Dice Roll said:
Demand Answers = 71 (SUCCESS)
[X] Walk the path to the forest.
Choose a path.
That's what the mist being had told you to do. You haven't the faintest idea why you need to choose a path or why it would want you to, but that's what the thing wants. But... what is it? Who
are they? It spoke to you and it is clearly intelligent, so it must have a name for itself. Even if this is a dream your mind will come up with a name for this being if you were to press for one, so you give it a shot.
"Who are you?"
Silence.
"Hey, did you hear me?!" You call out to the empty abyss of space. "I said, who are you?!"
Once more you are greeted with silence. You sighed to yourself in frustration. You knew this would happen, you knew you would be ignored by the being that brought you here. You suppose you should-
"Orphiel..."
Wait, what?
"Thou may known me by the name of Orphiel..."
The unseen being spoke. "Does thou find this acceptable...?"
Numbly you nod your head. At least now you know what to call this thing.
"Then proceed on thy chosen path, Medea Parth..."
You suppose you should do as it says and take a path. You look to each of the floating islands, trying to decide on which to take. First you glance over to the massive structure. Such a massive place you suspect it would be the "Path of the Mystic" that Orphiel listed off moments ago, but then that would make the forest the "Path of Knowledge". Why would a forest be Knowledge? So if the forest isn't Knowledge, then this structure must be it. As you looked to the structure you felt no desire of taking this path.
"If I wanted to learn I'd have stayed home and studied for exams..." You said sarcastically to yourself. ...You wonder if Orphiel would be up for a conversation.
"Thou shouldn't waste thy time on idle speech..."
Okay, answers that question. ...Wait did they just read your mind? And replied with sarcasm? Questions for later.
You immediately ruled out the battlefield, obviously the Path of Strength. Looking in that direction, that clearly is no place for a 20-something college student from Washington. You could go, but you get the feeling you would take a bullet to the skull and you would prefer all those bits stay intact even if this is a dream!
So that just left the forest, the Path of the Mystic. Seems appropriate given your current situation in the real world. You watched the forest carefully, watching as the wisps danced through the misty treeline, wondering what might just lurk inside those dark misty woods. Steeling yourself, you took a breath and began walking towards the floating forest.
You step upon the floating bridge of sapphire stones, worried that they too will break away like the reflective bridge. To your relief they don't and you began walking with a little more confidence. It doesn't take you long to cross the entirety of the bridge, and soon your feet were back once again on the dirt ground of a forest. You look back and find that the moment you step foot off the bridge that it has disappeared. In its place was now the void of space between the island and the platform you were originally on.
"No going back then..." You sighed. "Guess I have to keep going."
You look back to the forest, seeing the entrance where the trees parted, forming a path for you to follow. You peered into those dark misty woods, standing there wondering, fearing, doubting... Even though the bobbing wisps illuminated the path forward like street lamps for an old cobblestone road, it didn't help ease your unease of the unknown before you. Especially after all that's happened to you in the forest you and your friends found yourselves in.
You inhaled and exhaled, mustering your courage as you began stepping forward towards the woods. As you step forward, slowly fading into existence was a staircase and from it you heard the sound of a child's sobbing. You stopped walking and just stood there, facing the staircase that had just appeared. It was ghostly in appearance, somewhat transparent as if made up of fog. Cautiously you approached the stairs, the child's sobs growing louder as you approached, and slowly you went around the stairs. searching for the source of the sobbing.
And under the stairs you spot the source: A child. A young girl with black hair and pale skin who couldn't be older than six or seven curled up into a ball on the floor under the stairs, crying. She wore a black dress which was stained with mud and only had a single shoe on. As you look closely you can see small cuts and bruises on the bare skin of her limbs.
"A girl...?"
"Rebecca Lundqvist..."
You jump a bit at Orphiel suddenly speaking, their voice sounding like they were right next to you.
"Orphiel? What is this?" You ask, looking around for the unseen being.
"A vision of the past..."
They said. "This is Rebecca Lundqvist... Born January 5th, 1989... This is her at the age of six..."
"But why show me this?" You motioned to the spectral image of the crying child. "What does that have to do with what is happening here?"
"Like thou and thy friends, she entered the forest and sought the House of Maxwell..."
Orphiel replied. "Through these visions, thou will come to understand..."
"So the reason she is like this is because she went into the forest and found that house?"
Poor kid... She didn't know what she was getting into... Shit, none of your friends, let alone yourself, knew what you were getting into when you all went to that house...
"Not yet... That event is later in her future..."
"Then... why is she like this?"
....
"Orphiel?"
You looked around when you were greeted with silence to your last question. You sigh, wishing that they were at least visible when they talk to you. Frustrated you turned your attention back to the scene in front of you. Even though you know this happened a long time ago you can't help but feel bad for the girl, wanting to know why she cried and wanting to comfort her.
But then something happened...
Slowly fading into the scene, a being like Orphiel appeared. It looked just like Orphiel but its aura glowed a soft pink color. The being approached the crying child and knelt down, placing a "hand" on her shoulder. Immediately the young girl ceased her sobs and slowly looked up towards the mysterious being, eyes wide with fear and wonder at this being before her.
"Cry not, child..."
It spoke with a gentle feminine voice. "I am here for you..."
"Are you going to hurt me...?"
The girl said, her voice cracking a bit, but the pink glowing mist creature shook its "head".
"I am not here to bring harm onto thee, Rebecca Lundqvist..."
It said, moving its hand to the child's head and petting them. "I've come to give thee a gift..."
And slowly the being raised its other "hand" and in it a ball of blue flame appeared. The flame leapt from the being's "hand" and landed onto the girl, spreading across her entire body. The girl yelped in surprise but no harm came to her, and to both your and her surprise her cuts and bruises healed as the fire spread across her body, even cleaning her dirty clothes to a more tidy state.
"There are forces in thy world and beyond thy world,"
It explained as it stood up and watched its flame covered the child. "Great forces that thy kind calls "magic", and now these forces will serve thy will... My gift to thee..."
And with that the being disappeared in a flash of rainbow light and the moment it had vanished the flame had snuffed out, leaving a confused child under the stairs looking on where the being had been in wonder. Slowly the scene disappeared from view, leaving only the patch of forest that it was playing out on. You get the feeling this won't be the last time you see something like this.
You turn your attention back to the path into the forest proper and begin your trek into these mystic woods, the wisps lighting your way. Although the forest was dark the soft glowing lights of the wisps did bring you some small comfort, even as they disappeared from behind you with every step, sending the path you just walked into darkness.
"Be warned, Medea Parth..."
Orphiel spoke up. "Even here you are not safe..."
"Wait, what do you mean not safe?" You ask looking up towards the sky, looking for an answer.
"This is a realm between the Waking and the Dreaming... Things find their way into here...
Hungry things... Be on thy guard..."
"Can't you help me?"
"I can not..."
It said. "This is a journey thou must make on thy own..."
Well... that was just perfect.
But you steel yourself for what is to come. Considering all you've went through you felt as though you could get through this just fine.
"Retrieve the artifact at the end of thy path, Medea Parth..."
Orphiel instructed. "Once it is in thy possession the artifacts of Knowledge and Strength will open the door for thee..."
Right... Complete the fetch quest. At least it isn't asking you to collect twenty bear asses or anything... You press onward through the forest until you come across a fork in the road. To your left you see your path go through a dark cave, and to your right you see the path go through a swamp.
"Which way do I go?" You ask aloud, but you are met with silence. You sigh, figuring you weren't going to get any help on this. "Guess it is time to choose..."
[ ] Take the path through the swamp.
[ ] Take the path through the cave.
