Chosen by the Dragon God

[Chandagnac]

The Court of the Tinpot Princess
Elys Allardyne, Princess of Ismar and Windskil (Rank 4)
(Her full list of magical powers includes Dragon Breath, Flight, Force Fields, Illusions, Magical Healing, Mastery of Portals, Mastery of Sound, Ritual Magic, Telekinesis and Telepathy.)

Jana Netpicker, Handmaiden and Best Friend (Rank 3)
(Having Jana by her side gives Elys a free reroll once per update)

Catharne, Dragonling and Noble Steed (Rank 3)
(Having Catharne by her side in combat gives Elys an extra +1d6)

 

[Chandagnac]

Dramatis Personae​

Main Characters
Elys Allardyne (the protagonist of this quest, the Chosen of Mishrak, sometimes called 'the Tinpot Princess')
Jana Netpicker (Elys's handmaiden, best friend, and adopted sister)
Catharne (dragonling, created by Mishrak to serve as Elys's noble steed)

Family
Gareth and Yslena Allardyne (Elys's parents)
Bellona Kachalskey (the Chosen of Teryn the Ghostlord, adopted as the eldest daughter of Gareth and Yslena, is Elys's big sister)
Moraine Netpicker (Jana's mother, a recovering alcoholic)
Mishrak (the Dragon God, Elys's divine patron and adopted uncle, Catharne's mother and father; god of secrets, treasure, sea monsters, and the depths of the sea)

Allies
Jorantul (a mercenary who has pledged his services to Gareth and Yslena, is a peerless swordsman, is Sildar's boyfriend)
Moridan Ambros (a Death Knight who has agreed to help Gareth and Yslena, is horribly scarred)
Roylott Flawse (the former governor of Flotsam, now in charge of the refugees in Mishrak's palace under the sea)
Samaya (a mysterious sorceress who owes Mishrak some favours, seems fairly benevolent)
Raef (A shapeshifter)
Sildar (a mercenary who has pledged his services to Gareth and Yslena, is a powerful mage, is Jorantul's boyfriend)
Red Ruin (an elf created by the elder god Keron, is famous for defeating an avatar of the demon lord Kolhinon at the end of the Second Age)
Lavokthagua (a wingless earth dragon, Mishrak's brother; given shapeshifting powers, he commonly takes the form of a giant dragon turtle)

Benevolent Divine Beings
Teryn the Ghostlord (Bellona's divine patron, god of necromancy, saviour of the Western Continent, servant of the Forgotten God)
The Forgotten God (God of death, rebirth, reincarnation, endings, and new beginnings; he seems to have a soft spot for Jana)
The Riddling Knight (a dream, one of Zora Alishanda's masks, has pledged to protect Elys from demons attacking her in the world of dreams)
Zora Alishanda (the goddess of dreams, imprisoned on the moon, mother-goddess of goblins, is in a coma)

The Engelram Academy
Tregard Elthonar (a former professor at the Engelram Academy of the Magical Arts, apparently murdered by a shapeshifting monster)
Mel (a pupil at the Engelram Academy of the Magical Arts, is Jana's ex-girlfriend)

In Tyrepheum
Green Flame (an elf created by the elder god Keron, is a teacher at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts)
Dorian Valens (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, has elven blood)
Isolia of the Sprawl (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, a former street rat)
Venta Durgensis (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, is a goblin)
Philander Bidwell (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, is a sneaky rogue)
Archironaeus (an owl spirit)

Opernus Prentigold (headmaster of the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, a war hero who used to serve in the Sambian Imperial Legion)
Simony Bulhac (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, is a servant of the demon Achamat)

Yulian Sagittarus (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, son of the richest man in Tyrepheum)
Moroth Noorandiun (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, a former street rat)
Azquiol Rayze (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, Sillara's twin brother)
Sillara Rayze (a pupil at the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts, Azquiol's twin sister)

