Record of Happenings[ kAtlas ]
I'm writing everything down so that we can look upon our past objectively and avoid the same mistakes as those who came before us. I hope, by the end of this, our descendents can look upon this history book with pride and hope that this city which we once failed to have hope in... is really possible. - 08.28.20XX, Lian |
Page Contents |
✦ // Chapter I //
✦✦✦
✦ Hectic Beginnings ✦
This section records the opening of kAtlas, finding reliable helpers, and the beginnings of a city that stands on the foundation of 5 individuals...
The Central Government Building was actually the home base of the city before Lutz became a city. More like a place to gather people, an inn, a church in a small town, etc. In the early days of creating a haven for RevelriE, people simply used it as a way to meet up. The old bar was eventually repurposed into the Adventurer's Guild, while the main meeting building became the Central Government Building, or "the large tall stick" as Lian likes to put it.
Lian has been working on paperwork for the past few days in order to devise a reliable system of tracking the people we know and those that need to be verified. Although... they're not sure about having such a hefty records system, but //REDACTED said it was necessary. It'll be a while before this system is finished... With the current state of peace, it's unlikely that //HIDDEN// willl need to call upon any of the others since they have only been in sparse contact since the Revolution.
...
Nycti, Calliope. They're the names of the newest members of the team. Nycti is an odd one, but skilled at managing papers, much to the delight of Lian who has recently been running around ditching his paperwork in favor of exploring around and hitting up old friends from before the turn of the century. If you ask him what he's doing, he'll mumble something along the lines of "seeing if they've found anyone", and then wave it off with a smile before switching the subject. Calliope has also been a blessing, as he's been handling many of the newcomers with his cheerful demeanor and enthusiasm.
Rose and Fui are two individuals from Lian's time back before Lutz was founded. They met around the time of the Revolution, although the three weren't exactly good friends. At most, perhaps well-known acquaintances, since both Rose and Fui led teams that operated under Jackal's unit. Both being RevelriE, they've offered to help extend their mercenary skills to Lutz should they require it.
//A note scribbled on the bottom of the page in fine text.// Official records aside... It really has been a while since the last time I've seen them...Once they come back around, I'll take them out for a drink.
✦ StarFall ✦
Starfall: the celebration of a previous civilization that no longer exists. Once called the Perseids, it used to be celebrated as the symbolism of the First King's power. Although the First King went by many names, like the Lone King, Godslayer, many prefer to call them First because that is where everything we know of...began. They were the first, and so far, the only one. Starfall used to be celebrated in many ways. People would throw extravagant parties and set up stalls on the streets during the daytime. Popular foods like fried sandshark claws, various pastries, and star-shaped cookies would be sold. At night, all the lights would dim as people traveled out to places where the sky was clear and no trees blocked the view of the vast and beautiful sky that held the secrets to the universe. It's said that RevelriE with relation to the celestial gods instinctively fear the First King's power, although no one has been able to confirm this theory.
// Note written in small print // Hmm....that'll need looking into for the future.
During Starfall, an expedition was sent out into the desert in search of ruins. The mercenaries were dispatched and new RevelriE who joined were also able to participate and explore the ruins themselves for a bit of fun and excitement. Fui, Rose, and *Magpie* were sent as guides to prevent anything unexpected from happening and to ensure the safety of the travelers. The relics found were given to the city, who paid everyone for their hard work and allowed members to keep what they found as long as it wasn't a relic. A few relics were found, including one depicting what seems like an artistic rendition of "Gemstone Affinity" as well as an old stone tablet with strange images.
The truth behind the Ruins Exploration, the operation //REDACTED// is...
//REDACTED... UNAUTHORIZED CREDENTIALS... Please insert a valid ID to continue... //
[ The view of the starfall meteor showers on the final day of the exploration ]
✦ Lutz, the City of Miracles ✦
Introducing Lutz through the summer event, the culture of the area, and the surroundings. A feel for the kinds of people who live there, and the creatures that inhabit the world around you.
