and an intense sense of foreboding washes over you. Somehow, despite a SWORD being present, you can tell that this knife is the most dangerous object in the room. You feel like one stab from it could MURDER just about anything.
You’re not even sure you want to take this with you, but…
KNIFE added to inventory!
2/16/23
Command: Pick up and examine book
You pick up the BOOK from the earthtone table and look it over. A layer of dust falls off the book as you turn it over in your hands. There’s no title, but the front cover of the book is emblazoned with a hexagonal symbol you don’t quite recognize. The thick leather binding looks ancient, but continues to hold the pages tightly.
You open the book to a random page and read.
“It can therefore be assumed that these and other methods of biversional transtangulation do not themselves create fully divested instances of their native potentiality, but instead distend reflections of unpaired Act Chains through a point of cognitive perpendicularity such that the illusion of dismultitudinous actualization becomes functionally indistinguishable from the reality thereof. If one might coin the phrase ‘protodisambiguated eventa-agnosticism,’ such causal vertices tend to…”
Your head hurts. But you feel a little smarter for having read that.
KNOWLEDGE increased to Level 1!
You flip to another page. Everything else is just as inexplicable to you. There are a lot of pictures in here, though. If you wanted to LOOK UP something specific, you could use the pictures to find what you’re looking for.
BOOK added to inventory!
Command: Inspect Objects on Table
Arranged on the TABLE is a collection of seven objects. In no particular order, they are…
…a polished SWORD with a fiery red hilt,
…a rusted green WATERING CAN full of fresh water,
…an ornate silver FLUTE inscribed with intricate patterns,
…an ancient BOOK bound in earthy leather,
…a golden harlequin MASK with a wide grin,
…an amethyst KNIFE with a handle so black it absorbs all light,
…and a CUBE.
As the only sources of vibrant color in this otherwise incredibly-plain room, these objects all look very important.
2/15/23
Command: attack chest
On closer inspection, the wooden frame of the TREASURE CHEST seems much more brittle than the LOCK securing it. Seeking to exploit this obvious design flaw, you proceed to rain a series of gorilla-like haymakers down on the chest’s lid.
Unfortunately, while the wood is softer than the lock, it’s harder than your flesh. You manage to cause some minimal dents to the wood, but the incredible pain in your fists and forearms eventually forces you to stop your assault.
It doesn’t look like you’ll be getting this chest open without some kind of tool.
2/14/23
Command: attack lock
You turn your attention to the wooden TREASURE CHEST on the floor beside you. With all your might, you kick the metal LOCK on the front of it. A resounding THUD echoes through the otherwise silent room.
The lock jiggles slightly, but does not appear loosened. Unfortunately, resisting brute force is the main thing locks are designed to do.
2/13/23
Command: examine map
You carefully examine the MAP. Unfortunately, it’s completely blank.
Thinking about it, you’re not sure why you identified it as a map in the first place. It’s really just a blank piece of paper.
Anyway, it doesn’t look like the BLANK MAP will be of much help right now.
2/7/23
Command: test
You test your capabilities. Your arms and legs seem functional, capable of both movement and feeling, your eyes are clearly seeing the room around you, a stomp of your foot reveals your ears are online, and a lick of the back of your hand confirms you can both smell and taste things.
All systems go, it would seem!
2/3/23
Command: Look around
You look around again. Nothing about the room has changed. It doesn’t look like anything is going to happen until you take COMMAND of the situation.
??/??/??
Command: Look around
You take in your surroundings. You are standing in the center of a featureless white room, with no windows or other means of viewing the outside. You have no memory of how you came to be here, and you don’t remember much else, for that matter. However, you feel very strongly that the next few moments of your life are going to be very important.
In front of you is a TABLE upon which a number of OBJECTS are arranged.
To the right of you, on the floor, is a TREASURE CHEST with a prominent LOCK.
Behind you is a DOOR with a MAP pinned to it.