In Rivayne
King Marcin Stronggore (ruler of Rivayne, was bewitched by demon cultists, owes a debt of gratitude to Gareth and Yslena because they managed to free him)
Prince Barathar Stronggore (King Marcin's eldest son and heir, was murdered by knights who had been bewitched by demon cultists)
Prince Artan Stronggore (King Marcin's second son, his current heir)
Prince Kristan Stronggore (King Marcin's third son; is accused of masterminding the murder of his brother, Prince Barathar)

Deep Ones
Thorgil (a pale and red-haired man, formerly an inhabitant of Flotsam, volunteered to become one of Mishrak's Deep Ones)
Kevron (has Varzi or Avanni ancestry, formerly an inhabitant of Flotsam, volunteered to become one of Mishrak's Deep Ones)

The Wranni
Gelfavar Wolfshadow (chief of 'The War Wolves')
Erion Stormcrow (chief of the Kelwe clan)
Ilona the Mourning Dove (Erion's wife, mother of his children, acting-chief of the Kelwe clan while he is away)
Cerianna (baby daughter of Erion and Ilona)

In Aspitolm
Crisithys Pebelstien/Mr. Pebblestone (a wereboar mercenary who led the vanguard of the Aspiti attack on Elys's home island)

In Dharta Thennir
Orrentil Stirook (a fat goblin, one-eyed, commander of the Night Blades in the city of Keshpydar)

Evil Divine Beings
Panegyrek (the lesser demon who considers himself to be Elys's archnemesis)
Sea Ghouls (evil spirits from the depths of the sea)
Melphior (one of the original nine Demon Lords, called the 'Name-Stealing Usurper'; he is plotting to steal the domains belonging to the Forgotten God and Zora Alishanda)
Kolhinon (one of the original nine Demon Lords, a patron of assassins and murderers; he was greatly diminished after his avatar was defeated by Red Ruin at the end of the Second Age)
Achamat (the self-proclaimed Demon Lord of good and bad luck)

 

[Chandagnac]

Additional Notes
This is something for me to refer back to, if I ever feel disheartened like I did when I was writing The Tinpot Princess and Her Many Travels. It's a reminder of why I want to write this quest:

Spoiler: Statement of Intent

I will temper my expectations. I am not doing this because I want to be famous or popular. I am not doing it for money (I don't even have a Patreon or Ko-fi account). I am not doing this because I expect it to get thousands of views, comments, or likes. I know that this quest will never be able to compete with any of the most successful quests on this board. And I'm okay with that.

I'm writing this quest for my loyal readers, who have been keeping up with my quests ever since I started A Hedge Maze Is You. I am writing this because they deserve to be rewarded for their patience with me. And I am writing this because I feel that this epic story needs a proper ending, at long last. And because I enjoy writing and I don't want all the effort I've put into this fantasy world I have created to go to waste.

As the god of the depths of the sea and all the treasure that has fallen into the sea ever since the world began, Mishrak is fabulously wealthy. His hoard is impossibly vast. Let's say that he has Wealth: 10 (I don't even want to think about what units would be involved). Under certain circumstances, you may decide to permanently reduce his Wealth score by 1 in order to purchase something that could not normally be bought: for example, someone could be persuaded to part with a 'priceless' treasure in exchange for a colossal amount of money.

At the beginning of The Mirror Monster (Part One), there are eight months left of the school year and Elys is only eleven years old. As of Happy Birthday, Elys! (Part One), she is thirteen years old.

Elys gained 1xp for completing 'The Mirror Monster' story arc, 2xp for completing the 'Portal Magic' story arc, 1xp for completing her first school year at the Engelram Academy, 1xp for getting Mishrak to heal Theophyllus Valens, 1xp for persuaded the goblins of Keshpydar to build a shrine to him and worship him as the 'god of the depths of the earth', 2xp for two years' hard work at magic school and 1xp for defeating her old archnemesis, Panegyrek, for a total of 9xp, which was enough for her to reach Rank 4. She needs another 12xp to reach Rank 5.

