The various teams down in the cavern below the town of Thay take their positions and try to disarm a ticking time bomb on their hands. This is it- this is the fate that Rainer worked so hard to stall so that there could be hope. A chance that the world could have both outcomes: the town of Thay staying safe, and the world provided its abundance of magic so that things don't go haywire left and right. She's reset time over 2,000 times, waiting for the day that the Reclaimers would come and would put an end to all the madness going on in her beloved town. She hoped and prayed that everything she's done won't condemn her to a non-existence, as she looks down at the skin beneath her robes, her corporeal form blinking in and out of existence like a defunct light bulb that's seen the end of its lifespan.
What we have down here, is the final attempts of the Bureau of Balance to bring order to the darkness of chaos. Something deeper, more horrifying is beginning to occur outside the realm of the Prime Material plane, as all the clerics and paladins within the order begin to feel the power they were gifted start to wane. Something is going wrong with the Celestial plane, and even though we're all stuck in a bubble of time that repeats indefinitely, time moves forward outside at a screeching pace.
Whether or not the world is ready for the outcome of our heroes' efforts, that much is still to be determined. Some will eventually come to call this "The Darkest Day," others, "The Beginning of the End," but, to all of us down here beneath the surface of Thay, we know it to be "The Day the World Stood Still."
Deep down below, a team of adventurers attempt to talk down a dragon. Dave Strider shapes into the visage of a young dragon whelpling, attempting his best to talk down the ancient black dragon from destroying everything. While he succeeds in dragging the dragon away from the wellspring, opening up a spot for Minato, Jack, and Szass to defend the Wellspring of Magic, it's not out of persuasive effort- but rage. The dragon remains unconvinced of the genuine nature of Dave's efforts, and in anger, chases him down and swipes him from the sky. He lands, a gash of claws across his chest that would leave its scar forever (9).
Roxas and Natsuki quickly come to his aid as an arrow of platinum fire is dug into the ground, sanctifying the place they stand, but their friend remains in poor condition. The gashes left across his body mar the runes of restoration he's prepped on himself, making them unable to be used, but he has an ace up his sleeve. Dave calls back to the most delicious bottle of apple juice he's ever drunk, trying to call forth its holy magics to aid him in his time of need, but even then, the cold-pressed magic of honey-crisp deliciousness fail to reach him. These are dire straits; Roxas tries to plead with Bahamut to hear his plea, but his voice doesn't reach the god. None of their voices do.
Meanwhile, valiantly, Jack, Minato and Szass try their hardest to stop the Wellspring from being destroyed by either Casariel or the dragon. Their efforts create more obstacles as the field is beginning to be covered with illusions of refuse, detritus blocking the paths of the Reclaimers that attempt to sweep through this new minefield. Szass goes down, and it looks like he's close to the brink of death. They bring his body to the Wellspring and join the dragon team in an effort to take it down with ranged attacks.
Its fury is too righteous, they miss often, and left with no other option, Roxas, Dave, and Natsuki try to take it down in one last confrontation.
Casariel, standing to the far side of the cavern, glows with a dark energy as she tries to tame the monster at the other side of the cavern. This is what she's been waiting millennia for, she's ready to bring this world to its knees and make it pay for what it did to her home and her family. Blake and Phoenix try to talk her down, but it only provides a minor distraction for her as Rainer slings spells behind a Globe of Invulnerability. Adriel tries to convince her, tries to call back to a time when they were family... even if it was all a lie, there has to be something there, right? There has to be. He fumbles to take out the ticket from the show she took him to, and for a moment, there's a tiny shred of doubt within her. But she can't bear to deal with it. She doesn't want Adriel to have to see what she's about to do, and puts him into a magical slumber. His body slumps to the floor.
"You dare try to bring my nephew to pull at my heartstrings!?"
They can't reach the woman within her (10), but they knew it probably wouldn't. This is a setup- a distraction so that Sans can control the battlefield and create an advantage to separate her soul from this body with the Chance Lance, a gift bestowed upon them by Istus herself. While she doesn't notice his attempts, her focus too tight on Phoenix and the item he's wielding, she feels the sling of a silence spell attempting to reach her from the wellspring team. Her dark aura pulsates outward, and Sans is frozen in place, an unfortunate lucky accident for her, as he's held in place (3).
