The Metamorphism

[Jaycy Ashleana]

The world tumbled into chaos, and Jaycy had found herself – and her baby – in the center of the maelstrom. They’d had little warning; fragments of figments of their collective imagination was the hint that something great … terrible, but great … had the potential to happen. Happen, though, it did, and despite Collie and Tass’ concern for Jaycy and the child, Jaycy left a little too late.

The world tumbled into chaos and she was there, until he took the terrified woman out. Wings tore from his back, great black things, and propelled both of them upward beyond the roof. Shards and dust fell from their bodies and scattered over the town as he carried her to safety.

He beat his wings a final time to buffer the landing on the roof of the old Library so as to not jar her with it. There still was a look of concentration etched on his face, as if he was battling more than just the wind at his back. He turned and moved towards the door that opened for him, his wings still spread in a protective circle around her as he carried her within. It wasn't until he was off the roof and down a level before the wings uncurled and vanished. The Library was abuzz with activity, though no one was around, there was a thrum of power and noise that emanated through the walls.

The shuddering had calmed, the whimpering had ceased; it honestly hadn't been long-lived, mostly an initial jolt in reaction to the events, but something had gone terribly wrong in the Outback. She couldn't describe it... not yet. But being in his arms, she nestled close to his body. Every nerve was awake, despite the exhaustion of the night. "I'm... sorry," she murmured. Scales peeked out of the loose-fitting blouse along either side of her neck, and at the ties at her wrists.

"Vana, there is nothing to ever be sorry about with me." His words were soft but hinted at a power in them that hadn't been heard in a long time, not in these walls nor on this land. He moved to one of the now open doors on the upper floors that led into a world filed with light and life... a stark contract from the dark and shuddering town they were just in.
He set her down in what could only be called a bed but was more the earth heaving gently to catch and cradle that precious one that was in his arms.

A library - it didn't have to be this library, any would do - was home to her, and the air she shared with it calmed her further... until he set her down. Instinct brought her arms up, reaching for the safety of him. It hadn't happened for a long time, this fear, this need for comfort, and she still didn't understand the nature of it. However, she gave in to it, in major part because he was letting her. "I..." Searching for words. Something was ... missing. The worst part was ... she didn't understand. She hadn't seen the mess. "What happened?" Her voice faint, almost meek.

He settled down to sit there next to where he laid her and searched over her with an eye meant for wars, looking for what was there, what wasn't, and what needed to be repaired or remade. "The Opals are no more. I knew something was amiss when I entered and felt the old pull of ShadoWeaver and it's... " Tass paused, a look of uncertainty creasing his brow. ".. it's unease. That rock never has felt that before. Beyond that, I do not know. When I felt the bottled power in that diamond that you were going to take, my first and only worry was to put myself between it and you."

"I..." She curled arms around him. "I didn't feel anything, really, from any Opals." To be fair, she didn't necessarily notice anything because she'd been fighting, but there had been a moment when the Fern had originally wilted; so brief and insubstantial that she thought nothing of it. "Thank you, love." She belatedly remembered to say.

Tass's gaze finally made a final pass over her and he set those purple hues upon hers. "I see nothing off except exhaustion, but I feel a hole... " He felt one as well within him, but his was quickly being consumed by his own power. "What connection did you have with the Fern?"

"Ummmm." The question caught her off-guard, and she blinked owlishly at him. "I.... none?" That she knew of. "Kelli and I were working one night, and... something happened. And..." Brows knit. "It... showed up?"

There was almost a tug at the edge of his lips as he listened. "Something happened, huh?"

The memory was hazy. "I... there was.... were...." She frowned, green-gold eyes cast in the general direction of the ground as she thought. "Dishes were flying? A tornado?" Oh, she was having trouble remembering. "It was a horrible night, terrifying!"

"Ahh.. a different kind of 'something'. But that's neither here nor there and no need to worry on it. How are you feeling?"

A faint chuckle and a quirked grin; his quip helped ease her slightly more, gaze briefly flicking up to his face. "Aye, love, a different kind of something." The amusement was fleeting, and she returned to thinking, eyes shifting away again. "I... there's that hole, you spoke of. I.... why did you ask me about the Fern?"

"I do not know if it is the same for all past Opal holders, but it seems that the black stone held a part of me. When it vanished, so did that part of it in me, leaving a hole. My hole is quickly being filled, but I do not know how others will cope or compensate."

