[Story] Our Story So Far...

[Aethera]

Game logo courtesy of Sassafrass. Thanks!

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The Dragon Empire has flourished in this age, bringing stability and peace to the lands.
It seems that this time might last forever, and the suggestion that this be dubbed 'the Golden Age of the Empire'
in the history books has already been made. The Icons are working together to keep everyone safe and secure.
But if that is true, why are there suddenly whispers of raids in the woods to the north?
And potential demon incursion to the south? All may not be as it seems.

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Chapter 1: Attack on Aerilon
Demonic forces reach the river crossing at Aerilon, but find it defended.
The heroic victors receive a reward in Axis, the good and the responsibility.

Chapter 2: A Dangerous Business
The party finds more allies to assist them in getting the princess to Santa Cora.
More than one pair of eyes take note of the group, including the princess in disguise.
A meteor shower seems like it foretells something...

Chapter 3: Paradigm Shift
After a meteor shower and battle with demons, the heroes all have weird dreams.
The realizations that follow their Awakening are far worse.

Chapter 4: Gazing into an Abyss
coming soon...

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and with Aethera as the Game Mistress

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I'm super happy to be able to celebrate this game going for a year already (from first
chapter posted 9 April 2019), and that RPGX voted us into the Hall of Fame for 2020!

[Aethera]

Part I • Chapter 1: Attack on Aerilon
Demonic forces reach the town of Aerilon, but find it defended.
The heroic victors receive a reward in Axis, the good and the responsibility.

A town south of Axis was the unfortunate nexus that brought together our heroes Levi, Scabbard of Iron, and Emak against the arrival of a common foe: demons. Despite having their various reasons for being there, the heroes banded together in the face of the threat and managed to both save the town and break the demon vanguard headed for Axis. By the time the Imperial Legionnaires reached the town, they had little to do but dig in lest the demons return. The heroes were thanked by the town with a feast in their honor.

The commander of the Imperial forces sent to Aerilon told the heroes to go to Axis for a reward. To their surprise, not only were they rewarded generously with magical items and some generally useful equipment at a party in their honor, but they were invited to a private meeting with one of the Emperor's advisors by the name of Bazziox; when they got there, the Emperor himself entered and asked them to take his daughter Maelona in secret to Santa Cora to get her away from both court intrigue in unstable times and any further aggression from not just demons, but orcs and other monsters. He was quite blunt when asked for his reasons, and made it clear that he saw far worse times ahead.

Most of this 'chapter' is part of the novel's story that happened to the characters before the start of our game.
The meeting with the Emperor is the start of their roleplay-heavy prologue.

• Demons are moving in organized numbers.
• Disconnected problems all arise at once; the Empire is under attack on all sides.
• The Emperor knows something, and fears for his daughter's life enough to send her away in secret.

Chapter One began 9 April 2019 and completed 21 May 2019.

[Aethera]

It is with sadness we bid goodbye to LittleBlueNA/Levi and Kapera/Maelona,
but we have been joined by CharlesM/Breeze, Grimbreath/Kerr, and Grenadier/Telephus!

Part I • Chapter 2: A Dangerous Business
The party finds more allies to assist them in getting the princess to Santa Cora.
More than one pair of eyes take note of the group, including the princess in disguise.
A meteor shower seems like it foretells something...

Given a quest, the heroes set out from Axis, already missing one of their number (Levi) who led someone away rather than risk their mission. Oddly enough, all seemed to have shared an encounter with a strange man the night before who had seemed helpful, but it was hard to tell. Various inconveniences aside, they made good time to Horizon and entered the City of Wonders separately, Bazziox seeking out a guide and bumping into Kerr almost like it was meant to be. Emak, Scabbard of Iron, and the disguised "Jolene" (Maelona) met up with the others at the Blue Dragon Inn, where they bumped into yet another familiar face, Breeze, whom Bazziox invited to come along with them, too.