Lutz, the city of light and hope. That was the wish that the founder first had when the city name was created. The city's name spread around during the Revolution, back before there was a city named Lutz. At the time, everyone called it, the "Haven". Today, a sizable amount of people live there, although the majority of them are RevelriE since this city is one of the few places that actively protect them. Along the streets, you'll find small markets and stalls selling food, vegetables and other knick-knacks and treats. The trade route from the main southern gates leads to the port down south, where most of the traders get their goods and come up to sell their wares.
Inside the city, you'll find various information on the history of the world at the Library, run by Nycti, the head librarian, general recordkeeper, and skilled linguist in ancient runic glyphs. In the general area, there's the zone of education, where you can go to request help with affinity powers, talk to other like-minded students, and study a variety of random little things, from agriculture to interdimensional travel theory to battle arts.
[ A sample of the fun things to do in the city. Go to the market to buy some goodies, or travel into the desert to see the night sky. You can also go to the nearby oasis town to relax! ]
...
Summer school event to train newbies and get them accustomed to the City. Everyone still feels very new, and the best way to ease them in is through...school? About making friends, shopping in the plaza, and visiting the oasis. Write a section with a tidbit about each area and some world-building. Touch on the Sector of Learning in the city. Touch a little on the port cities, trade routes, and possible places out in the world.
A new program has popped up in the city – a summer school of sorts run by Lian and the others in order to ease the newcomers into the city and get everyone accustomed to the place they'll live in if they like it. Run by Calliope and some others, it's an opportunity to explore the city and take a break from your travels. If you'd like, you can also go to the guild to take up some odd jobs here and there– finding cats, sweeping floors, there are too many things to handle by yourself, so it'd be good to take a friend. While also being an extension of the festival that takes place during Starfall, there's a lot to do, no matter what you enjoy.
Magpie has graciously drawn a map for the newcomers to use in their exploration. The quality is...fine.
[ Magpie's informative map. They said that they didn't get paid for it. ]
[Note // Lian] Hey....bro.... *pensive sigh*
✦ Chapter II, Part I
✦ Cyberpunk Flowers ✦
Around the end of Starfall, Hana was sent on a mission to investigate a suspicious facility off to the east, near the mechanical city of Kilgros, which has an undercity as vast as the spiraling caverns beneath the desert. The information received was spotty at best, and the supplier was unknown, so only Hana was sent to investigate. Should there be any signs of conflict, the order is to retreat immediately and report to Magpie. Magpie sent a tracker to monitor her for safety, but they were soon disposed of by unknown forces.
A few weeks later, a few broadcasts were sent by Hana daily, before the situation escalated and conflict seems to have broken out. The logs have been transcribed below. The situation is still at hand. The perpetrator is unknown. We suspect it might be ... //REDACTED... UNAUTHORIZED CREDENTIALS... Please insert a valid ID to continue... //
[ LOGS ]
--
*zzzt- zz-t*
llo-? Is it through?
...Hah. This old machine never works the first time. Anyways, I've deciphered the first one for you, some kind of battle unit or something. I'm not sure what you want with them but do whatever you want.
23.08.22. Hana out.
--
click
Hana here, got a new transceiver! Here's part two, there's a few more, a few more elementals, some cool flowers, long ones, short ones...yeah. Anyways, I'll work on the next one, Hana out.
click
--
click
Heyo~ Got a few more files for the other thing you sent me. Well, also for the one today that I'm done with hahaha.
It looks like we have the coordinates of a lab? Something in the middle of nowhere, I'll file you the stuff after today's file.
Hana out.
click
--
click
...Still working on those coordinates, I'll send over the one I just finished.
All the ones I've deciphered so far aren't the common RevelriE type. Having such a high concentration of rares in one area is...strange.
I'll let you know if I find more.
Hana out.
click
--
click
...Something serious popped up. Here's the file's for the rest of the units for this cipher.
