Flashkannon
Aqua Iconographer
- Location
- TM 91
I'm slowly reading Hedgie in the background myself, and I chew through about a page a day (for sleep time preservation reasons), so I don't expect to be done until 2022.
Chosen by the Dragon God
- Thread starter Chandagnac
- Start date
- Original
- Pronouns
- She/Them
if you ever need a break you should take it.
Please do what you need to do to be happy.
To Cut a Long Story Short... (Part Five)
Chandagnac
Broken Robot
- Location
- Nowhere
Well, thank you.
I forgot that you had said "Mortals only."
Still, it's likely that the magic that has kept Green Flame alive for thousands of years will eventually fail. But that's not going to happen any time soon. The Elder Gods wanted their servants to last.
And then they'll be so put off by the ending of A Hedge Maze Is You that they won't bother to continue reading, right?
Hmm. I'll allow it.
I'm taking a break next week, so I won't be around then.
Most of the time, I'm okay, these days. But I have occasional low moods.
*
To Cut a Long Story Short... (Part Five)
"I'll be careful, Mom," you promise.
She looks unconvinced, but doesn't question you any further. "Perhaps we should arrange a meeting with Madam Samaya. If anyone knows how the magic mirror works – and how to duplicate it – she likely does."
"It's the sort of thing that could win us the war," says your father. "With a bit of luck, if we're clever about how we use it, and so on."
"That reminds me: I need to talk to Mishrak about something," you say. "May I be excused?"
Your father puts on an amused smile. "What a social butterfly you have become," he says, chuckling.
"So… is that a 'yes'?" you ask.
"Of course." He gives a nod. "Off you go."
Making your way over to where Mishrak is giving Catharne further instruction on how to use her new shapeshifting powers, you wait until he sends her away to keep practising before asking him, "Have your Deep Ones been successful in destroying the Aspiti fishing fleet?"
"To an extent," he says, looking as pensive as it is possible for a tiny green dragon to look. "Not to the extent that they had hoped, but at least they didn't take heavy casualties while they were doing it. Would you like to meet some of them?"
"I suppose so," you say, glad that you don't need to hurry back to the Engelram Academy anytime soon. "I've got time."
He introduces you to Thorgil and Kevron, two men who formerly lived in Flotsam before they were evacuated ahead of the Aspiti invasion. Even if you ignore the physical changes that Mishrak has made to them, neither man looks like a native of Quellonia: considering Thorgil's pale skin and reddish hair, as well as his name, you'd guess that his ancestors were Mercadians, from the far north; Kevron looks like he might have some Avanni or Varzi blood in him. It just goes to show that Flotsam used to be a very cosmopolitan place. Actually, before your father took over from the previous ruler, the pirate king known as Merne Bloodscalp, it used to have a thriving slave market, where men and women from all over the world were bought and sold.
"It's nice to meet you both," you say. "I'm Elys."
They glance at one another, seeming hesitant to say anything.
"We know," says Thorgil, after a moment, giving a sigh of resignation. "Elys Allardyne, the Chosen of Mishrak, Princess of Ismar and Windskil–"
"Former Princess," you correct him.
"Didn't think it worked like that," says Kevron. "Even if the Aspitis have taken over, you're still the rightful ruler – or your father is, at any rate – and you haven't willingly given up the title, have you?"
"No! I wouldn't give the Aspitis anything!" you declare, firmly shaking your head.
"Well, there you are." Kevron shrugs. "If they want to take your princesshood away from you, make them fight for it."
"Princesshood? Is that even a word?" asks Thorgil, cocking his head to one side.
"I've been told that language is determined by how it is used," says Kevron, in a conspiratorial tone, as if confiding a secret. "If people keep saying it, it can't possibly be wrong, can it?"
Thorgil looks doubtful. "I'm not sure that's how it works," he mutters.
"Are you telepathically bonded to those gigantic turtles I saw before?" you ask.
"We've got one each. They're our partners," says Kevron, sounding rather like a proud parent.
"In this war, we are Mishrak's soldiers," says Thorgil. "Together, we fight against the Aspiti Empire in his name."
"And my ex-wife said I'd never be anything more than a washed-up drunk!" Kevron crows. "Well, hah!"
"Were you sent to smash up the Aspiti fishing fleet, at night, while they slept?" you ask. "How did that go?"
"Not as well as we'd hoped," says Thorgil. "We had to retreat before we'd finished: an armed patrol came by just at the wrong moment."
"Still, we got out with only a few minor cuts and scrapes," says Kevron. "Could've been a lot worse."
Thorgil and Kevron are from Tascion's omakes for The Tinpot Princess and Her Many Travels, which can be found here and here. I hope that I have done them justice! (Also, thank you very much, Tascion. I found your omakes to be very flattering and encouraging indeed.)
I didn't roll very well for the Deep Ones' attempts to destroy the Aspiti fishing fleet. Because of that, the Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) gains only 1 Warscore.
I didn't roll very well for the Deep Ones' attempts to destroy the Aspiti fishing fleet. Because of that, the Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) gains only 1 Warscore.
You are told that Thorgil was one of the first to volunteer to join the Deep Ones, back when Mishrak was still experimenting with how he was going to enhance them, and so he has rows of gills across his chest, which the Dragon God later decided was inefficient.
