- Writing Levels
- Adaptable
- Genres
- I'm wary of magic with lots of rules.
Lady Ironblood, high alchemist of Viridos, is sent by the Jade Prophet to investigate a Monolith uncovered in the forest. This artifact has killed thirteen innocents and corrupted the ecosystem around it. She requisitions a naval ship and enlists the help of various healers and forest guardians. They set sail into the Prosperos Sea and retrieve the Monolith after a perilous voyage.
Meanwhile, Ash of the Heartwood, an undertaker devoted to the forest, recovers the corpses of the thirteen innocents slain by the Monolith. He realizes they are in a state of half-life, their souls corrupted by a terrifying darkness. After laying them to rest, Ash makes haste to Edelon to share his findings with the Jade Prophet.
Meanwhile, Ash of the Heartwood, an undertaker devoted to the forest, recovers the corpses of the thirteen innocents slain by the Monolith. He realizes they are in a state of half-life, their souls corrupted by a terrifying darkness. After laying them to rest, Ash makes haste to Edelon to share his findings with the Jade Prophet.
With the Monolith taken aboard the ship, the followers of Lady Ironblood have only just set sail when they are ambushed by pirates. Their defense is hindered by sabotage and treachery from within. It seems the pirates have been planning this for a long time. To spare further bloodshed, Lady Ironblood surrenders the Monolith to the pirate captain. But little do the pirates know that Ironblood has opened her soul to the dark spirit of the Monolith and taken its power into herself.
Back in Viridos, Ash shares his findings with the Jade Prophet and suffers a vision of Lady Ironblood's actions. He alone knows what she has done. But at that moment tragedy strikes. The Avian city, a floating settlement high above the forest canopy, begins to lose altitude and break apart. It is the doing of Kaustir. Someone has paid a thief to steal the geomantic stone that keeps the city aloft, and now it is falling. The only hope lies with the Jade Prophet Kairos... and perhaps with Aerie, an Avian outcast who knows more about the city than she has let on.
Back in Viridos, Ash shares his findings with the Jade Prophet and suffers a vision of Lady Ironblood's actions. He alone knows what she has done. But at that moment tragedy strikes. The Avian city, a floating settlement high above the forest canopy, begins to lose altitude and break apart. It is the doing of Kaustir. Someone has paid a thief to steal the geomantic stone that keeps the city aloft, and now it is falling. The only hope lies with the Jade Prophet Kairos... and perhaps with Aerie, an Avian outcast who knows more about the city than she has let on.
The government are left reeling when they discover that the Jade Prophet has vanished. While the elders argue on how to deal with the Aviary crisis, an old general, Tattersal, returns to make his bid for leadership. He puts his plans in motion, while below the city Ironblood and the undertaker Ash venture into a prison to find a dangerous creature who can possibly remove the Monolith Curse.
Elsewhere, two avians make separate plans to save the Aviary. The noble's son Carus seeks the thief who removed the city's navigation stone, but is murdered when his investigation leads to a network of deadly Kaustiran agents. And in the aviary itself, the Valkyrie Faina gathers allies to assist Aerie, an inventor's daughter who carries temporary devices that will keep the city afloat. Together they divert the falling Aviary from collision with Hosia, and stabilize its trajectory over the northern forest.
Elsewhere, two avians make separate plans to save the Aviary. The noble's son Carus seeks the thief who removed the city's navigation stone, but is murdered when his investigation leads to a network of deadly Kaustiran agents. And in the aviary itself, the Valkyrie Faina gathers allies to assist Aerie, an inventor's daughter who carries temporary devices that will keep the city afloat. Together they divert the falling Aviary from collision with Hosia, and stabilize its trajectory over the northern forest.
[Summaries above written by @Asmodeus ]
Lady Ironblood is put on trial for entering the Shartan, Viridos' holy prison, without due process. She does so to acquire the services of Amaltas, a dark unicorn who was once tasked with purifying the poisoned jungles. Before the trial, deals are struck between parties, and a disturbance allows Amaltas to escape.
Meanwhile, a smuggling ring in Hosia is established so that the merchants may continue acquiring their livelihood now that Tattersal has closed the ports.
Meanwhile, a smuggling ring in Hosia is established so that the merchants may continue acquiring their livelihood now that Tattersal has closed the ports.
Amaltas, freed from his bonds, begins to gather the horses and horse-kin of the land in attacks against the merchants. In southern Viridos he finds a parasite attached to the body of Shardis’ deceased father, and he plans to use its power.
Naya and Ash seek out more information in secret after the mysterious events of Ironblood’s trial. They find the librarian Chytrhea, who reveals that a symbol they found is the mark of Moirgut, the aux-eater. However, before they can discuss more, the group is attacked by a Corrupted Kindly one. They flee, and are saved by Ironblood, who had used the powers of the Grievous to break out of prison.