"I... mayhaps that's what happened. It just felt like my insides crumbled, turned ash." A pause, then her hand slid to her midsection. "And...." she couldn't exactly finish. He knew what she'd meant, and she didn't wish to bring voice to the concern and make it real.

His hand came to rest over hers, and a small smile touched his lips. "The little one is safe and strong."

"Aye..." the word was drawn out and slow; some internal checking of her own. Dragonscales still graced her midsection, her natural armor for the night had held. She likely would get a lecture later from someone for entering Quest at all and risking it, but she at least hadn't been foolish enough to not take any precautions. "Are you... alright?" He'd mentioned the hole.

Tass's chuckle wasn't the usual light-hearted one. It held... more. "I am as alright as I can be. Nothing that happened tonight will leave anything more than a memory."

"Tass." The name spoken conveyed the depth of concern. She felt him, and despite his words, she concerned for him. It was no moment for pet names or tokens of affection. "Any affect at all, any enough to tell me .... that would be more than a memory." No matter how powerful, if the hole he felt was at all relative to her own, then she knew. Hazy memories, but did she remember how ShadoWeaver had influenced him? Recollections, vague, of dark nights with him, and she knew personally the Opal's influence.

"Hun, the Opal's disappearance will be nothing more than that.. a disappearance, for me. I've removed myself from this world, and with doing that, anything that held any kind of power here in me." His words were soft, calmly spoken, but there was a depth to them that spoke of more than just a stone.

A slow nod, and she relaxed, seeking instead comfort in his physical presence. "I'm sorry, love." Not for the question, and she knew he told her not to say sorry. "It was ..." Instead of attempting to draw it out in words, she merely shifted to say, "... thank you for taking me." Silence came for a few moments, breathing calming. "I love you."

Tass lifted her hand and gave it a soft kiss. "And I you, vana." There were so much that he knew she didn't say, and so was the same with him. So he did not press and offered no more words to touch on those pasts, those could have been's, those what if's. No, instead, he settled himself and calmed his thoughts, his presence, his power, all so that he could feel this and now, with her.

He was a solace that even he might not know, and yes, the could have beens. While she didn't regret her life with Psly, there was always still something beyond mortal love with Tass, too; he had a bit of her soul, offered freely. "I..." The crisis at hand settled, or so she thought for the moment, she turned to comforting him by reassurance that she was fine, at least enough. "Where have you been traveling of late? How have you been?" Inconsequentials.

He almost laughed.... almost. He knew she would not know the pain in both those questions, so he offered the answers freely. "Since the Dreamer woke, there has been wars for worlds. I've been at the front lines fighting to save what I can from being consumed by other Elders.. other Dragons. There have been many that I've destroyed because I could not bring them home.

The words alone hinted, and her only response was to uncurl enough from against him to aim a kiss on the lips. For sure it was a chaste kiss in those terms, it meant to convey an empathy for the situation and for him, and her need to comfort and please him. Nor did she keep the kiss long, or as opposite too light. "When can it stop? How can it stop?" Unspoken was the "what can I do?"

He returned the kiss, holding back as he did. It would not do to unleash that primal part of him here. It would be devastating to the peace that reigned in this place. "I fear that it will never stop for the Dreamer is fully awakened and will know no rest till he is no more. That could be tomorrow or eons from now. I go to where I am needed, and make deals that need to be made. If those negotiations fail, typically then it's the determined by the hearts of those who live there if I should step in or not." Tass finally did give in to a dark chuckle. "Jaycy... I've changed. My heart has changed. I now bargain the innocent away at the will of the majority. I save what I can, but just as easily I turn and walk away to go on to the next battle... the next war.. the next sundering..." (of what is left of my heart).

She couldn't claim innocence from doing that very thing, but it tore and ate at her even as she did so. The frown did return, though. "I won't fight that; I'm not begging for the old you. I'm asking where my place with you can be, so you don't have to be alone in that." That was the part that caused most anguish, the idea that Tass would be alone. Even if he felt that he didn't need her or it or anyone, that wasn't the point. "I want you to know that; you won't be alone. And I don't want you to be, and I won't let it." Steel at that last; don't argue, old man, no matter how powerful you might be, she had depths of strength as well.

"Your place is where you want it to be, vana. I will not deny you it. But there are things which you need to worry on and places you need to be. And those places, and those in those places have no place in... " His voice paused, searching perhaps for the right word. There were so many that could fill that space, but perhaps the safest was "... in my war." His gaze shifted and he looked upward to see a book make it's way to him. His hand reached up and it opened to the last page that had writing on it. A simple nod was given then the book took off, flying away once more. "Vana, the initial storm has passed, and a few days has grown since we entered here. Shall we get you home so that your loved ones will not worry further?"

