EVENT #12: INVOCATION - IC EVENT LOG (PART 2)

[abraxasmods]

Event #12 - Invocation ( 2 )

Go to the:
OOC plotting post | Event coordination post

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As Week 3 approaches around March 6th, faction officials will begin to reach out to characters for information they've uncovered that hasn't been reported. Although Thorne, the Free Cities, and Solvunn have traditionally been at odds, the three nations have come together under these unique circumstances,, and will continue to cooperate until the Lost have been recovered. With Nocwich open as a base of operations, the Spared will have a neutral location to meet in person without border restrictions.

How events proceed will depend in part on your actions. If you're one of the Spared, you can join a team or stay back to prepare and coordinate. If you're one of the Lost, you can escape or remain behind to help others break free.

NOTES

1. For a rough TIMELINE, the Lost's breaking free and the Spared's coordination efforts will take place 2-3 days into Week 3. Leading into Week 4, the Spared will send out their teams to retrieve the Escape and Holdout Groups. Though there's some narrative wiggle room for who returns and when, characters should only participate in one team or group to keep things organized.
   
   
2. A Coordination Post will be used for communications between mods and players both. You can request dice rolls, start investigations, submit or review notable incidents, and begin in-person network-style threads with each other to quickly play out IC interactions. Review the post for forms and other details to fully participate in this event.


3. The Network will function properly again for the Lost who have escaped. The ones who remain captured will continue to experience disruptions similar to Part 1.

Please don't hesitate to ask us questions or clarification, even if you feel it might be a minor detail. This event contains a lot of information to go over, so we're happy to guide you through anything that requires further explanation. We'd much prefer you ask to avoid any misunderstandings or confusion!

Week 3

By now, several discoveries have been made. You've explored nearly every angle you can. It's time to take what you've learned and do something about the situation, whether you're trapped inside the dark cave or trying to bring your friends home.

Escape | The Lost

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and visual), death, dark and horror-based themes.

The past two weeks have been a harrowing experience, but you're still alive. Though the situation's worsened in some aspects, you've gained advantages in others. You might've formed unexpected allies from the other side, discovered hidden clues, or retrieved weapons and tools.

Moreover, the Acolytes don't seem quite so sure of themselves anymore, do they? Ever since the ritual, they've been watching nervously, as though they aren't confident in what's coming next. Some of you even managed to reveal one of their faces, exposing a weakness.

As you listen to the rattle of chains and scraping of metal on stone, you fear something much worse awaits you. Is it time to strike? Do you work on your own or rally the others? That's up to you, but one thing's evident: you can't sit around much longer.

Players can narrate the commotion and escape how they like, using the details described below. The Acolytes will retaliate and try to stop escape attempts. Killing and attacking them is possible with no need to request a roll, but enough will survive to subdue anyone left behind.

Characters don't need to willingly sacrifice themselves to remain captured. They can also be too injured to leave or fail to make it in time.

The First Domino (Breaking Out)

When the final shrine was unlocked late in Week 2, fleshy pillars rooted themselves into the cavern floor. As your third week in the cave crawls along, the trunk-like pillars begin to move.

A low groan shakes the ceiling above. Rocks fall along with bits and pieces of the bulbous organic prisons attached to the high walls. Chunks of melted flesh from decomposing bodies within the plantlike traps splatter below. Were it not obvious before, it is now: the pillars are legs belonging to a creature. A very large creature.

◎ Unleashed

The creature is not interested in fighting. Instead, it begins to leave. As it does, it takes portions of the ceiling with it, tearing holes above and below. People scurry beneath its feet and are crushed like ants. It does not discriminate between the Acolytes and the natives who are captured.

But it does avoid you and the other Summoned. Either it can't see anyone except you, or it recognizes you and associates you with those who freed it. Regardless, you are spared its destructive path. It lumbers off, dragging thorny vines that whip behind it. Crumpled pieces of the shrines and mangled bodies stick to its massive feet. You can't see where the creature is going, but later you might realize it has vanished into the ocean.

The brief chaos has left you with several openings:

• Seawater spills from unseen crevices above, flowing down the walls. Several Acolytes are dead, reducing their numbers.


• The already weakened cracked wall crumbles further, granting you an easier path to the webbing behind it.


• Equally weakened is the sealed opening where a smaller but deadly creature was previously trapped. A couple of determined hands could free it for a distraction. Beware - it's hungry.


• If the boulder hasn't already been pushed out of the way, the rumbling ground and smashed walls might help you finish the job.

Do you grab a weapon and attack the Acolytes while they're disoriented? Do you help save the injured natives? Are you focused on what lies behind the boulder and cracked wall? Do you free the trapped beast? Decide quickly - this could be your only chance.

◎ Opening the Door

Although the ceiling's been torn open, no open sky is revealed. Climbing up is difficult. You'll have to look elsewhere to escape. Once the boulder is removed and the cracked wall is torn down, you'll notice orange sparks that run between the strange bulb behind the boulder and the dense webbing across the cave.

Are you brave enough to reach into the pulsing bulb? If you do, you'll find thick vines connected to its beating heart. Each time a vine is forcibly pulled away and disconnected, the webbing begins to loosen, forming a small opening - but letting go will close the webbing right up again.

The more vines are disconnected, the larger the opening. It'll take 2-3 of you to make an opening large enough for people to go through... and from how quickly it closes, anyone who volunteers understands that they won't be escaping with the rest.

◎ Escape Routes

Do you trust what lies beyond the webbing? Looking through reveals only the dark abyss. You have no idea what's out there, but it can't be worse than what's in here. Can it?

If you don't trust the webbing and have the strength, you can swim down through an opening in the floor, left behind by the giant earlier. It's filled with cold ocean water. If you make it, you'll see a standard portal hidden in the depths.

Choose your path. Each one will spit you out somewhere a little different, but you'll have the chance to look for and meet up with others who took the other route.

If you're one of the Lost keeping the webbing open, you could try to dive for the underwater portal, but you won't make it. The portal will shatter quickly once the vines are released.

