The skies were forebodingly overcast, the winds still as death itself. An uncomfortable heat lingered over the three sentinels; too warm for what should have been a brisk fall night.
The three Arbiters lingered just out of sight of the wooden palisade, the top of Circle Master Yoru's ziggurat just visible over the hill. Their patrol route was down a long path, dotted every hundred feet or so with Ether Wards haphazardly skewered into the ground, some at a rather sharp angle.
"Old Master Yoru is up to something fishy," mumbled Elusis, thrusting the butt of his halberd into the ground and stopping for a moment to wipe the thin sheet of sweat from his helmeted head. Maliki and Staephen stopped just in front of him and issued nods of acknowledgement.
"I agree," Maliki said, running her fingers idly across the trigger guard of her Zuudi style Archenbusse. "The air isn't right..."
"You're both being paranoid," interjected Staephen. "Circle Master Yoru is always up to something fishy - it's no different than usual. You just have stomach-butterflies from the Capparnian bar-be-que eel you ate earlier, Elusis. I told you you should have gone with the pork. And it's been a warm fall season... it happens from time to time. Weather's been like this for a while now. and besides..."
As if to interrupt him, a nearby Ether Ward began to give off a low hum, as the tinkling of chimes became just slightly audible. Stephen stopped, mid sentence, but only for a moment as Maliki and Elusis began to brandish their weapons.
"Probably just some spare Ethereal burnoff from the Nexus... sure it's not much to worry..."
The forest exploded into a sudden and abrupt clattering of metal, Lysonite gems burning molten red in every direction. It didn't take much more convincing to know that something had gone VERY wrong.
As if to reaffirm their suspicions, a terrible boom and a brilliant light manifested behind them, in the direction of the Nexus. The three Arbiters put gauntleted hands over their eyes to shield from the radiant display. It quickly faded, but the top of the Nexus had disappeared from the horizon, replaced by a thick, black pillar of smoke and ash.
"I need to report to the the Lord Arbiter General. Maliki, Staephen, go to the Nexus, see what happened, and get as many people as you can out." Elusis yanked a clattering Ether Ward from the ground, nearly blinded by the glimmering of the Lysonite jewel atop it. "When the Jewel bursts, get out of there."
"That's suicide!" stammered Stephen. "We'll be turned into walking aberrations! Who knows how much ether is floating around there. The place is probably a barren wasteland, filled with whatever has spewed forth from the Matrix."
"Well go and see. If it is, leave. If there are people who need help, it's our duty to save them from Ethereo-phenomenal crisis."
"It's crazy!"
"It's our JOB," retorted Maliki, grabbing him by the shoulder plate of his carapace armor, and dashing the other way.
"It is crazy," mumbled Elusis. He gripped the haft of his Arcanite Halberd and dashed down the path, the frantic tinkling of the wards echoing in his brain for five miles.
VERY thorough and well done. This looks like something out of a stodgy old Wizard's musty tome of "De Arcanius Concoctius Orbium" or something of that like. I like your little annotations and footnotes, very authentic. Great Job!
Door to heaven...hmm. Was expecting something different, but it's simple, provides a challenge, is well detailed, and can be easily included in any low level dungeon-crawl. I did always wonder what happens after all the traps in a dungeon are set off... it sorta fails to be a dungeon. I suppose this one works forever and ever.
As far as I can gather, the lands of Khal are fairly atheistic, while Curthus is run by some sea-monster-god cult? What exactly is the point of the article? I know this was supposed to be a system of some sort, but it sounds more informative.
I can see how you detailed the way a natural phenomenon can be mistaken for the divine - perhaps you were meaning to detail how a religion comes into being? Or is this just supposed to be an article that the people of your created world react to the thought of religion?
With a little tidying up, this could be pretty good, but I think it needs focus.
Quality submission. Cute, quirky and interesting. Little "Magic Sniffers" - I like it.
I saw the first couple lines of this and said "Why on earth would anyone ever want one of these?" Then I saw your ideas and I think they are BRILLIANT.
So cool!
Items (Tools) (Non-Magical)