"A few days?" She blinked. It wasn't surprising; time rarely had meaning when they were together. His other words, she would let lie ... for now. He spoke truth, but that didn't mean she was going to give up entirely. "I suppose if we must." The tone was light and airy but laced with just the hint of sadness - what could have been peeked into her thoughts again, just for the briefest. No, she wasn't interested in that 'something' he might have been referencing earlier; she was interested in staying cocooned in all their history and love. "We should get me home."

The old man stood and turned to lift her up in his arms once more. He looked more himself and less the dangerous creature that he was. Time, peace, and the company did much to settle him. He turned and stepped but a few steps, returning them to the Library proper. The books that had buzzed with power and energy had lowered their tone, and things within the walls had returned to normal, or as normal as these walls could hold. "Shall I take you home, or would it be better if I opened a portal for you?"

"Take me home," the answer was quick and easy, arms coming up to curl around his neck loosely. Psly wouldn't hate seeing him, and even if he did ... too bad. Jaycy wasn't ready to leave his embrace yet. "Thank you, love." Repeated again, of course. A pause, then a faint chuckle. "Do you want to stick around for a while? I need someone to reteach me how to wield a sword." Impulsively she asked the favor; it had been years since she had even touched her short sword. "I'd hate to ask Maggie to work with me." A wry grin crossed her face.

His chuckle came as he began to walk out the door from the Athenaeum. "We wouldn't want that would we? I'm sure the old ironwood staff would love to dance with you."

Perfect, a reason for him to stay! The day brightened already, and calm, true calm came, in his arms as he took her home. "I'm holding you to that."

(( Adapted from live play! ))

[Eregor]

20 January, 2020

Two days after the Diamond Quest. Two days after the Opals were shattered.

One day after the harbor at Dockside froze over. It was still frozen, despite the best efforts of crews and harbor personnel to break the icy grip, ships were locked in place at their piers. Frozen shipping meant no trade. No trade meant lost revenue. The trouble had just started, and already the traders of Dockside were growing desperate. "It's unnatural," they cried out. "Even in the height of winter, the ocean doesn't just freeze over like that. Not that quickly! It's got to be magic!" And so they resolved to fight magic with magic, reaching out to the Keeper of Water.

So it was that Eregor found himself standing at the end of a wharf on a wintry January morning, looking out over the stilled waves. Glancing back over his shoulder, he sighed at the deputation of merchants that stood there, eagerly anticipating a swift resolution of their troubles. Idiots, he mused, returning his focus to the task at hand. The sea should not have frozen over like this, that much was certain. Closing his eyes, Eregor stretched out his hand to get a feeling for the cause, and then those same eyes flew open once more. There was something at work here, a presence... not necessarily a conscious intelligence, but something had definitely caused this, been drawn to this place.

Concentrating, he stretched his awareness out beyond the harbor, into the open ocean that remained unaffected. Warmer currents shifted, changing course to flow inland, towards the city to warm the coastal waters and melt the ice from below. At the same time, he sent power into the icy sheet itself, pulling at it, keeping up the pressure.

The presence beneath the water resisted, struggling to keep the harbor locked within its hoary grip. Eregor still couldn't discern any true mind behind it, but he recognized the sense of it from two nights previous, at the Diamond Quest. Elemental, yet not elemental. He concentrated harder, focusing his will through the Key down into the ice. Ice is water in solid state, and I am the Keeper of Water, its master.

Finally, with a sudden snap that left the watching merchants gasping, a crack formed in the ice, and Eregor smiled. "Got you!" He gestured towards the crack, forcing it to open wider as smaller fissures spread throughout the frozen waves. At last the presence he had felt faded, and the solid mass of ice broke up, the magic of the Tower melting the initial floes into smaller and smaller pieces, and the tradesmen breathed a collective sigh of relief. They surged forward to congratulate Eregor, but he paid them no heed, simply stepping off the pier and into the now-liquid waves.

Below the surface, protected by the Key's gift, he swam among the docks until he found what he sought: an opalescent shard embedded in the post supporting one of the piers. Its gleam seemed to fade as he drew near, and he quickly pocketed it and swam back to the surface. If it was what he suspected, then it needed to be returned to the Outback... but first, he wanted to study it. Odds were, that was the closest Eregor would ever come to holding an Opal, but anything he learned could help if there were more such shards out there, waiting to be found and wreaking havoc all the while.

