Still attempting to amass enough money for the voyage to Magran’s Teeth, they set sail for the mysterious island of Motare o Kōzi. The Huana prince had apparently sent an expedition there looking for information about Ukaizo – the fabled lost home island of the Huana. That expedition had vanished, along with several others. And the only message back had been bloody rags – the remainder of a Huana garment.
Upon setting foot on the beach, they were immediately accosted by Huana warriors in strange war-paint. These were the insular Wahaki – a reclusive, hostile tribe who refused most contact with outsiders. They warned Grim to leave the island, saying the jungle here had “grown strange and hungry”. They appeared to already know the Prince had sent them, and named him a greedy fool for not heeding their warning. They attempted to intimidate Grim into turning around – but its a rare breed who can turn the intimidation game around on Grim. In the end they simply declared, “then the jungle can take you. As She will”.
The jungle grew darker and more oppressive as they penetrated deeper, and before long they came upon the ruins of an ancient settlement. Sapphire claimed it to be thousands of years old – back as far as Engwithian times.
They had not explored far before they heard desperate cries for help! Rushing to the scene they found a Valian woman wrapped in vines being pulled into an eerie looking tree. Grim and Blur grabbed onto her trying to pull her out, but the grip was too tight.
Star… took a different approach – *embracing* the tree and communing with it. It thrashed angrily, then turned green went still – as tarry muck drained out of it. The woman told them she was named Baltia, and had been a member of a Valian Expedition sent to follow the Huana. Apparently they too wanted to know how to find Ukaizo. But they had lost the Huana in the flooded jungle, and then been attacked by trees and beasts until she was all that was left. They sent her back to the Defiant to recover.
Not long after she left, another form emerged from the tree. A Dryad tree spirit! She seemed dazed and uncertain, as if just waking up from a dream. She said she and her sisters had been trapped in the Lady’s Nightmare. She did not even know how long it had been, but they had long ago shifted from protecting the jungle to actively preying on intruders. If they could free any of her sisters, they would help to confront the Lady. But she could not promise that anything beyond her own Tree would not be hostile in the meantime…
They met many corrupted beasts as they explored the area. From great black tigers oozing with dark ichor.
To huge mounds of animated rotting vegetation shambling towards them,
They even found the ruins of an old temple, with what appeared to be a scrambled nautical map etched on gold rings. Unfortunately several of the rings were missing, and they could not decode the remainder.
They rescued one more Dryad, but were forced to slay a third who could not be turned from her madness.
Deep in the heart of the jungle they saw a massive tree that did *not* look right… With odd forms barely visible in the mist around it.
As they approached they heard mocking laughter, and a tall, lanky form strode towards them.
She ranted – claiming that their presence was defiling her sanctuary. They would be slaughtered as with all “invaders”. And their flesh would feed the vibrant forest – keeping it healthy and beautiful. Looking around, Grim had a bit of trouble processing this assessment of the surroundings.
The Dryads they had rescued appeared and urged “Mother” to listen, and she stared at them in confusion. Not quite understanding their changed forms. Then Star slowly stepped forward, and looked into the “Lady’s” face. She held her gaze, and then asked a simple question.
“Do you still hear the calls of the birds, my Lady?”.
And the thing…stopped. It stared at her. It looked around. It looked down at the rotten muck in which it stood. “But it is beautful! My jungle…” And Star spoke kindly but firmly. “It has corrupted your vision, look with your own eyes”. The Lady visibly fought her own instincts – wanting to strike Star down but also wanting to listen. Behind it, the mighty tree flailed – desperate to maintain its hold.
In a moment of clarity the Lady looked at Star with clear eyes, and uttered the simple phrase, “Help us”.
And so she did. Using all she was and all she knew to drive the corruption from the Lady’s tree.
And with it, healing the Lady herself.
And then Star collapsed, completely drained and spent. The Lady thanked them as best she could – with knowledge. She told them that this place had once been a sanctuary, thousands of years ago. But it in Great Cataclysm when the Goddess Ondra struck down ancient Ukaizo, her jungle had been drained of its life force. In her desperation to save it, she had unwittingly used Necromancy – draining all life from the surrounding island to feed her jungle. And in so doing she had corrupted everything. She allowed them to pick through the remnants of victims past, and in the desolate heap they saw a shimmer of gold. The missing rings from the temple!