Made of magic himself, she has the capability to manipulate him. She is, after all, made of the Weave.
Sans is made to bend down to his knees in a supplicant position. Her wicked smile, hidden behind pristinely shaded lips of ruby red, is a haunting feature, and the last that Phoenix sees before he tosses the Chance Lance straight towards her (7). But the little magical skeleton isn't the only one with Misty Step- in fact, she Dimension doors out of the way as the lance hurls straight forward.
Straight into the Globe of Invulnerability that's kept Rainer safe.
Her eyes go wide.
A few moments before this, Spike and Mira had done their best to find a way to reach out to Rainer and stop her from simply using the relic. She knows that she can't keep doing this, and fears that she's not far from her own death- but maybe? Maybe it's worth it. If she dies to reset time once more, she can leave this to the Reclaimer's hands. Spike and Mira gain her confidence, as she smiles to them, trusting their good intention (18).
"It seems as if we're in a rough spot! But keep your faith, we can overcome this. We can do it, Mr. Janitor!"
Her face is still brightly shining, even in this darkest hour.
The Chance Lance hits her abjuration and shatters it. In the confusion, they ask her for the Lamp of Unwinding. She shakes her head.
"If I have to die to keep this world safe, I'd gladly give up my life."
She begins to unwind the lamp, turning it over as the sands of time start to trickle down, and then- in an attempt to stop the abuse of magic- Mira distracts her by attempting to defend her from the next barrage of attacks that Casariel slings her way. Spike telekinetically yoinks it out of her hands, but unfortunately (3).
The dragon team continues to take it down. They're fighting valiantly, despite looking severely injured. The spells that Jack and Minato are using to try to heal them are coming up short without the guidance of radiant intervention, and Roxas notices Natsuki about to be spit on through an acid breath. He dodges into the way with shield raised, the emblem of Bahamut deflecting what would've been her doom. The resultant repulsion of that attack spreads acid everywhere.
As it hits the top of the cavern, causing large chunks to begin crumbling. Spike tries to pull the lamp of unwinding back, but it's too late. Crushed under a swarm of acid and rock, it shatters as the time-space continuum begins to get wonky (10).
The relic is destroyed- and time finally marches forward.
Casariel's won. She can feel it. No longer trapped by Rainer, she charges her own lance of dark, vorpal energy and begins to take aim. The Chance Lance returns to its owner, and just before she can get the killing blow on her, Phoenix rams it straight into her chest. Blake roundhouse kicks it deeper into her.
Rocks in the cavern begin floating upward as a surge of light pours from the Wellspring of Magic. Sans, finally freed, goes to try and drink from the Wellspring himself, to keep his existence in check, but as magic begins to die, he's forced to crawl towards it until... he stops in place, inanimate (4).
You've killed her. Casariel. But in her dark design, she's manipulated the flow of the Wellspring to be tied to her very essence. A ritual so deep in dark magic that it should've been impossible to accomplish without hundreds of years of research and preparation. One last checkmate that Rainer couldn't overcome. With her soul dispersed and her body dead, hanging by the crux of Thay's clocktower, the minute hand juts deeply into her. Her contorted features still carry that harrowing smile. The light from the Wellspring dies out, as magic- all over the world... all over Faerun and across the planes of existence, gives one last sigh of breath, and fades out.
The dragon, no longer under Casariel's control, bursts through the floor of Thay.
It cannot be vanquished (8), as it soars into the sky, relishing in its newfound freedom. It doesn't destroy Thay, however. In its new lease on life, it leaves and flies past the horizon.
The cavern grows silent as light from the above begins to pour in.
Rainer looks towards the carnage, and for the first time in 6 years, presses her hands into her eyes and begins to cry.
