EVENT #1: THE EMPTY THRONE (PT 2)

[aionmods]

The Empty Throne Pt 2

ESCAPE

As more and more of the prisoners awaken to the Pleroma's power, it soon becomes clear that conflict is inevitable. Strength that was locked away blossoms once again, and simply waiting is no longer an option; those that remain in the cavern have made their choice, and they will not be kept there so easily.

By means that may not be immediately apparent, the Pleroma have found themselves able to cast a spell that will ensure their freedom... but only if they can last the half hour it may take to complete. Whatever this power, Xishen, the Aion orchestrator of the Kenoma's ritual, seems able to sense it. As it begins, she will appear at each of the Kenoma's sides.

"The Pleroma has taken hold of them," she says. "Stop them now, or when you see them again, it will be as your mortal enemies. If you believe in the Kenoma's promise, take a stand. The Regent is watching."

For those that heed her, it will not be hard to find the congregation of Pleroma, the first seeds of their teleportation magic taking form. What's more, the fires of their hope have been stoked by this new chance at survival, granted them a surge of energy born of the Pleroma, compensating for the poor state of their bodies. The tension comes to a head, between those that would follow the Regent's path towards a better universe, and those that would seize the wild power of the Pleroma to escape.

Whatever violence ensues, eventually it will come to an end. Despite the Kenoma's efforts, the teleportation spell will come to fruition, enveloping the Pleroma in a sea of light and warmth. The Kenoma can only watch as fractals of blinding color whisk the Pleroma away.

VALLEY OF INNOCENCE

You will find yourself at the Shrine of the Innocent, surrounded by a valley of flourishing wildflowers. As you step from the shade of the monument, you will find your arrived here just in time to enjoy a warm spring spring morning, the sound of birds and gentle breezes tickling your ears. The sun slowly drifts past the horizon, its rays reaching out to you, as if in comfort. The air itself is alight with a strange aura of peace, as if committing violence here would be a sacrilege. There are no man made structures as far as your eyes can see.

Flowers of all shapes and sizes can be found here, and so can fresh water and various fruits and berries. All of them are safe to eat, and seemingly grow in abundance. There are animals here as well, all the common types one would expect from a place like Earth, with the occasional odd addition. While you can try to hunt them, you will find yourself unable to follow through on any attempts to hurt the creatures here. In turn, they regard you as familiar, and will fearlessly wander close as they inspect these new arrivals. In the distance, you may even catch sight of what appears to be a unicorn, only for its ephemeral shape to disappear from sight just as quickly.

The Pleroma will find safety and comfort here for a time, before they recover enough to travel onward. At some point during the afternoon of the first day, they may spot the occasional humanoid figure moving in the distance; when attempting to move in their direction, they will find an assortment of clothing set out across the grass as if in offering. It will come in many sizes but in mostly plain colors, fitting a general aesthetic of 'things a fantasy peasant might wear'. There will also be some blankets, wrapped cheese, jams, jerky, and bread left alongside them.

While there are trees and brush enough to find shelter, the Pleroma will find they hardly need to while resting here. The weather will be picturesque, a comfortable temperature even at night, and there will be no disruptive rain or aggressive wind. Of course, nothing lasts forever, and even though there could stay here for days, what if the Regent's forces are on their way? Once again, they must find the strength to carry on.

THE TRIWATER

As the Pleroma vanish, those claimed by the Kenoma are left in the darkness of the throne room. The Hylician soldiers are clearly agitated by the fighting, but Xishen herself seems unflustered. She will only sigh before quietly coming to the aid of any Kenoma that still need it, providing some light healing magics and explaining that their work here is over. With the Pleroma gone, all that's left to do is to return to Achamoth.

