Game-Summaries:3/14/2020 Recollections

Recollections by Jeroy

Following the mission to Pardor Pass I returned to Solace to give my report to Kord. He was in his chambers reviewing battle notes, formations, and troop assignments. I knock to enter and he beckons me in.

Jeroy enters and bows his head to Kord. "Thank you sir. I have a report on the Pardor Pass mission. Several members of the Eternal Order, masters of the Magistery, and Cordite were successful in stopping the Dreadhorde's march. We were able to kill the entire army except for one individual. But I have a question about the caves."

Kord smiles and responds "ah yes, Reshi reported to me upon her return. I understand you held back a bit and watched Wisakedjak work. You'll have to tell me how that was sometime. You're going to ask why my Hall was abandoned, aren't you?"

I turn around behind me to see if my ancestor Gull is in the room and talking to others without me around. I turn back cautiously "....yes" I say to Kord.

Kord laughs quickly "I had a feeling this question would be coming once I gave you that landmark. I left my home long, long ago, for the Magistery of course. Getting a little nostalgic he takes a seat at his desk and gestures to you for the other chair. Very few of us are left, who truly hail from Durmannus." I ask him if he wishes to return.

He looks up to the ceiling with a loud exhale. "ah... Would that I could Jeroy. Would that I could...I might have been the leader of my Hall of I had stayed... If there was a hall to lead." He gets a melancholic cast to his face."It's not an uncommon tale among our kind, I'm sure you've heard warning fables from your own mother, around a hearthfire perhaps, about some dwarf that got too greedy. Well, our tale is one of those warning fables." He sighs and sees your face and continues "in the wake of the great Awakening we found hundreds of new fissures in our caves. Oh Jeroy, it was a time of plenty.... For a little while. Half of the mining was done for us, we just had to walk in these new excavations and collect ore. Production ramped, our economy flourished, and we are like kings of the age of legends until we delved into one fissure in particular. One crevasse held the Doom of Durmannus, though nobody knew it at the time. By then I had already left, used some of our new found prosperity pay my way here and learn magic. I regret that I could not be there to fight what it is they awoke in the deep bowels of mother Terra... But my responsibilities lie here now, with the Magistery. Some of my family escaped that fate, but none who saw the Doom lived to tell the tale. We only know what little we do because of the evidence left behind." He looks down and shakes his head."Great gouges in the earth. Collapsed tunnels in even our most fortified locations. Whatever they found, it was angry, and it called the power of a primordial elemental fury to bear."

My eyes widen "Is it still down there?" I ask

"I have to believe it is, otherwise even in its deteriorated state, someone would have occupied the hall by now I expect. I have to admit...I haven't wanted to think about it, I have not returned there in well over a century. I feel partly responsible for the downfall of my home."

"One person cannot be responsible for that." I reassure him

He shakes himself and smiles again. "But I have a new home now. And a new clan." He nods to me. "I assume that you ask me all of this because you want to go exploring, as part of your thesis?"

"I figured that it was an important place. It sounds like it is. It could be helpful, even with a doom creature lurking. Perhaps Bloodcrier can help with that." I say with a nod to my maul.

"Perhaps indeed. When all of this settles down a bit, I'd love to go on an adventure with you Jeroy. Get away from the paperwork and..." He sighs again "I'm getting carried away. That's not my place any longer, but should you need some assistance, I'm sure I could help you out of a crevice here and there" Kord winks.

I bow and say back to him. "Thank you sir, that would be appreciated." Recapturing his normal demeanor he stands and faces the map on his wall again, you see that MANY annotations have been made since last you were here. Though he says "Dismissed" like you've heard a hundred times before from Kord, this time he watches you leave from the corner of his eye, and you swear you catch just the barest hint of a grin. With that I leave the Magistery and make my way back to the keep. As I pass through our portal I find myself not wisked back to the calm weather and nature of Shanju, but rather to an unending space bathed in pale blue light but empty at the same time. I squint as I look in all directions and slowly realize that I am joined by Tallulah, Ford, Iago, and Gawyn. I look to them all and say "Where are we?"

Iago speaks first "I have no idea, give me some time to see if I can find out." He begins to prep a spell.

I turn to our others "Ford, Talluah, or Gawyn - any ideas?" They shrug. Tallulah's keen eyes sees that the pale blue light appears to come from a specific location in the unending distance. She points "That may be a clue."

Turning to the light I ask for a moment and I attempt to consult my ancestor Unliff. He appears before us and I ask him if Iago should cast teleport to return us to the Keep. He response quickly with "woe" and disappears. I look over to Iago - "Don't cast teleport. It won't be good."

Iago, visibly frustrated, turns back to me. "Ok if you say so, Legend Lore didn't give me any additional information. I say we head towards the light."

As we walk the blue grows and then we hear the clearing of a throat behind us. We turn to see a triangle of light with tentacles, it vibrates a voice into our heads. It is an elder brain that names himself Shar Ao Navira.

Ford speaks first "is this where you live?" Shar responds simply "this is where I was born. I live here."

Iago asks "Why are we here?"

"Coin and Shar Ngolyeth worked together to destroy our world."

Gawyn askes "why do you want to defeat Shar Nerull?"

Shar Ao Navira responds "Nerull is an agent of chaos. I wish for certainty. If he rules your world he will attack gods one by one until he rules over them all."

Iago jumps in saying "What will you do after Nerull is defeated?" Shar Ao Navira responds simply saying "going back to observing."

I asked how we can defeat the eternal army. Shar says to us "You have done well so far but I can lend you all aid by granting you use of this void. The conventicle has backed the other horse. The seer is more cleve than you think. When she said she was the twin born of the Raven Queen she was not being metaphorical. She is the neglected sibling of the Raven Queen. The Seer sees only uncertainty, while the Raven Queen deals only in the certainty of death. I choose the Raven Queen. The void is in all things. You can walk through it, see through it, or one you become powerful enough - use the void. The Seal created me when she created the rain shield of Solace. Ask me anything to prove I seek to help you."

We peppered him with questions and received the following answers:

1. What is the artifact: It is the definition of our world. If it were destroyed then our world would be ruleless like the abyss.
2. What is tattoo we found in Velah's lair: It is the phylactery of Lord Dyrr.

We all pledge to Shar Ao Navira and gain the ability to planeswalk.