◎ Josselyn Creed | Interact

Josselyn Creed is difficult to spot in the commotion but not impossible. A few of her most faithful protect her. She wears a unique robe compared to the others. Her hood is lowered, revealing her brown hair tied in a bun that may be recognizable to some. Her mask is in place.

While she'll escape in the end, she isn't immune to harm. You can try to stop her and, in the process, perhaps contribute to what happens to her as she flees or afterwards.

◎ The Mysterious Acolyte | Interact

Along with the natives who might need your assistance escaping, there's also the strange pair whom a few interacted with. The Mysterious Acolyte and the Unknown Stranger will appear lost and uncertain in the pandemonium.

Some of you promised to help them escape, but saving them comes with a cost: at least one of you must exchange your place in the Escape Group for both of them. She will not leave without her brother, the Unknown Stranger. Her refusal will cost one of the Summoned their place.

Players can decide how the scenario plays out. At least one character must their place in the Escape Group so that the Unknown Stranger makes it through first. Only then will the Mysterious Acolyte follow.

Characters holding open the webbing and vines are not eligible. A sacrifice can only count for one outcome.

Into the Cold (Escape Group)

The first thing you notice is the biting cold. The sky is beginning to lighten. For once, you can breathe in the fresh air. But where are you, really?

◎ Gathering Your Bearings

Though spring is on its way, the mountains are a tundra. Temperatures are cold, though not as terrible as they'd have been in the dead of winter. Maybe you've stolen some warm clothes off the dead before the escape? Or, if you've been kind to the Abraxan natives who shared the ordeal with you, they'll offer supplies and equipment in return. It isn't much, but it could make all the difference if you're in dire straits.

• If you swam through the WATER PORTAL, it'll spit you up in an open cave. Wet and cold as you are, at least you've found shelter. Keen eyes might spot an unusual trail of glitter. Follow it to a tiny hidden hot spring. Soaking in the shimmering water are a few mischievous but harmless creatures. One was accidentally set loose at the Peace Summit many months ago, showering multiple attendants in a shimmery sheen. Large beast-like prints are nearby, though, so best not to stay long. Still, it's a nice reprieve while you can get it...as long as you don't mind being coated in glitter.


• If you went through the DENSE WEBBING, it'll spit you up on a frozen lake. Cracks will begin to form as more and more land on the surface. You'll need to find solid ground quickly. Take care - a large shadow lurks beneath the thinning ice. If there's too much commotion or excessive movement, it'll realize there's prey above and begin to thrash, disturbing the delicate ice further.

◎ Temporary Relief

Though some healing abilities and magic have returned, the wounds caused by the ritual don't seem to recover properly. They aren't getting worse, but it's troubling. Your mind could remain confused or disturbed. Even those who were successfully cured will discover the lesions heal much slower than other injuries.

As the days wear on, you might feel a strong pull from the Singularity that leads you into the Horizon. This is especially so if you remain under the ritual's influence. If you give in to the urge and find a safe moment to enter, you can go in without as much difficulty as before.

You won't land where you intend, but you might find one of the Spared within. Somehow, the Singularity has brought you together. Something compels you to reach out and make contact. When you do, you'll feel a gentle warmth. You might not know what's happening, but it feels right.

When you depart from the Horizon, effects from the ritual have lessened by a noticeable degree. They'll stay that way for the next day or so, giving you the strength to keep going.

◎ Preparing for the Night

What you do next is entirely up to you. You can organize with your fellow escapees, go off on your own, or try to bring the two groups together. Boars, rabbits, and foxes can be hunted. The surrounding snow can be boiled for safe drinking water.

Even more fortunate, your powers will return - to a degree. Stronger abilities might take longer to return fully, but elemental spells, modest healing, and enhanced senses or traits can be accessed. And you might find that messages on the Network are no longer distorted.

Not all is safe and well: though the first few days are quiet, the mountains aren't without the usual predators. Wolves howl, and large gryphons soar the sky. They're wary of people and are unlikely to attack, but that doesn't mean you should let your guard down. In the wild, you never know. As you enter Week 4, more formidable threats could arise.

Sacrifice (Holdout Group)

Maybe you're one of the unlucky souls, or maybe you chose to sacrifice your place for others. However it came about, both escape paths close, and the Acolytes inside the cavern overwhelm you and the rest once more. Those left behind are a mixture of native Abraxans and the Summoned. The ground is sticky with blood and viscera.

Forcibly, violently, you're led or dragged deeper and deeper down the stone paths to the altar room where the rituals took place. The Acolytes push as many of you in there as they can and seal the door - and if a few limbs are caught in the way, that's just too bad. Someone with you, perhaps one of the natives, ends up with a crushed finger or hand as the doors slam shut.

Not everyone is pushed inside in the end. In the Acolytes' rush to contain the Summoned, a few Abraxan natives are left outside the doors with the remaining Acolytes. When you hear their cries through the sealed barrier, you have to ask yourself if you're truly the lucky ones.

◎ The Altar Room

The altar is built of bone. The husks of now-empty bodies are piled into a macabre amalgamation. It's not meant to house anyone for long. Supplies are limited. Water trickles into a small pond used for the Acolytes' rituals. There are bowls of hardened bread. Sealed crates contain more mushrooms. They're edible, but some might carry psychedelic side effects. If you've succumbed to the ritual, though, you might not consider that a downside.

While not as open or large as the cavern you came from, you can explore the altar room for any potential answers to where you are and how to escape. The entrance is sealed tight. Outside, you can hear the Acolytes - and that might be important for later.

Since the door is magically sealed, nothing can come in or out...except the Bone Serpent, whose legs continue to slink down from above to snatch unsuspecting victims. Blood drips from above, possibly from one of its missing legs.

Now and then, something bangs on the door. Is it the creatures you unleashed before? The beasts that were never contained? You can try to follow the Bone Serpent to see where it leads or maybe even glimpse the creature beyond its thorny limbs, but that's a high risk. The consequences could be dire.

◎ Slow Flood

The destruction seems to have broken what prevented you from using the Network. You can now communicate with the Spared and the Escape Group uninterruped.