I need to go check something regarding those coordinates from last time. If I don't come back by the next moon... send Magpie to this location.
// REDACTED //
Hana out.
click
--
zzzt- bzzt.
54.8...71...0515 ° ...send...bac...up... click
--
ttskt- ttskt- bzzzt 83.1...582...8 click
--
[ END LOGS ]
Shortly after, it seems that a small group of people left the city in the middle of the night heading off to the east. The rest of the information regarding this situation is under wraps and until further notice, cannot be recor
✦ Chapter II, Part II
✦ Seeking Truth ✦
Something here. About a few months ago, we sent Hana out on a mission involving a suspicious facility. A few complications occurred, and it turns out that the facility was connected to that incident from the past regarding the cor-... ... //REDACTED. It seems to be a remnant of //REDACTED //, but nothing close to what we dealt with at the time. Unluckily, // // has been dragged into this whole situation and found out about //REDACTED //. Recently, my head has started to hurt from all this chaos...
You can still play them here:
( Teaser 1: https://puzzel.org/en/jigsaw/play?p=-NCrKI5CyGSyLqx588Op
Teaser 2: https://puzzel.org/en/slidingpuzzle/play?p=-NCrL5VUKvf3rCbXY-56
Teaser 3:
https://puzzel.org/en/jigsaw/play?p=-NCrLyHn4rDAtRwCdsXJ )
Puzzles that reveal a set of 3 images (above):
- We've identified 1 of the three as ISOMERASE, a dangerous substance that was produced long ago during the revolution to incite mutations among RevelriE in an attempt to create stronger tools for battle. They were later outlawed and destroyed due to their corrosive nature.
- Another is an image of an unknown RevelriE - presumably one of the escaped lab creations. Unfortunate, but we'll have to track them down at a later date. Taking down the lab comes first.
- The last of which is... the last image Hana sent to us before all contact was lost. It's imperative that we start a rescue mission before...its too late.
Not much later, I dispatched Mockingbird to track down Hana and the others, while Fui and Rose focused on rescue work. Hana...is safe. We retrieved as many as we can, of the victims who are stable enough to function. It's better to grant mercy on the remaining... of which their humanity -their sentience- is brought to question. That this kind of thing is still happening... it's unsurprising, really. The atrocities of a few hundred years have been eroded to fine dust, much like how the sand dunes surrounding our city cloak the remains of the war under passing time until it's no longer visible, but the perpetrators llinger on the horizon like miasma. (A smudge has been left here) ... Ironic.
✦ Chapter II, Part III
✦ Side Story 1: Anniversary + New Years Fesitval ✦
A lot more people have gathered into the city since the last major event. As trade continues with the oceanic cities and technology slowly begins to evolve to the point of competing with Kilgros's age old technology giants. A festival is happening soon, and it seems Calliope and the other younger RevelriE have decorated the square. A lot of new faces, Prisma (who... has a strange infaturation with kAtlas), Sinthus (a strange one...), Omen (of which Hana and Magpie quickly adopted), and many others...
For the festival minigames, Fui ended up coming back to run a wildly popular Balloon Darts stand too... Man... that was a hectic month. That being said, it's a good departure for the other residents from all the guild requests and monster subjugation tasks we send them off to.
For the next few months, Lutz made more quality of life developments. Egg hunts events... the opening of a new maid cafe, even an idol concert. Calliope really is working overtime, but it seems with everyone else helping, he's having fun. Kudos. I'm glad...that everything is going well.
✦ Chapter III, Part I
✦ Malaise Effervescence✦
Wisps of Blue and Gold
The sound of bells in the distance. A wind blows at the tips of your ears, whistling a mysterious, uneasy tone. 🪶
[The entire story is recorded below. Please click the star to expand.]
Table of Contents
- Chimes - A hazy world where find yourself in front of a small statue...
- Invitation - A letter on the guild, a trial to test your soul, are you entering into something you were unprepared for?
