Essences have begun appearing near duelers after the Twilight Dragon’s cache was fairly won!
Story posts for essences are now being accepted! As a reminder, here are the elements to receive essences through writing. Essences may be found anywhere that duelers go - from the dueling venues to a kitchen to the Wilds!
Each story containing any of the following elements will be awarded 3 generic essences. 1) the character finding/using/exploring/explaining their item; 2) accomplishing a feat/task/ritual to acquire the essence; and 3) reporting to Ferghalicous or one of his wizards that essences have been found. If a player or pair of players completes three (3) such posts, they will be awarded a tenth (10th) specific essence of their choice to complete the empowerment of their item, provided they have included all 3 story elements throughout the course of their adventure.
If a player or pair wishes to write one (1) post to imbue their item, they will be eligible to receive the icon but will not be able to use the item in the King of the Ring tournament, nor will they receive the achievement for completing the event.
Submit story posts as a reply to this thread! All stories posted between July 17th 12:01am ET and August 4th 11:59pm ET will be awarded essences.
Below is an example of the one (1) post imbuing their item (the Onyx Elephant of Ferghalicous). The author of a post like this would be eligible to receive the icon but not use the item in the King of the Ring event nor receive the achievement for completing the event. All three (3) elements of the story must eventually be included across a total of three (3) posts to receive the full nine (9) essences as well as the tenth (10th) specific essence.
Finding a Pulse
The Moon Elf had spent some time around the various special rings of the Outback this evening, scribbling out circles in chalk, letting the little swirling motes of energy fade in and out of the visible spectrum within them. Finally, though, he was about to finish a line of runic scribbling that went all the way around The Pond. As the final line of chalk met the place where it had begun, the circle sealed and a brilliant flash revealed
thousands of swirling motes of blue light, interspersed with pale white and grey sparks.
"Oh, my."
Something had kept Jaycy from actually going straight home from the Inn; some restless urge to come back to the office and work on some paperwork (because, despite the words of Mimi and Droet, she had no complaints about working late on Fridays or any other days). She hadn't come
directly here from the Inn, however, and had wandered.
However, it seemed her timing was serendipitous; the left of the double doors opened just a moment before the familiar voice sounded its surprise. "Mart?" The redhead blinked, just inside the door.
"Ah, Jaycy!" Mart straightened as the light show continued on behind him. "Your timing could not be better. I have just codified our little friends, here! An old acquaintance was able to offer some insight." He gestured to the other side of The Pond, where an old man in flamboyant amethyst and sapphire robes was taking notes. His beard reached his belt, and his eyes had almost no definition- just a soft, blue glow. "This is Ferghalicous. He leads a hermetic group of Magi who are based primarily on the Isle."
"Yes, yes. Good evening, Jason." The old Wizard didn't look away from the sparkling lights, even for a moment. "Er.. Jaskier. I'm sorry, what was your name, again?"
Jaycy
didn’t sigh or roll her eyes. But ...
mages. "Heyas, love." Making her way forward, the green-gold eyes drifted over the Outback and took stock of just what they'd been up to. "And well met, Ferghalicous. I'm Jaycy. Welcome to the Outback." If her voice was a little dry, could you really blame her? At least she was polite!
"What can you tell us?" He didn't seem like one for small talk, so she wouldn't start down that road.
"Ah, the President! Yes, yes, cheers." The incalculably old man finally tore himself from The Pond when Jaycy asked him about the essences, and his focus was held by the subject, if nothing else. "Well you see, it's really the most
fascinating thing! Your Opals, young Mart's informed me, never
fully reformed when they were restored those days... Months? Back.
"This has resulted in a somewhat cheeky ambient level of elemental magic permeating not just the Outback here, but a good bit of the city!" He chuckled to himself in a way that, despite his appearance, somehow
further betrayed his age.