Tamaa and Nassad seek aid from Malachi and Ayanne to sneak past the border and be escorted through Viridos for a business deal. On the way they are attacked by Amaltas, and Tamaa is slain. The horse lord plans to use the remaining three to test out the powers of the parasite, but they manage to escape in time and flee, chased by the wounded Amaltas.
Medwick and his group are forced to stop in Hosia on their way south and are trapped by Teadoir. They use a deed for Dorgard steel in their possession to trade for their lives. They continue south and find Libras in the waters of the Prosperous, which concludes their quest. While they sleep, Libras, the fabled Allsource, combines Aerie and Caoimhe into a single being.
In exchange for getting to use her secret basement for a smuggler’s meeting, Zovalias shows Shekar a prism door which acts as a portal to Riven. Various merchants from Hosia gather in secret to plot their smuggling, but are interrupted briefly by a representative from Teadoir. Belphebe hands over maps of the Naval blockade stolen for her by the thief Chelena, and Shekar questions Zovalias’ motives. Teadoir uses the deed for Dorgard steel he received from Medwick to bribe Tattersal into allowing the smugglers’ ships past the blockade. The first smuggler’s ship departs the harbor.
Naya and Ash seek out more information in secret after the mysterious events of Ironblood’s trial. They find the librarian Chytrhea, who reveals that a symbol they found is the mark of Moirgut, the aux-eater. However, before they can discuss more, the group is attacked by a Corrupted Kindly one. They flee, and are saved by Ironblood, who had used the powers of the Grievous to break out of prison.
Tamaa and Nassad seek aid from Malachi and Ayanne to sneak past the border and be escorted through Viridos for a business deal. On the way they are attacked by Amaltas, and Tamaa is slain. The horse lord plans to use the remaining three to test out the powers of the parasite, but they manage to escape in time and flee, chased by the wounded Amaltas.
Medwick and his group are forced to stop in Hosia on their way south and are trapped by Teadoir. They use a deed for Dorgard steel in their possession to trade for their lives. They continue south and find Libras in the waters of the Prosperous, which concludes their quest. While they sleep, Libras, the fabled Allsource, combines Aerie and Caoimhe into a single being.
In exchange for getting to use her secret basement for a smuggler’s meeting, Zovalias shows Shekar a prism door which acts as a portal to Riven. Various merchants from Hosia gather in secret to plot their smuggling, but are interrupted briefly by a representative from Teadoir. Belphebe hands over maps of the Naval blockade stolen for her by the thief Chelena, and Shekar questions Zovalias’ motives. Teadoir uses the deed for Dorgard steel he received from Medwick to bribe Tattersal into allowing the smugglers’ ships past the blockade. The first smuggler’s ship departs the harbor.
Tattersal fights a multi-front war. At home, he has to deal with the growing corruption of the Cinnabar Clad, who are poisoning the forest again under the direction of the aux-eaters, an ancient malefic form apparently from the Deadlands, who have been keeping the Jade Prophet from directing Viridos. Hosia grows frustrated with attacks on their merchants, and begin to take matters into their own hands, smuggling and growing more and more distant from the inland theocracy. Across the Sea, Tattersal senses that the Mad Nocturne from the west is about to make his move. He sends Mikael, a forest guide, to retrieve an ancient artifact from the Shartan, that he placed there many decades ago for safe keeping ...
Tattersal is a wily fighter. Drawing on old favours and old friends, he dips into many separate plans. Unfortunately, the questors in the labyrinth prison will succumb to its wiles, and the clueless kin he sent to the Riven tree are lost. When negotiations with the Old Nocturne fail, Tattersal turns to ancient rites not seen since the Cataclysm - he sings to the giants slumbering in the trees and they awaken, moving forward to completely block out the Viridos coastline, but not before the entire city of Hosia packs up and moves onto ships, a fruition of a plan held by K'Larr and Zolvalias. Viridos slips into silence, and turns inward.
All hope is not quite lost, as a band of herbologists, fungolists, and dendrologists make their way to the top of the Riven tree. Up there a microcosmic community of spider-kin dwell, who record the motions of stars as dew on their webs that carpet the canopy. There, stories of the moirgut dwell, creatures from the Deadlands that awaken in response to maturing races and magic.
Perhaps a virus left behind by a dying God, Modakra and Vydus discover that the moirgut have a rich, shared history with the inhabitants of Sunne, a connection with their aux that they would gladly share if given the chance. But by speaking choice divine words, the moirgut are precipitated, beyond their control, into killable forms.
As they battle the infection on the Riven tree, an old spider-soothsayer sends them into dreamtime, where they find Kairos drowning in a tar pit in the Deadlands.
Perhaps a virus left behind by a dying God, Modakra and Vydus discover that the moirgut have a rich, shared history with the inhabitants of Sunne, a connection with their aux that they would gladly share if given the chance. But by speaking choice divine words, the moirgut are precipitated, beyond their control, into killable forms.
As they battle the infection on the Riven tree, an old spider-soothsayer sends them into dreamtime, where they find Kairos drowning in a tar pit in the Deadlands.
Last edited: