Voyager: III
- Location
- Finland
'We sail. Hard to port, and we don't stop until I give the word. To your stations! Now!'
What Ghist intends is madness. There is no hope of victory here. The best you can ask for is to run and survive to fight another day. Around the fleet, you see others turning hard to flee north, south, or back towards the homeland - however low they might be on provisions for that long voyage. There is no hope of escape for those in the first ranks, caught in the inferno. You feel more than see gods die, the last embers of their anima bursting off in reverberations of power. Ghist's course takes him directly through the chaos, straight as an arrow, plowing his way through crippled ships and pillars of flame with force that has to be born of divine miracle. The smoke parts with him, revealing the enemy in full. You wish it had not.
In the distance, the titans have ceased their approach. They pick through the abattoir like dogs at a carcass, snapping and lashing out at their monstrous brethren if one dares approach another's prey. Entire ships are lifted on invisible strings from the waters and plunged down endless gullets. You see a struggling goddess bound in an ethereal web and hoisted high until she rests before the mouth of the towering spider-thing among the titans. In one mercilessly swift motion the behemoth snaps its mandibles closed on the young goddess and you feel the life violently wrench from her. The spider-titan croons a warbling high sound into the air in evident satisfaction - before it descending upon another victim. All around it, the other titans reach for trapped or dying gods to devour. They appear to have forgotten all about the rest of the fleet. For a moment, you think Ghist's mad plan might even work.
The battle-god is noticed, however. The titans lift up their heads at his approach, and the sky begins to rain fire once more. The Sunderer shrugs off a barrage of lightning and shatters a tidal wave with its prow, but when the panther-titan leaps and slams into its side with a furious yowl, Ghist is thrown overboard. The titan bats at the side of the ship like a house cat playing with its prey. The single blow is enough to break the war-ship in twain. The waters underneath the ship boil, and you doubt any of the falling crew live long enough to regret their choice. The other titans close in, their monstrous, bestial voices carrying through the din of the chaos.
You can't watch any longer. The power within you blossoms and lifts from your lips as a wordless song, bright and clear and piercing the thunder of the devourer gods. Everything stops around you - and the wind rises. The Dreamer surges into motion, trailed by the other ships in your fleet. Terrified crewmen see to their tasks regardless of their fear, but they are scarcely needed. Divine power fills your sails now. Your entire body tingles with the power of dreams being spun into reality and you know the seductive warmth of the divine fire. It is no wonder some gods waste their power with no thought to the consequences. It is better than any mundane sensation, stronger than any act of creation. Like this, one might make the mistake of thinking they could challenge the titans as Ghist has.
The Dreamer and her followers dart past other ships and make for open sea. Iktoka latches on to her stern, giving off panicked sounds. The wind you've summoned carries the dragons as well as it fills your sails. All around you, you sense other gods join their powers to yours, hastening escapes or strengthening ships against the titan's storm. Some follow Ghist and seek battle. You feel their deaths soon after. Of Ghist, you only catch one more glimpse - a flash of power and a distant figure launching itself towards the panther-thing. Do you imagine it, or does the titan rear back, wounded? The smoke covers all from view then. There cannot be any possibility of victory for the god of battle, not now.
You outpace the rest of the survivors soon enough. The terrible storm and the bloated devourer gods are left behind, until the one thing you can make out is the rising smoke. Even that soon falls underneath the horizon, but you do not let go of your song until all sense of terrible age and stolen power is gone into the distance. There are no signs of pursuit, no show of interest in the fleeing survivors from the titans. They appear to content themselves with gorging on the wreckage and the slain. How long will that satisfy them, you wonder. How long until they come for you again?
1 Act spent. 2 Acts remain.
***
You check your thoughts. You know nothing of these things. They may never trouble you again, or they may strike again the next morning. You hope for the former.