Unfortunately, the chaos has also dislodged the structure of the entire cavern. Husks of limbs crumble to the floor. The ground grows moist. Bit by bit, water begins to collect in small puddles. More drips through cracks in the walls and ceilings. The rocky floors offer higher ground, but that'll only last for so long.

As slow as it is, there's no denying the dread that washes over you: the cavern is flooding, and it's seeping through into the altar room. Some of the captured natives look uneasy. Others are too injured to help themselves. You can try to plug the leaks. Though the idea might strike you as morbid, the bodies of the dead can be used to keep some of the water at bay.

◎ Temporary Relief

Wounds caused by the ritual don't seem to recover properly. Your mind could remain confused or disturbed. Even those who were successfully cured will discover the lesions heal much slower than other injuries.

As the days wear on, you might feel a strong pull from the Singularity that leads you into the Horizon. This is especially so if you remain under the ritual's influence. If you give in to the urge and manage to find a safe moment to enter, you can go inside without as much difficulty as before.

You won't land where you intend, but you might find one of the Spared within nonetheless if you wander through. Somehow, the Singularity has brought you together. Something compels you to reach out and make contact. When you do, you'll feel a gentle warmth. You might not know what's happening, exactly, but it feels right.

When you depart from the Horizon, effects from the ritual have lessened by a noticeable degree. They'll stay that way for the next day or so, giving you the strength to keep going.

Coordination | The Spared

You might have compromised a few morals to get what you want - if you had any in the first place - but regardless of how you got here, you and the other Summoned have gathered enough information to proceed. Of course, there are still a few details to iron out. How will you approach the island without compromising the Lost? What spells and resources are required? What needs to be done so that survivors have a safe place to rest and recover once they're home? And what about the ritual inflicted upon them?

Players are encouraged to organize teams, rescue efforts, and tactics with each other. The details outlined below are to provide a starting point and some guidance but are by no means the only options available.

Nocwich

Thanks to a request by one of the Summoned in the Free Cities, Nocwich's doors are opened as a neutral meeting ground for the Spared from all three major nations. Some officials will also be arriving to monitor the situation.

◎ Ritual Details (Sten) | Interact

Sten, one of the Nocwich ambassadors for the Lunae, received a request to help find a cure for the ritual. To do so, he wants to first learn as much about the ritual as he can. Anyone with information can come forward either in person or with a note - anonymous or not. While he'd prefer to put a name to the face, Nocwich won't interfere with the Summoned's desire to protect themselves and their secrets.

Sten will be available in Oleuni Square, in one of the many tents. Pale-haired and scarred, he's warm and friendly to everyone. Due to Luna's connection to Solvunn, he has some knowledge of High Magic, although the traditions of the werewolves are different. While he can't hold long meetings, he'll make time to see everyone who has something important to tell him about the ritual - and if you need a little extra reassurance, he'll offer that, too.

◎ Oleuni Square

Normally a thriving marketplace, Oleuni Square has been repurposed. In the northeastern corner, a collection of tents have been set up. Most are utilitarian but others are covered with homemade blankets to help cover imperfections. The Lunae have come to lend their aid. Volunteers help set up tables and supplies. Others guard the area and the portals. A communal cooking area is available to provide hot meals.

You can make use of the tents for talking strategy, organizing supplies, and other meetings. Nearby inns are available for sleeping free of charge, although one of the inns is closed so that it can be converted into a temporary infirmary. Faction officials and employees are available, as well. You can consult them on tactical advice, resources, and the lay of the land.

Early in Week 3, a few representatives from Ikorr arrive with a supply of their sacred sap. With the sap and the metal ore from the Lunae, you can fashion supplies and potions from raw materials.

The mood around the makeshift camp is somber but hopeful. As one of the Summoned, you'll have control of the situation and can work with a variety of officials and locals to arrange what you need.

Reevaluating Plans

Shortly into Week 3, you'll receive word that some of the Lost have escaped. As details come in bits and pieces, you realize the situation's taken a dramatic turn. More than that, messages from the Lost are no longer disrupted as before. You can read the words clearly again.

Who makes contact first and how the news spreads depends on you. Regardless of how it comes about, your focus can't be solely on breaching the discovered island. Now you also have another group to retrieve - and you don't know where they are, though they at least have some helpful information: the Singularity, the snowy mountains, and a view of the ocean.

Take advantage of the Network's return to reevaluate your plans. You'll need to determine the situation in the island cave as well as the mountains, split into teams, and bring everyone home.

Assigning Roles

Under the circumstances, officials will recommend the Summoned divide into at least two groups: one to search the mountains and one to retrieve the Lost remaining on the island. If you're not the type to rush to the front lines, you can also stay back and help out at home. There's plenty to do here between finding a cure, delegating tasks, and preparing for survivors to return.

◎ Search Team

Reports from the Escape Group tell of snow-capped mountains, Acolytes in pursuit, and other creatures that lurk. Many are injured, though fortunately, abilities have started to return. The area isn't guarded, but the terrain is difficult and temperatures are harsh. Officials will suggest using portals to arrive at the nearest safe point on the mountains before traveling on foot to find the Lost. Others can choose to hunt down the Acolytes who are chasing their friends. Anyone with strong tracking skills would be key, but the team could also use medical assistance in case anyone needs treatment on the spot.

◎ Retrieval Team

Word has it that some of the Acolytes remain on the island along with the trapped captives. The area is tightly guarded and possibly infested with some unknown creatures or those not in their right minds. Officials will suggest negotiating to prevent unwanted casualties but will caution that having a team for infiltration and force is necessary, too. Some distraction could also be helpful, and it would be wise to have some medical assistance in case anyone needs treatment on the spot.

◎ Home Team

Having hands on deck at base is equally vital. Officials will recommend a cure for the ritual be found while the teams are out searching, and standard healing supplies will need preparation, too. Outbound teams could use someone to help bring together lines of communication, updating officials and the Summoned alike about what's going on. And of course, with the Horizon as a place of respite, anyone who can go in to help the Lost seeking healing would be of value.