- Gate Between Worlds - A room isolated from the outside, confronting your weaknesses, overcoming your desires.
- Call to Action - Pulled from your nightmare, you awaken. knowing the truth, it's time to fight.
- Mementos - Fate, and the things that bind us together. Even though we forget, did it really ever disappear?
✦ Chapter 1: Chimes ✦
. . . 🪶
Tonight you fall into a deep sleep. In the haze of sleepiness, in between worlds, you have a dream. You’ve found yourselves in front of the small statue of a small creature, crow-like, but also reminiscent of a fox, with a single horn on the side of its head. Another unknown god?
The chime of a bell echoes into the distance.
[ Approach It ]
The statue’s horn glows. A childish voice giggles, and a warm breeze flows past you.
“Hello.”
Turning around, there’s no one there, but on the ground lies a small white feather. It floats up and brushes your hand. Clearly, you’re meant to take it.
The ethereal voice once again giggles, and suddenly, the hazy dreamlike scene changes into a glittering field of bright flowers.
[ Pray ]
Looking around the endless field of scarlet, there’s no one here. Turning towards the shrine, you step forward to pray-
For a second, you swear the statue blinks-
and suddenly you stumble, falling– the gate ripples like a mirage as the red field of flowers rushes towards you. The ground shimmering, shaking, petals dusting the air–
.
.
.
. . .
...
You wake up.
Back to chapter select: Malaise Effervescence.
✦ Chapter 2: Invitation ✦
-------------
The next day, there’s a strange notice on the main adventurer’s guild. An invitation addressed to… you?
Looking around there doesn’t seem to a sender. Picking it up and opening it, you find a set of directions… eventually you find a set of inconspicuous doors at the end of a random small alley. Although you can’t quite remember where, the doors seem… familiar.
Suddenly, a warmth emits from the letter in your hand, as the invitation’s words begin to shift and flow:
Proof of Existence
[ Draw or write a small piece. How will you prove your existence? (Hint: different RevelriE have different unique affinities…different personalities take different responses. There might not be a wrong answer.) ]
Some of you may have decided to leave out of concern for danger, and some of you may not have figured out the puzzle. And yet still, some may have simply forgotten about the whole fiasco, having seen their favorite vegetables on sale during yesterday's farmer's market. Alas.
As for the ones who succeeded… the doors slowly creak open.
Back to chapter select: Malaise Effervescence.
✦ Chapter 3: Gate Between Worlds ✦
[Part I]
In your hands, the invitation glows... and words begin to etch themselves onto the rough paper.
[Welcome, child.]
The room beyond the doorway is dark on the inside, your footsteps echoing in this hollow chamber. Seemingly located in between reality and some other weird liminal space, light doesn’t permeate through the dusty air too well. Even so, it’s pleasantly cool and dry, and you can even feel a thin whisper of flower scented wind leading you forward.
[ Proceed Forward ]
You walk forward resolutely. At your sides, shadows gather in the corners, and dust from eons of passing years rustle whenever you walk. Strange.
Isn't Lutz a relatively new city?
...The shadows crawl at your back. A saccharine voice whispers to your side, but the words are unintelligible. The room is growing uncomfortable in temperature, but whether it is hot or cold, you can't seem to tell.
For an instant, the scent of flowers flare unbearably high, and suddenly the temperatures are back to normal.
Surely, the choice back then to pray at the temple was the right one... Perhaps it was the god from the dream that protected you? You hurry along...
. . .
At the end of a long walk, there’s a dim light, and the dark halls open into an expansive, but still dimly lit room. Slowing down, you can see the center of the room contains...two objects.
A blue silvery wisp floats in the air to the left. It’s cool to the touch, but stand too long in its presence and you feel a looming chill run down your spine.
To the right, a golden glow emanates from a floating fiery orb, almost uncomfortably warm; the longer you remain, the more piercing the heat becomes.
🔵 - Give yourself into the chilling cold.