Mishrak has gained 2xp for creating the Deep Ones and the Fastitocalons. He gained another 3xp for healing Theophyllus Valens and thereby establishing himself as the world's greatest healer. He gained another 1xp when Elys persuaded the goblins of Keshpydar to build a shrine to him and worship him as the 'god of the depths of the earth'. He gained 4xp for his role in supporting the space gonne project and hiring the Night Blades to protect the goblins of Tyrepheum (which led to him gaining a bunch of new worshippers). Also, he gained 1xp when Elys reached Rank 4. He now has a total of 11xp. He needs a total of 24xp to reach Rank 9.

Spoiler: Warscore

This is not a CK2-style quest, but that doesn't mean I won't steal borrow some ideas from the Crusader Kings franchise. In this case, Warscore.

Because the Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) gained 27 warscore before their enemies did, they won the first stage of the war, pushing the Aspiti fleet back and preventing them from launching a full-scale invasion of Rivayne. Now, a new stage has begun.

The Aspiti Empire has a total of 34 Warscore. Their Warscore increases at a rate of 2 per month (and can be increased by various special events).

The Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) currently has a total of 52 Warscore. Their Warscore increases at a rate of 1 per month (and can be increased by Elys's actions).

Whichever side gains a total of 54 Warscore first will be the winner of this second stage of the war.

 

[Chandagnac]

All right, three people have said that Elys should ask Prentigold to let Green Flame come to her dinner party, two people have argued against that, I suspect Tascion would say 'no' as well, and I don't think anyone else is still participating in this.

I dunno. I feel like the Hedge-maze-verse experiment has run its course, I've lost almost all of the readers I ever had, and maybe it's time to call it quits. It takes up a lot of my time, time I could be using to do something more lucrative, or that I could use to write something else that people might actually enjoy.

My thanks go to x_lksk, without whose inquiries I probably wouldn't have bothered coming back to the Hedge-maze-verse at all after I lost interest in School of Sorcery.

Thanks to Zam, whose friendship and encouragement I have been able to rely on for more than a decade.

Thanks to Indivisible, who has been an enthusiastic participant in all of my more recent quests and whose comments I've enjoyed.

Thanks to Tascion, who was one of my favourite participants in Tinpot Princess and School of Sorcery, so I'm grateful he came back for this.

Thanks to prof_Chemical for some interesting and thought-provoking discussion.

Thanks to Nevill, without whom I probably never would have finished Sorry, Your Time-Traveling Privileges Have Been Revoked, and whose participation I've enjoyed in all of my quests, even if it seems like he's dropped out of this in recent weeks.

And thanks to Flashkannon, whom I've very much enjoyed conversing with and whose detailed comments I always look forward to reading.

Thank you all, every one.

---

I'm not saying that I'm going to abandon this right here and right now. It's just that I'm at a low ebb right now. I just don't feel like updating, especially since there is no consensus as to what Elys should do next. And the Winterfest User Choice Awards (which seem designed to show off quests and fics that are several hundred times more popular than anything I've ever written) aren't helping.

Yes, I'm jealous and lazy and a generally unpleasant person. Tell me something I don't already know.

 

[Chandagnac]

i will translate my comment into a vote, should be one to one of what i said.

Click to shrink...

ok i think that covers it, am tired and am about to go to sleep. the wording here might be a bit fucked but i take it the vote isnt meant to be literal anyway right? was much more confident in my non vote wording tbh.

Click to shrink...

Actually, considering that there are only seven or eight people taking part in this, I'm not sure why I bother with the vote. Maybe there's a more interesting way of deciding what Elys will do next. I've just been reading through The Creative Question Confabulation thread and it's made me want to experiment a bit.

Maybe no one will find this interesting, maybe I'm just making extra work for myself, but I'm going to try it anyway. From now on, I'll try to base Elys's actions on the discussion that came before the update, rather than ask for votes.

So...

In the next update, Elys will ask Gelfavar about whether she should approach the Wranni as distant family. She will think about getting Mishrak to contact Shaori. She will ask about the Kelwe clan members who have been sold at the slave markets in Aspitolm and she'll ask what Gelfavar thinks about Mishrak. She'll ask about Vashiiri and Kelwe customs, potential faux pas and language barriers, their religious beliefs, and what Erion Stormcrow is like as a person.