Week 4

The days have been taxing, but you're beginning to feel a change in the air. Now that resources and information have been pooled, things are moving quickly. Soon, you'll be reunited.

Once you find one another, you'll still need to return home safely - but at least you'll have each other now.

Although players have been divided up until now between Lost and Spared, Week 4 will bring the Spared in contact with the Lost's environments. We'll provide relevant information or redirect each group accordingly so that you don't need to review the entire post for the correct details. If there's anything you're uncertain about from the other group, please ask!

Survival | The Lost

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and imagery), mild gore, body horror, dark and horror-based themes

By now, you've undoubtedly heard from the Spared back home. You're relieved to know rescue is coming, but you probably don't want to sit and wait. With threats to contend with and a dangerous environment, you can take steps to be sure the Spared have help from the other side.

Escape Group

Surviving the elements is only half of it. As the days turn to nights, you realize you're not alone. More than wolves and bears prowl. Something sinister comes...as well as the Acolytes who want their captives back at all cost.

◎ Pursuing Acolytes | Interact

Loyal to the cause, some Acolytes chase the fleeing Lost into the mountains. You might be lulled into safety the first few days, but by Week 4, you sense their presence. The evergreen trees wither, winter shrubs rot, and unexplained husks of wildlife are found. The winds carry a stench in the air that you now identify with the fungal cavern you were held in.

They hunt in pairs or small groups. Their powers seem weaker for reasons unknown, but they remain formidable opponents. You can run, protect others, or go on the offensive.

◎ Hydnellia & Esmond | Interact

If they successfully escape in Week 3, the Mysterious Acolyte and the Unknown Stranger will travel with their rescuers. They'll introduce themselves as Hydnellia & Esmond. Though nervous, Hydnellia is more trusting of anyone who helped them. She's skilled in healing and foraging, while Esmond carries a draught for warmth that could prove useful. Depending on where you stand, you could find their addition helpful or contentious.

◎ Revenant | Interact

Something else stalks the night, scaring even the Acolytes. A hoarfrost revenant has lived on these peaks for centuries. With the sudden arrival of the Lost and Acolytes, he prowls the snow, searching for who's disturbed his sleep.

He cannot be killed. You can only run or chase him away, but he'll soon return. Take care not to stay in one place too long. A rattling chain and blue-flamed lantern announces his coming. His touch brings instant death, made clear by the frozen carcasses of animals left in his path. Best not to fight him.

◎ Rescue

Landmarks such as lakes, cliffs, the Singularity, and more can be used to direct the Search Team to your location.

You might want to warn the Spared about the dangers they'll face when they reach the mountains. Unable to portal to you directly, they'll reach you on foot. You'll need to brave the dangers together one last time to reach the waiting portals below. The trek isn't far, but making that final stretch might feel like an eternity. In the distance, the ground trembles, and the snow begins to form an avalanche.

Players can arrange how the Search Team and the Escape Group meet and decide what threats they'll encounter as they return to the portal.

Details on the avalanche and what characters will face when traveling to the portal will be provided under the Search & Rescue - Search Team section.

Holdout Group

As you huddle in the altar room, you can only hope your sacrifice, intentional or not, was worth it. At least you've been able to communicate with the outside world. The Acolytes are beginning to show signs of unease and budding dissent. At some point, you have to ask, why haven't the unhappy ones left or fled themselves?

Maybe you aren't the only ones trapped anymore. Maybe you're all trapped together now.

◎ The Altar | Interact

Now that you can approach the altar and examine it closely, you see the terrible remnants of twisted figures sunken into the ground beneath it, as though they've fused with the altar itself.

If prodding at the shrines worked, perhaps doing the same with the altar will reveal some answers. A strange energy emanates from its open maw when those afflicted by the ritual come near.

◎ A Promise | Interact

In the final hour, some Acolytes desperately try to resume the rituals on the few remaining Abraxan natives left outside the altar room - many in poor condition. You hear it, though you can only glimpse it through a gap in the sealed doors. Their bodies quickly succumb and sprout more fungal growths while long, spine-like tendrils protrude from their orifices.

You can plead with them to stop, or you can join them in hopes that you will find your divine emancipation. The Acolytes will release anyone who wants to join the ritual from the altar room...but what you step into could carry horrific consequences.

◎ Dissenting Acolytes | Interact

More arguments beyond the sealed doors erupt as water fills the cave and altar room. They accuse each other of being faithless or too blindly loyal. Some say Hydnellia betrayed them. Others say the High Priestess did, perhaps referring to Josselyn.

Toward the middle of Week 4, it grows quiet outside. The arguments stop. One Acolyte approaches the door. She promises to free you and the others and help you find a way out of the cavern together, including overwhelming Josselyn's faithful.

This could be what turns the tide, but things might also go very wrong. You and the others trapped with you must decide if you'll accept the olive branch. Of course, agreeing to trust them doesn't mean you have to follow through. The Acolytes sound desperate and might be a bit too trusting themselves.

◎ Rescue

Unlike the Escape Group, the Spared know where the Holdout Group is. Getting to them will take effort, but you can help by providing information from the inside. After all, the Acolytes won't know when you're using the network. You can even coordinate with each other in secret despite being in the same room.

You might want to warn the Spared about the dangers they face when they reach the cavern areas. The Bone Serpent could pose a problem, along with any crumbling walls and obstacles. A creature might still be trapped in one of the tunnels if no one freed it. As the team approaches, severe quakes shake the entire place. Water flows in faster. It appears ready to collapse at any moment.

You'll need to get off the island to reach the portal on the Thornean peninsula. That'll pose a problem when the boats break from the collapsing island, but an unexpected friend might arrive.

Details on the quake and what characters face when getting off the island will be provided under the Search & Rescue - Retrieval Team section.

Search & Rescue | The Spared

CW: Disturbing imagery (text and visual), dark themes.

After an exhausting month, it finally seems as though things are coming together. By now, you've made decided on your plans, gathered your resources, and chosen the role that suits you best. Not everyone may agree with what you're doing, or maybe there's someone you don't agree with. Nevertheless, your friends are waiting, and you'll push forward with or without support.

