This is an epilogue to my Descent Into Avernus campaign, but it also acts as a prologue to the next adventure. You don’t need to cram the previous entries to enjoy this, as it’s pretty self-contained, but if you fancy you can check them out in the sidebar >>>

The characters:

<< Elion, a SEIA agent and arcane mechanic with a major survivor’s complex.

Melody, the newly named Tsethem of ice and a refugee from the infinite city. >>

Elion taps his palm with a rune chisel, hanging somewhat awkwardly near the door to their room.

Elion: Hey.. So, I was thinking of visiting my parents. Like, even before this place went to the hells. It’s kinda been a while.

Mel: *nods encouragingly, whittling away at some wood she’s carving into a flute* They live on the island?

Elion: Actually they’re on the plane of life. The town isn’t too far from the portal. *pause* So like, do you wanna maybe come with?

Mel: And meet your parents? *nods, giving a silent chuckle* Uh, yeah? Why would I not? Old people are amazing.

Elion: *grins, a little relieved* I mean, they’re not old-old, but sure.

* * *

They take a flight to the west side of Tirkosu the next day. There’s something about the jungle that oozes intrigue: Everything is alive and curious, inspiring curiosity in those who travel through it. Mel hangs on the rail of the airship, pointing at the bizarre flora and fauna and getting Elion to reel of their names and unusual traits.

Mel: Wait, if there’s all these diseases floating around, why don’t you get sick all the time? Won’t it be worse for me, cuz..?

The infinite city had its own diseases, mostly bacteria that managed to find some way to survive on the astral plane. But for the refugees, the many generations spent outside of a normal ecosystem will make it harder for the return to the elemental planes. Elion isn’t too worried though.

Elion: Most diseases can be cured pretty easily by clerics. Even my suit can remove them. People rarely die from that kinda thing.

Crunch

I’m gonna use a BOLD Waylay here to see whether they run into anything on the journey. Oh. Oh no.

I’m not gonna show what I just rolled yet, I’ll wait. Oh, crumpets..



Once they pay the toll and pass through the giant metal-bound portal ring, everything is amplified. The plane of life stretches out before them like an ocean of green, whose massive waves rise as mountain-sized bubbles of tree instead of crests. The land seems to dip and rise at such an angle that to Mel it occasionally feels as if the ship has turned nose-down, facing a wall of leaves that seems like the ground thanks to all the life scampering up and down it.

The airship drops them off at the portal town, and from there they take a teleportation circle to Elion’s hometown: a phosphorous-lit sprawl of houses carved into the shady roots of a titan tree. The Torli residence is in the richer area of town, far up enough that the sunlight peeks through the windows.

Crunch

Aight, time to come clean with what BOLD cooked up:

Descriptor: Personal

Noun: Death

Modifier: Bitter



Alas, a happy return it is not. Elion’s father answers the door, troubled eyes lighting up for a brief moment as they lay upon the visitors. He pulls his son into a tearful embrace as Elion’s heart plummets.

Elion: Dad? What’s wrong?

Torli: Your mother.. Elion, I am so sorry, she… There was an accident.

One of the bridges was weakened in a storm last month. She hadn’t survived the fall. He apologises over and over, telling Elion he intended to write and tell him, but couldn’t bring himself to put it into words.

Mel hangs back, tensed and anxiously watching Elion – she knows he doesn’t deal with loss well. Indeed, he’s crying like a baby. But there’s no guilt in his eyes, only loss. She remembers the panicked look of desperation on his face as he watched the ghost disappear into the marshes – and it’s mercifully absent now. Then he speaks, choking the words out, and she understands.

Elion: She’s… in a better place.. now..

He’s gone through the hells, and glimpsed the heavens – seen the destiny of the wicked, and the good. Being confronted by death in such a personal way has eased his damaged conscience enough to bear these burdens.

They cannot stay by the front door forever. Torli invites them inside: a warm drink is in order.

* * *

They spend two months on the plane of life, healing by whiling away the time together or walking around town. Mel stays in Elion’s old room. It’s pretty much exactly how he left it: half finished, overambitious projects, a working model of the Great Chimney, and stuffed dinosaur toys on the bed.

Melody sets her drones to guard mode every night, a remnant of the paranoia that gripped all who lived beneath the Valkeesh. Elion is ambushed by them on a trip to the bathroom, prompting a concerned chat. She reluctantly agrees to try a night without trapping the room, but only if Elion watches over her instead. She sleeps extremely lightly, waking in a panic at the slightest sound or movement. It makes him realise how much her old life is still affecting her.