🟡 - Be enveloped by the roaring flames.
|
[ Gold - Roaring Flames ]
The moment your fingers graze the surface of the golden orb, all sounds from the outside slow into a murky haze. The piercing heat…you can barely feel it anymore. The room brightens and warmth creeps up from below, until the entire space has turned into a comfortable haven.... It feels like old ailments and injuries have faded away. At the ground, is the same statue from your dream... Although it's completely made of smooth sandstone, it almost feels like you're being laughed at. "Thank you for *praying* to me earlier." The musical voice chimes from nowhere, and yet everywhere. You blink, and suddenly a small fox-like creature appears in front of you. "As a reward because I'm nice..." It giggles with a strange look in it's eye, and the edges of its grin stretch a little too wide. "How about I grant you a wish?" 
|
[ Blue - Chilling Ice ]
It hasn't even been a second since you touched the blue orb and your stomach drops- as you're plunged into empty, looming, claustrophobic, darkness. . . . . . . . . . . You still can't see. But slowly, you can hear the scraping sounds of metal, the crisp sounds of ice cracking beneath whatever hard ground you ended up on. Frost creeps up from below and you can feel your senses slipping away. A high, eerie, yet alluring laughter rings out into the darkness, bouncing off the walls of the space and multiplying into a myriad of voices. And suddenly, the entire area lights up in biting, ice-cold flame. And in front of you, is your worst possible reality. 
|
|
[ Gold - Greatest Desire ]🪶 ------
> Draw or write a small piece. What is your RevelriE's greatest desire? > Submit your Greatest Desire into #🪶prompt-submission > Time Limit: --- > Reward: ??? |
[ Blue - Greatest Fear ]🪶 ------
> Draw or write a small piece. What is your RevelriE's greatest fear? > Submit your Greatest Fear into #🪶prompt-submission > Time Limit: --- > Reward: ??? |
Back to chapter select: Malaise Effervescence.
✦ Chapter 4: Call to Action ✦
[ And as you hover in the midst of your nightmare/utopia... ]
"Found them. Sending the coordinates now."
A confusing, casual-sounding voice... sounding from seemingly nowhere, yet everywhere.
Seconds pass.
And suddenly everything before you -
shatters
. . .
Amidst the falling shards of your previous hopes, dreams, nightmares and despairs... You can catch glimmering sparkles off in the distance. The world restabilizes.
Dizzy, but oriented, you look up to recognize many, many familiar faces – it almost seems like half of the RevelriE in Lutz are gathered in this...white liminal space?
Lian... completely unfazed and seemingly occupied with a headset, stands just a few meters to your right. ...Lian?
A light and airy voice rings out:
Hello hello? .. Oh! It's working.
Confusion ripples through the crowd, who are looking more and more like lost birds fallen from a nest.
A sound like the tapping of a mic echoes around the hall. Ouch.
"Mmmn, status update time! Please do not trust the spooky creature that you just witnessed in front of you! We are in the process of clearing it's influence, but any strong feelings, whether they be fear or love caused by these illusions will cause it to grow stronger. For everyone's sake, we will be moving to a transient space to engage in battle- "
The line snaps and is replaced with an artificial sounding voice, different from the previous:
Players are now being transported to a liminal space to mitigate damage. You will not take permanent damage while fighting in this space. If you are incapacitated in this space, it will permanently eject you. However, there may be slight mental or physical discomforts as a side effect, and memories may be erased to limit mental corruption.
Lian chuckles under his breath, shaking his head in a... pained grimace. “He really ended up calling them players.”
(You're not quite sure if you were supposed to hear that, but...that's irrelevant.)
[ Ding! ]
Suddenly a... text box appears in front of you. (Truly, how fanciful illusion magic has become.)
Please select "Yes" to enter the domain.
Picking "No" may forcibly eject you from the space before damage mitigation is complete.
You may take additional damage tehepero~ ;P.
-----
1️⃣ - Yes
2️⃣ - No Yes
-----
A very uncharacteristic...text box? pops up next to it, right as you're about to select.