"Yes, we believe that the recipients of the Opals' shards are the common factor here. They sort of ferried the Opals' essence across the city's dueling venues." Mart tried to fill in the gaps where he could.
"I swear I'm going to throw those damned things away." Her first response wasn't quite muttered under her breath and then she
did sigh. "So... duelers are kinda bringing them around?" Attempting to paraphrase to show some understanding, her brows knit as she puzzled through their combined explanation.
"They reformed over a year ago - why now? How is the battle and cache of items connected to all of this? MoonBeryl said they were somehow but wasn't exactly ... helpful."
Friggin' Opals.
"Time, such a bothersome concept. You know, if
I’d been around, I could've simply.." Ferghalicous trailed off as Jaycy turned to Mart.
"Did you find the elephant I brought back from the cache?" She'd left it in the offices but was still wearing the silver bracelet she'd slipped around her wrist. Jaycy, unfortunately, didn't notice the motes settling - both in vision and out - along its smooth circle.
"Oh, yes! Wait until you see.." The Moon Elf jogged off to the bar, where he'd left the little onyx statuette, then brought it back to Ferghalicous and tried to hand it off as the wizened caster continued to ramble. He hadn't noticed that Mart stood at his side, realizing so only after being prodded with the elephant that the Elf was even there.
"Oh, Mart! When did you get here? Ah! The Onyx Elephant! Do pass that over, so I can show the Prime Minister what we've discovered, eh? Good lad." He patted Mart on the head once or twice before taking the statuette, and heading back to The Pond to stand at its center. "Are you ready, Minister?"
Really? Brows lifted toward the Moon Elf in silent question as Jaycy padded closer - but not without some trepidation. "As ready as I'll ever be. Is there anything I need to be aware of or ready for or look for something specific?" That might help me know what and where to look and focus on it." Finally she ended next to Mart, peering at the statue in the old man's hand.
"He really is quite brilliant, you know. I believe he has sacrificed some things.." He tapped at his temple, "to strengthen others." Maybe it was Wizard humor, but the Moon Elf was smiling as he shrugged and watched on.
"Yes, yes! Do take care to watch the lights! The rest will be, ah, self-evident!" As he strolled across the surface of the water, he began to speak low and slow in a rather rough language. The motes of light, blue and a few white, began to swirl down and around him, finishing their journeys when they reached the statuette on his palm.
As he reached the center of The Pond, he let out a few words in a loud, booming voice and held the statuette aloft. The energies snapped and crackled around the little Elephant, then Ferghalicous chucked it a few feet forward into the waters, and began to take a few slow steps back.
"I'm glad you have Morgan to keep you grounded in the real world, love." She didn't even bother to lower her voice but the quip did bring a smile to her face once more. Jaycy eyed Mart a moment before dutifully turning her attention to the old mage and his excitement.
What seemed to be a bit theatrical had her brows rising once more and she folded her arms. But he said 'pay attention to the lights', so her gaze followed movement of motes until she focused more intently on the little figure in his hands. "... what..." she trailed off.
Mart chuckled, then his face seemed to scrunch up as he puzzled out why Ferghalicous would just.. Throw the Elephant into the water. "I think... It should be just a moment?"
And a moment or so later, they were rewarded for their patience! The water began to surge and swell, and from its surface broke the massive stone body of the now life-sized Onyx Elephant! Water streamed off its chiseled surface, pouring back into The Pond, as its trunk rose into the air and it trumpeted victoriously, now complete with a fine blue sheen of elemental energy.
"See, see! There it is! The Twilight Dragon's hoard has the unique ability to
absorb these ambient elemental essences, and use them to manifest
spectacular effects when they've been imbued with the Opals' powers! Their being reintroduced into the world must've caused these essences to begin to manifest more completely! Like a magical bomb has been detonated in the city!"
"Whoa!" She'd leapt back at the eruption in the water, seeming to miss half of the explanation as she stared at the loud and seemingly
living elephant in the water! It took her a moment but she eventually recovered from the recoil and stepped in, a hand extending out and pausing several inches from the animal.
