The Covert Clerical Commune to Koar

Icemule Trace 10 Ivastaen 5118 by Enestrie

Present: Selaesia, Brokkrsten, Eruheran, Zailon, Sothog, Dirvy, Enestrie, and Wintersylph.

Summary

The above- mentioned group met for a secret commune with Koar-seems there will be an attempt to make a trade secretly for a key to Daukhera’s tome, at the urging of Deputy Mayor Hibbitts (who is still in hiding); they were seeking guidance and answers from the mighty godking.

Shhh—her majesty does not know. (we hope)

The Prologue

Enestrie respectfully says, "Thank you all for your attendance in support of this communion with Lord Koar. As you know he is the god of Justice, Loyalty, and Law. We seek to gain his wisdom this eve regarding the sudden rule of Queen Daukhera Darkflorr after her release from an imprisonment done magically 1000 years ago."

Enestrie emphatically says, "It is clear from the slaughter of the townspeople and rampant innocent lives lost that she cannot be allowed to grow in power. Her magic is becoming stronger, and she seeks a dark ultimate power that will be hers should she be able to unlock her tome."

Enestrie continues, "We thank the group known as ICICLE, Chairwoman Dirvy, Zailon, Arshwikk, Maven Brokkrsten, Selaesia, Jalodg, and all of you for your attendance to ensure our safety and for record-keeping purposes tonight."

Enestrie says in a hopeful tone, "A small group of us will try to procur the very same key that Daukhera seeks to open the tome, for the secret to ending her reign is believed to be contained within. I will spare you the details of that undertaking, but we hope to gain insight here tonight."

Solemnly, Enestrie says, "We seek tonight guidance in obtaining the key so that we might put an end to her tyranny. It is possible that we could destroy the secrets within the tome. This would prevent her from using dark necromancy. This power potentially can enslave every being in Pinefar and Icemule, even beyond. I fear that things may come to a greater task: sending the Queen back into imprisonment or a much more final fate."

Enestrie says, "Patriarch Eruheran will perform our Commune with Koar this eve. Eruheran has served Koar for many years and possesses wisdom beyond his years. He is a staunch figure here in Icemule; caring greatly for the town and its citizens."

Enestrie fervently says, "I ask each of you to remember why we are here: It is for the innocent, for the greater good, for life, that we seek justice."

The Commune

Eruheran places the offerings of crowns and emeralds before the altar of Koar.

Holding a golvern drake idol by its black granite base, Eruheran reverently places it on the ground in front of him.

Eruheran genuflects before a golvern drake idol and bows his head for a few moments before moving into a full kneeling position.

Eruheran gestures at a gold crown symbol set in a white marble medallion.

Eruheran falls into a deep trancelike state while muttering softly, the exact words you cannot discern. After a few silent moments, Eruheran calmly opens his eyes.

The room dims suddenly, and the scattered offerings begin to fade into nothingness.

Eruheran recites:

   "My Lord Koar, our mighty Godking, and the Great Drake:"

Eruheran recites:

  "We gather in your presence this evening seeking your fair and just hand.  We also seek your immense wisdom and knowledge to help aid our search on a particular item."

Eruheran recites:

   "Our first request of your knowledge concerns a particular being that has, over the last few months, physically arrived in our town of Icemule declaring herself our ruler.  This being calls herself "Daukhera Darkflorr"."

The room suddenly goes pitch dark for a heartbeat, and then a pale light fades into view impossibly high overhead. The light illuminates a mountaintop far in the distance, wreathed in wispy clouds. A massive throne dominates the mountaintop for a brief moment, then the vision fades slowly as the lights return.

Eruheran recites:

   "Previous to her arrival and continuing even now to this day, she calls on several dangerous critters and demons in an attempt to compel us to submit to her rule and to aid her in unlocking what she calls "is rightfully hers"."

A gentle mist rolls in, hugging the floor all around you. The mist is nearly opaque, but slight movement can be seen in its depths. As you try to process what the mist might contain, it dissipates before your eyes.

Eruheran recites:

   "We seek your knowledge on just who this being really is.  She claims she was imprisoned for a 1,000 years and that Icemule is her rightful place of rule, however she has yet to prove any of this.  Does this being's story have any truth in it what-so-ever?  Does she truly want us to be her "friends", or is just some charade in an attempt to eventually change us all into mindless servants of her will?"

Eruheran looks vaguely uncomfortable, his hand going to his throat uncertainly. As his fingers trace his throat, striations appear on the skin of his neck, growing deeper by the moment. Then with a slight gasp, Eruheran's hand drops back to his side, and he takes a shaking breath.

(Eruheran’s vision: "Your eyesight blurs, then clears once more. Filling your field of vision is a mighty oak tree, encased in a frozen block of ice. The tree's roots have burrowed through the ice and seated themseves firmly in the fertile ground beneath the deep permafrost. The image blurs once more, and when it resolves, everything has returned to normal.")