They spend their evenings on the porch overhanging the jungle, where he begins teaching her how to craft magitek: Without the psi-shards available on the astral plane, her mental enhancements are severely limited. Together, they draw up plans for a new suit of armour: the Ebonguard. Faster and more combat efficient this time, the suit is designed to be particularly resilient against shadow energy.

Elion: If Jevak was serious, and I think he was, then… War’s coming. And last time the shadow elementals got loose, it wasn’t fun.

Mel: Starting to believe tumult’s the default state in these realms..

Elion: It’s not, trust me. They just picked a really shad time.

* * *

But the weeks go by, with no word of the brewing shadow invasion. Melody still pines to explore the other elements, so they bid farewell to Elion’s father and head back to Tirkosu: Mel can finally resume her tour of the island.

They start with Pehkeiai, the water village; a stunning coral reef upon which floats bamboo raft-huts for the surface-dwelling visitors. Mel is awed and a little scared by the ocean, but a week of splashing around in the shallows gets her used to such huge bodies of water. They spend a happy month tasting bizarre seafood, collecting pearls from Eklihri clams, and lazing around in hammocks before heading south to Appinamopu Tharth.

The magnificent multi-storeyed temple has similar architecture to the one dedicated to Zenia in Rahm Oru, surrounded by lovingly-kept gardens within the walls, and farmland without. They spend another month strolling through the topiaries and listening to ancient texts in the temple proper, occasionally watching the rain patter against the window when the heavens open. Elion purchases the light elemental crystals with which he intends to imbue his new armour.

They head to Pernep, the wealthy medieval-styled village were Larissa lives. She’s back home in the Lighstep manor, still as faded and mournful as before. They catch up over a light lunch: After a couple of happy weeks chilling with Jay and his family, she thought it prudent to return home so as not to outstay her welcome. She’s rather lonely in the old house, however. Elion asks if she thought about approaching the Zailan to learn more about the nature of psionics, which sparks a flicker of interest in her melancholic eyes. Melody encourages her to take a trip to the alien homeworld: If anyone can get them to reveal their mysteries, it would be a fellow psion.

Their next stop is the dust village of Gokapu, still comparatively ramshackle and gritty despite the work done to entice tourists. Melody hates it however, due to the desert’s extreme heat: They hurriedly head northwest to Hepthurai.

Crunch

TWENE: Wild Negative

Portent: Confederate Dais Okay, that’s interesting. So a group of people have come together on some kind of platform (maybe a metaphorical pedestal). I’m gonna use a BOLD Waylay to flesh this out instead of rolling another Portent, treating this as though it’s an arced waylay.

Descriptor: Haven

Noun: Hermit

Modifier: Common

A common hermit haven… Oh wow. They’ve closed off the village. That’s pretty major; technology has been banned within the walls for as long as I can remember, but this is dwarf levels of antisocial. Maybe the influx of extraplanar visitors finally tipped them over the edge. Metaphorically speaking.



They’re almost at the end of the flight when their pilot offhandedly remarks that they should get their passes ready to show – Which is a bit of a shock, considering Elion had no idea that was a thing. Not wanting to spend the gold or time required to obtain one, they skip the air village and follow the base of the mountain on foot. The sea breeze and call of gulls greets them as they spy Little Orthraze, village of Gnomes.

Crunch

Ooh! A random encounter implies a planefall occurrence! The island of Tirkosu is sustained by the elemental planes, pulling its geography from the outer circles. It also brings along any creatures or structures that were on the land, which is usually more of an interesting quirk than an issue. Usually.

Using BOLD to figure out what they encounter.

Descriptor: Physical

Noun: Illness

Modifier: Waning

…They contract Boilnose, a disease from the plane of steam. 3 day incubation period. How heroic. And totally redundant, because as soon as the symptoms manifest Elion can just cure it with the feytouched suit.



The squat-housed port is where they spend the rest of their downtime. The predominantly Gnomish denizens celebrate new year’s eve with a wildly exuberant party. And then have another one on new year’s day. Aaaand another one the following day, because why not.

Luckily the grassy planes and sandy shores nearby provide plenty of reprise from the boisterous energy in town. Elion finishes up the designs and starts to actualise them, making good use of the forges and expert craftsmanship available. In a matter of days, the Ebonguard suit is ready for deployment.

Ready for war.