"So... the items from the cache can become like ... mini Opals? Thanks to all of the extra energy that's just been sitting around here for a year?"
"Yes!" Mart put his hands on Jaycy's shoulder, clearly excited. "When the items are used in the city's dueling rings, though
especially here where the concentrations are strongest, they can absorb the ambient energy. Once they have taken in enough, Ferghalicous or members of his order can "activate" them, so to speak!"
"Quite right, young Mart! We'll be on-hand for a few weeks at least, I'd say!"
She spared a smile back to Mart at his touch and then finished her journey to brush fingertips over the elephant, featherlight and almost reverent. "This won't hurt anyone, aye?" The question was aimed toward the elder mage.
"Should we tell people about it? Do we
want to encourage this? Does that mean the items need to be personally on them? Or would them being in the rings themselves be enough, since you said the duelers were the common factor?" Withdrawing her hand from the caress of the elephant, she turned to peer more fully at the pair.
"I'd say that depends on the wielder. A regular old sword in my hands wouldn't do much against a seasoned warrior, but this fellow.." He patted the Elephant's stony skin, "Would need to be reckoned with, wouldn't you say?" As he said it, he pointed at the bangle on Jaycy's arm, and how the motes were glowing not just around it, but her as well.
"The holder will accumulate essence as long as they're running about, but they'll need their items when they visit me or the lads, so we can bind one and the other together."
"I believe this will be a great opportunity for the community to come together. We may yet find a greater purpose for these new, empowered items." Mart nodded along, excited at the prospects.
The bangle, unnoticed until now, caught her attention. She blinked, lifting her arm until it was parallel to the ground. Not only were motes glowing, but so it seemed they were becoming corporeal. White flecks, visibly crystal, rested on her wrist just under the bangle. Jaycy blinked and plucked them off her patchwork sleeve, curving her palm around them so she could examine them more minutely.
"Huh... and it seems like we can share them with each other before they're bound into the item, aye? Say, if ... if I like ShadoWeaver better than MoonBeryl, I might want to see if I can get some mini ShadoWeaver powers?" Once more she looked to the fellows for confirmation, extending the hand to show them the pieces in her palm.
"Indeed, though if you've had no luck coaxing them out, you might have to get them from someone else. Mayhaps offer a trade? I'm sure there'll be some that want a MoonBeryl more than a ShadoWeaver, so on, so forth. If it helps, the lads can oversee that. Keep things neutral." He stroked his beard just once, which really took quite a long while.
"That sounds like a plan." She nodded, closing her hand around the motes and ducking them into the pocket of her jeans. "Thank you, both, for figuring out what was going on." She paused, tilting her head. "Mayhap tomorrow, at Quest, we can make sure everyone only uses these main rings to draw these ... essences of Opals ... out?" Her words took her attention to Mart's face, her question for the 'younger' mage.
"That sounds like a wondrous idea! We could use the event to let everyone know what is going on, as well, so that they might focus their attentions as the situation continues to develop!" He looked back to Jaycy, smiling.
"If I can manage it, I'll show up to answer any questions the youths might have. That sound alright, Governor?" One out of four isn't so bad.
"That sounds perfect. I'll do the announcement and everything." Ferghalicous received a tired but fairly relieved smile from the redhead. "We'll convene here tomorrow, aye?"
"Aye." The Wizard nodded, before he and the Elephant vanished!
"Very We-" And Ferghalicous was gone! "Well, then!" He turned back to Jaycy. "How very exciting! Would you like to walk home with me?" He'd already offered an arm and everything!
The smile Mart saw was much sweeter, fonder, and aye, exhausted, and her eyes softened at the gesture. "Aye, that sounds lovely." Stepping forward, she took the graciously-offered arm and curved her own around it. "Lead on."
And so he did!