OOC NOTE:
Well, everyone. It's safe to say that this was a mission failure. Magic has been destroyed in all of Faerun, which leaves our heroes with quite a difficult set of challenges ahead. What does this mean IC? Magic as we know it, will cease to function. That's a pretty big handicap, but we'll peel back the curtain a little bit to let you all know that the extent of its effects will most likely be limited to the next interlude. We'll discuss the deep rammifications of this mission in the upcoming log, and look forward to the final field mission. It'll involve heavy illusion magic- and your path actions will be restored for the length of it while we're dealing with the final relic.
Additionally, the gacha shop will still remain open one last time. The items you receive from it won't entirely be useful in the interlude, but as above, will work in the final relic mission.
Lastly, as promised- we've built the game out to work on either ends of the outcome to this mission. Rest assured, we'll continue fighting forward to the final confrontation with The Hunger, even if this mission didn't pan out as well as we'd hoped.
OVERALL RESULT
What we have down here, is the final attempts of the Bureau of Balance to bring order to the darkness of chaos. Something deeper, more horrifying is beginning to occur outside the realm of the Prime Material plane, as all the clerics and paladins within the order begin to feel the power they were gifted start to wane. Something is going wrong with the Celestial plane, and even though we're all stuck in a bubble of time that repeats indefinitely, time moves forward outside at a screeching pace.
Whether or not the world is ready for the outcome of our heroes' efforts, that much is still to be determined. Some will eventually come to call this "The Darkest Day," others, "The Beginning of the End," but, to all of us down here beneath the surface of Thay, we know it to be "The Day the World Stood Still."
Deep down below, a team of adventurers attempt to talk down a dragon. Dave Strider shapes into the visage of a young dragon whelpling, attempting his best to talk down the ancient black dragon from destroying everything. While he succeeds in dragging the dragon away from the wellspring, opening up a spot for Minato, Jack, and Szass to defend the Wellspring of Magic, it's not out of persuasive effort- but rage. The dragon remains unconvinced of the genuine nature of Dave's efforts, and in anger, chases him down and swipes him from the sky. He lands, a gash of claws across his chest that would leave its scar forever (9).
Roxas and Natsuki quickly come to his aid as an arrow of platinum fire is dug into the ground, sanctifying the place they stand, but their friend remains in poor condition. The gashes left across his body mar the runes of restoration he's prepped on himself, making them unable to be used, but he has an ace up his sleeve. Dave calls back to the most delicious bottle of apple juice he's ever drunk, trying to call forth its holy magics to aid him in his time of need, but even then, the cold-pressed magic of honey-crisp deliciousness fail to reach him. These are dire straits; Roxas tries to plead with Bahamut to hear his plea, but his voice doesn't reach the god. None of their voices do.
Meanwhile, valiantly, Jack, Minato and Szass try their hardest to stop the Wellspring from being destroyed by either Casariel or the dragon. Their efforts create more obstacles as the field is beginning to be covered with illusions of refuse, detritus blocking the paths of the Reclaimers that attempt to sweep through this new minefield. Szass goes down, and it looks like he's close to the brink of death. They bring his body to the Wellspring and join the dragon team in an effort to take it down with ranged attacks.
Its fury is too righteous, they miss often, and left with no other option, Roxas, Dave, and Natsuki try to take it down in one last confrontation.
Casariel, standing to the far side of the cavern, glows with a dark energy as she tries to tame the monster at the other side of the cavern. This is what she's been waiting millennia for, she's ready to bring this world to its knees and make it pay for what it did to her home and her family. Blake and Phoenix try to talk her down, but it only provides a minor distraction for her as Rainer slings spells behind a Globe of Invulnerability. Adriel tries to convince her, tries to call back to a time when they were family... even if it was all a lie, there has to be something there, right? There has to be. He fumbles to take out the ticket from the show she took him to, and for a moment, there's a tiny shred of doubt within her. But she can't bear to deal with it. She doesn't want Adriel to have to see what she's about to do, and puts him into a magical slumber. His body slumps to the floor.
"You dare try to bring my nephew to pull at my heartstrings!?"