MAGPIE: *smiles* See ya'll on the other side, *winky face emoji*.
Glancing at the right, you see Lian's face darkens. His customer service smile (directed towards seemingly nothing) isn't enough to undo the furiously muttered string of curses that you are also quite sure you weren't supposed to hear.
The winds swirl tumultuously around you, and a field of white opens as the world loads in....
And you're faced with a familiar figure right in front of you.
Lian, dusting off the white powder from his wings, plasters a wide smile over the grimace on his face. “Rough entry, but before you ask anything... There’s a bigger baddie we gotta beat up.”
He looks behind you, and emerging from the shadows, a towering figure thrashes, figure half hidden by a thick cloud of white dust that looks like it's mitigating damage, but it seems even that dust is quickly settling.
. . .
A sparrow streaks over the battlefield, watching as a crystalline figure of a fox emerges from the mist, bound to the ground by invisible threads that shimmer against the bright spotlight of the domain. Two thin slits of scarlet eyes slice through the scaly exterior, and deep within, past the prismatic gleam of the light and the hazy obsidian crystals that decorate it's fur like gems, is an oppressive miasma leaking out from it's core like forbidden knowledge. Poison. Enchanting. It's beautiful. Yet haunting. And the overwhelming pressure descends, hard and cold, a sliver of the creature's deadly nature peeking through it's flowery façade.
It screeches- a cacophony of distorted voices ripple through the air. Cries ring out, and from the side of your eye can see your allies flinch, some covering their ears or kneeling on the ground due to the blinding pain.
It's screaming. You can barely make out the words.
“You’re dare snatch my rightful prey from under my claws again!! Was once not enough for you? You’ll pay! Pay! Drown in the flames of my rage that I’ve suffocated in for the past millennia….”
A small shockwave passed through. Bracing for impact, yet feeling none, you notice a subtle sheen in the air around you... a barrier?
But before you can dwell on it, as if the shockwave was simply the early warnings of an earthquake, piercing explosions snatch everyone's attention back to the distance, as scarlet flames bloom on the battlefield, spreading their teal-pink embers like spores. The creature- no, deity, turns to face the RevelriE that have gathered, and it's eyes gleam magenta, like rubies cast against a backdrop of pure darkness, the edges glistening with alluring danger.
...
“ Well, s***.”
A quiet mutter from the side breaks you out of your trace. The light whisper of wind at your ankles is the only indication that Magpie arrived, albeit looking slightly worse for wear.
“Quite so.” Lian smiles, tinged with mild concern, and…a hint of vicious cold.
In the center of the battlefield, high above the fallen deity, a single glowing light appears. And from it, the familiar airy voice sounds out:
"Everyone, please either join the battle, or stay a safe distance away! Don't linger, and beware of its illusions. Please endure until we're able to reseal it, thank you for your support!"
------ Turn 1 -------
Please make your first move in this battle. Will you run into fight, seek others, or will you stay safely hidden until it is over? If you have items, or equipment, how will you use those? Or, for those fluent in your control over your Affinity, will you use that instead?
The scarlet flames rage higher around you, surrounding you and your allies on all sides. The effects of everyone's work chip away at it's crystalline armor, and as the flecks of obsidian break of like stardust into the air, the oppressive miasma feels just a little bit lighter.
Not yet surrendering, the creature rears its head, sweeping it’s tail through the front line. The spines on it’s back flicker, before dark crystalline missiles rain down from the sky in sheets, embedding themselves into the ground. Lian raises a shield, and the shards shatter against the blue tinted energy, ear grating and sharp.
But then, the creature....it falters. It's pink flames die down for a split second -- but that fragment of time is enough.
From the shadows, a horizontal dark-colored slash erupts under it's right leg, and the creature falls to it's knees, attacks wavering... Mockingbird's cold expression is barely visible from this distance, but it's the kind of chilling cold that makes the heat scarlet flames pale in comparison. But...attention back to the battle: it's time to counterattack.
