By: Robert "Gael" Ferullo
Alright folks, strap in because you all know that, just when we Realmsies think we are prepared for what’s coming, we are as wrong as someone saying that fresh bread with honey butter doesn’t absolutely slap. The quest to rescue Makhta from vampirism was a tale of perseverance, sorrowful woe, and a bittersweet yet triumphant victory over evil.
Interestingly enough, such a tale may prove essential if we are ever to once again encounter the strange creatures that appeared on Friday night. Some demanded stories. Upon traversing into the Dream plane, our concerningly pessimistic Eeyore-like friends seemed endlessly intrigued by tragedy, not allowing us to proceed until they had been thoroughly entertained by stories. Further along the path, beyond a noble warrior with a lust for honorable combat, we encountered quite the opposite. Passing through the next boundary of this mysterious plane, I was suddenly overcome with great joy. This capricious realm perplexed me, though in this current state, I bore no concern as to what may have caused my abrupt change in mood, nor that of my fellow adventurers.
As the moon ascended higher into the night sky, we were tasked with navigating more than just hostile life; stepping stones provided the safest passage available across an unknown corrosive agent, where we solved a riddle to unlock a door on the other side. We were one step closer to finding Gregor and freeing our dear friend.
The next day, our formidable adversaries showed even greater, unyielding persistence. Many of us were blinded, split up, and left to forage for our own equipment. But this team is no stranger to new challenges. As our good friend Jasper put it, “It’s about friendship. It’s about community. It’s about teamwork,” and that is exactly how we successfully regrouped and navigated a dangerous maze, finally slaying a dragon on the other side. I personally felt a little conflicted about this, roughly 50%, but the dragon was also kinda mean, so it’s okay.
That same day, a few thousand years ago, and also a thousand or so years in the future, give or take because time travel shenanigans, we returned to the tavern to find Lord Zargothrax, a legendary rock and roll dare I say god fella with a bass and the power to destroy. After chatting with him for a bit, it seemed like he really wasn’t a bad dude, just misunderstood. He agreed to hold off on the whole blowing us up thing, if we could only find someone to carry the flame, proving that he had not created the sound to end all sounds. If you had asked me in the year 1021, “Where do you see yourself in five years,” on no planet would I have come up with “Improvising heavy metal with a Nightmare, and also a couple good friends,” but here we are. I would do it again. Maybe one day I’ll get to go see Lord Zargothrax in concert. Is he local? I forgot to ask him. He left so suddenly.
The sensation of “Okay this is happening” did not fade so soon, when my attention to puzzles (which I was nowhere close to solving) was taken by a Death Knight who insisted on unarmed combat. Glancing down at my magic alligator, I realized that this proposition sounded a little too familiar. If I had a tick for every time I’ve had to wrassle Kai someone at an event, I’d
Gael vanishes
Just kidding, I’m still alive, but it’s entertaining to me that it happened three times. “Oh, so you like to pull guard?” he said before teleporting behind me to end the first match. Between all of us, we eventually satisfied the Death Knight enough to receive a dream shard.
I may have gotten the order of these events wrong, but when time travel is a thing, does anything really happen in order? Anyway, it gets weirder. I was roughly an hour late coming back from dinner break, so you can imagine my surprise when the first thing I saw was a corvid-shaped friend looming over a dead Omri. With only a dagger and my child-like naivety, I thought it best to approach and inquire of the crow, “What happened here? I leave you all alone for one hour and–” The crow could not give me the information I seeked, but normal healing seemed to work. This left me wondering why the crow was there with Omri, who killed Omri, and why no one had tried healing earlier. Of course I asked none of these questions because:
I forgot to
My curiosity was now replaced with concern that Ryu was evil and Companion was in the process of building a vampire dialysis machine.
I believe it was N that I asked, “I know this is not a great time, but…” *intense hand gestures* “What, pray tell, is going on?” I was promptly slain by evil Ryu after honestly answering that I am Auroran, where she and another enemy pondered the different evil things to do if/when I was raised. (Yeah that’s right, I have Death Watch. I SEE EVERYTHING!) Fortunately, we didn’t get that far, as the mighty Alias prevented me from being rendered.
Oh by the way, the vampire dialysis was a success. Powered by a familiar, Companion performed a ritual to bring the machine to life. At last, Makhta had been cured, and could finally feel at peace. (OOC: Very convincing rp/acting by lots of folks during this part. I felt real-life emotions, and it was incredible!)
The final showdown with Gregor was a success, and the Realms could rest knowing that a mighty evil was no longer a threat. It was a relief that on Sunday, the largest of our worries was a pack of rats in the sewers leading to Ashenmark. One of them was even pretty friendly! You cheddar believe it, between all the muensters we battled that weekend, it was more than a gouda event.
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