I'd like to have her ask, "Where do we come from? What's our shared origin, and why are we spread and separated all over the world now?" However, that's a question that might need an entire update to properly answer. Let me know if you want to do it or not.

Flashkannon wants to know the story of why Gelfavar's shadow is in the shape of a wolf, but x_lksk doesn't, so... Elys isn't going to ask about it unless there's anyone else who wants her to. (x_lksk vetoed Flashkannon's vote, but someone could still veto his veto.)

What do you think of the plan so far? Is it okay? Is there anything you'd like to change? Please let me know.

(So far, this new way of deciding what Elys will do next won't be much different from the previous system of voting. I hope that things will start to differ after I've finished writing and posted the next update.)

Yeah, something to that effecr was mentioned, though iirc you initially said they died searching for her.

Click to shrink...

All right, I didn't remember the exact details. But it shouldn't affect the story since the 'bad future' of A Hedge Maze Is You isn't going to happen anymore. At least not in the same way.

 

[Chandagnac]

I'm sad to see you have to let this go, but if it's for a good cause...

puts down a little shoe

Click to shrink...

I'm not sure what you mean by that, but I assume it was kindly meant, for which I thank you.

Yeah that's bad. I am hoping that she's just here because Kari's... I suppose I should say "former flame", because he burned her a lot, sold his soul to find her again and hear her true feelings or something. If he was gonna fall in love he shouldn't have done all the rape and and murder. Or like, done something substantive about it besides an empty, if apparently heartfelt apology. I bet if he destroyed the Mystic Path and at least tried to reverse the many, many wrongs he's committed, she could possibly not be trying to kill him right about now. I dunno about reciprocating his feelings or anything, that'd require more amends than he has left in his lifespan, but he might be able to work his way up to chilly silence on the other side of a room.

Click to shrink...

He's supposed to come across as creepy, entitled, and self-righteous. Despite all of the horrible things he's done, he very much believes that he's in the right.

So uh, between this, and what happened with A Hedge Maze Is You... I actually think this is a really bad idea, in the long term. Chandagnac, forgive me if I'm wrong, but as far as I can tell... you have periodic episodes of severe depression, which understandably makes you not want to write, but then you force yourself to write anyway, which makes things worse, until you completely burn out and then do something like this, which you regret later. And then you come out of your depressive episode, and have to live with the consequences of everything you did during it, which probably just makes you feel worse? I think I've said it before, the last time you were burning yourself out from depression on this quest: Go on hiatus. Come back when you are feeling better... and if that takes months or years, or doesn't ever happen at all, so be it. Retcon this last chapter away if you think it is necessary, but don't do the "sudden and unsatisfying conclusion" thing again. Or even if you think you can salvage this extremely jarring and sudden escalation out of nowhere into cool interesting plot points for the story... don't do it right away, go on hiatus anyway. This break you are planning, whether it is temporary or permanent... take it now, not after another few updates. Both for your readers, and more importantly, for yourself. So you don't end up looking back on it with shame later like you seem to for the ending of AHMIY.

Click to shrink...

All right, I've made some changes.

However, everything I included in the above chapter was something I wanted to include in the story sooner or later. For a long time, I've thought about having Fyralio Belusk appear out of seemingly nowhere to confront Kari/Samaya. It would give her an opportunity to take revenge, Elys could help her with it, and it would tie the Mystic Path back into the story (since Belusk is a known associate of theirs). Also, I wanted Elys to have a chance to talk and debate with one of the Demon Lords in circumstances that wouldn't most likely get her killed; Zhordros/Tondemonai Zhordra is a tempter and a trickster who would probably want to try to persuade Elys and her friends around to her point of view rather than just slaughtering them outright, so… Well, anyway, I thought all of these ideas had potential. But I agree that this isn't the best time to start cramming in extra plotlines, especially since the current story arc is already overstuffed.