They were not able to leave the city without being noticed, in fact a strange red dot sign on the palm of a local teenager was shown to Bazziox, so the local thieves' guild certainly took note of them, as did the guards, who took the disguised princess' name and cover story. Shortly thereafter it seemed wise to remove her uniform so she appeared just a common archer. They stopped to discuss their plans soon after leaving Horizon, only to find themselves drawn to a half-elf in need of some assistance; Telephus and his familiar Babble the goat were caught by a frightful creature intent on eating them alive. Once the monster was no more, the suspicious group took Tel along with them lest he lead others to their secret mission.

In the shadow of Gorogan's Maw, the party witnesses a meteor shower like an omen. That night the secret nature of their quest is revealed to those yet unaware, bringing the party together as a whole group instead of trying to hide the princess' true nature. They run into demons, but all make it through alive, though some wounds may hurt more than others. That night, after some discussion, all seven (including the princess) have strange dreams. Parts may have seemed nightmarish, but more than anything the dreams just don't make sense.

• A strange man appeared to each with advice or commentary, though they have no idea who he is.
• Guide obtained, route planned to avoid rumored dangers from sea and hellhole.
• Mission secrecy in jeopardy from more than one angle, and potentially being followed, tensions rise.
• For the safety of the princess, all now know the details of their quest as laid out by the Emperor.

Chapter Two began 1 June 2019 and completed 29 March 2020.

[Aethera]

Part I • Chapter 3: Paradigm Shift
After a meteor shower and battle with demons, the heroes all have weird dreams.
The realizations that follow their Awakening are far worse.

After a trying battle with demons – it was hard to even call it accidental, not at the speed with which they attacked – Telephus, Kerr, Bazziox, Scabbard of Iron, Emak, Breeze, and Maelona slept hard, fully exhausted in body and spirit. Their minds however, drifted, confusing dreams that ultimately even asleep they recognized as such; the dreams ended with a sense of togetherness in the face of... it was hard to say what. Thrust back to wakefulness, they would have to figure out how they felt about She Who Writes, a presence they were abruptly aware was no old man's figure of speech, though opinions differed from the start.

Their trek through the wilderness took more time than energy, save for those questions turning over endlessly in their minds. It was not until they reached the road just northwest of the Golden Citadel that trouble once again befell them, first indirectly in the form of a caravan of travelers attacked on the road, and then more directly as they got closer to the Citadel – sahuagin had used the river to get ahead of them without being seen. Luckily for our heroes, Levi had also exhausted himself getting to that point by the time he guessed they'd be there, and was within earshot of the commotion. Working together, the heroes destroyed the sahuagin, only to learn of a new threat, that of a small parasite of unknown origins. At the same time, Breeze disappeared after mentioning some kind of chaos magic, and lightning struck a nearby tower of the Golden Citadel, which they will have to investigate to determine the cause or level of concern they ought to have for it. With Maelona giving him a healing boost, the archer told them of his journey there, luckily having beaten them to that point by only a handful of hours. From there the heroes entered the ruins of the Golden Citadel, finding a building to hide the group of travelers and themselves inside.

Once inside, the contradiction of their stated plan and the desire of some of the heroes to scout ahead beyond the safe place they had found to hunker down led to the princess giving the heroes a piece of her mind, unfortunately just loud enough to attract attention. The screech of a demon brought the closest demons to the party's hiding place, and while first the fight seemed grave, the cry drew an ally for the adventurers as well. Wylde and his dire lynx companion might be just what was needed to win the day when larger demons piled in, slew a paladin trying to reach the heroes, and a hidden mage summoned a demonic hound.

It seems we must bid farewell to CharlesM/Breeze at this point, but
LittleBlueNA/Levi has found time to rejoin us! Welcome back!
TheHangedMan/Wylde has also joined the heroes.

• An unknown deity 'She Who Writes' sees all, it seems, but what does that mean for our heroes? On whom does their fate rest?
• Demons seem to find them wherever they go, even the middle of nowhere.
• The heroes take a group of a couple dozen travelers under their protection.
• The Golden Citadel has demonic activity, despite the paladins who went to purge it.
• A paladin of the Great Gold Wyrm was still alive, but died in trying to reach the heroes.

Chapter Three began 29 March 2020.

[Aethera]

Part I • Chapter 4: Gazing into an Abyss
coming soon...