"I'm like a horseshoe crab," says Kevron, sounding pleased with himself. "While I'm swimming, I can shapeshift my hands so that they… uh, they sort-of function like gills. And then, when I get back to dry land, I have to remember to shapeshift them back."
Also, they inform you that, although most of the Deep Ones came from Flotsam, with barely a handful drawn from Ismar's tiny population, their numbers have since been bolstered by some of Mishrak's worshippers from the Rivayni coast and even further afield, who have travelled to the undersea palace to take part in what they see as a holy war.
"Some of them are real fanatics," says Thorgil, looking uneasy. "They'd probably want to worship you, Princess."
"You're not really very religious, are you, either of you?" you observe. "Is that why Mishrak wanted me to meet you, in case I got a swelled head from talking to those who want to venerate me?" Turning your head, you give your uncle a good-humoured grin.
"Possibly," says Thorgil. "I'd always prayed to Strashan for good weather, to Lissa for my children's sake, to Ydrassa because I didn't want her to drown me, and to a whole host of other gods depending on the situation, but it wasn't until I joined the Deep Ones that I considered myself to be a devotee of any one god in particular."
"I joined the Deep Ones because I didn't have any better options," Kevron admits. "But I'm glad I did. It's been the best choice I ever made."
"Why, thank you," says Mishrak, in a dry tone of voice that seems incongruous coming from the god of the depths of the ocean. "I'm glad that this scheme of mine has your approval."
The irony in his words is lost on Kevron, who smiles and says, "Hey, no worries!"
"Someday, this war's going to end," says Thorgil, in a meditative tone of voice. "What'll happen to us after that? Will you still have need of the Deep Ones?"
"I'm sure that I'll find something for you to do," says Mishrak. "Besides, the depths of the ocean are filled with marvels and mysteries that no one has ever had the chance to explore before. If you want to decide for yourselves, you'll have plenty of options: more than most people could ever dream of."
The two men seem to be intrigued and somewhat intimidated by that thought.
That evening, when you go to dinner with King Marc, at Castle Standfast, you are astonished by the lavish spread laid out before you. It is probably the most sumptuous feast you have ever seen: truly, it is a meal fit for a king! However, in spite of that, only a few people have been invited: the King and his son, Prince Artan; your family; and two elderly advisors. Clad in your prettiest frock, you sit next to Jana, who is dressed in practical, form-fitting clothes: she has eagerly seized upon the fact that it is perfectly acceptable for a handmaiden to dress like that, even on the most formal occasions. You eat steadily, not knowing what to make of so much magnificence.
Presumably because of the recent tragedies that have befallen his family, King Marc is already tipsy when you arrive and continues to drink heavily throughout the meal. It seems that he is a maudlin drunk. After your mother sharply reprimands him for being over-familiar with Bellona, he retreats into his cups and loudly mourns for Prince Barathar.
"He never had a chance!" he wails. "He would have been such a good king!"
'Better than me,' you almost think he is about to say.
The King's son and current heir, Prince Artan, is a slight young man who seems embarrassed and discomforted by his father's behaviour. He doesn't say anything, but sits hunched over his food, stirring it around on his plate until it turns into an unidentifiable slurry.
"Pull yourself together, Marcin," your mother finally snaps. "We need you. Your sons need you. Everyone in your kingdom is relying on you. For Prince Barathar's sake, you must be the king you hoped that he would one day become."
"My dear coz," says the King, looking fondly at her. "I owe you so much. How can I ever repay you?"
Your mother looks crossly at him. "I just told you. For a start, you can make sure that Prince Kristan gets a fair trial. With as much evidence as we've gathered, no unbiased jury would ever convict him, but…"
"Bias is easy bought," your father finishes, after your mother's voice trails off into ominous silence. "And none of this would have happened if not for magical mind control, so watch out for that."
"You're right, of course," says King Marc, almost slumping into his plateful of meat and gravy. "You know… this is just like the old days, when the kings of Greater Quellonia would gather together, as allies and comrades, in the High King's court. Your ancestor, Sir Gaharys Allardyne, and mine, Sir Kresselak. What incredible feats they performed together!"
"I seem to remember that Sir Kresselak had a love affair with Gaharys's mother," says your father, sotto voce. "Which he wasn't happy about at first. Still, at least he accepted it in the end... and gave them his blessing when they got married."
"The old days are long gone," says your mother. "And we have no High King. Not any longer."
"Even so," says King Marc. "Even so…"
Later, after you head back home to the undersea palace, Jana says to Belle, "It must be difficult… you know, being a beautiful woman and having people hitting on you all the time. I'm really sorry about that."
Belle gives her a wry glance. "Yes. Perhaps in a few years you'll be able to tell me what that's like."
Anyway, that's the end of the current month. As usual, the Aspiti Empire gains 1 Warscore. They now have a total of 9 Warscore.
The Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) currently has a total of 16 Warscore.
Hmm. I can't remember if I ever had Elys ask Belle about the story that Sildar told her. I don't think I found a good place for it. Maybe some other time. It probably wasn't important, anyway. (Well, perhaps if you wanted to invite Vashiira to join in the war against Aspitolm, then it would be relevant.)