----------

26 January

After seeing the press conference, Eregor returned to the Outback to hand over the opal shard that he had collected, along with what precious little information he had gleaned from it. "I hope this helps," he told Matt as he handed it over. "I'll keep on the lookout for any elemental anomalies, just in case. Good luck finding the remaining pieces!"

[Avrie]

January 18-19, 2020

Avrie was bored. She and Phil knew better than to believe that the Duel of Fists administration was telling the whole truth when they asked the Keepers and Archmage to be present during the 100th Diamond Quest as a “precautionary measure.” There were already rumors about what had transpired during the 99th Quest, rumors that the powers that be tried to quash. It didn’t help that some manner of beast -- or was it beasts? -- had attacked the town just a week prior. It ended with damage to the city’s primary bridges, and a lingering sensation that the worst might be yet to come. After all, it always seemed to come to pass.

Yet the parlor tricks Avrie witnessed as the tournament kicked off were barely above notice to her. The lights turned brighter than usual, the torches burned stronger, and then the power went out, followed a little while later by gusts of snowy wind, then Fern wilting and then unwilting. From her seat way up in the stands, she half-watched (and half was probably generous) the fights, dividing her attention between them and the latest gossip on her phone.

Perhaps if she had been paying closer attention, she would have noticed the unease that had slowly settled upon the Outback that night, or felt the increased energy in the air. But alas, she allowed herself to be bored and distracted, until it was too late. When Jewell first touched the Diamond, and that deafening CRACK echoed across the room, it startled Avrie into chucking her phone out of her hand. Not so far that she couldn’t immediately find it, even in the crush of people, but enough to break it. For a split-second, she pouted, and then looked up to see all hell break loose. The Fern disintegrated, Styx and the Bridge fell apart into what looked like toxic ash, The Pool and The Can froze, and some sort of unnatural mud sprung forth from the Pit. She watched in mute horror as five colored beams of energy shot towards the roof of the Outback, burst into bright white light, and then plunged the building into darkness. Those in the audience who hadn’t already left from witnessing the earlier ominous signs were now flung into a blind panic, as it seemed, for the second time in a week, that the world was coming to an end.

And Avrie fled. She didn’t run like the others did, but she did find an exit and an opening in the crush of people to slither through and outside, into the cold winter’s night. She began walking north, towards New Haven, towards the richest and most likely to be safe neighborhood tonight, only stopping briefly at a convenience store to buy cigarettes. The clerk eyed her suspiciously as she gestured at the first pack she spotted, a yellow box with a red apple and a green worm poking through the center. Still, he sold them to her with a grunt, and let her leave without speaking a word. That was fine by her. She just needed something to do with her hands. A bit of business to keep her mind off the Outback. She placed a cigarette between her lips, then allowed the pad of her index finger to heat up, until her fingerprint glowed red-hot. Once she pressed it against the tobacco, it ignited, and she gulped the smoke deep into her lungs without a single coffee. Then she kept walking.

She made it about ten steps before a gust of wind blew out her cigarette. Frowning, she glanced up, just in time to see several shingles plummeting off of a nearby townhouse roof. She flattened herself up against the side of the building as the asphalt and fiberglass squares crashed onto the sidewalk.

“Hell’s fires,” she sputtered, her walk north slowed by the injury that had nearly befallen her. It seemed like whatever disaster had befallen Diamond Quest earlier had led to repercussions throughout the city. Wind battered New Haven, flinging shutters open and shut with loud bangs and clatters. The main fountain in New Haven, seemingly emptied in advance of the winter, was now full and frozen over. The sight sent shivers down her spine, as she kept walking north towards the city limits.

She felt something pulling her there -- smoke in her nostrils even though there were no flames nearby, heat pumping through her arteries like magma just beneath the surface of her skin, a crackling sound like a wildfire. Energy, raw and primal, tugged her away from civilization and towards the Wilds.

The air grew warmer, more humid, as she moved away from the concrete and brick of RhyDin City and into the woods. Something terrible and wondrous had happened here. The same energy (it must have been that energy, right?) that sapped, revitalized and then dusted the Fern worked its dark magic here as well. Some of the oaks and pines now stretched so far into the sky she couldn’t see the tops of them, while their neighbors collapsed into rotten piles of branches and leaves. The heat within her grew, threatening to erupt, and she felt the hairs on her arms stand at attention, This time, when she lit a cigarette with her finger, the entire tip caught fire, and it took her a few shakes to extinguish the blazing digit. And still, still, something called to her deeper within the Wilds, dragging her along like a magnet.