Things move quickly from there. The camp grounds are packed up, and soon enough the Kenoma will be ushered towards the river at the edge of the forest, to board a particularly large river vessel. As the Hylician soldiers prepare to go their separate ways, you will be told that you are to take the Triwater river to the capital city of Achamoth, where you will finally meet your new master, the Regent. The vessel is big enough for all of you, and it will set off the moment everyone is boarded. Suddenly, the world of entrapment and ruins you've been living in since your arrival will be left behind, leaving you to ponder the nature of your future.

The boat itself is well equipped and comfortable for what it is. A variety of colorful hammocks are hung in the lower decks and are open to be claimed for the journey back, which will take a day or two. The Kenoma will be offered a change of clothes of a similar style to what they already have if necessary, and there are plenty of blankets and cushions available to make life in the hold more comfortable. There are dice available for games of chance as well as some mystifying decks of cards that seems to have twelve suits with five cards each, themed around the Legacies. The twelfth suit is for the Regent.

Though the sailors controlling the vessel will mostly keep to themselves and leave the Kenoma alone, one of them will occasionally play harp music on the deck. Though they probably don't actually need help running the ship, they will let the Kenoma help them with chores and ship running tasks if they are so inclined; generally speaking, these sailors just seem like normal people, albeit a bit shy of their passengers. If you're polite to them, they may even gives you a river tour of Horos. On this ride alone, you'll get to see several magnificent bridges spanning the Triwater's width. At night, you are treated to a clear spring sky filled with stars.

As you make it closer to Achamoth, you'll notice the landscape shift, becoming mountainous and dotted with more and more military watch posts. The land becomes increasingly lifeless in a way that's hard to put your finger on, nature giving way to man-made creations of impressive architectural prowess. Soon, you will meet the person behind it all.

QUESTIONS

Can my Kenoma character fight against other Kenoma and/or help the Pleroma?
Yes, though if you do this you must describe what your character has done in a reply to the "Committed Actions" top-level below. This way, the mods can be aware of what happened and have your character treated accordingly. They are unlikely to receive immediate consequences if they don't hurt their fellow Kenoma, but their choices will follow them into Achamoth. If a Kenoma vs Kenoma conflict escalates into serious violence (attempted or successful) committed by the Kenoma rebel, Xishen will intervene and consequences will happen immediately which may restrict their actions until the next event post.

Can our characters leave the valley?
They can, yes, but really this event is just meant to cover the day or two they spend recovering before finding a more permanent place to go. You are free to have your character investigate the valley and probe the spaces beyond it, but please save any plans for large scale travel to the next event, which will be happening on April 2nd. The game will move into a 1:1 time ratio as of then.

Can our characters leave the boat?
Technically yes, but any Kenoma who wander too far will get in trouble. You are expected to report to the Regent, and behaving as if you are considering doing otherwise will not make an good impression.

Does the hope-based Pleroma boost last into the valley?
The boost to Pleroma characters will fade shortly after arriving in the valley, like coming down from a high. They'll have to recover the normal way from there.

Comments

[lachtara]

The shard he holds is put back in its place with a small flourish of his hand. It appears back on his forehead as if it were always meant to be there.

Then, Emet-Selch holds out the same palm to carefully take the new shard. He can no longer see souls, their color, or how they shine, but there is something familiar about holding this shard. Enough for him to know that there is truth to the rumor.

"Souls are a gift from the planet itself." He explains, fondly observing the little shard and how it shimmers in the light. There's a distant sentimentality to how he speaks about it that has not been present in other topics. "They are something that magic may never replicate. It makes each of them unique in many ways."

[galdorleod]

The moment that direct control over the Shard is taken by Emet-Selch, a wave of nausea hits Howl. The young wizard takes a half-step away, caught off guard by the unexpected sensation. As the seconds start to pass, the unease gets worse, almost painful, and by the end of Emet's comments, Howl feels as though he's going to be hit with a migraine any second.

"R-Right, then," he quickly says. "That sounds like a confirmation to me." As unpleasant as the sensations are, his outward reaction isn't more than that first movement away and the unnerved look on his face. Without waiting, he snatches his Shard back from above Emet-Selch's hand and holds it in a closed fist against his chest.