Search Team

As part of the Search Team, your goal is to portal from Nocwich to the mountains and locate members of the Escape Group.

You'll need to determine the best place to portal in - close enough to the Lost that the trek is reasonable but safe enough that the portals won't be at risk. Considering the terrain and the condition of many of the Lost, it's likely the distance will be about one day's travel on foot.

◎ Resources & Support

Thorne will send their military for support since their soldiers are used to winter conditions, unlike the Free Cities. The Free Cities will provide portal stones so that mages won't be required to maintain an open portal. The Lunae will offer guides to help navigate the wilderness.

Solvunn's aid is limited to healing supplies, as their efforts are focused on the island due to the heavy use of High Magic there.

You are not limited to only what the factions offer upfront. If there's more you think they can do, you can make a request.

◎ The Acolytes (Escape) | Interact

Though rescuing the Lost is the top priority, you might feel justice or vengeance is long overdue. Some Acolytes are pursuing the captives while others might try to pass as one of the survivors. Those most faithful to the cause will attack you, but not all of them are that steadfast. Some prefer to flee. Others still may surrender, under the right circumstances.

Officials have requested that the Acolytes be brought in alive if possible, but no one will be counting the bodies if you decide to take out a few on your own.

Players can write out attacking, capturing, or killing the Acolytes without using the interaction. However, if you want to take a more specific action in terms of identifying any Acolytes pretending to pass as one of the captured Abraxan natives, negotiating a surrender, or interrogating them on the spot, you can submit an interaction.

◎ Getting to Safety

During the search, you'll encounter the same dangers the Escape Group has faced over the past week. Common predators include wolves, gryphons, and wild boars. Most significantly, a revenant must be avoided or else death is certain. Detailed under the Survival - Escape Group section, the revenant can be interacted with by the Spared once on the mountains.

Keep your friends safe after you meet up with them. You'll have to guide them back to the portals and make sure they can keep up with their injuries. Though you hope the journey is smooth, you know better.

And sure enough, a rumble draws your attention. When you look up, you see it coming down: an avalanche pouring down one of the mountain slopes. Get out of the way quickly or risk being swept up in the landslide. If you're lucky enough to dodge the avalanche, you can help anyone caught in its path.

Retrieval Team

As part of the Retrieval Team, your goal is to infiltrate the island and safely retrieve the members of the Holdout Group. A portal from Nocwich can only take you as far as the peninsula on Thorne's coast, near the island. The rest is on you.

Your team's likely already decided the best method to breach the island and you may have done your best to account for every last detail, but that doesn't mean everything will go as planned. The flooding hasn't stopped. Frequent, violent quakes are now shaking the island, and the structure beneath is rapidly crumbling. Time is of the essence.

◎ Resources & Support

Thorne mages and Solvunn Elders will accompany your team to focus on dispelling the enchantments, while the Free Cities will send some of its soldiers. They'll also provide boats powered with New Magic. Though normally quite noisy, Thorne has stepped in to enchant them to be much more discreet.

You are not limited to only what the factions offer upfront. If there's more you think they can do, you can make a request.

◎ Dispelling Protections | Interact

The illusions that once held the island together are corrupted from the escape. Navigating the constantly shifting landscape is dizzying and confusing. You might experience strange visions brought on by your imagination - terrifying images from home you know shouldn't be there.

Fight through it to find a warded tunnel. You'll need to find a way to break the wards to enter. Should you feel the urge to rush in heedlessly, you might want to observe the pile of dead bats and birds all around you. Their bodies are mangled and crushed. You can only imagine what might happen to you.

◎ The Collapse

Whether you make contact with the Acolytes or the Holdout Group first depends on your approach. You can apprehend what Acolytes you can, negotiate their surrender, or kill them. Whichever tactics you use, once the Holdout Group is released from the altar room, you'll end up in the same situation: the way out is blocked from falling debris. Seawater rapidly fills the cavern.

Your best bet is to follow the water flow into the open ocean. As you do, the cavern begins to collapse in on itself in a swirling whirlpool as the magic which kept the water at bay falters. You'll have to struggle to swim against the current, and a few Acolytes are sucked into the vortex. The boats splinter and break apart, leaving you and many wounded stranded in the ocean.

◎ An Old Friend

Deep waters aren't safe. When a deep rumbling sounds and a massive shadow looms below, you might wonder if this is the end. Instead, the shadow takes on a warm moon-like glow. A familiar figure to some of you from Thorne surfaces. The giant sea turtle waits calmly for you to climb on its shell. You can save any captured Acolytes, or you can let the sea swallow them.

How did the turtle find you? If you have strong psychic abilities or an affinity for communicating with animals, you might sense a connection to a much smaller turtle: Admiral Chuck from The Arcanis. Perhaps a friend is looking out for you from afar after you were kind enough to spend time with him.

The moonlit turtle will carry everyone to shore, where the portal to Nocwich awaits. Then it vanishes into the depths once more.

Home Team

As part of the Home Team, your goal is to support the others and prepare for the return of many survivors.

Two important tasks are healing in the Horizon to aid any of the Lost who are struggling, and finding a cure for the effects of the ritual. You can also assign tasks, transform the inn into an infirmary, and make sure supplies are available.

◎ Ritual Cure | Interact

The answer to a cure is likely found in the contents of Josselyn's house, the mushroom rings, and the odd black substance painted around the abduction sites. Solvunn's Elders and the Lunae, including Sten, will be there to help and provide any information they can.

If you're not the experimental type, you can still help in one of two ways: you can go to Ikorr to retrieve a bloom from their sacred flower located in the Nightbloom or you can go to Luna to collect moon-blessed water from the Lunar Pond. You'll be accompanied through a direct portal by the vampires to Ikorr or the werewolves to Luna.

Researchers and mages from the major nations will also work on the task using the information they've learned - but they'd be grateful for any assistance.

◎ Horizon Healing

As discovered in Week 3, you can continue to use the Horizon to offer to heal those who need it. In moments of calm, anyone connected to the Singularity will feel a familiar pull. The urge to enter the Horizon itches at the back of your mind as the hours go by, even if you're not usually inclined to do so.