The Coalition (of forces leagued against the Aspiti Empire) currently has a total of 16 Warscore.
Hmm. I can't remember if I ever had Elys ask Belle about the story that Sildar told her. I don't think I found a good place for it. Maybe some other time. It probably wasn't important, anyway. (Well, perhaps if you wanted to invite Vashiira to join in the war against Aspitolm, then it would be relevant.)
What should Elys do next? (Choose one)
[] Ask Mishrak to arrange a meeting with Samaya.
-[] Ask her to create a permanent portal so that Elys can visit the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts anytime she likes.
--[] Have her parents sit in on the meeting so that they can ask Samaya questions about duplicating Professor Elthonar's magic mirror.
[] Visit Mishrak again. (+Warscore?)
-[] Find out what progress Catharne is making in learning how to shapeshift.
--[] Ask Mishrak to rejuvenate her mother, Yslena, in much the same way that he did to her father, Gareth.
---[] Meet the Wranni who have joined Mishrak's military coalition (+Warscore?)
[] Join Sildar and Jorantul in one of their attempts to defend the Rivayni coastline from Aspiti slave raiders. (+Warscore)
-[] Fly around protecting innocent civilians while the Chosen of Mawroth do all the fighting.
[] Visit her grandfather, Lymond Sayce, Count of Norrange. (+Warscore?)
-[] Visit her uncle, Elward, and his wife, Raene.
--[] Visit her cousin, Jesric.
[] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
[] Finish reading Kelamon Dumar's How to Enter the Underworld.
[] After Professor Elthonar's disappearance, his magic mirror was put into storage. Find out where it is.
-[] Get Mishrak to buy it.
(Alternatively, trust that Elys's parents will do this without her input, now that she's told them about it.)
-[] Spend time with Dorian, Isolia, Philander, and Venta.
--[] Find out their problems, hopes, and fears.
---[] Figure out what you can do to help them.
OR
-[] Interview Archironaeus about when he has seen people use the magic mirror before.
OR
-[] Ask Green Flame some more questions.
(Elys can't do any of these things until she has a reliable means of transportation. She can't keep asking Uncle Mishrak to carry her back and forth.)
[] Do something else (write in)*.
*If there's anything I've forgotten to add to this list, that doesn't mean that you can't do it.
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Oof. Not as much progress as we'd hoped. Still, we're well ahead of the Apisti for now.
[X] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
I think this is the most time-sensitive, as we'll want to finish before her parents get the mirror.
I think that next month we'll want to visit Elys' grandfather (for Warscore), then finish How to Enter the Underworld, then visit Mishrak again. We need to wait for Catharne to learn shapeshifting anyway, and this way we can alternate Warscore turns with non-Warscore turns.
The meeting with Samaya needs her parents to have to mirror already.
Her parents will be Not Happy if she goes fighting with the Mawroth chosen.
[X] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
I think this is the most time-sensitive, as we'll want to finish before her parents get the mirror.
I think that next month we'll want to visit Elys' grandfather (for Warscore), then finish How to Enter the Underworld, then visit Mishrak again. We need to wait for Catharne to learn shapeshifting anyway, and this way we can alternate Warscore turns with non-Warscore turns.
The meeting with Samaya needs her parents to have to mirror already.
Her parents will be Not Happy if she goes fighting with the Mawroth chosen.
I either want to fight or the one I picked, but I went for this cos we are smol and also cos it might net us more allies in the future:
[X] Ask Mishrak to arrange a meeting with Samaya.
-[X] Ask her to create a permanent portal so that Elys can visit the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts anytime she likes.
--[X] Have her parents sit in on the meeting so that they can ask Samaya questions about duplicating Professor Elthonar's magic mirror.
[X] Ask Mishrak to arrange a meeting with Samaya.
-[X] Ask her to create a permanent portal so that Elys can visit the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts anytime she likes.
--[X] Have her parents sit in on the meeting so that they can ask Samaya questions about duplicating Professor Elthonar's magic mirror.
Flashkannon
Aqua Iconographer
- Location
- TM 91
[x] Join Sildar and Jorantul in one of their attempts to defend the Rivayni coastline from Aspiti slave raiders. (+Warscore)
-[x] Fly around protecting innocent civilians while the Chosen of Mawroth do all the fighting.
In a fit of madness, I will vote for this Bad Decision. I hope, if the late professor Elthonar's journal wins, Changadnac will just post the whole thing and expect us to run it through a decrypter.
I would still count her as immortal though, functionally speaking, because she could just get a tune-up on that and be fine. Immortal until killed, at least. But that applies to gods too.
Goodness me, that'd be hard to process.
-[x] Fly around protecting innocent civilians while the Chosen of Mawroth do all the fighting.
In a fit of madness, I will vote for this Bad Decision. I hope, if the late professor Elthonar's journal wins, Changadnac will just post the whole thing and expect us to run it through a decrypter.
Meaning: adorable.
Clearly, something must be done immediately to rectify this!
I would still count her as immortal though, functionally speaking, because she could just get a tune-up on that and be fine. Immortal until killed, at least. But that applies to gods too.
Another very monty python moment, I am loving it.
Some?
Goodness me, that'd be hard to process.