They returned to the temple and set the rings in their places. After that it did not take long for Sapphire to decipher the code and unlock the map. A nautical chart, showing the way to fabled Ukaizo! Sort of. It relied upon astronomical references that were thousands of years out of date. So it would take some research to determine an actual location. But they were certain the Prince would be pleased with the finding. They took a careful rubbing of the chart, and Sapphire copied a sketch into her own logbook. Then they removed the rings. No sense leaving such apparently prized information out in the clear – particularly now that the jungle would no longer prevent its access.
As they set sail to return to Neketaka, they could see an RDC galleon following on their tail. Grim suspected this was *not* a coincidence. And neither would it be a friendly interception. Fortunately his crew had learned a lot since their maiden voyage, and the new Defiant was much faster than had been their initial craft. They lost their pursuer in the reefs encircling Motare o Kōzi and vanished into the seas.
The Prince, as predicted, was overjoyed with their discovery – and paid handsomely for the rubbing. Meanwhile a number of messages were waiting for them with offers of work and requests for information. As they reviewed them all, one caught Sapphire’s eye. The VTC wanted to make use of Star’s special affinity with Adra pillars to assist with an experiment. They were to inquire at the Guild of Animancy, and the VTC would pay well for what seemed to be a simple task.
Atop the Animancy guild the Valian researchers had a pristine column of Adra crystal hooked up to a number of strange devices. Sapphire questioned several of the researchers about their experiments and findings.
Among them was an Pale Elf – a race native of the polar regions – an odd sort to encounter here. And dressed as a Valian researcher rather than in her native attire. Her name was Ydwin, and she had apparently dedicated her life to the science of Animancy, souls, and metaphysics – in direct contradiction with the more mystical and religious leanings of her kin. When she learned why they were here, and that Star was a Watcher capable of directly interacting with souls and Adra, she was fascinated. She begged to be allowed to accompany them as an observer. Grim shrugged. At this point, what was one more mouth to feed.
The head researcher was a woman named Flaune, who excitedly explained that they had been experimenting with using Adra pillars for transportation – using the connection to the void to transport from one pillar to another. But they had not yet been able to properly focus on a destination. They believed that Star – with her special affinity for such things – would be able to make the connection where they could not. And they had located a small column in a field not far away as a test location.
Unfortunately when they initiated the connection, something unexpected happened. And instead of appearing in the field as planned they were pulled somewhere else…
Someplace with endless featureless plains of snow and ice, with a path marked by ancient markers. They had no idea where they were.
Where-ever it was, they were not alone. Screaming blights – spirits of frost, air, and lightning attacked from the mists.
And the path appeared dotted with the ashy remnants of souls frozen in terror…
Soon they came upon a reason… The ruins of an ancient temple. And inside a huge figure holding a hellish lantern, reaping souls from the frozen figures. He turned his attention to them and summoned blights to his aid….
But Sapphire was well equipped for this fight, and soon the massive figure faded into oblivion.
At which point the true nature of their location became apparent, as the Beast of Winter – Rymrgand himself – took form above them.
“AH. BERATH’S PET STRAYS FAR FROM ITS HOME. DOES IT SEEK ANNIHILATION ALREADY?“
“I do not think Berath would look kindly upon you interfering with her affairs.”, answered Grim.
“I HAVE NO FEAR OF THE PALLID ONE, MORTAL. BUT YOU MAY YET SERVE A PURPOSE. I WILL ALLOW YOU TO LIVE TO SEE EOTHAS’ GLORIOUS ARMAGEDDON.
AND TELL THE IGNORANT SAGES WHO SENT YOU THAT THE SPACE BETWEEN IS *MY* DOMAIN. I HAVE *NOTICED* THEM. AND IT WOULD BEHOOVE THEM *NOT* TO BE NOTICED AGAIN.”
And with that, they were dismissed. Back to the Animancer’s Guild. They described their experiences, and passed on Rymrgand’s warning. But Grim suspected it would not stop them. He knew the type. He took note not to get involved in any more of their experiments.
Author’s Notes:
I have to say I think literally hugging the evil out of a corrupted tree has to be the single most “Star” thing I’ve ever seen happen in a game. Also note that without Star present the whole episode would have been far more violent – as Grim didn’t have the class/stats/disposition to convince the Corrupted Queen that she wasn’t seeing clearly.
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