I think the root cause of the problem is that I don't actually want to be a quest writer: I want to write fantasy novels. However, I find it difficult to write more than a few thousand words without constant feedback and encouragement. I get bored and discouraged too easily. When I started A Hedge Maze Is You it was as a substitute for what I really wanted to do, the stories I really wanted to tell: I thought to myself, "Oh well, maybe I'll never write an actual novel, but at least I can do this." I was gratified when my writing seemed to be fairly popular and attracted hundreds of readers. It made me feel like my novels could be successful if I ever got around to writing them. But now I don't even have that.

And then, when I got depressed and screwed up, I destroyed everything I'd worked so hard to build. But – oh well – The Tinpot Princess and Her Many Travels had a few fans. I could console myself with that. However, after numerous hiatuses and attempts to restart this series with a new thread title or a new protagonist, I feel like I've lost almost all of the readers I ever had. The only reason why I'm still writing this, why I've been writing this for as long as I have, is because I don't want to let down the last handful of loyal readers who've stayed with me all this time. Ugh, I feel wretched and ungrateful about saying this, but… I can't go on like this. I've had enough. I don't want to be a quest master anymore.

I think it was a mistake to bring this series back from hiatus in the first place. I should have just let it be quietly forgotten, instead of repeatedly kicking this dead horse.

I am not a fast writer. I spend ages agonizing over my writing. You may be surprised by that, considering how clichéd and repetitive my writing can be, especially if you've noticed how often my characters sigh or shake their heads or nod or 'raise a curious eyebrow' and so on. I guess I don't have enough confidence in my dialogue to let it speak for itself without having my characters accompany it with a whole pantomime of different gestures. Often, it's easier to stop altogether than to keep agonizing over it. I see other writers on this board who've written 100,000 words in a couple of months and I'm like… "How on earth did they manage that?"

Worse than that, there's something wrong with my brain. In the past year, I've twice had a seizure and been taken to hospital. And I keep having brief episodes where I feel like I'm remembering something important – a dream, or story, or half-forgotten secret – and I feel sick and dizzy while I'm trying to remember, but after only a few moments it's gone.

I used to think that if I could just write down what I was thinking about in those moments of sickness and dizziness while I was half-remembering something, I would be able to make sense of it. However, twice in the past few days, I've grabbed a pen and paper during a couple of these episodes, and I've managed to write down what I was thinking about at the time, and then afterwards I realised that what I'd written down was a string of random nonsense words: 'deluge', 'pristine', 'huntmastery', 'pristine*,' 'escapology**', 'buying' and 'sets'. I don't know what's going on there. For whatever reason, I'm not firing on all cylinders.
*Yes, I wrote 'pristine' twice. Dunno why.
**Somehow, while I was in that dizzy state, I managed to spell 'escapology' correctly, despite the circumstances and the fact that I seem to find the word difficult; I've twice tried to write it as 'escapatology' while I've been writing this post.

It's especially terrifying for me because, for most of my life, my intellect has been the only part of me that I've felt was worth anything. I've always been an ugly, weedy little goblin, but at least I got decent grades in most subjects at school and college. Oh, I realise and accept that there are plenty of people who are smarter than me, wittier and funnier, more insightful, with better deductive reasoning, more able to solve puzzles and mysteries that I'm just too impatient to spend any time on, less inclined to take things at face value, less prone to making silly mistakes, and so on. It was enough to not be worthless. And now, I…

I'm going to end this here. Goodbye, everyone.

 

[Chandagnac]

So... I've been rereading this quest and it's made me remember how much I enjoyed writing it. I kinda want to continue.

What do you think? Should I carry on from where I left off? Or is it time to have a go at A Hedge Maze Is You 2: Rehedged!, which is an idea I've been toying with for several years?

Please let me know what you think!

 

[Chandagnac]

I'm going to create a reference guide for the various cards in the 'Fates' deck just in case I ever need to refer back to them:

THE MAJOR ARCANA
1. The Fool1​
An androgynous figure clad in a jester's motley, perched on the edge of a cliff, arms outstretched, holding a bindle stick in one hand and a freshly-picked flower in the other. An innocent and optimistic child who has yet to learn the meaning of fear, a sacred fool who is oblivious to danger and can make mock of kings with impunity, or a penniless wanderer who is setting off on a journey through the great mysteries of life. A symbol of hope, new beginnings and endless potential. Also, sexual ambivalence or an unconventional sex life.
1​The Fool is sometimes considered to be an entirely separate card, not one of either the major or minor arcana.