- Pronouns
- She/Them
im liking notebook then mirror, feels like maybe we are running late on reading the book. also how many months has it been seen elys went to sambia? hope those guys r ok.
Heh, always assumed that the characters in those omakes were from Ismar, not Windskil. ...well, they probably were from Ismar in those omakes, but as omakes they are only semi-canon, I guess.
Also, it's still weird seeing Thorgil as a man's name even though that's the norm, since the first person with that name I saw was a female character from the book The Sea Of Trolls.
I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever get to see what King Marc is usually like, when his mind isn't altered in some way. First by being drunk and mind-controlled, now by being drunk and deeply in mourning. Or is he really just, always drunk, even way back when he was sending out privateers against the Aspitis years before war was officially declared.
Anyway, as always, it is painfully difficult to chose just one of the options for what to do next. But yeah, we are long overdue on translating that book, especially considering the new possibility of her parents getting the mirror soon on their own.
[X] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
-[X] Once we finish, contact Mishrak and our parents immediately, to tell them all the most important bits that could be relevant to the war.
Also, it's still weird seeing Thorgil as a man's name even though that's the norm, since the first person with that name I saw was a female character from the book The Sea Of Trolls.
I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever get to see what King Marc is usually like, when his mind isn't altered in some way. First by being drunk and mind-controlled, now by being drunk and deeply in mourning. Or is he really just, always drunk, even way back when he was sending out privateers against the Aspitis years before war was officially declared.
Anyway, as always, it is painfully difficult to chose just one of the options for what to do next. But yeah, we are long overdue on translating that book, especially considering the new possibility of her parents getting the mirror soon on their own.
[X] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
-[X] Once we finish, contact Mishrak and our parents immediately, to tell them all the most important bits that could be relevant to the war.
- Location
- Earth
Excitement!!!!
I'm quite flattered to see these fellas included. Thanks @Chandagnac.
[x] Finish deciphering and reading Professor Elthonar's notebook.
This makes the most sense to me, both for Elys as an individual and in terms of the overall narrative, as I don't want the quest focused solely on the war but mirror travel would eventually be useful for the war effort (maybe).
Chandagnac
Broken Robot
- Location
- Nowhere
I'm tempted to pretend that was an attempt to represent his accent, but no: I made a mistake. It was late at night and I was very tired when I posted that last update, so I made several mistakes and didn't have time to correct them until now.
I've always assumed that they were from Windskil, since Ismar had such a tiny population made up mostly of elderly people who were all involved in the Sea Ghoul cult to a lesser or greater extent, whereas Windskil was much more diverse.
But whatever. Death of the Author and so on.
He's drunk most of the time, it's true.
No worries. I'm still grateful you wrote that omake in the first place.
Anyway, in the next update, Elys will finish reading and translating Professor Elthonar's notebook. I'll get to that as soon as I am able to.
The Last Confessions of Professor Tregard Elthonar (Part One)
Chandagnac
Broken Robot
- Location
- Nowhere
Sorry, it's taken a while for me to get back into this after my holiday. But here's the next update:
The second-years have lessons on practical spellcasting, which you do not attend because you are already as good a spellcaster as some of the teachers, and so you have several free periods each week. You are supposed to use them wisely, to hone and develop your own skills, as well as to catch up with your academic work, but it doesn't seem like anyone is keeping tabs on you; if you wanted to slack off, you would easily get away with it.
So far, you have been conscientious in using your new free periods for spell practice and schoolwork, but you still feel like you have much more spare time in the evenings and at weekends than you did before. Therefore, you've had plenty of time to finish decoding Professor Elthonar's notebook. It starts off innocuously enough, although there are a few grim and unpleasant details.
Apparently, when Tregard Elthonar was a young man, he was apprenticed to an elderly wizard named Crastus Aedon, a self-styled 'Master of Weather Magic'. Some years later, after he had become a fully-fledged wizard and started building a reputation for himself, Elthonar was saddened but not surprised to hear that his former master had died. What did surprise him was that Aedon had been murdered: when his body was found, it was missing a head.
When he attended the funeral, he met some of Aedon's friends: Volric Sym, who claimed to be a master enchanter; Lyria Serrat, a mistress of illusions; and Alikada Zinistrari, a mistress of life magic. They said that they had worked with Aedon as part of an organization that they called 'the Mystic Path', with the objective of making the secrets of magic available to everyone. At the time, Elthonar had thought that was a noble goal. Also, they commiserated with him and expressed their horror at the fact that their old friend had been murdered.
Later, it turned out that Aedon had bequeathed most of his possessions to Elthonar, who had been his favourite student. These included a magic mirror, a set of keys, and several arcane texts. However, some of the books and scrolls that he'd wanted to give to Elthonar were missing from his collection; it was theorised that these had been stolen by his murderer.
Volric Sym seemed amused that Aedon had left his magic mirror to Elthonar. "I was the one who made it," he said. "With help from another of my colleagues, of course." He chuckled as if at some private joke. "Kelamon Dumar was his name back then, though he goes by a different name these days."
"What does it do?" asked Elthonar.
"It is a toy," Sym said carelessly. "Hardly worth bothering with, but… I made a set of nine mirrors, kept one for myself and gave the rest to my friends, the other members of the Mystic Path. We used them to keep in touch with one another."