Eruheran clears his throat.

   "Our second request of your great knowledge is about a particular item.  What this particular item is or where it can be found seems to be of crucial importance to us, however both the what and the where currently remain unknown. It has come to our knowledge that this being requires a certain "key" to unlock an artifact that she claims is hers.  There is a group of individuals that claim to have this "key", and are willing to give it to us in exchange for "an item of great value"."

Eruheran recites:

   "Can you, great Godking, provide us with any clues as to what and where this item might be?  Will this item be located in a dangerous place?  And if so, what precautions should we take and is there anything that could be provided to aid us in our search?"

Eruheran recites:

   "My Lord, we citizens of Icemule are in great need of your help.  We need your just hand and great knowledge to provide clarity and truth to this matter.  Without it, your faithful followers here, all the people of Icemule, and potentially the rest of Elanthia, could be in great danger."

Eruheran recites:

   "We beg you for help."

The mists swirling across the floor solidify suddenly, increasing their speed and winding furiously amongst the legs of those still standing.

A heavy sigh is heard throughout the room, and the very ground beneath your feet groans in response. The air around you acquires an unusual weight, as if there was something present your normal senses were unable to define.

An expectant stillness falls over the room, the very air around you seeming to come to a halt.

The Visions

Dirvy slams her hands over her ears, her eyes rolling back in her head as her jaw goes slack. Her breathing becomes labored for a few painful heartbeats, then she relaxes, composing herself once more.

(Dirvy’s vision: A ringing noise fills your ears, growing louder by the instant. Before long, the cacophony as reached a fever pitch. Through the ruckus you can barely make out the sound of laughter, though there is something… off about its pitch. Before you can puzzle it out, the noise ceases, leaving your senses jumbled from the sudden surcease of sound.)

Sothog shivers, then suddenly spins around, his breathing shallow and labored. Calming slightly, he turns once more back to his original position, then gasps and flinches violently.

(Sothog saw “A brief image of a muscular bearded man which quickly faded (Koar))

Enestrie experienced:

(You find yourself mentally seeking the comfort of your goddess, but the path to her in your mind is blocked by an incredible, almighty force...)

Visions seen by all present:

Your mind is filled with a multitude of visions... You struggle to make sense of it all...

A bird's cry is heard in the distance, echoing far more than should be possible in this space. The noise rebounds off every surface, magnifying and growing with each reverberation, until the combined volume and pitch is almost painful. Then all falls silent, and the absence of sound is incredibly stark by comparison.

An image of a rushing crimson river fills your vision. As you watch, the impossibly wide river winds its way through icy mountain valleys, turning and twisting around peaks. The crimson liquid splits, then splits again. The image speeds up, and you see the river divide and branch off in innumerable directions, diminishing each time. As the vision slows once more, a single trickle of blood is all that remains of the once-mighty river. The trickle meanders down a gentle slope towards the base of the mountains to the west.

A quiet discussion takes place on the meaning of this crimson river. A symbol of Daukhera’s bloodline?

A weary basso voice rumbless across the room, "The Bloodline... is true..." Then the echo of it fades, leaving your ears ringing. Our shared visions continue:

A small child's cry is heard from somewhere nearby, and a deep, gentle voice responds in soothing tones. Though the words are impossible to make out, the child's cries diminish quickly into nothingness.

A single candle appears, hovering in midair. Imbedded in the candle's wax is an image of a golden crown. The candle flares to life, its flame stretching far higher than would be expected, then candle and flame both fade from sight.

As you blink, the slight after-image of a massive throne remains etched on your vision. The image seems to dominate the space, yet when you close your eyes once more, there's no sign of the throne or anything else.

And then:

The room goes dark all around you momentarily, then slowly a blood-red haze becomes visible at the edges of your vision. A raspy, goblinoid cackle can be heard, but it fades as the lights in the room slowly return to normal. The air stills all around you, and your breath comes slightly easier, as if the air were somehow slightly less viscous.

The mist flowing across the floor slowly congeals and piles upward into a puffy, round sphere until it takes the form of a massive eye!

The eye gazes at you before a thunderous round of laughter splits your eardrums. "She is worthy... YOU are not worthy!" a voice calls out, shaking the walls of the temple. In a flash, the cloud is gone.

A curious muse flits into the area, gazing upon the crowd. The muse seems to be composed of some essence left over from the spiritual magic. It giggles, flashing the purest of white in color, before it whispers, "All shall become clear in time. Find the artifact. Make the trade." The muse hovers over the altar and bursts into a dazzling display of color.

The Epilogue

(Still uneasy, the group continues a discussion of the visions in private briefly before dispersing and going their separate ways. We feel that the Queen already knows about the commune, and might seek revenge.)

Reference

The complete, unedited log is found at the Officials