It grew hotter and hotter as she moved inwards, and soon Avrie was forced to remove her winter coat, gloves, hat, and scarf. It wasn’t enough. Her plain gray sweatshirt went next, followed by her shoes and socks, leaving her barefoot in jeans and a white t-shirt. As the land shifted from forest to swamp, she could smell smoke on the air -- perhaps what she smelled earlier was no hallucination?

When she finally stumbled upon the source of the smoke, she clapped a hand across her mouth in shock. A 360 degree circle of fire (that couldn’t be natural, could it?) formed a ring around a tiny island surrounded by stagnant water. Whatever fueled the flames threw sulfurous fumes into the sky, nearly driving her back. The fire fizzed and snapped, but somewhere underneath that din…

“HELP! HELP!” Several shouts cut through the fiery circle to reach Avrie’s ears, and her eyes widened at the realization: There are people inside there. People who will burn to death if you do nothing. Fortunately for them (and for her), she was fireproof. A quick jaunt through the flames, a little phoenix mumbo-jumbo, and everything would be alright. The blaze almost tickled her flesh as she stepped through with a scream.

When she emerged on the other side, she’d transformed into her bird form, towering over a group of monster hunters (five or six, at first glance). Every part of her was awash in flame, from her head to her wings to her talons. She could no longer speak, only shriek at the gathered men, trapped on that island. Steam hissed and rippled off of Avrie as she strode towards land, stopping at the edge. She paid no mind to them as they rushed back, as far away from her as they could get. Only a cursory glance over her back followed, before she screamed once more, and beat her wings as hard as she could.

Each flap drew some of the fire in closer and closer to her, slowly but steadily clearing a path, even as the circle drew tighter and tighter around them. The longer she hovered over the water with her burning wings, the more of it evaporated, until, eventually, the boggy bottom of the pond became visible. Without any hesitation, the men made a break for it, diving through the gap she cleared before it snapped shut. They ran, stumbling some with their receding fear, as far from the inferno as they could.

Still, the wall of flame drew closer to her, paying no attention to the water spilling back into the pond from some unseen mystical font. Avrie flapped and flapped, drawing more fire towards her, until, for a second, she paused. She actually felt hot. Then she beat her wings again, trying to drive the blaze back, but it stubbornly refused to subside. With a defiant screech, she pulled the fire in on herself. The heat grew and grew, and her body began to glow white until --

A sonic boom sent shock waves rippling through the Wilds, flattening groves of trees for nearly half a mile in every direction. Dead silence hung over the swamps and forests, as if the animals did not dare risk making a peep. Wisps of smoke and fog curled away from the center of the island and the pond, white and ghostly in the early morning skies.

All that remained of Avrie were ashes and a few burnt feathers.

[Strawberry]

February 29th

“You know this breaks all the rules right? Yours, mine, everything in between.”

“Fuck your rules, I’m not letting them go that easily.”

---

It began with a message, cryptic, threatening if one didn’t know better.

I know where your children are.

It continued with a meeting on a dark corner in the seediest shadows of Dockside. A streetlight intentionally shattered cloaked a girl bathed in black, face hidden by the cowl of her robes. Not so much as a glimpse of skin or a strand of hair gave away her identity.

It wasn’t a voice familiar to any of the four that met her there but they had each received the same message and after only the briefest discussion had agreed to gather there, armed and ready for the fight to get their children back.

“Where they are, mortals dare not to tread… what you will see cannot be unseen. But I will show you the way if you accept this.” Feminine, serious, there was no taunt or tease in her tone, only grave weight. There was no hesitation in a parent’s love and in that moment she knew she had made the correct choice in opening this Way.

A miasma of black shot through with purple threading opened a gate to a world on the brink. Cataclysm in motion, a world not to be. A place of overwhelming shadow on the furthest reach of the very Void that sought claim on her own soul. As she opened the yawning maw of the Void, she looked back, half expecting at least one of them to have fled. Instead, she looked back into the steadfast determination of four brought together by a single mission.

“Come.”

Their footsteps faded, the corner was left dark once more.

[Strawberry]

And lo, vile beasts did rise.

