Twelve Days After the Old Moon, Month of the Wolf in the Year 1023
Time has passed in an odd way for me this past week, but I
will try to relay what information I can in an accurate manner. I cannot say
with certainty what happened outside of the Spirit Realm, but I can summarize
based on what I heard from reports and friends…
The Ogres and Wolds that had descended from the mountains met the Invictus
line, a most unfortunate adventure for them. Our allies fought hard and were
joined by a ship flying Blackwood’s colors that magically appeared in the
center of Lake Irvan. When I asked around, I discovered that it was Irri who
had petitioned Jagtor the Salmon Spirit for aid in transporting the ship, which
was granted in exchange for the sacrifice of magic. Between the martial might
of Invictus, and the cannonballs, the enemies in the north were routed.
Unluckily, however, more of them are coming and it seems Irrad has taken the
field with them. I’ll get to him in a moment.
My personal priority for the week was acting on information
acquired by allies that indicated that Arvitt Garrimaddon was about to throw a
massive temper tantrum over the loss of one of his “shields” by sending all the
Warlords of the Erl King at us at once (sans Maggot). I made my way into the
Otherworld with Adoros to petition Benjamin Grans for aid, and we discussed
whether it might be possible to create a barrier like the one in Nathan’s
Hollow to protect the country from the wrath of the Warlords. Utilizing the
powdered remnants of the chain that bound him mixed in holy water, we set out
to walk the border of Voraniss for about eight months, praying over the
boundary. Before you wonder how eight months went by in the span of less than a
week, I shall tell you that time passes much faster within the Otherworld than
it does out here.
While I was doing this, my countryfolk and allies were
prepping a massive ritual to boost the power of our efforts. More than a dozen
people, and powerful beings, called out and sent their power, their magic, and
their faith in our direction. If I had attempted to channel this energy alone,
I’m sure I would have evaporated. Luckily, I was not alone, and Adoros and I
were able to split the magical influx of power and direct it towards Benjamin
Grans who invoked his faith in the Sword Maiden utilizing the banner of Clan
Defender as a focus.
The barrier was effective for the most part, and weaker
enemies such as lesser Undead and Wolds began to collapse or crumble when they attempted to pass. Humans
and Ogres were still able to step through unhindered, but at least we had
weakened the enemy's ability to field greater numbers. It was about this point when
things began to turn for the worse, and we could see the full results of
Garrimaddon’s wrath.
The sky turned a dark and sickly green, as we realized very
quickly that the Warlords would be undeterred by our barrier. Too powerful to
be stopped, they appeared to join their stronger forces. In the sky, a massive
figure was spotted taking form in the swirling clouds. It was pale blue and
with a wave of its hand conjured three enemy ships, and half a dozen smaller
translucent figures before hijacking the portal our allied reinforcements had
been using. I suspect that these new minions are Phantoms and that perhaps
this being in the sky is Kytsim, the Warlord of Corrupted Magic.
As mentioned before, Irrad has also taken the field. From
what I have heard, he is an enormous earth elemental of sorts, and the sound of
his voice is so powerful that it could knock a person unconscious. Irrad is the
Warlord of Corrupted Stone and the one that utilizes Wolds as his primary
minions. As far as we currently know, the best defense against him is
unbreakable shields. Additionally, Ang, the Warlord of Corrupted Spirit has
been spotted with Laughing Dead up near Mirador, and Polth, the Warlord of
Corrupted Water has crawled from the river between the Bear and Stag shrines.
Sensing their dark power, Benjamin Grans did what he thought best and made the
choice to join the great Spirit Tree of Voraniss, bonding himself to it
forever. This sacrifice denies him the afterlife that he so desired with his
Goddess but ensures that the barrier will no longer need weekly maintenance to
uphold. We will not let his sacrifice be in vain, and I will not forget his
courage…and I will strive to honor it upon the field of battle.
We will think of something. There is always a way forward.
There must be.
Spirit Queen Kindrianna Athame