If you give in, you could find one of the Lost there. You sense they need your help, or you feel compelled to reach out and touch. A warmth flows between you. Though you may not realize what you've done until afterwards, you'll know it's something unique and powerful.

Forging a stronger link to the Horizon can subtly strengthen the gifts and magic you receive from the Singularity - and a deep healing connection with another Summoned is a part of that.

Return

For the next week or so, Nocwich is the place of refuge. Concerned that the ritual and other unknown effects may have a widespread impact, everyone must remain in Nocwich. This includes the abducted Abraxan natives, the soldiers, mages, and Elders who arrived to help.

Captured Acolytes will be held in the prisons in Nocwich. Their fate is yet to be determined.

Should the Mysterious Acolyte and her brother make it to safety, they'll also be held in Nocwich for now. Nocwich will recognize that they were rescued by some of you, however, and will make sure they're placed in a comfortable - but still guarded - home.

Recovery & Cures

The Square's largest inn serves as a temporary infirmary. The Lost will be brought here to recover and receive the cure for the ritual. Any of the Spared who were injured during the rescue will also be treated.

Healing & Care

Although a few healers and doctors from the factions are in Nocwich, most have stayed home to prepare for when the Summoned and their citizens return. Instead, healers from Luna and Ikorr will look after you with a combination of salves, healing magic, and potions. Ikorr's powerful sap is used in healing concoctions, reserved for the most severe injuries. Overdoing it can cause unwanted side effects, so healers are careful.

If you're lucky, you can get a room to yourself. If not, you might have a roommate. The infirmary is hectic, though you'll receive the best care possible. Visitors are allowed. Nurses caution against overtaxing yourself, but you can finally reunite with everyone you've been separated from over the past four weeks.

Receiving the Cure

After such a harrowing ordeal, you'll be relieved to learn that the cure is effective and painless. It consists of a spoonful of a thick mixture. The aftertaste is bitter and a little sour but not terrible. After a day or two, the psychological effects will fade completely. Physical afflictions will begin to heal again.

If any growths remain, they must be removed. Thankfully, potent sleeping draughts means you won't feel a thing - a blessing that those who sought a cure in the caverns didn't have.

Returning Home

After a week, officials determine that the ritual effects are cured and request that you return home. Their doctors and healers will look after you once you're back. Eventually, they'd like to know the details, but you won't need to talk about it just yet.

◎ Thorne

Your return to Thorne is greeted with a show of fanfare. For many, the castle staff has grown familiar with your presence. They're heartened to see you return. A few may have get-well gifts if they've come to know you.

If you still require significant healing, you'll be taken care of in the Castle's infirmary. Otherwise, you'll be assigned a healer who'll check in on you in your room.

◎ Free Cities

Your return to Cadens is greeted with a buzz in the air. With a city so populated, reactions vary from relief to curiosity to a much less welcome invasion of privacy from local writers. City guards will do their best to make sure you return home or arrive at the hospital with minimal fuss.

If you were injured, doctors will insist you remain overnight at the hospital. If you were severely wounded and remain so, they won't clear you for release until you're fully recovered. Of course, no one can stop you from leaving, but you may want to listen to the doctors.

◎ Solvunn

Your return to Solvunn is greeted with a somber air. Many in the settlement are in the midst of prayer, having devoted themselves to seeking your safe return. Your friends and neighbors are relieved to see you, but they're troubled by the perversion of their traditions, the close involvement of one of their Council members, and the terrible suffering you endured.

Healers and Elders will see you in your home as needed. Offerings will be made to shrines on your behalf, and you won't run out of home-cooked meals for a while. Many will lend a sympathetic ear if you want someone to talk to.

Comments

[beloyaltome]

"Oh, the hot springs sound amazing right now," Lenore says, with a little groan. "We should go."

Hilda especially looks like she needs it, though Lenore certainly noticed the supplies she'd been carrying. "Can you take a break for a little while? I'm in need of a break myself, and some company would be greatly appreciated."

She knows how it feels, pushing herself so hard in order to help, especially since she wasn't taken, she hasn't suffered like the captives did. There's a little bit of survivor's guilt in that, but for the most part Lenore's willing to help a little less now that everyone's home safe and there are lots of hands able to assist those who were rescued. She exhausted herself in the rescue itself, when there weren't enough able hands and she'd gone back again and again to help drag people out of the ocean and onto the turtle's shell.

[theidlemaiden]

A quick apology is on the tip of Hilda's tongue when Lenore poses her question. Gentle deflection has been her go-to over the course of the last several weeks that it has disturbingly become second nature for her.

The Hilda from four weeks ago is absolutely appalled that she's even considering turning down the offer, but the present Hilda's gaze trails down to the supplies in her hand guiltily. The guilt battles against the ache in her muscles that is quickly making itself known which only leads her to become acutely aware that she hasn't really had time to bathe properly in, oh Goddess, who knew how long.

That thought alone is enough to change her mind. "I would love that. I think the supplies can wait." She offers her arm to Lenore. "Shall we?"

[beloyaltome]

Grateful for agreement and an uncomplicated friendship, Lenore gladly takes her arm, squeezing close against her side and turning at once toward the hot springs. "Good. The supplies can wait. We've both done a lot, and there are more hands to help now. I think we can be allowed a little recovery of our own so that we have more energy to help again in a few hours."

Her grip is perhaps a little too tight, almost clinging a bit. She's grateful that Hilda's safe, and grateful that Hilda's real. "I don't feel like I can trust my memory of our first meeting. You're ... with the Free Cities, is that right?"

[theidlemaiden]

The clinging doesn’t go unnoticed, but she’s happy to grip right back. Hilda has always been the tactile sort, determined to show her appreciation for people through more than just honeyed words like many of the nobles that she had grown up around.

Action speak louder than words to her (although she’d be a complete liar if she said that depending on who the words came from, she’d be putty in their hands), and Lenore’s hold on her feels genuine, like she’s somehow made a friend in an abstract, strange sort of way. A rush of warmth fills her chest at the thought.