2. The Magician
Represents wisdom, guidance, and control over one's own destiny. Or, it could represent a wise and patient mentor figure.
Reversed, it means uncertainty, hesitation and failure to make a choice. Or, it could represent a charlatan, someone who is not what they appear to be.

3. The High Priestess
4. The Empress
5. The Emperor
6. The Hierophant
7. The Lovers
8. The Champion
9. Strength
10. The Hermit
11. Fortune
12. Justice

13. The Hanged Man
The Hanged Man. Something must be sacrificed if something else is to be gained. Also, the Hanged Man can represent a period of waiting and indecision, a time for careful consideration, during which you shouldn't – or perhaps there is no way to – take a step forward or back.

14. The Wheel
15. Balance (or 'Temperance')
16. The Demon Lord
17. The Lightning-Struck Tower
18. The Soothsayer
19. The Moon
20. The Sun
21. The All-Devourer
22. The World (or 'The Sleeping Goddess')

23. The Wading God
It represents the deep sea and all that dwells within it. Or, it could represent a ceaseless, pointless, impossible task. The image on the card often depicts a bearded giant trudging onwards through the ocean, with water up to his knees, clutching a bulging net that appears to be stuffed full of fish, sea monsters, and the remains of shipwrecks.

24. Fortitude

25. The City in the Clouds
It represents goals, aspirations and ambitions to be achieved, which could mean that a summit may soon be surmounted or that the end of a long journey is drawing near. Alternatively, it could represent a teeming metropolis. The image on the card often depicts a silver city of gleaming spires, domes and ziggurats, floating high up in the sky, above the clouds.

Reversed, this card is a dreadful ill omen. What once was a teeming metropolis is now a mausoleum. It represents the death of dreams, the end of aspirations, hopes and goals that can never be fulfilled.

26. The Herd (or 'The Flock')
27. The Unchained Beast
28. The Hourglass (or 'The Water Clock')
29. The Gate

---

THE MINOR ARCANA

The Suit of Coins (associated with the element of Earth)
This suit represents the material world and physical reality: everything that can be seen, heard, tasted, smelled or touched. It is associated with the foundations and limitations of real life.

30. The King of Coins
31. The Queen of Coins
32. The Knight of Coins
33. The Page of Coins
34. The Ten of Coins
35. The Nine of Coins
36. The Eight of Coins

37. The Seven of Coins
It represents wealth and success, which may be undeserved, stolen or inherited instead of rightfully earned. Also, it can be interpreted as meaning greed and gluttony. The image on the card usually depicts a wily thief running away with several large bags of money.

38. The Six of Coins
39. The Five of Coins
40. The Four of Coins
41. The Three of Coins
42. The Two of Coins
43. The Ace of Coins

*​

The Suit of Swords (associated with the element of Air)
This suit represents the realm of thought, abstract situations and mental states. However, it is also associated with conflict, disharmony and ill luck.

44. The King of Swords
45. The Queen of Swords
46. The Knight of Swords
47. The Page of Swords
48. The Ten of Swords
49. The Nine of Swords
50. The Eight of Swords
51. The Seven of Swords
52. The Six of Swords
53. The Five of Swords
54. The Four of Swords
55. The Three of Swords

56. The Two of Swords
It can represent balanced forces, a period of peace with tensions running underneath, or the calm before, during or after a storm. Often, the image on the card depicts two men fighting a duel, their blades locked together, neither of them able to gain an advantage over the other.

57. The Ace of Swords
It stands for excessive power and force, like a hurricane that sweeps away everything in its path. It represents swift and forceful change, which can be destructive but can also be the spark that leads to progress and renewal. Also, it is linked to 'Justice' because it represents punishment for wrongdoing. As you have sown, so you shall reap. If one has sown misery and discord, it will be returned to them, tripled in size and ferocity. On the other hand, those who've lived blameless lives have nothing to fear.