I knew this wouldn’t be easy. No matter the preparation put in, no matter how many times I tried my damnedest to clear the way ahead of time with and without help, it was no use. It was a moment in time, forced to repeat on loop until the Rejoining freed this place from the clutches of calamity itself. Denizens fled on foot and mount alike, running from the monsters that overtook them with ease and in doing so, changed them into ugly, twisted amalgamations of what once was.

“What is this place?” A voice behind me came, curious, awestruck.

Of the four, she was the tiger despite her seemingly gentle nature. I couldn’t help but smile. They had chosen a suitable composition for a trek like this.

The paladin in her gilded armor.

The rogue with his silent steps and deadly ranged weaponry.

The dark knight with her wickedly forged beast of a blade.

And the steadfast healer who bore a blade that she didn’t seem to intend to use.

“The end of days. Here reality is fraying at the seams. Elemental shadow runs rampant and as such, the unchecked energy has made twisted mockeries of the beasts here. Dread made manifest right before your eyes. Be on your guard.”

I left them there with that cryptic warning. Though I had promised guidance, this was not a fight I could fight for them, much as I may have wanted to. If they wanted their children back, they had to bear witness to this just as I had. It was enough to drive a man mad but they pressed on.

The paladin, the rogue, the knight, the healer.

Together they hacked and slashed and punched their way through the shadow and the flames, pushing ever forward across uneven terrain as buildings crumbled around them. It seemed to be steady going until they met the first doom.

The Great Beast

A twisted wyrm reminiscent of those that populated Rhydin in abundance, stripped of its wings and left to writhe and snap at the quartet. It was a sight to behold and it sought their end, calling down a deluge of fiery rain and poison gas. At one point, I thought they were done for as an entire building toppled over top of them.

Only narrowly did they escape only to find the Great Beast had broken free of the rubble. The dark knight rushed forward in what I can only attribute to a fit of rage and shoved her sword clean through its head, jaw to crown. But even its defeat couldn’t bring salvation to the dying land. The march of oblivion is a sure thing.

As day gave way to night, or dark became darker with the drift of a black sun drifting low, it scorched the land and boiled the seas. Earth buckled, fire raged, and the waters ran red with blood. They watched as the shadows of heroes before them tried to change the course of history, a ghastly clash of what had come before and failed. In a place like this, the only inevitable is everlasting dark.

And so came the next doom.

The Shepherd

If the Great Beast bent the land, the Shepherd came to break it. Its shrill shrieking called down upon them a plethora of terrors which seemed to split and spread like a virus run rampant. It too called upon fiery rain and brought with it fear the likes of which most mortals had never known. Thankfully for our brave heroes, they were no normal stock.

But fear has a way of weaseling its way into the very roots of existence. See, that’s half of what was wrong with this place. Not the unchecked shadow, but the fear of it. Fear makes people lash out even at those closest to them. The Shepherd fed on this fear until it was fat and swollen with energy. I watched as they tried their best to finish it off but every ounce of negative emotion that dripped off of them was absorbed until…

Pop.

The heroes were left stunned, wounded, drenched in the sticky vitae of what had been. The conjurer and the paladin were enough to get them back on their feet. See, they found that light fought back the shadow and cleansed them of their sickness. Which, before you get the wrong idea, isn’t to say that dark is innately bad. If anyone tells you this, they’re ignorant, stupid, and wrong.

Dark itself is a neutral entity, just as light is. They exist in an equitable balance. It is only when this balance is thrown off that either one becomes a negative force. This can happen to dark or light. Trust, I’ve seen worlds where light has overtaken the entirety of the worldscape and this has resulted in the death of a world just the same as this one when it was overtaken by shadow.

“This is far from the worst of it.” I stood before them as they tried to catch their breath. The path was treacherous from here, a good guide would see them through to the end. They looked at me like I had to be kidding but it was only when nobody laughed that they realized this was no joke. “Come, I’ll show you.”

A beckoning hand, a shuffle of feet amidst rubble. Four pairs of footsteps and one silent addition somewhere in the back. Perhaps some day I will ask him just how he manages to be so quiet. Likely not though. Save for one, it would be better if the rest never knew who I was. This was my good deed for my lifetime, a little self serving as it was.

“Just a little further…”

The landscape twisted further. No longer did it resemble a crumbling city. Rather, they could look out over a ruined world, a burning land where not an inch was left untouched by the shadowy tendrils that had strangled the very life out of it.

“The end of a world…” The man’s voice, the only one of the four. He had spoken little throughout their trial but this, this sparked recognition in him that I had not expected. He was one who had seen ruination such as this before. Perhaps he had even wrought it. I don’t know. Just the same, it was no silent assassin or undoused flame that had ruined this land but the very sin of arrogance that had brought it to its knees.