She leads them through the crowds of people bustling from one end of the square to the next, turning her gaze towards Lenore and giving her a reassuring smile. “That’s right! How is Thorne the last four weeks aside? I would have checked in her earlier but I figured with the whole not remembering the Horizon that might have been a little weird.” She caps it off a sheepish giggle at her own expense, as if a hug from a near-stranger wasn’t on the same level.

[beloyaltome]

"It's ... good, I think." Lenore's glad to move swiftly through the crowds. Usually she flourishes in a bustling social scene, but right now she's too emotionally fatigued to deal with more than one or two people at a time, and the crowds filling Nocwich to help with the emergency situation feel overwhelming. "I feel like I only just arrived before all this happened, but I think ... I am pleased to be there. I'm fairly certain I'm better suited there than in the other factions, though of course I'm desperate for more contact with Ikorr. Plenty of nobles and court politics, so I feel right at home, and the fashion is mostly the sort of things that are familiar to me, unlike some of the Industrious fashions you showed me from the Free Cities. Do you feel very Free in the Cities? I confess I'm not yet sure what to make of them, from the descriptions I've heard."

[theidlemaiden]

Hilda can't help but laugh a little good naturedly at her initial response. "Good I think is a really accurate way of putting it." Being pulled into a world wasn't exactly something that anyone could prepare you for, so the bar for reactions was set rather low. At least from what she could see, Lenore was taking it all in stride and settling in well which spoke volumes about the sort of resiliency she had. It isn't like they had any control over anything that had just happened to them after all.

The question Lenore poses to her gives her a brief moment of pause. "I think I do." She had heard about Thorne in bits and pieces from Elrond and how far more structured it was even if it seemed like more was provided for them. "We have to fend for ourselves and make our own living – which is so hard – but we don't really have to worry to much about going into the Horizon as often as Thorne or Solvunn."

There's a brief moment where she mulls another thought over in her mind. "I'm not sure how I would have fared if I had arrived in either of those settlements." There's a quirk of her lips. "Even if I would have been spoiled for fashion choices in Thorne."

[beloyaltome]

"I don't know much about Solvunn at all, I haven't had much acquaintance with anyone from there." Lenore shrugs, gazing off in the vague direction of Thorne, thinking about it as ... home, now, even though it's hard to feel at home without a proper wardrobe or a private room. "I've spoken to those who have ... very negative feelings toward Thorne, and yet I find I'm not sure how I would have fared if I had arrived in the Free Cities. I'm best suited for a court like Thorne's, despite its drawbacks."

She brightens as they reach the hot springs, releasing Hilda's arm so that she can focus on the important business of stripping down and stepping into the hot water. Groaning with relief and pleasure as she settles into one of the pools, Lenore dips below the surface for a moment, letting the water soak even into her thick curls.

[theidlemaiden]

"It's a lot of farmland," she says as she offers up a couple of coins for entry into the hot springs for them before letting out an amused laugh. "I met this officer on the cruise we were on a couple of months ago that told me all about the goats there but there weren't nearly as many as I thought there'd be. I think he was just trying to impress me! My friends there seem to enjoy it though." And as long as they enjoyed it and were treated well that's all that mattered to her.

Peeling her clothes off feels so satisfying. It feels as if she's been living in them longer than she actually has when it actuality it's probably only been no more than two or three days. Even during the war she had been quick to change out of the day's clothing as soon as she had the chance. Thinking back, those days seem like a luxury now even if they had been times of war. Or maybe that's just the lack of sleep talking.

Hilda tilts her head back into the water, not caring for once that she doesn't have any of her soaps or perfumes with her and just grateful to have warmth instead of the chill that had settled in her bones. After a moment of what she suspects is blissful silence for the both of them she pops her head up, continuing the thread of their conversation from earlier. She frowns a bit in thought. "From what I understand, I think all of the original Summoned had stayed in Thorne before they relocated. So the freedom must have felt nice to them."

Her gaze slides over to Lenore with a grin. "I think you would have held up just fine wherever you landed though. You give me the strong, capable woman aura."

[beloyaltome]

"Yes, that's what I was told, that the first Summoned were brought to Thorne, and it was only later that they began to be brought also to the other nations also. Seems apt, as I also read that the nations all branched off of Thorne. Though I do find that latter story to be ... rather suspicious in several ways."

Smiling a little at the compliment, Lenore reaches for some of the simple bathing products, starting to work them into her hair. It's already difficult enough to take care of her hair properly with the slightly larger selection that's provided in Thorne, so she just resigns herself to doing her best. Though, while she's reaching for that, she flicks her fingers toward Hilda's clothing, using the new spell that she's inexplicably acquired, which removes stains and grime from clothing. Now Hilda will have clean clothes when they emerge, and Lenore will be able to enjoy her surprise at finding them suddenly clean.

"I suppose so. I've survived quite a few things in my two hundred years. It would simply be more of an adjustment for me in the Free Cities or Solvunn."

[theidlemaiden]

Curiosity flickers into her expression. "How so?" Having Claude as a friend, she's no stranger to conspiracy theories and not taking everything at face value. She wouldn't go as far as to say that she's naive, but she'd be lying if said that it's perhaps only been in the last several years that she's started to really consider approaching situations with a little more caution than she might have otherwise.

Lenore's little surprise goes unnoticed as Hilda too begins to reach for the provided products. As the self-care begins, she already finds herself thinking ahead to a bath in Cadens where she'll be able to apply the normal perfumes and oils she normally would to her hair. The surprise on her expression is palpable at Lenore's casual drop of her age and she pauses mid-wash. "Two hundred?!" Remembering that that might be considered a little bit rude she's quick to amend herself. "You look really good for two hundred."

[beloyaltome]

"I'm a vampire," Lenore explains. "As long as we're adequately nourished, we can heal almost any injury, suffer no known illness, and age only over the course of centuries." Shrugging as she offers up this information, Lenore continues her own tending to her hair. "It is lonely, though. Even among other immortals, people die and change and places and things are lost. Those things stack up over the decades, and more so as the centuries go on."