*​

The Suit of Leaves (associated with the element of Water)
This suit represents the realm of emotion, feelings and intuition. Also, it is strongly associated with living things and the natural world.

58. The King of Leaves
59. The Queen of Leaves

60. The Knight of Leaves
A staunch defender of life and living things. Someone who is gregarious, intelligent and has great plans for the future. However, the Knight of Leaves is flighty and easily bored, better at starting new projects than carrying them through to their conclusion. The image on the card often depicts a green-skinned warrior clad in wooden armour, which is still alive and has new green leaves growing from it. He stands alone in the middle of a dark forest, looking as if he suddenly sprouted out of a patch of bare earth.

61. The Page of Leaves
62. The Ten of Leaves
63. The Nine of Leaves
64. The Eight of Leaves
65. The Seven of Leaves
66. The Six of Leaves
67. The Five of Leaves
68. The Four of Leaves
69. The Three of Leaves
70. The Two of Leaves
71. The Ace of Leaves

*​

The Suit of Stars (associated with the element of Fire)
The suit represents the realm of myth, legends and fairytales, stories and nightmares. It is associated with passion and clever new ideas.

72. The King of Stars
73. The Queen of Stars
74. The Knight of Stars
75. The Page of Skulls

76. The Ten of Stars
It represents excitement, adventure and gleeful chaos. The image on the card usually depicts a fiery conflagration.

77. The Nine of Stars
78. The Eight of Stars
79. The Seven of Stars
80. The Six of Stars
81. The Five of Stars
82. The Four of Stars
83. The Three of Stars
84. The Two of Stars
85. The Ace of Stars

*​

The Suit of Skulls (associated with the element of Spirit)
This suit represents everything that is hidden, unknown or forgotten, secrets to be discovered and mysteries to be solved. It is associated with endings and stagnation but also with new possibilities and opportunities.

86. The King of Skulls
87. The Queen of Skulls
88. The Knight of Skulls
89. The Page of Skulls

90. The Ten of Skulls
The end is inevitable, but there is one last obstacle you must surmount: a pile of grinning skulls in a pool of blood. They represent a final ordeal you must overcome before you can achieve the goal you seek.

91. The Nine of Skulls
92. The Eight of Skulls
93. The Seven of Skulls
94. The Six of Skulls
95. The Five of Skulls
96. The Four of Skulls
97. The Three of Skulls
98. The Two of Skulls

99. The Ace of Skulls
It represents new life born in the midst of death and decay. No matter what has come before, there is always a new hope and a chance to be reborn. The image on the card usually depicts a cracked and yellowed skull, lying discarded on a dusty road, with a young seedling growing out of one of the eye sockets.

---

These cards were heavily inspired by the real-world Tarot deck, but I've added several new cards, changed the number of suits, and in general I've changed them to fit the Hedgyverse.

Several of the above cards (actually, all of them) have multiple possible meanings. Much depends on how they are interpreted. Also, remember that the order in which the cards are drawn is important in determining their meaning.

(I'll fill the details of the rest of the cards in when they are mentioned in the story, if they are ever mentioned.)

 

[Chandagnac]

Spoiler: Notes

I wonder if he lost his received power when Melphior was scattered?

Click to shrink...

He won't have lost the power that Melphior and the other Demon Lords already gave him, but he won't be able to receive the second half of the payment Melphior promised him.

Well, I guess we're finally close enough to the furthest point the timeline ever reached that major changes are now permitted without everything falling apart!

Click to shrink...

Hmm. It's still around sixteen years before the start of A Hedge Maze Is You. There may still be dire consequences because of the changes to the timeline. They just haven't happened yet.

Anyway, I'm not ready to write the next update. I'm still thinking about it. So, for now, I thought I'd write another Informational post. See below.

*

Remnants of the Elder Gods​

Despite the fact that the nine Elder Gods are all dead, disappeared or hopelessly trapped (with the possible exception of Aea), there are many remnants of them scattered throughout Creation. This is one of the things that makes it difficult for other gods to step into their shoes. After all, if Rynn is the sea, how can anyone else take over from him as the god of the sea? (So, there are lots of lesser gods of parts of the sea – Mishrak is the god of the depths, Ydrassa is the goddess of drownings, sailors pray to Strashan to keep them safe from storms and so on – but there is no greater god of the oceans.)