Immediately, the miasma subsides. He lets out a long sigh of relief. "...You were right not to want to give me yours. That felt... terrible. I guess we shouldn't let others hold them?"

[lachtara]

"It would be in your best interest not to." Emet-Selch lets his hand fall back to his side. "Souls know to whom they belong. It comes as no surprise that you would feel some measure of discomfort when having it separated from you." Souls were typically incorporeal, One could only guess what would happen if they were to sustain physical damage.

He folds his arms and looks off. "You have my gratitude for your confidence in me, but I would suggest you be wary of trusting others with your most prized appurtenances."

[galdorleod]

Considering Emet-Selch's words in earnest, Howl looks down and opens his fist. The Shard lays flat in his palm now, its eastward facets sparkling in the morning sunlight. It looks like little more than cut glass. To think this thing is his soul...

"This is extremely powerful magic," he says gravely. "Removing a man's limbs, organs, or even head from his body, or mixing up parts willy-nilly, all while keeping him alive or making sure he can be put back together again... dangerous and difficult magic in my world, but not impossible. But to have removed our very souls from our bodies..."

The only beings in Ingary capable of that are demons. Many wizards have given up their souls to demons for the immense power in return, even while fully knowing what it would eventually do to them. Howl is ever grateful for his fortune in meeting Calcifer, so mild and kind-hearted compared to some other demons.

Frowning, he presses his Shard against his chest and it sinks back into place. Then he aims a curious look at Emet.

"...You sound quite familiar with this topic, sir."

[lachtara]

That statement in and of itself earns a slight smirk. The irony of speaking to Howl on soulcraft from within a body that is not his own is not lost on him.

"I have experience in the area." Is the only answer he provides, accompanied by a vague wave of the hand. Not an inaccurate statement, but not one he seems willing to elaborate on.

[galdorleod]

"Oh? Experience?" Howl says, smiling and narrowing his eyes to form his own vague smirk. Emet's vague answer feels like a dare. Does he really not want to tell him what 'experience' he has, after putting on such an air of pride over his talents in magic? That's disappointing, but Howl isn't going to forget this tantalizing hint any time soon.

"Well," he begins, opening his hand to hold his Shard in front of him again. He's not so unnerved after all, to still be holding it outside of his body like this, although maybe it's more accurate to say he's holding it in spite of his anxieties. "Now I know I came to the right person to ask about all this. What do you think would happen if we tried to swap our Shards?"

[lachtara]

Emet-Selch frowns at the question, but he does not withhold what he knows.

"I can not say for certain given that the rules of this world are strange to me. However, If your intent is to use the shard to switch places with the other person, then the answer is that it would likely be unpleasant."

He proceeds to explain his reasoning. "Your soul is meant for you and you alone. Taking the body of another degrades your soul. I can only imagine what attempting such a thing with shards would do." He looks at the ground with concern clear in his expression. Not for that scenario necessarily, but how their souls could already be affected by putting them in shards.

Not to mention the unforeseen consequences that the Kenoma's influence would bring. Xishen had confirmed his suspicions that there are detrimental side effects.

But if it bought him a chance to save his world...

[galdorleod]

That was... a much longer answer than Howl was expecting or asking for, and again it's filled with so much odd detail on a topic the Ingarian wizard considers obscure. He looks at his fellow mage in silence, the lingering gaze suggesting that he doesn't quite know what to say or ask in the wake of Emet-Selch's words.

"Farthing for your thoughts?" he finally says. "Your true thoughts. There's too much worry all over your face to have come from my hypothetical, sir. Something about this bothering you?"

[lachtara]

His expression dips further as he considers what to say.

"When we accepted the Kenoma, it affected our very souls. I cannot say to what degree." Without seeing the souls of others he cannot say for sure. Emet-Selch folds his arms and his brow creases in thought. "I worry for what that may mean."