It is hours until anyone dares speak to you. Asgorat and Tama make a landing on the deck. You acknowledge them, and find Neassa and Annetta waiting near staring at you. Fear is evident on their faces, but they have enough wits about them to mask it with a kind of determination. You beckon all to approach.
'What... what were those things?' Annetta asks. 'Why weren't we warned of this? Why weren't we ready?'
Neassa hugs herself tightly and shakes her head. 'What could we have done? That was a slaughter. We did well to run.'
'Great one, are we to return home? What is your command?' Asgorat asks. Despite the dragon's steady voice, she shelters her rider in the shadow of her wings like one might cradle a child. Tama looks pale.
The other dragons circle overhead, listening in. The crews of other ships watch intently though they have little hope of hearing what is being said. You steel yourself.
'We did not expect this, but it changes nothing,' you say, and no-one dares interrupt. You do wonder... Mirk, the secret-god, knew to steer away before the attack begun. The compass told you he had a grand secret... was it this? If so, why not warn anyone? 'There were always going to be dangers, opposition. Did we set sail only to turn back at the first set-back? Are we so timid? What of the fire of this generation, of the spark they claim we possess? Will you give in so easily? Others have run for the mainland. I expect they will beg for aid, and the full force of the Old World will return with them to see these monsters dead. In the meantime - we shall continue on. We shall found our colony and fulfill our dreams. If these abominations return to trouble us... we will be ready. That is all.'
Silence - then nods, resigned acceptance. There are no cheers, but they look determined. They are like you. This land is the only future they have.
'What of our losses? How are the ships?'
Annetta regains her composure with a deep breath. 'Minor damage. We avoided the worst of it. Many wounded, but only a few seriously so. They may yet live, or they may not, but so it is,' she says. 'Some supplies were cast overboard on the way. We will need to provision ourselves again. The land looks bountiful, good fortune.'
It does at that. The coastline is rocky, but the land beyond rich in jungle and flying birds. Once you find a harbor, you can get started to gathering up the supplies you need. That is if you do not wish to sail further, where the land is said to become plains and grassland.
'Brother Kudigas bears a torn wing. Sister Bellisso a broken tail, and her rider has been hurt. They will heal, and persevere. We are yours, great one.'
Others provide their reports. Your swift action and song appears to have carried you away from the chaos before any true damage could occur. You do not regret spending your power so. It has saved many lives and protected your ships. Others will not have been so lucky. Your divine power has carried you far down the coast already, but it is only now that you begin to survey the coast for natural harbors. The fleet continues at an easier pace, the lookouts and dragons keeping their eyes sharp for suitable land. The sooner you are ashore and setting up your colony, the better. It may be that you will have to run again, but you hope to find the perfect place for a new colony at once.
***
Each hex corresponds roughly to 5 kilometres. The length of the coast depicted is around 100 kilometres.
Exploration DC 10 [+12 (Iktoka, Dreamer)]: 11+12=23, Success with 3 Additional Insights
With Iktoka, Asgorat's brood and the capable crew of the Dreamer, your scouting proceeds rapidly. You don't allow anyone to wander too far on their own, but your combined efforts are enough to map out a considerable stretch of coast and ascertain the lay of the land deeper into the continent. You could go on further, but this area does promise suitable locations for the colony. Further, Iktoka and the dragons report a number of interesting sights. More no doubt lay in the depths of the jungle, but these they were able to locate without venturing within.
The first provides the answer to where Mirk, the young God of Secrets, vanished to. The dragons report that Mirk's Obscura lies at anchor at the end of a narrow bay, with the god and a party of mortals evidently on shore already. There were others, too, but the dragons could not make out who they were before they scattered into the jungle. There's some kind of monument rising from the jungle there, a crude statue of sorts They did not linger there for too long as not to antagonize the godling, but the fleet could corner Mirk there before he got away if you so wanted. The bay provides anchorage and an easy, sheltered landing site for boats, though it is mainly water-logged jungle fed by a fat, sluggish river - a possible site for a colony, though with some work.