“This land fades. Here you find our end and your beginning. Where laws are written and the threads are woven anew. But even here corruption frays it all and it is here that you will find what you seek.”

Alas, there was but one thing standing in their way. It was there that I left them once more, staring down the face of one last trial, the third and final doom to infest this land.

Shadowsayer: The Chthonic Weaver

From the edge of the abyss came the last harbinger. The core of Shadow itself made manifest by the despair of those who had come before, it was destruction made poetry. It was a massive creature made of myriad faces and teeth upon teeth in those endless mouths. Theirs was a dangerous dance that dragged the entire length of a seemingly endless crag that crumbled beneath their feet leaving only the darkest depths of the Void to break their fall should they step unwisely. None had stood in its path before, but then again, none had stood between these four and their progeny and lived to tell the tale either.

How were those for odds?

As it edged inexorably closer, I was certain they would meet their end. Without some sort of sacrifice to the depths of the dark, never would the Weaver be sated.

The sacrifice came when they were on the brink of collapse. A child’s cry cut through the air and the tiger of a healer burst forward with a cry of her own. Shadowsayer saw its plan come to fruition, the cry having come from a cackling mouth upon its twisted face. The young mother hit her knees and couldn’t recover, try as she might, but she wasn’t alone and this was the difference between her and the Shadowsayer.

The gilded paladin lit the arena in a bloom of brilliant light, ethereal wings spreading out from her shoulders as if to shield the fallen healer and those that stood behind her. Shadowsayer hissed back from the light but remember what I said about there needing to be balance?

The dark knight hadn’t forgotten. Lockstep with the paladin, she slashed outward, her free hand coming up to sweep down from the heavens to bring with it a flare of red light that gave way to runebound darkness, enveloping them within its protective embrace. In it, I could see only the outline of the paladin’s wings and then a figure leaping through it all. Dash, dash, dash, he cut through the front most line of their collective and shoved forth every ounce of pent up kinetic energy he had left. The very air split with the dissection of the aether and one last pulse of red overwhelmed the Chthonic Weaver for the final time.

From chaos to ash, their action seemed to have little effect on the dying world. But that wasn’t their goal, now was it? No, their bounty lay just beyond the sludge of what was left of the Shadowsayer. Quite literally even.

Four children sleeping soundly in a nest made of black robes, unbothered by the display of light and violence that had concluded only moments before. Their parents looked at them and then each other in disbelief. Could it be so easy?

“Go on.” I urged, beckoning for them to follow. It couldn’t have been any more than fifty meters but to them it could have been miles, but my pace was passed up quickly by the sprint of all four whizzing by me and breakneck speed. They nearly collided in a bid to stop before barreling into the sleeping children who roused only once their parents neared. It was a joyous reunion that made me squirm uncomfortably at the tears that were shed. Quietly I opened their Way home and then took my leave.

My deed was done, I could rest.

---

“Where is your mask?”

“...Shit. The kid has it…”

“Have fun explaining that one…”

[PrlUnicorn]

Still confined to Dockside Medical Center, save for one bit of respite, Colleen spent a lot of time reading. Thanks to Pearl and Velen’s basket of things that were brought from home, she was able to jot down her thoughts. She now kept an electronic copy as well as written one. As always, she wrote in a code that few were privy to.

The Diamond Quest is coming up again. Much has happened since I was at the last one when the Opals … Imploded? Exploded? Self destructed? I can’t help but wonder why people are still considering that reforming the Opal stones is a good idea. When a bone knits, it is usually stronger than it was. Harder to break even if it is malformed. They are sentient. The question is, if they self destructed and took people with them, was it a purposeful act? A lesson of some kind to those that used, abused, or misused their power? Do they have a soul? Or are they a force that doesn’t understand the line between good and evil? Reasonable beings recognize that not all things are clear cut. What sort of being would have been held prisoner as they seem to have been from the beginning? There is no guarantee that if restored they would not retaliate for what may have, unbeknownst to those running the Outback, had been just that, imprisonment much as one might trap a genie in a bottle.