"That seems useful," said Elthonar, impressed. "Why did you stop using them?"
"Ag… Dumar is a master of portal magic. It's easier to simply ask him to open a portal to wherever we need to go."
"A master of portal magic?!" Elthonar gasped, even more impressed. "I thought that knowledge of such magic had been lost ever since Nymandor departed from Creation!"
"We have much knowledge to share," said Sym, smiling affably at him. "You should consider joining us. Follow in your former master's footsteps and so on."
"I'd like to," said Elthonar. "It sounds wonderful!"
Sym promised to meet with him at a later date to discuss how he could be inducted into the Mystic Path. And so, they went their separate ways.
In fact, it was several weeks before Elthonar saw or heard from Sym again. He was unable to figure out how to use Aedon's magic mirror: his former master had left him no instructions that he could find. Therefore, he was surprised when, one evening, the magic mirror's silvery rectangular surface was replaced by a portal to another dimension: a world of jagged mountains and plains of shimmering dust.
Volric Sym came through the portal, bowed to him, and said, "An interesting toy, is it not? Shall I show you how to use it?"
At this point, instead of carrying on with his story, the notebook provides detailed instructions on how to use the magic mirror, as told to Elthonar by Volric Sym. The gilded decorations around the frame were cunningly designed to conceal magical runes that can be used to open a window to the other world and adjust its relative position, enabling the user to look at it from high up in the sky, or swoop down to look at something on the ground, or move to anywhere else in the pocket dimension created by the Mystic Path, which despite looking like a vast landscape actually consists of less than fifteen square miles in total: the mists and the ring of mountains all around make it difficult to see that it is actually quite a small patch of land.
Turning this 'window' into an actual portal requires the user to channel a large quantity of magic and soul energy into it – an entire cup of blood and enough magical energy to make a fairly powerful wizard strain with the effort of producing it – but this process can be made much easier if one possesses the 'Keys to the Mirror World': the same nine keys that you took from Professor Elthonar's rapidly decaying corpse! If you channel magic through the keys into the mirror, the cost is much smaller – and then it requires only a droplet of blood to finish opening the portal.
Unless you have the keys, getting out of the mirror world is almost impossible unless someone lets you out – you were very lucky that Cadre 1K just happened to be looking through one of the magic mirrors at the same time as you were looking for a way out. However, if you have them, you can open a portal anywhere in the other world by channelling magic through one of the keys. Each key is marked with a number corresponding to one of the magic mirrors created by Volric Sym and Kelamon Dumar.
While you are in the mirror world, channelling magic through the key marked with a '1' will open a portal to the mirror in Kelamon Dumar's tower, which Elthonar saw was in a mountainous region somewhere in the northern wastes of Mercadia.
Channelling magic through the key marked with a '2' opens a portal to somewhere in the Underworld: when he opened it for the first time, Elthonar saw only darkness and blue sulphurous flames. He dared not go through it.
The key marked with a '3' can be used to open a portal to Alikada Zinistrari's palatial mansion on the outskirts of the city of Aspitolm.
As soon as you have read that, you are filled with such excitement that you are unable to continue. You already have the keys, so… if you can get hold of Professor Elthonar's magic mirror, you could use it to send an army through to Alikada Zinistrari's mansion – or Sildar and Jorantul, who could probably cause the Aspitis just as many problems as an entire army – and then they could attack the city of Aspitolm before anyone could raise the alarm! You could win the war with a single move, just like in a game of Royal Ku!
Taking several deep breaths, you manage to calm down a little. Reading through the next couple of pages of the notebook, you find out that…
The key marked with a '4' opens a portal to a mirror that was being kept in a storeroom in the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts. That must be the one you went through before. Elthonar was somewhat baffled as to how one of Sym's mirrors had ended up there, but the master enchanter explained that he'd given it to one of his contacts who he hoped would join the Mystic Path in place of one of their deceased members.
Similarly, the key marked with a '5' opens a portal which leads to the 'Battle Maze' beneath the city of Nemaz. When Elthonar asked about it, Sym gave no explanation, only a smug grin.
The key marked with a '6' does nothing. Apparently, it was linked to a mirror that has been broken beyond repair.
The key marked with a '7' is linked to the mirror that formerly belonged to Crastus Aedon, which he bequeathed to Tregard Elthonar and now… well, you're not sure where it is now. But you're hoping that your parents or Mishrak will be able to find out its current location in time to purchase it for your birthday.
When he inquired as to why the key marked with an '8' seemed to lead to somewhere underwater, Elthonar was told that, "That mirror belongs to one of my colleagues: Luth-a-Nyvech, the master of water, lord of all that is dead under the sea. He aspires to topple Teryn the Necromancer from his throne of skulls and bleached bones, someday. A worthy goal, don't you think?"
At the time, Elthonar knew very little about Teryn, but he had heard rumours about him being a grim and terrible god whose worshippers performed ghastly rituals and mutilated the souls of the dead, and so he readily agreed.
Key '9' leads to Volric Sym's own magnificent mage's tower, in the city of Epiny, which is part of the 'Free State of Epiny', here in Greater Quellonia.
