The Natural Disasters #11: Destinies of Darkness

General Summary

Kriv wakes up from being harmed. He has bled profusely and is shellshocked from his experience. As he looks around, his thoughts are filled with what occurred in the past month.
Viewing the past, Bear looked into mercenary work. Hope received a letter from the Harpers to find out about reports of corruption in a couple important temples. At the temple to the Red Knight, a god of many names, Bear watched as a group of strange people came and spoke to some memebers of the church.
Then, Kriv came back to reality as he moved towards where he could see the fighting occurred. In the battle were bodies and a woman leaning against her blade. As Kriv staggered forward, he watched as his sister pivoted, ready to fight, but she lost her footing and collapsed to the floor. When he approached, he saw that she was very badly bruised and continuing to lose a lot of blood. However, he still had the blessing from the depths, so he healed his sister, they sent a magical message to Hope, and they met in the town of Scornubel.
They then came back to Elturel and continued their training while Bear went to Triel to work on other things. However, at this point, darkness shot through the sky and attacked the companion.
Immediately, the group began to individually question the people around them, only to all learn they were the only ones who could see it. They spent a few days coming together, and gaining goods from their allies, but finding they wouldn't find aid in manpower as all reports lead to information that Dreus is attacking from the North.
When Bear arrived, the Disasters boarded a ship and crossed the river to head towards one of the lines of darkness. After a few days, they reached the Wood of Sharp Teeth.
Upon entering the wood, they see that it is twisted and warped as are the animals within. Additionally, they felt like they were being watched. Their journey does cause a gigantic bear with four eyes and six legs to attack the group, but they easily put it down.
Then, a short while later, they see a tablet akin to the one the dark ogre was eating from before, but out of it, was spewing darkness. They approached the tablet, and Hope read in Ignan, "The burning passions of life are all consuming. A happy child with an unhappy life looming. From that happiness must a pyre be raised. And in it, something of their past razed. Only then shall this tablet’s power no longer upon be gazed." As she says this, she looks up to see corpses of the darkened creatures filled with arrows like pins in a pin cushion, and simultaneously, they hear the sound of many arrows being knocked around them.
Looking around they see people in tribal garb and black jewelry aiming bows at them. One of these archers, the apparent leader, had three arms that they used to help steady their bow. After a short discussion, the archers decide to take the adventurers back to their village.
The village itself seemed to be made from the parts of animals. Hide, sinew, bone, and other materials held the structures together and people with what others would call deformities had adapted to their lifestyle in what they called gifts. In this way, the Disasters were led into the shaman's hut which was covered in animal skulls.
Inside the hut was the low blue flame of balefire upon the walls. In the back was a human man sitting upon a throne cooing at a six armed bear cub. He sat up and towards attention as the group entered and a conversation ensued.
This place receives the Black Rock, and they are ancestral enemies of the Titans and of Dreus, but they have fallen behind now, and are dying faster than they can replenish.
However, there was a prophecy that this whole situation reeks of. The prophecy of the Fey Blade and the Chosen one who would either spread the curse of Dreus or be his downfall. They describe the Chosen One as having allies of a young tiefling girl, a tiefling who shifted as SSildris does, a young boy, and a construct named the Blackstar. Then, the conversation was over, and the group returned to the tablet.
Questioning what was to come, Hope lit the tablet aflame, and Ariel threw his signet ring into it. This managed to stop the magic and the darkness disappeared.
Then the group rushed to a southeastern beam of darkness. Before they reach it, Raven tells them to be forewarned as the creatures of darkness have made a garrison of the town of Berdusk.

Missions/Quests Completed

Found some strange happenings at the Temple of the Red Knight

Character(s) interacted with

Vernon, the Printer
The Shaman
Raven, the Chained Shadow

Report Date

06 Dec 2020