------ Turn 2 : All Out Attack ---------
The boss is staggered from the damage, take this chance to hit it as hard as you can!
You are encouraged to collaborate on this encounter — everyone will earn the same amount of SD via. participation points. The outcome of the battle will be dependent on the collective power of your efforts. May the skies be with you.
The gentle touch of wind and flowers scatters into the air. A scene in which the glint of someone's blade mimics the graceful flow of water. Where magic blooms like constellations in the night. To bear witness to this kind of scene, although we're in the middle of such of life threatening battle, perhaps the only way to define it might be... it's beautiful. The culmination of wishes and their owners, grasping the strings of possibility to drag even a god down from the heavens. A deadly dance of survival.
The circle of history repeats itself... perhaps this is what they call fate.
No matter what era we find ourselves in, we somehow end up in conflict. Over ideas, past pains, for wishes and hopes that clash against one another. The sealing of a god close to divinity... one may call it blasphemy, but others may view it as a miracle.
Regardless of which side you stand on, engrave this moment into your heart.
And as the creature fades away in a flurry of violet sparkles, the participants of this event shimmering like stars....
Somewhere, in a place far away, surrounded by everything yet devoid of all life, a solemn voice whispers into the void.
A page turns. A book closes.
[ ... ]
...
"Is it over?"
The sounds of reality slowly bleed back. The magenta flames have died down, and the only things left are a white expanse and the surging warmth that threatens to bubble out of your chest. The feeling of victory, the thrill of battle? Or is it the bittersweet end of an adventure that you feel is coming?
There's not enough time to grasp what even just happened. And as people try to fit the puzzles together, eyes slowly turn towards the single individuals left who might have an answer. Lian, dispelling the shield that was previously erected, flew up into the air with an uncomfortable expression.
“Well, I didn’t intend for that to happen.”
[ Please respond with your reply. A short sentence or two works, a question or thought on you/your RevelriE's mind. ]
✦ Chapter 5: Mementos ✦
Ah....their head hurts.
Looking down at the group of individuals that he's come to love, with all their stupid jokes and fun moments from fighting stray sandsharks in the desert to runing maid cafes to promote sales... This kind of casual living can be fun too, yet... Lian sighs. He didn't think he'd be looking down from above again, with the ghost of a time long past whispering behind his ear.
But, it's not quite the same. And he knows. Lian smiles gently. Even though chaos was caused and feelings were hurt, it seems this incident has brought everyone closer together.
He gestures with his hand, and Magpie steps out from the shadows, brows ever so slightly furrowed, but bearing an otherwise neutral expression. With a soft but gentle tone, Lian whispers. “Clean this up.” For a second, you think you see a flash of gold in Lian's pupils... but perhaps it was an illusion of the light. Magpie rolls their eyes, bows, and when you look again, they’re gone.
“Hm.” Lian turns back towards the crowd with a helpless smile. “I hear all your questions, but, for now…”
...the ground starts to rumble. Cracks form at the edges of the boundary and light begins to seep in… Lian, ever so calm, makes no move to leave. And as everyone's bodies are surrounded in a halo of light, you hear Lian's voice cut through the haze.
“The domain is about to collapse. Let’s chat when we get back… if anyone remembers any of it.” He glances to the side and smiles, tilting his head a bit, catching the light peering through from the cracks in the celling. The last thing you’re able to glimpse is a glowing booklet in Lian’s hands, and countless chains of light protruding from Lian’s wings into the ground.
“I’m sure you’ll be able to find a new book in the library for a good read whenever it arrives though. Nycti is quite good at his job.”
. . . . .
. . . .
. . .
. .
.
In a bright flash, the light washes over you, melting into a warm, comforting embrace, reminiscent of summer beach picnics and backyard barbecues.
[ Peacefully, you wake up. ]
...to be continued.
Back to the very beginning, where everything began.
Last Updated 08/25/23
More information will be released with time.