At this point, your stomach rumbles and you realise that you have missed dinner. By now, Jana is probably worrying about you. Hopefully, when you go to meet her, she'll have saved a few choice morsels for you. And you could discuss the contents of Professor Elthonar's notebook with her; you're burning with eagerness to tell someone about it!
But then, you remember that the Mystic Path were the ones who attacked Teryn's Necropolis, killed many of the people working for him, and bound their souls so that they could not return to the Wheel. This notebook contains information about them that he would surely want to know, which might enable him to strike back at them, so maybe you should get in touch with Belle as soon as possible so that she can tell him?
Or you could tell your parents and Mishrak what you have discovered so far, making sure they know how important the magic mirror is and how useful it could be to the war effort.
Or you could just keep reading. Just one missed meal won't do you much harm.
What will Elys do next? (Choose one)
[] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
[] Get in touch with Belle. Tell her what the notebook says about the Mystic Path.
[] Get in touch with her parents and Mishrak. Tell them what the notebook says about the portal to Aspitolm.
[] Keep reading the notebook until she reaches the very end.
-[] Before she does anything else, it's important to make sure that she has all the information she might need.
*
The Last Confessions of Professor Tregard Elthonar (Part One)
When you return to the Engelram Academy of the Magical Arts, you find the work much easier now that you aren't being forced to take classes with the fifth-year pupils. Having joined the second-year classes instead, you are able to blend in almost to the point of being unnoticeable in all of the lessons that require you to write essays, recall facts from your prior learning, or listen and make notes while a teacher is giving a lecture about magical theory. You don't excel, but you don't feel that you need to: it's enough that you're no longer being picked on. And you get to spend more time with Jana.The Last Confessions of Professor Tregard Elthonar (Part One)
The second-years have lessons on practical spellcasting, which you do not attend because you are already as good a spellcaster as some of the teachers, and so you have several free periods each week. You are supposed to use them wisely, to hone and develop your own skills, as well as to catch up with your academic work, but it doesn't seem like anyone is keeping tabs on you; if you wanted to slack off, you would easily get away with it.
So far, you have been conscientious in using your new free periods for spell practice and schoolwork, but you still feel like you have much more spare time in the evenings and at weekends than you did before. Therefore, you've had plenty of time to finish decoding Professor Elthonar's notebook. It starts off innocuously enough, although there are a few grim and unpleasant details.
Apparently, when Tregard Elthonar was a young man, he was apprenticed to an elderly wizard named Crastus Aedon, a self-styled 'Master of Weather Magic'. Some years later, after he had become a fully-fledged wizard and started building a reputation for himself, Elthonar was saddened but not surprised to hear that his former master had died. What did surprise him was that Aedon had been murdered: when his body was found, it was missing a head.
When he attended the funeral, he met some of Aedon's friends: Volric Sym, who claimed to be a master enchanter; Lyria Serrat, a mistress of illusions; and Alikada Zinistrari, a mistress of life magic. They said that they had worked with Aedon as part of an organization that they called 'the Mystic Path', with the objective of making the secrets of magic available to everyone. At the time, Elthonar had thought that was a noble goal. Also, they commiserated with him and expressed their horror at the fact that their old friend had been murdered.
Later, it turned out that Aedon had bequeathed most of his possessions to Elthonar, who had been his favourite student. These included a magic mirror, a set of keys, and several arcane texts. However, some of the books and scrolls that he'd wanted to give to Elthonar were missing from his collection; it was theorised that these had been stolen by his murderer.
Volric Sym seemed amused that Aedon had left his magic mirror to Elthonar. "I was the one who made it," he said. "With help from another of my colleagues, of course." He chuckled as if at some private joke. "Kelamon Dumar was his name back then, though he goes by a different name these days."
"What does it do?" asked Elthonar.
"It is a toy," Sym said carelessly. "Hardly worth bothering with, but… I made a set of nine mirrors, kept one for myself and gave the rest to my friends, the other members of the Mystic Path. We used them to keep in touch with one another."
"That seems useful," said Elthonar, impressed. "Why did you stop using them?"
"Ag… Dumar is a master of portal magic. It's easier to simply ask him to open a portal to wherever we need to go."
"A master of portal magic?!" Elthonar gasped, even more impressed. "I thought that knowledge of such magic had been lost ever since Nymandor departed from Creation!"
"We have much knowledge to share," said Sym, smiling affably at him. "You should consider joining us. Follow in your former master's footsteps and so on."
"I'd like to," said Elthonar. "It sounds wonderful!"
Sym promised to meet with him at a later date to discuss how he could be inducted into the Mystic Path. And so, they went their separate ways.
In fact, it was several weeks before Elthonar saw or heard from Sym again. He was unable to figure out how to use Aedon's magic mirror: his former master had left him no instructions that he could find. Therefore, he was surprised when, one evening, the magic mirror's silvery rectangular surface was replaced by a portal to another dimension: a world of jagged mountains and plains of shimmering dust.
Volric Sym came through the portal, bowed to him, and said, "An interesting toy, is it not? Shall I show you how to use it?"
