AAR: [11M] Journey to Aras Nehem (2020-10-10 @ 23:00 GMT)

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Montaugh
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Joined:Thu Dec 19, 2019 1:49 pm
Re: AAR: [11M] Journey to Aras Nehem (2020-10-10 @ 23:00 GMT)

Post by Montaugh » Sun Oct 11, 2020 5:00 pm

My name is William Carver, I am a 9th circle scout, 6th circle thief, 6th circle cavalryman, and 4th rank on the path of the Journeyman.

Dubhan needed some help to unlock the potential of his armor. We had Jael, Xeviouz, Zil, myself and Dubhan along for the trip.

We traveled to lake Ban from Throal via an airship, from the lake we traveled out to the ocean by river boat. This was my first true experience out on the Ocean. I talked with the crews aboard the river boat, and those aboard the air ship. I have been trying to understand things about the river and air travel. It is all about the water, or all about the air. I find myself frustrated at times while traveling by the air, you move so fast that you miss land before you, and with river travel you are so limited in where you can travel along the river. When it comes to travel sadly I would rather walk than take an Airship, there is just so much that you miss. I thought for a time that I would become an air sailor, but the focus is just to.. to focused I suppose. You are above everything and you can see so much, but you miss the details of the world... even with my eyes it can feel that way. It is the same on the river, you do great thing on the river but you are walking a world of water, it drives and guides all that you do. The ocean was interesting though, it was so vast that I couldn't see the ends of it, the horizon just seemed to extend in endless water. They moved with the water and the air being a part of both worlds, they had a vast territory to explore, but they were still connected to the land. They were not as confined as you are on the river, nor as separate as you are while flying through the air. The sea, hides little islands and places to explore. I spent a lot of time talking with the Sailors, they are good people and they understand that desire to see what is beyond the horizon. To belong to the earth, the wind and the waves. It gives me much to think about while I entertained the crew with a few songs on our travels, I'm no Troubadour but I do well enough. I look forward to my next trip out on the open ocean, perhaps I'll hire a crew to take us to some forgotten island and see what we find.

Our travels brought us to the some ruins in the mountains with three temples. We found a doorway and entered it... then I lost all sense of direction. I was lost in the blackness that surrounded us. We could see things once before, but now we couldn't. Then the things in the shadows attacked us. Wisps of night and things of nightmares. We fought them, we destroyed them and we pressed on into the black. We could hear the sounds of a hammer in the distance ping, ping, pinging away. We pressed on and were attacked by more creatures of shadows and nightmares, that I had never seen before but I knew from the thief in me that these things were melding with the shadows around them to appear flat and two dimensional.

There was one creature that attacked us from the astral though, Dubhan fought it as best as he could, the rest of us helpless to help him. I wanted some way to help him, a desperate need arose within me and I could feel gloves moving my fingers of their own accord responding to that need, I could feel them drawing and pulling power as the strain burned my hands in the effort. When the gloves were done.. in my hand I held a rock as black as night, and I knew right then that I could hurt the creature in the astral with that rock. I just needed to see it and the stranger boots responded. It was like I could see everything around me without looking, and that was when I pierced into the very astral that hid the horror and it shown as bright as day to my sight. The gloves were worn, I was nearly spent on my karma, a few shots are all that I knew I would have and I would have to make every stone count. The world melted away and I knew the truth for a moment as Karl does, that singular path and you just know when your shot must strike true. The magic burned and I launched the stone hitting the creature. I knew where it was and knew what I must do. Charlie and I moved as one, he knew what I wanted him to do and we moved to flank the creature looking for some weakness in it armor as another rock appeared in my hand which burned ever colder with the effort. And another and my last rock struck true.. I had more rocks but the passions must have decided that this was to be Dubhan's fight, for I could not hit that thing to save our lives after that. There were no more rocks and I knew the magic within the gloves was spent, and the creature faded from my sight as my time viewing the astral ended. Dubhan was strong and well protected by the magics around him, the horror could not stand against him for much longer.

We found who.. what.. where we were looking for and Dubhan's armor was awoken. I dreamed of the ocean on our way back to Throal. I dreamed of the waves crawling on the land, I dreamed of the air blowing the sails, and I dreamed of all the island over that vast horizon. The wind, the waves, and the land all as one.. all waiting to be explored.

William Carver

ottdmk
Posts:462
Joined:Mon Dec 12, 2016 10:25 pm

Re: AAR: [11M] Journey to Aras Nehem (2020-10-10 @ 23:00 GMT)

Post by ottdmk » Mon Oct 26, 2020 4:17 am

From the Journal of Dubhan Goronich:

Some time ago, I obtained a shield that happens to be a Thread Item. The Shield of Aras Nehem is a potent instrument, if somewhat disturbing. In the course of my research I discovered that to unlock it's greatest powers I would have to bring it back from whence it came, namely, Aras Nehem.

I finally discovered a likely location, and recruited Jael, Zil, William and Xevious to assist me. Naturally, when we entered the place, we ended up in some kind of netherworld. I'm beginning to think that every time I go adventuring, I'm going to end up sucked into some kind of netherworld.

I'm rather glad we had Zil with us. After facing one wave of horrorspawn, we regrouped quickly and continued onwards. At this point, I was basically just wanting a way out, the Shield be damned. As we progressed, we started to hear a rhythmic pounding. I've spent enough time with Dvarim to recognize that sound anywhere: a hammer on an anvil. We ran into a second wave of horrorspawn.

This was quite the fight, because towards the end, I had to face a Bloodshaper in single combat. It stayed in the Astral, and only my magic could reach it. I was ultimately victorious, but it was some fight. I was grateful to Zil yet again; he had cast Grove Renewal on me, keeping me strong. (He also removed a wound the Shaper's skinshifting had inflicted.)

We approached the Smith, who seemed to gain some clarity. He quickly threw the Shield on the anvil and pounded at it a few times. He then provided us a way out. When asked his name, he seemed unclear... but thought it was once "Aras."

We returned to Throal. Sure enough, the Shield seems stronger. However, I haven't dreamed since that day...

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