The Primeval Dark (IC)

[Mornings]

24th of Abadius, Sunday - Time: 5:17 am (Morning) / AR 4707 (Winter)
The Lost Coast Road; Sandpoint Hinterlands
The Gap; Point 19: The Sacred Grove

If a fleshless skull could grin, then perhaps that may have been the look Stella would have described as plastered across the eerie figure's face. The skeletal man tipped his hat and bowed with a flourish, "Ah, my apologizes. I had simply assumed one... such as yourself, knew my name and thread. After all, it isn't hidden, nor masked. It's practically plastered across my face..." He gave a rasping laugh at his own joke, but it wasn't funny. "Allow me to introduce myself then. Loyal servant to the Mother of the First. Keeper & Kindler of the Tresk'ri-Chath. My name is- "

24th of Abadius, Sunday - Time: 5:21 am (Morning) / AR 4707 (Winter)
The Lost Coast Road; Sandpoint Hinterlands
The Gap; Point 19: The Sacred Grove

The looming corpse tilted his head, "Too much for your tongue then? Pitty." Something was different, something felt wrong and distorted, as if the world had been caught in a skip or bump she couldn't describe. Static. The gleaming golden threads of the Weave which she could see around her remained in place, but a blank space - an absence, where the thread simply stopped and then resumed as if it were unbroken shown on every strand she could see. "Well, if you cannon't speak my name - how about a nickname? Those are always fun, no? Hmm, how about... Skullface. Yes, I like that."

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Main Quest (Calamity): A World Led To Ruin I - The Battle of Ulbeph
There were some forces which had once existed to purge the stagnant threads of the Weave, and cleanse the decay of a rotting universe, making new ground for the endless cycles of rebirth. Long has it been since those entities fell into a deathlike slumber, forgetting their own purpose. Now a rift has formed, a displacement and corruption of the the destined fates woven within the Weave - a Calamity. Forces of misfortune which never were have been born, binding themselves to the addled and misfeatured destinies of mortal souls. The world was being changed, rewritten - for the worse. A phenomenon called Divergence.
Difficulty: Lethal | Status: On-going | Profit: Unknown | Time: 90 days
Objective: Defeat Old King Aphlati of The Deep
Success: Calamity conquered. Divergence reset to original time.
Failure: Calamity becomes reality. Divergence becomes permanent. Main Quest Replaced.

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The skeletal figure cackled, seemingly at nothing. "There now... are we not, friends? As a token of good will, I will even lend you my aid - without cost... but just this once." Stella couldn't help but remember Afsppa'sol's words when the man spoke. There was always a price. The only difference was who it was paid to.

Denil blinked, completely bewildered. He felt it. They all did. That sudden wave of darkness, like a screen of black descended upon the world and suddenly parted. To the halfling it was an alien and haunting experience that made him shudder to his bones, but it wasn't foreign to them. They knew that feeling, that complete and boundless void. For they had seen it once before, for what had seemed like an eternity. That desolate realm. That inescapable silence. The Primeval Dark.

It had only been a few brief moments they had spoken amongst one another, but now something felt wrong and polluted. A something they couldn't name, like they had forgotten a thing they knew they had to remember. It pervaded the air they breathed, the ground they stood upon and even the rapidly descending chill. From above, the sharp snap and crackle of the limbs of the tree's could be heard, it was an alarming and raucous sound which could not be ignored. It didn't take long to realize it - the mist was gone, the warmth had departed. Now a heavy dark miasma slowly descended from above. The darkwood elms canopy's froze and splintered beneath the supernatural cold. Leaves fell to the ground, stabbing into the earth, coated in ice and made ridged as stone. The short man's eyes darted about in evident confusion, "...Impossible." He was right, the death-frosts which plagued the lands further north didn't make their way down into the Hinterlands. It was a curse upon those lands which had made travel before the noonday hours impossible, least you freeze to death. It shouldn't have been possible for it to drift this far south. He desperately fumbled through his pockets and pulled out his watch once again, before hopelessly looking on at Stella. "You stupid brat.... What have you done."

Distantly, deep into the gloomy folds of the forest's shade, a sound could be heard - voices. Each moment they grew clearer, louder, rising in volume. Moans of pain and suffering, the dreadful sound of a hundred mourning voices. The cry of women weeping.

---

Side Quest: Flight of the Bobolyne
The deathly frost of the Uttercold descends from above, and hell awaits below. Abhorrent Veilbeasts fill the shades of the forest about them, and a dark figure smiles wickedly all the while. Has Denil's plan been foiled, was there any way out? Whatever they were going to do, they had to do it quickly.
Difficulty: Challenging | Status: On-going | Profit: Unknown | Time: 5 minutes
Objective: Survive.
Alternate Objective: Outlast the quest timer.

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Spoiler: OOC: Influencing the World

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Your actions will have real consequences. The realm of Du'ased'taur offers the unique opportunity to interface with strange entities from another world, but some are the very essence of chaos and change, while others are something else completely. Dealing with these entities can change the entire scope of the adventure, for better or worse, but learning to deal with the denizens which stand between the mundane and eldrich worlds requires the knowledge and know-how to navigate such encounters.

Remember the first tenants of a Gale; knowledge is everything, and within the tainted lands - it is what defines the living and dead. Using the names of these creatures carelessly can bring catastrophic results to the world about you. (Rewind to the beginning, and take note of the voices who spoke very short abridged names for one another) Not every name is going to light the world on fire, but learning who or what can cause harmful side-effects will play a vital role in dealing with such creatures.

The phenomenon called 'Divergence' is a radical or drastic change in the world which will alter and/or replace the main quest line. These can always be reversed, or if they are beneficial, kept. While unintentional Divergence is usually negative, positive changes can be created as well. The changes made and how the world is effected is often a mystery unless throughly investigated prior to initiating the transition. If left as is, the change becomes permanent after a per-determined period of time, so plan carefully.

Calamity is exactly as it sounds. A Relicuum has grasped or manufactured some pre-determined fate which bodes ill for humanity, the natural order of the world, or both. If allowed to be brought into existence, it will create a Divergence - however this cannot be reversed once completed. Calamity's always come in two-parts. You'll learn more about these later. Multiple main quest lines can be created by multiple Calamity's or Divergence, so tread carefully and keep the universe spinning.

...And no, you're not all dead. But you'll have to look for a solution to your tight spot. I recommend avoid spending all your free actions talking with the reality-destroying cosmic horrors while the party is trying to work together.

Spoiler: Reward

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֍ Stella XP +100