Here is a list of all the remnants I can think of:

1. Aea
There are six pieces of Aea scattered throughout time and space. Recently, a water spirit named Kyrina absorbed one of these pieces and became a new goddess, Kaerina. She plans to find and absorb more pieces of Aea. Also, it could be argued that the time stream itself is one of Aea's remnants.

The twenty-seven time elves (now reduced to only eighteen) were each imbued with a significant portion of her power, enabling them to carry out her duties even though she has been gone for more than six thousand years.

2. The old Death God
The Forgotten God and the All-Devourer are both remnants of the old Death God, the one who is now nameless. (I'm so tempted to call him 'the Nameless One'. You know how much I love Planescape: Torment.)

3. Keron/Kull
The fact that Keron was defeated in battle by Mawroth, Telthalus's lieutenant, is probably the reason why there are now so many gods (including Mawroth, Lothol, Corrothir, Agor-Ravaash, Strashan and others) that are all considered to be gods of war. Basically, he was beaten at his own game and so the domain was taken from him.

Keron's statue (on the Moon) was a major repository of the last remnants of his power. Since it was destroyed, he only has a few scattered remnants left. One of them is the Blood Sword, an incredibly potent weapon that has a nasty tendency to lead its wielders to their doom. And it is likely that he left something behind on Kerondar, the planet he created. Also, Keron's warrior elves were each imbued with a tiny fraction of his power.

4. Narra/Dynarra/Oa
Narrath's major land masses are all part of her domain. It is possible that she has a physical body somewhere that is entombed under the earth and in an enchanted sleep. Also, her elves (which look like fauns or dryads) were each imbued with a tiny fraction of her power.

5. Nymandor
The wall that separates Creation from the Outer Void is Nymandor. Also, Nerya Fair-Hair was able to conjure up a dream version of him, although it is unclear as to whether this existed before or if it was newly created out of raw dream stuff.

Nymandor's shapeshifting elves are all imbued with a tiny fraction of his power.

6. Rynn
The Wading God is the main part of Rynn, a giant who constantly wanders all over Narrath's seas and oceans, searching for the part of his soul he lost to Telthalus in a foolish wager. This is despite the fact that, too an extent, all of the seas and oceans are considered to be part of him, so how could his missing piece be hidden inside himself?

Also, Rynn made a lot of elves who look like mermaids and sirens. Each of them is imbued with a tiny fraction of his power.

7. Telthalus
The sky is still considered to be Telthalus's domain even though he has been gone for six thousand years.

In the Dreaming World, the dream that is commonly known as 'the General in Irons' is a remnant of Telthalus, although it is unclear if this is something he deliberately left behind or if it consists of Zora Alishanda's memories of him.

8. The Fates/The Norns/The Three-In-One
The Well of Knowledge is a remnant of the Fates. As are the 'Fate cards' that are commonly used for gambling and divination all over Narrath.

9. Vlakoroth
It has been suggested that Vlakoroth imbued all of his dragons (including Mishrak) with some of his essence and planned that one of them would be the seed of his eventual resurrection.

Spoiler: Notes

This is by no means an exhaustive list and I may continue to add things later on.

 

[Chandagnac]

Once again, I've been feeling discouraged because this quest has gone on for so long and lost so many readers/participants, especially since my latest fic (which I have so far uploaded to SpaceBattles but not Sufficient Velocity) has been so successful. On the other hand, the four of you (Zam, Indivisible, Flashkannon and Toboe) have been so loyal and such fun to write for that I don't want to just quit. I want to give this fic a proper ending.

So, I've decided to bring this quest to an end at the conclusion of the 'War Against Aspitolm' arc. The 'Rescue Zora Alishanda' arc took most of a year, so I think it's pretty likely that the 'War Against Aspitolm' arc will take just as long. But I'm planning to end this quest after that. I think that will be a good place to end it.