Vagabond 708: Lost and Found

Time seemed to slam to a stop, as faces formed in the clouds before her. Micah's face swam before her, as forlorn and love-struck as it had been the day she left him. "Micah," she whispered, barely audible. His eyes seemed deeper, darker than she'd remembered, and her own eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sorry," she mouthed, unable to form the words audibly. The outside world froze around her, and it faded into non-existence as she stood still, silently staring at this ghostly Micah, unable to move one way or another. The trees shifted and Micah faded, before reappearing again, this time beside her 18-year-old self, in her wedding gown, her parents beaming at them both. Her breath catches in her throat and Elenna is stuck on the spot, tears dripping down her face. "I wanted this so badly," she thought, almost trying to reach out to the shadows with her mind. "But I am not that child anymore."

The rest of the group began to move past and the shadows blurred as they did. Fae nudged her wing gently from on her back, and Elenna closed her eyes and walked away, shaking away her tears in anger. She heard their screams as the storm overtook them and shivered, praying quietly for this nightmare to end. The voice continued to follow them, almost tormenting them, no matter how fast she walked. Finally, they came to the ravine and the wind itself gave a riddle. Its scream at the wrong answers shook her to the very core, and Elenna wondered whether they would ever find any safety.

"Safety?" questions Umbra, his voice seeming so distant, but then the storm almost sighs at the answer, before covering the ravine as a bridge. 

"What on earth?" said Elenna, cautiously tapping this storm-bridge with one hoof and jumping back as she felt it's solidity. "It's solid! It's the only way out..."

The words of the storm did little to calm her, but she knew it spoke true. They could either remain stuck on the edge of the ravine for all eternity or make their way down into the chasm. "I think we should follow," she said. "It's that or stay up here until the end of time." The gentleness of the storm intrigued her. "Alya?" she thought softly, questioningly.

---

Alya?
The voice sounds amused.
And the slightest bit offended.

You put such faith in the Gods.
The Gods who do not care for you.

I don’t fault you for it. It is what you were brought up to do.
Some of you hold such devotion.
Some of you enough to emblazon it on your skin.

A soft rumbling. Something seems to be rising from the deep.
No…
The deep is vanishing. The storm, too. The earth changes.
The earth rises to meet where you stand. You feel like you should be falling, but you do not.
The ground underneath is as solid as bedrock.

But it was not Ignacio who delivered you to freedom.
It was not Cascade who plucked your soul from the stars.
Alya has just as much fury and fervor for war and destruction as the others.
Argus is content to let his rage hurt those who profess love to him.
Kaia would let you die in the name of balance.

Such are your gods.

But not I.

A forest comes into view.
It is like a blooming orchard, filled with luscious berry bushes and fruit trees heavy with harvest, despite it being summer. Vegetables and herbs grow among the larger plants.
There is a road leading through.
You follow.
The forest gives way to a clearing.

Before you is a gently sloping hill.
Upon the hill, a town.
You feel compelled to enter.

A white town, opalescent in the sunlight. Gleaming polished stone, living white tree and something akin to bone.
The village is impeccable. Not a stone is out of place. Not a seam or nail visible.
It is not a place that was built.
It was made, wished into existence.
You see buildings in the style of Aodh; others seem to be plucked out of the memory of Kiephis and Inaria. Each culture of Hireath is represented in some style.
It is a harmonious chaos.

In the center of it stands a tower, with a great pale crystal sitting on its brow.
The tower seems to be made of bone.

Behold, Asylon.
The voice sounds off of the pristine walls and the streets lined with soft pink stone.

You hear a door open.
Turning to face the sound, you see the great gates of the white tower open.
Out steps a being unlike any you have ever seen.

She stands no taller than Lorelei.
Her wings are those of a moth - her antlers those of a kirin. Gems protrude from her shoulders, fins from her neck and back. She has many eyes, yet none.

The Ungod.

I have brought you here to show you that there is another way.
Those gods you worship, the gods who might have blessed you.
What care they for you, the Vagabonds?

She stands before you, still as a statue, yet so alive. The entire town seems to echo with her words.

I care.

It is your wish that has bound this storm.
It is this storm that will protect all who seek me out here, in my Sanctuary.
Should you wish it so, it could be your sanctuary as well.

She sounds hopeful. You feel her tugging at your soul.
She cares.
She wants you here, with her.

Forsake the old gods.
Embrace my gift.

Digend seems to grow taller. Stronger. The city feels alive. You can feel its pull. You can imagine it, larger and filled with people, happy and at peace, with their god watching over them.
A god who will not abandon them.

I will not fault you if you choose otherwise.
But choose you must.

---

It is time to choose.
You may choose to forsake the old gods (you may still receive their blessings and other benefits but your character’s true patron should be Digend) and accept a place in Asylon.
Or
You may choose to reject Digend’s offer, and have the storm cast you out of Asylon. You will not be able to find the city again, or tell its location to those who would seek to harm it. Only if you later change your mind, may you return.


Asylon is a town for all those who seek safe harbor. Those opposed to Digend may never find it again. Characters who accept are free to come and go as they wish, and share word of the city.

Digend’s eyes are gentle on Umbra. She looks at him, and feels his story, the years of slavery. Things lost and gained by the escape.
She knows them, and her heart bleeds for them.

She looks to the ones who said no. Her expression is timeless and sad, but not angry.

So be it then.
Her voice vibrates through your souls again as the ones who rejected her feel the wind once more upon their skins.
Her eyes linger on Athelstan for a moment. She searches his eyes with her own, and seems to sigh even as the wind picks up once more.

Find your family and return to me. To me you were never a slave. I will love you. I will protect you.
Her voice rings within Athelsan’s head alone. She sounds proud. Hopeful.

Then her eye’s meet Elenna’s.
A pity. Your devotion is admirable. I wish it was mine.
Digend’s voice rings in her heads now, gentle. There is no judgement.

I hope that one day you will return and accept me, as I have already accepted you.
All of you.

Her eyes meet Miguel’s for a moment. She knows. She knows it all.
The wind is lifting you up now, gentle yet insistent. It is frightening, but you also know she will not hurt you. Merely carry you away, as she said she would.

Emperor Hawkeye. Even after my magic tore you from the stars, you reject me. Even after your own daughter was fed to the beasts of the Sea you so love, you reject me.
Her voice within his head alone is gentle, but not in the same way as with the others. She knows she is not entirely faultless in his suffering.

A silence falls. Those who accepted can see the storm carry away the deniers. Moments later, their hooves touch on solid ground near the edge of the Skytop Forest. The storm is gone. Asylon is a strange memory.

She regards those who stayed now. Smiles at them. Smiles at Umbra.
I will keep you safe. I will provide.
You can come and go as you wish. The storm won’t bother you ever more.

---

Congratulations on completing 708: Lost and Found

Characters who rejected Digend’s offer have been safely sent outside Asylon, and may continue on their way. They are unable to re-enter Asylon unless they change their conviction and decide to accept her offer.

Characters who accepted Digend’s offer can now pass to and from Asylon without encountering the storm - to them, its location will be obvious and easy to reach.

Full information on Asylon will follow in chapter wrap-ups!