At this point, instead of carrying on with his story, the notebook provides detailed instructions on how to use the magic mirror, as told to Elthonar by Volric Sym. The gilded decorations around the frame were cunningly designed to conceal magical runes that can be used to open a window to the other world and adjust its relative position, enabling the user to look at it from high up in the sky, or swoop down to look at something on the ground, or move to anywhere else in the pocket dimension created by the Mystic Path, which despite looking like a vast landscape actually consists of less than fifteen square miles in total: the mists and the ring of mountains all around make it difficult to see that it is actually quite a small patch of land.
Turning this 'window' into an actual portal requires the user to channel a large quantity of magic and soul energy into it – an entire cup of blood and enough magical energy to make a fairly powerful wizard strain with the effort of producing it – but this process can be made much easier if one possesses the 'Keys to the Mirror World': the same nine keys that you took from Professor Elthonar's rapidly decaying corpse! If you channel magic through the keys into the mirror, the cost is much smaller – and then it requires only a droplet of blood to finish opening the portal.
Unless you have the keys, getting out of the mirror world is almost impossible unless someone lets you out – you were very lucky that Cadre 1K just happened to be looking through one of the magic mirrors at the same time as you were looking for a way out. However, if you have them, you can open a portal anywhere in the other world by channelling magic through one of the keys. Each key is marked with a number corresponding to one of the magic mirrors created by Volric Sym and Kelamon Dumar.
While you are in the mirror world, channelling magic through the key marked with a '1' will open a portal to the mirror in Kelamon Dumar's tower, which Elthonar saw was in a mountainous region somewhere in the northern wastes of Mercadia.
Channelling magic through the key marked with a '2' opens a portal to somewhere in the Underworld: when he opened it for the first time, Elthonar saw only darkness and blue sulphurous flames. He dared not go through it.
The key marked with a '3' can be used to open a portal to Alikada Zinistrari's palatial mansion on the outskirts of the city of Aspitolm.
As soon as you have read that, you are filled with such excitement that you are unable to continue. You already have the keys, so… if you can get hold of Professor Elthonar's magic mirror, you could use it to send an army through to Alikada Zinistrari's mansion – or Sildar and Jorantul, who could probably cause the Aspitis just as many problems as an entire army – and then they could attack the city of Aspitolm before anyone could raise the alarm! You could win the war with a single move, just like in a game of Royal Ku!
Taking several deep breaths, you manage to calm down a little. Reading through the next couple of pages of the notebook, you find out that…
The key marked with a '4' opens a portal to a mirror that was being kept in a storeroom in the Tyrepheum Academy of the Magical Arts. That must be the one you went through before. Elthonar was somewhat baffled as to how one of Sym's mirrors had ended up there, but the master enchanter explained that he'd given it to one of his contacts who he hoped would join the Mystic Path in place of one of their deceased members.
Similarly, the key marked with a '5' opens a portal which leads to the 'Battle Maze' beneath the city of Nemaz. When Elthonar asked about it, Sym gave no explanation, only a smug grin.
The key marked with a '6' does nothing. Apparently, it was linked to a mirror that has been broken beyond repair.
The key marked with a '7' is linked to the mirror that formerly belonged to Crastus Aedon, which he bequeathed to Tregard Elthonar and now… well, you're not sure where it is now. But you're hoping that your parents or Mishrak will be able to find out its current location in time to purchase it for your birthday.
When he inquired as to why the key marked with an '8' seemed to lead to somewhere underwater, Elthonar was told that, "That mirror belongs to one of my colleagues: Luth-a-Nyvech, the master of water, lord of all that is dead under the sea. He aspires to topple Teryn the Necromancer from his throne of skulls and bleached bones, someday. A worthy goal, don't you think?"
At the time, Elthonar knew very little about Teryn, but he had heard rumours about him being a grim and terrible god whose worshippers performed ghastly rituals and mutilated the souls of the dead, and so he readily agreed.
Key '9' leads to Volric Sym's own magnificent mage's tower, in the city of Epiny, which is part of the 'Free State of Epiny', here in Greater Quellonia.
At this point, your stomach rumbles and you realise that you have missed dinner. By now, Jana is probably worrying about you. Hopefully, when you go to meet her, she'll have saved a few choice morsels for you. And you could discuss the contents of Professor Elthonar's notebook with her; you're burning with eagerness to tell someone about it!
But then, you remember that the Mystic Path were the ones who attacked Teryn's Necropolis, killed many of the people working for him, and bound their souls so that they could not return to the Wheel. This notebook contains information about them that he would surely want to know, which might enable him to strike back at them, so maybe you should get in touch with Belle as soon as possible so that she can tell him?
Or you could tell your parents and Mishrak what you have discovered so far, making sure they know how important the magic mirror is and how useful it could be to the war effort.
Or you could just keep reading. Just one missed meal won't do you much harm.
What will Elys do next? (Choose one)
[] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
[] Get in touch with Belle. Tell her what the notebook says about the Mystic Path.
[] Get in touch with her parents and Mishrak. Tell them what the notebook says about the portal to Aspitolm.
[] Keep reading the notebook until she reaches the very end.
-[] Before she does anything else, it's important to make sure that she has all the information she might need.
I wanted to finish off Professor Elthonar's story here, but it would have taken at least another couple of days to write. I feel like I've kept you guys waiting for long enough, so I decided to end it here, for now. Besides, I'm curious as to which of my NPCs you'll want to talk to first...