As I was heading back to my hospital room the other night, I heard Lilith Anderson giving Matt Simon a talking-to. While I understand his desire to help his children, I also understand hers to protect those that she holds dear. It was clear to me that despite her youth, she has the understanding of someone far older and more experienced. Using magic and gaining aid from otherworldly sources carries a price, we don’t always know what that price is until it comes due. While others have stood in the Magic rings and woven spells, Matt has relied on his body and wits in those duels. I don’t begrudge him that. However, not using those spells, removes one from the prices that can be extracted. The piper must be paid eventually, the Opals played their tune, and took their price. Since they have done it once, they won’t hesitate again. Next time, it could well be worse.

[JewellRavenlock]

This press conference was different from the others Jewell had given over the last three months. There had been the one announcing the search for the Opal shards, but The Empress had been giving daily briefings to the different news outlets covering the story of the shattered Opals.

Every day there had been fewer reporters and journalists. Still, the faerie got all dressed up and put on her most engaging and beguiling smile before appearing in front of the ever dwindling crowd gathered in front of the Outback to hear the latest news. It was the same story every time:

“We’ve collected even more shards this week, and we’re hopeful that we will soon have all of them...”

“We’ve got mages looking into how we can use the Diamond to our benefit. It was used against us, now we’ll be the ones in control.”

“We’re working tirelessly to locate more shards.”

“The Diamond Foundation has been raising more money every week to help those affected by this tragedy.”

And to the repeated question, the one asked every time, “When are you all going to fix this mess you made?” Jewell smiled and replied serenely, “These things take time and we’re working as fast as we can.”

Finally, she could provide a more definitive answer.

One week out from DQ 101, the crowd outside had swelled once more thanks to the connections she had in the media. It hadn’t taken too much effort to get people out when The Empress guaranteed she had to say something worth hearing. Speculation grew as rumors ran rampant throughout the community, and there was hope that Jewell was going to confirm (or maybe squash spectacularly, to the Duel of Fists’ staff shame) those rumors.

Jewell took the stage, glamour smoothing over and hiding the dark circles under her eyes and the thinness of her face. She hadn’t slept well in weeks, the last few days in particular had been spent trying to finalize a solution to the shattered Opals. Now she could stand before the press with confidence though, flashing them a smile as she got started, “Thank you for joining me here again. I know it’s been a few days since our last update, but I wanted to take this time to confirm some rumors that have been circulated lately.

“Yes, the Duel of Fists staff will be reunifying the shattered Opals next Saturday, April 18th during the Diamond Quest.”

She let that fall on the crowd like a heavy stone into a pond. Immediately, hands shot up and questions were shouted. Jewell held her hand up, “Please. I won’t be taking any questions today, but let me explain.” She waited a few moments until the crowd settled down before continuing, leaving out all attempts and hopes from her speech. The press didn’t need to know how unsure they all were that this was going to work. They needed confidence, and The Empress delivered.

“Thanks to the continued efforts of the dueling community, we have now collected enough shards to reunify the Opals. Moreover, after extensive and exhaustive study of the diamond used during Diamond Quest 100 to shatter the Opals, we have discovered a way to use the diamond to reunify the Opals. Now what we need is your help. Shattering the Opals took the substantial amount of energy put out by the large field of fighters gathered at Diamond Quest 100. To reunify the Opals will take the same amount of energy...if not more.

“Please, join us at Diamond Quest 101. Step into the rings and fight, not just for victory but for righting what went wrong three months ago. Then stay until the end and help us summon the Opals home once more.

“Thank you.”

She turned to go, ignoring the din of shouted questions once more. As her foot hit the top step though, one question rose above all the others and caught her attention, “Jewell! How do you know that they won’t just do this all again when it’s all said and done?”

The faerie hesitated before turning around and walking back to the podium, finding the member of the press in the crowd who sunk under the ferocity of her gaze, “Because we'll make sure of it.”

Despite the renewed call for explanations and more information, Jewell left the podium and didn’t look back. There was work to do.




((For more information on how you can take part in the reunification of the Opals, please keep an eye on this thread here and join DoF for the 101st Diamond Quest on Saturday, April 18th. There will be ways for everyone to join in on the fun!))

[JewellRavenlock]

Dear Friends of Duel of Fists,

We hope that you are able to attend Diamond Quest 101 on Saturday, April 18th as either a spectator or a participant.

As mentioned at the press conference on Saturday, the Duel of Fists team will be reuniting the physical forms of the Opals and reunifying the essences with their physical forms.

In order to ensure success and prevent any future mishaps with the Opals, we need your help! Please bring something you love with you to the Outback on Saturday. This is not limited to physical objects.

Thank you in advance. We look forward to seeing you at the Quest!

Sincerely,

Duel of Fists Staff