Perhaps that's her bias. Lenore has always had a tendency toward loneliness, even in a crowded room. She's spent too long seen only for her beauty, her charm, her sensuality, and it makes her feel isolated when people see only those surface levels of her. And now she's just recently lost those who had seen a least a little way past that surface.

[theidlemaiden]

If someone asked Hilda if dying scared her, she'd answer with an affirmative. The unknown of what lay after that was ominous, but not being able to live, to feel the sun on her skin, the warmth of hot spring water or anything ever again — that's what scared her the most. Even if she hadn't been the one trapped in the pits, the avalanche had brought her dangerously close to that reality.

There's a moment of contemplation as she works the shampoo into her hair. Immorality presumably didn't mean invincible, but even then, trying to wrap her mind around the behemoth concept of immortality is difficult to say the least. Loneliness however, makes sense. What gives her pause is the lack of inflection from Lenore and she can't help but wonder if it effects her more than she's letting on.

Concern reaches through her voice. "There must be other vampires though, aren't there? Other ones that you care about and are your friends?"

[beloyaltome]

Lenore's hands go still at the question, eyes gazing sightlessly at the surface of the water. "There were," she says, voice flat and tight, with an undercurrent of rage. "Until recently."

Dipping back under the water for a moment before she either says something furious or bursts into tears, Lenore fluffs her hair under the water to rinse the soap from it, then surfaces again to start working a hydrating cream into it, taking care with how she twists the curls so that they'll end up with pretty definition. "There's a half vampire here from my world," she comments, safely bland again. Adrian hasn't earned any of her ire (yet). "You've probably encountered him in the Free Cities. Tall, blond, very intelligent but totally lacking in practical sense."

She avoids stating any name for him. She's managed to avoid it for two months now and absolutely intends to continue.

[theidlemaiden]

The rage is palpable in Lenore's voice and Hilda pauses, watching worriedly as the vampire dips below the waters. When she reemerges however, there's nothing noticeable that Hilda can see on her expression that betrays anything more than the brief flash of emotion that had slipped from underneath Lenore's neutral tone.

Hilda slips quietly into her own thoughts as she resumes massaging her scalp as if that will somehow connect the dots for her. Fortunately, not too many people fit that description, but she can't say how much she agrees with the last one. There's only so much that she knows of Alucard personally after all. Lenore purposefully not naming him doesn't go unnoticed and Hilda follows suit.

"I have. He's actually let me borrow some books on enchanting for some of my accessories." There's a hesitation to her tone, as if even admitting that much is betraying her new friend. "Is he the reason behind your friends not being around anymore?"

[beloyaltome]

"Oh, no. He's uninvolved. Well. Mostly uninvolved. As far as I'm aware. I don't think he ever met any of them, except perhaps Carmilla." Lenore's voice grows easier again as she speaks. Her acquaintance with Adrian is complicated, but as of yet she feels no hostility toward him, and she's a little apologetic about having given a negative impression on the topic. She thinks he lacks good sense, but in a fond-of-this-moron kind of way. "I meant to include him in the second category: not fully a vampire, but I think we're more or less friends. We both helped each other over the past month's ordeal. Not in big ways, necessarily, but ... significant ones."

[theidlemaiden]

Something akin to relief floods Hilda's face. She knows everyone has a past, have done things that they're not proud of, and probably wish would never see the light of day again, but that wouldn't have prepared her for the conflict she might have inevitably felt had Alucard actually been an instigator of something horrible. What Lenore says though does bring to light another fact that she hadn't been aware of but perhaps suspected based on his pallor and magnificent hair: namely the fact that he's a vampire, or partially one. She'd have to ask more about that later.

Upon arriving she had already had to worry about things like loyalty and friendships and how those would affect how she interacted with Sylvain and Petra. There was no doubt in her mind that if it ever came down to it, she would never turn her back on Claude - but she'd rather not have to make the choice to begin with. The same sort of sentiment could be said in regards to Lenore and Alucard.

"I'm glad to hear that the two of you are friends," she admits, the relief tinging her smile. "In fact, I'm glad to know that the both of you have and know each other from home." With her hair feeling clean, she begins to wash the shampoo from it, before reaching for the conditioning bar. "How so?"

[beloyaltome]

"Mm," Lenore answers, seemingly very intent upon twisting this particular curl just right. It requires really quite a bit of concentration. So much so that she couldn't possibly answer that question, and then after a few moments it's just entirely forgotten. Was there a question? Surely not. No need to spend any discussion on the complications and vulnerabilities of two secretive pale individuals with very excellent hair.

"Tell me more about these enchanted accessories of yours," she prompts, much happier about the prospect of returning the conversation to fashion. Do they really need to discuss anything about Lenore's past and trauma ever again? Not if Lenore has anything to do with it.

[theidlemaiden]

Hilda knows a topic change when she sees one. She might be more persistent if it was a different person she was closer with, but as it is, she's still getting to know Lenore. The last thing she wants to do is pry, but she'd be lying if she said that her curiosity weren't piqued. If Lenore wanted to talk about it later, she'd just be there for her.

The mention of her venture into accessories perks Hilda up while simultaneously form a little wriggle of anxiety in her throat. "Well before all of this started, I had been working on some bracers to help steady the aim of hands. I'm hoping to try and fashion the sigils for two sorts of spells that will help with that into filigree that can fit over the bracers or be bracers but prettier."

There's a bit of a wistful look that passes her features. "I wish I could show the drawing instead of just describing it but I'll show you them the next time we're in the Horizon."

[beloyaltome]

"I look forward to seeing them," Lenore agrees with a smile, fondly amused at Hilda's excitement. "Though I think I'll be leaving all that spellcraft and enchantment to you. Perhaps my opinion will change with time, but for now I'm content to simply let my clothing be clothing. Though I don't have any need for steady hands, so perhaps I just need to think more creatively."

She has some experience crafting enchanted accessories, actually, and not for any combat-enhancing purposes. But that didn't end well, and she'll just add it to the list of things she doesn't want to talk about.