They can't reach the woman within her (10), but they knew it probably wouldn't. This is a setup- a distraction so that Sans can control the battlefield and create an advantage to separate her soul from this body with the Chance Lance, a gift bestowed upon them by Istus herself. While she doesn't notice his attempts, her focus too tight on Phoenix and the item he's wielding, she feels the sling of a silence spell attempting to reach her from the wellspring team. Her dark aura pulsates outward, and Sans is frozen in place, an unfortunate lucky accident for her, as he's held in place (3).
Made of magic himself, she has the capability to manipulate him. She is, after all, made of the Weave.
Sans is made to bend down to his knees in a supplicant position. Her wicked smile, hidden behind pristinely shaded lips of ruby red, is a haunting feature, and the last that Phoenix sees before he tosses the Chance Lance straight towards her (7). But the little magical skeleton isn't the only one with Misty Step- in fact, she Dimension doors out of the way as the lance hurls straight forward.
Straight into the Globe of Invulnerability that's kept Rainer safe.
Her eyes go wide.
A few moments before this, Spike and Mira had done their best to find a way to reach out to Rainer and stop her from simply using the relic. She knows that she can't keep doing this, and fears that she's not far from her own death- but maybe? Maybe it's worth it. If she dies to reset time once more, she can leave this to the Reclaimer's hands. Spike and Mira gain her confidence, as she smiles to them, trusting their good intention (18).
"It seems as if we're in a rough spot! But keep your faith, we can overcome this. We can do it, Mr. Janitor!"
Her face is still brightly shining, even in this darkest hour.
The Chance Lance hits her abjuration and shatters it. In the confusion, they ask her for the Lamp of Unwinding. She shakes her head.
"If I have to die to keep this world safe, I'd gladly give up my life."
She begins to unwind the lamp, turning it over as the sands of time start to trickle down, and then- in an attempt to stop the abuse of magic- Mira distracts her by attempting to defend her from the next barrage of attacks that Casariel slings her way. Spike telekinetically yoinks it out of her hands, but unfortunately (3).
The dragon team continues to take it down. They're fighting valiantly, despite looking severely injured. The spells that Jack and Minato are using to try to heal them are coming up short without the guidance of radiant intervention, and Roxas notices Natsuki about to be spit on through an acid breath. He dodges into the way with shield raised, the emblem of Bahamut deflecting what would've been her doom. The resultant repulsion of that attack spreads acid everywhere.
As it hits the top of the cavern, causing large chunks to begin crumbling. Spike tries to pull the lamp of unwinding back, but it's too late. Crushed under a swarm of acid and rock, it shatters as the time-space continuum begins to get wonky (10).
The relic is destroyed- and time finally marches forward.
Casariel's won. She can feel it. No longer trapped by Rainer, she charges her own lance of dark, vorpal energy and begins to take aim. The Chance Lance returns to its owner, and just before she can get the killing blow on her, Phoenix rams it straight into her chest. Blake roundhouse kicks it deeper into her.
Rocks in the cavern begin floating upward as a surge of light pours from the Wellspring of Magic. Sans, finally freed, goes to try and drink from the Wellspring himself, to keep his existence in check, but as magic begins to die, he's forced to crawl towards it until... he stops in place, inanimate (4).
You've killed her. Casariel. But in her dark design, she's manipulated the flow of the Wellspring to be tied to her very essence. A ritual so deep in dark magic that it should've been impossible to accomplish without hundreds of years of research and preparation. One last checkmate that Rainer couldn't overcome. With her soul dispersed and her body dead, hanging by the crux of Thay's clocktower, the minute hand juts deeply into her. Her contorted features still carry that harrowing smile. The light from the Wellspring dies out, as magic- all over the world... all over Faerun and across the planes of existence, gives one last sigh of breath, and fades out.
The dragon, no longer under Casariel's control, bursts through the floor of Thay.
It cannot be vanquished (8), as it soars into the sky, relishing in its newfound freedom. It doesn't destroy Thay, however. In its new lease on life, it leaves and flies past the horizon.
The cavern grows silent as light from the above begins to pour in.
Rainer looks towards the carnage, and for the first time in 6 years, presses her hands into her eyes and begins to cry.