Sorry about the wait, everybody. The update is short, but life is... life. Ugh.
You did not need much time to come to a decision. The Crusade's soldiers had made a good impression, and they were respectful of you. As noble as the Argent Dawn seemed to be, they did not appear to have the same kind of dedication or cause as the Scarlets. So you joined the train of soldiers in red, traveling southeast along the River Darrow.
The waters were startlingly clear, and seemed to contrast with the dead, corrupted feeling you got from the rest of the Plaguelands. As you walked along the path next to the river, you saw items that were identified by a soldier nearby as totems, carved into the shape of serpents. Apparently they had been placed by the sea-priests to provide the village with a steady supply of uninfected water. You didn't fully understand it, but it seemed as though the totems generated a complex magical pattern that purified the water as it flowed down into the lowlands towards Darrowmere Lake.
The journey took another two days, and you became increasingly convinced that the farther East you traveled, the worse the Plague's effects would get. The earth remained barren, the fields fallow too long. You passed ruins of villages and farms that had long been burnt, and occasionally found hasty graves that had opened from the inside.
The closest word you could find to describe this realm's state of affairs was 'nightmare.' Disaster and catastrophe had been passed when the dead had risen. Of course, there were stories back home, but here there was tangible evidence, and people had brought this fate down willingly upon the kingdom.
To the North, you saw vast pillars of acrid smoke rising into the sky - the product of the vile plague cauldrons the Scourge's Cult of the Damned had placed across the land.
As you progressed farther South, you found more signs that the devastation was not as bad: hardy yellow grasses rose along the banks, and rather than empty waste, you found the skeletons of some ancient forest, reduced to blackened husks by the blight that gripped the land. The soldiers continued, seemingly unaware of the destruction around them. They were used to it. You supposed that eventually, you would be as well, if you stayed.
But the journey was not entirely peaceful. One evening, as you washed your face, you looked into the river and saw another lookign back. The woman had red hair and blue eyes, and bore an expression that mixed scorn and pity in equal measure. It was almost like - damn, why did she have to be wearing red?
The woman, who disappeared almost as quickly as you had seen her, was clearly a member of the Crusade, but you decided that you would ask about it in the morning. That was overturned quickly when you saw the burned out husks of a town, and a sign that said "Vandermar."
They rose like macabre trees from on the horizon as you drew nearer, the remains of houses and towers sitting along the north bank of the river.
"This is Vandermar?" You had expected more. You supposed that the ruins could be obscuring the rebuilt town, but this was surprising. After all, you wouldn't have wanted to see this just beyond the village limits every day. Phillipus nodded.
"The old town. The South was rebuilt because that's the area that has the Cathedral. We're just lucky that the Scourge didn't decide to ransack the place beyond the two foretowers, and that stone isn't flammable." He gestured to the river. "Besides, it's more defensible than the North ever was. Though that isn't saying much." As he spoke, you saw a bridge come into view, leading to a palisade gate flying the flags of the Crusade, Kul Tiras and Gilneas. Soldiers on the wooden towers saluted as Sir Morlune approached, and the gates opened for the host to enter. With each step, the Crusaders around you grew more relaxed, normal steps replacing strict marching. Conversations started again, as they had every day when the march was not enforced. The formation held, but the soldiers had already taken off their armor for all intents and purposes.
The town itself opened up as you passed under the wooden archway. The houses were an eclectic mix of similar architectural styles, all built around pointed roofs and wooden scaffolds. Some were more severe, with darker hues, while others were decorated with oceanic motifs and designed after sailing vessels. Over the roofs, you could see the spire of a cathedral rising into the sky, the windows all lit and bells ringing. To one side of the square, there was a billboard covered in papers and posters. You knew you wouldn't understand anything that was written on the papers, and so you instead made your way to the cathedral.
As you wandered down the leftmost path, you saw a large forge belching smoke, and down the main road an orchard that somehow grew despite the blight. As you finally approached the church, you were struck by how similar it was to cathedrals in your homeland, like in Reims. But it was also quite different; the two spires that decorated most cathedrals were indeed missing, and square gardens had been built on either side, within what were surely the old foundations.
Walking in, you found everything built of dark wood and white plaster, ornate only in the patterns of the wood and the runes engraved on the pillars that held up the structure. There were no pews, and you supposed that mass in this faith was received standing. If not for the idol upon the altar, it could have been seen as a particularly magnificent church in some wealthy town.
The idol itself was surprisingly similar to a cross, but had the horizontal bar missing, and so was left with only the vertical and a partial halo. It was the most opulent oblect in the cathedral, being made of silver and three jewels: one red, one green, and one black.
Settling down to pray, you made a note of what you'd not had time for yet, and spent some time in silent meditation before returning to the rest of the world. It was time that you started to truly find your place in this new land.
Choose two:
[] Seek out Sir Morlune.
[] Seek out the mages, and Dunhelming.
[] Seek out the priests. One of them healed you during the journey.
[] Visit the forge.
[] Look for ways to earn your keep.
[] Seek out the town's inn.
[] Write in
Status Update: Wrist healed
Potential Contacts: Sir Morlune the MIghty, Lucius Dunhelming, ???, ???, ???