Another landing is possible some distance down the coast. It is an ideal place to stop - a sheltered cove protected on both sides by towering cliffs, with a sandy beach and sparser jungle around. Iktoka warns of rock-strewn reefs on the approach, but they should be easy to avoid with his guidance. The river runs quite far away here, though, so there is no ready source of fresh water for the mortals. The jungle becomes rather impenetrable deeper inland as well.
A third suitable landing site is further down the coast. A number of curiosities are spotted in the area. Iktoka discovers a vast whirpool surrounded by reefs off the coast by a barren island. The touch of the divine is clear upon it. You find yourself curious for what lies within, and Iktoka volunteers to explore the phenomenon once you have established yourself. On the coast is a strange shipwreck - the remains of a large, flat ship with many oars, crashed onto the cliffside. It is unlike any ship you've ever seen, though the passage of time and the damage suffered makes it difficult to make out the whole of it.
The landing site itself is a stretch of swamp around the mouth of a wide, brackish river. This wetland is bountiful with animal and plant life, as is the jungle further from the river. The swamp is perhaps not ideal for mortal habitation, but with work or divine power it could prove to be an excellent new home. The dragons report two sites of interest up the river. To the south is a pit down into the earth with circular steps running down the inside of it, evidently carved by divine hands. Further in, to the north, the scouts spot a totem of some kind in a jungle clearing. They say that there was a gathering of wild beasts around it when they passed, though they fled at the sight of the wyrms.
You weigh the options. None of them is perfect - this is a wet and overgrown kind of place, it seems - but they are there. The land is not very suitable for farming unless the jungle is cleared or the swamps dried out somehow, but the plants are practically bursting with exotic fruit and the animals come in many different shapes and forms. The sightings suggest there are mortals here too - if so, they have evidently found a way to live off the land more than well enough. And without being destroyed by the titans, of course. That is good to know.
Annetta and Neassa are very interested in the bounty of this region. The scion of the WTC suggests the sheltered cove for at least a temporary outpost, the natural philosopher seems most interested in the wetlands further south. Asgorat offers no opinion, while Tama wants you to meet with Mirk and then continue southwards. The compass points you towards the northern site - perhaps it's still tracking Mirk.
You could continue further south, perhaps only stopping to confront Mirk. There are said to be great plains of grassland there, and who knows what else beyond that. Your followers await your decision.
***
[] Establish a colony. You have run far enough. Time to stop, lay anchor and see to founding your new home.
-[] Establish a colony in the northern site. Mirk has laid anchor here and ventured some way inland. The long bay offers cover from the sea and perhaps detection as well, and the river a source of fresh water. You will no doubt have to confront Mirk if you sail up to him like this, whatever he's up to.
-[] Establish a colony in the sheltered cove. The sheltered cove has a vast stretch of sandy beach to aid in making it to shore, and steep cliffs as shelter around it. The jungle is fairly sparse here, though deeper inland it becomes thick and hard to navigate. The river is quite distant from here, making the mortals rely on you and rain for fresh water.
-[] Establish a colony in the southern site. The southern potential site is a natural harbor at the mouth of a wide river. The terrain is flooded jungle and wetland here, but with work it could become habitable enough. Natural life flourishes here.
[] Sail further south. You don't like the look of this land, and the more distance between you and the devourer gods, the better. You'll continue sailing south and see how the land changes.
-[] Stopping to confront Mirk. The God of Secrets knew the attack was coming, and appears to have some purpose here. You want answers, and he will give them to you.
-[] Not stopping. Mirk is none of your concern, and you cannot risk a confrontation now. You'll sail by and leave him be.
[] (Optional) Use an Act. You will draw upon your divine birthright and work miracles upon the world. Describe your Act and what you are trying to accomplish. You currently have 2/3 Acts.
Write-ins are also accepted.