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- Pronouns
- She/Them
so im thinking, keep jana in the loop, then finish the book, then tell the adults. does thst sound good to everyone else?
[X] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
edit: by tell adults, i mean get belle, mishrak and her parents together either in person or on call and fill them in on all of it in one go. then they can sort out portal stuff without competing for portal time. and we can visit sambia again
edit 2: portal network may be deemed to dangerous for casual use. still, gods can use it to investigate the terror cell, and we can use it for warscore, sending the mercs in would be the stealthiest option. might even not give the game away that we have access to thier portal network
[X] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
edit: by tell adults, i mean get belle, mishrak and her parents together either in person or on call and fill them in on all of it in one go. then they can sort out portal stuff without competing for portal time. and we can visit sambia again
edit 2: portal network may be deemed to dangerous for casual use. still, gods can use it to investigate the terror cell, and we can use it for warscore, sending the mercs in would be the stealthiest option. might even not give the game away that we have access to thier portal network
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[X] Get in touch with her parents and Mishrak. Tell them what the notebook says about the portal to Aspitolm.
- Pronouns
- She/Them
shouldnt we speed read the rest of the book first? what if there's something critical in there?
Flashkannon
Aqua Iconographer
- Location
- TM 91
Dangerous! Oh me oh my. Mystic Path? This could end... poorly.
And there we go, big bingo, it's Agon Hurondus. Goodie goodness gracious. The Bad News Bear of Danger. We knew he was involves, but... he could be through the hell portal. I don't know enough hedgie lore to know yet. Though this... it makes sense, what his homunculus called himself, now.
Hm... did we ever catch the name of the sea ghouls? I need to read Tinpot Princess again.
[x] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
-[x] Read the rest with Jana
Elys clearly needs to talk about this with someone. This is important, though not by-the-minute important news, so reading the rest before spilling to the adults is important, I think.
- Location
- St. Petersburg
Wait, so someone can channel magic through your keys from the other side? That's a massive security breach if I heard of one. Or else Archironaeus has a key somewhere?
That applies in reverse too, if they know you are staging attacks through a mirror, they can retaliate with one of their own.
[x] Get in touch with Belle. Tell her what the notebook says about the Mystic Path.
Chandagnac
Broken Robot
- Location
- Nowhere
Thank you.
That's what the current vote is supposed to decide. If you think Elys should read the rest of the book before talking to anyone about, please vote for that.
One of the portals leads to Agon Hurondus's tower in the middle of the hedge maze*.
*But Elthonar didn't actually visit, so he didn't notice the hedge maze, only that it was in a "mountainous region somewhere in the northern wastes of Mercadia".
I don't think you ever got the names of any individual Sea Ghouls, no.
No, you can't channel magic through a set of keys unless you happen to be holding them (or at least close to them). Archironaeus is a spirit/lesser god, like Hedgy was. Again like Hedgy, he has ways of moving soul energy around that don't involve blood, although the process left him fatigued.
Indeed. Elys can be quite impetuous, sometimes.
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Ah, was just starting to get worried, but glad this is back!
Ah, so when this was brought up before in Hedge Maze, that wasn't just one anomalous member doing Mystic Path stuff for what they believed to be the greater good, this is their cover story, the lie they use to justify their actions to outsiders. How horribly ironic, considering some of the behavior and motivations of Hurondus at least.
...hmm. So, on one hand, these mirrors are made by the Mystic Path, for the Mystic Path, working via a pocket dimension also created by the Mystic Path, and they can all use them whenever the hell they want. On the other hand, they are unlikely to use them anymore since Hurondus has already obsoleted them. So... using these seems risky. Probably still worth the risk for some things, possibly including the war on Aspitolm, but not to be overused or relied upon.
Ha, of course there are nine members. Been a while since we've seen the Rule Of Threes be relevant. On the plus side, at least it's not nine anymore; sounds like Crastus wasn't even the only one who got killed. (though on the other hand... since they're always looking for replacements for their fallen members... oh great, the Mystic Path is this world's version of the Slaughterhouse Nine)
Oh, and that probably answers one question: Opernus Prentigold isn't a member of the Mystic Path, but they want him as a member, and he is presumably on at least somewhat good terms with them.
...err. About that. I guess this is technically what we wanted, but... going through a member of the Mystic Path, on their own turf, via artifacts that they themselves made? With this plan, the goal of "fighting the armies of the slaving empire Aspitolm backed by the evil Greater God Zanaster" becomes the easy part.
...uh. Oh dear. That is, worrying. Haven't even heard of this guy before. On the plus side, this seems like it could strengthen the alliance between Teryn and Mishrak?
Anyway, seconding Flashkannon's vote of:
[x] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
-[x] Read the rest with Jana
Seems like the most efficient way of doing this. Since Jana is just a few minutes walk away, and doesn't have any more responsibilites than we do, it basically combines telling Jana with
[] Keep reading the notebook until she reaches the very end.
-[] Before she does anything else, it's important to make sure that she has all the information she might need.
After this, going with the general consensus here of, once we're done reading it, tell our parents, Mishrak, and Bellona all at the same time.
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- Pronouns
- She/Her
[x] Go to Jana. Tell her about what she has read in the notebook so far.
-[x] Read the rest with Jana
-[x] Read the rest with Jana