Antiva - Bringer of Life

Arrival and Confluence

A moment after being told what Lord Aergarnion expected of me, I was blown backwards and appeared in a structure that wasn't any place I recognised. It was fairly large, made of dressed stone, but thankfully there was no roof so I could see the sky above clearly. It did look as though one might have existed once, though, so was this a ruin? There was a raised area to one side with a tall, strong looking woman stood next to an older man that was being dragged away by some pale, pointy-eared figures in armour. I later learned that he had drawn a circle around the woman, "Antinniera", and activated it with his blood to protect her before he was clubbed over the head. He was dragged through what looked like a hole in the world, which then closed behind them leaving no evidence it was ever there.

In the centre of the raised area was a six-pointed gold star with four gems set into the points. Another point was empty, and the final one looked like it had recently held a black stone, but more of the armoured pale figures had surrounded it and now the stone lay in two pieces on the floor. I later learned that their leader had pried the stone free with his sword, but the stone had split and caused an explosion that had thrown him backwards and his friends had taken him through one of the holes in the world to wherever they had come from. Beyond this star was a circle that looked like perfect black glass against the wall, but vertical.

At my own level, on two sides, Saloroc (green burly creatures) were holding back a pack of small, snarling, dog-headed creatures - Kobolds apparently - that seemed eager to get past them. This level was about six feet below the raised area, and connected with stairs at the centre. The stairs were being guarded by four more of the pale-skinned people, who watched warily with weapons ready. Just in front of me was another armoured figure, although he wasn't pale like the others, and the armour looked heavier and was adorned with striking colours of red and yellow. He held an impressively large warhammer, although he did not appear to be immediately expecting a fight. The only side that appeared empty was opposite the raised area, and I could see double doors were closed in the wall at the end.

There were several bodies around where I had appeared, all the dog-like creatures from the looks of it, and behind the rest of their folk were two crude doors, one on each side. I was able to take this in quickly because I had caught my balance and kept my feet, but it was a chaotic mess of sound and confusing sights compared to the calm of Lord Aergarnion's court. Looking back at the raised area, seeking perhaps to find the emissary I was seeking, I saw two worm-like creatures emerge straight out of the stone floor, trying to grab the two parts of the black gemstone. One took a piece in its mouth and disappeared back into the rock, but the other caused a small explosion of light when it tried to take it and withdrew looking slightly charred. The next moment four elemental creatures appeared, one each of Air, Water, Fire, and Earth, arrayed around the star, each near a gem that was still within its proper place.

The garish armoured figure held out his hand as if to help me, but then withdrew it the moment I reached for it, laughed and then took my hand, pulling me fully to my feet. He was slightly shorter than me, and seemed a strange fellow. He introduced himself as "Pieniteh", or "Pi" as he was often called. I, of course, introduced myself as "Aapyaunggaalell Lay", or "AapLay" if he preferred something shorter. He did seem friendly, at least, which was more than the others in the room appeared to be. It had taken a few attempts to find a common language, though, eventually we used the course Common of the human races, although it was not a tongue I had learned to use well.

As we introduced ourselves, the Elemental representatives swatted away the pale-skinned creatures casually and took the gems, one each, and then departed. The Water rolled over the wall nearest them, and the Air (did my father know him?) rose over the same wall. The Earth simply sank into the floor, but the Fire headed towards us. The pale-skinned creatures all departed in the same way the others had, leaving just the four on the lower level, who were just trying to get out of the way of the Fire bearing down on them. I also noticed the Saloroc and Kobolds were shuffling closer to me and Pi, perhaps growing in confidence as people were leaving.

As suddenly as I had arrived, so too did a winged snake, dazzling in colour with blue-green scales growing lighter in hue towards its head, which was almost iridescent green, with orange and yellow wings, darkening towards the flight feathers at the end. They appeared right in front of the female warrior on the raised section, beating their wings to raise their body up. The whole body must have been roughly eight feet long, but some remained curled on the floor.

Antinniera reacted badly, doubling over whilst retching and vomiting in front of the Coatl. Instead of recoiling, though, it uncurled its tail and lifted her up gently until she had recovered slightly. Despite this distraction, I remembered my instructions and took a moment to focus on the air. There was no wind, but the air was strangely in turmoil; there was constant movement, but without direction it never went anywhere and the air could not move freely. I had never seen the like before, and found it uncomfortable.

I noticed that Pi looked confused too, and in fact he didn't seem to know where we were or what was going on. I heard the Coatl, who I would later learn was named "Xlotl", greet the Fire in Elemental Common. This was a tongue I knew well, but the column of Fire rather rudely ignored the greeting and kept moving. I suggested to Pi, in my broken Common, that the Fire seemed to be in a bad mood and that it might be best to avoid him.

I cautiously called out to Xlotl, addressing them as "Lord", hoping that they were the emissary. I informed them that I had sensed the air and found it to be in chaos, and that I should return to Lord Aergarnion. Xlotl seemed to think there was much more to sense than the immediate turmoil, though, and I bowed my head in deference.

Antinniera was still dry heaving, and not able to join the conversation, so I didn't know whether she was following what was going on. Pi, though, had started to speak to the Saloroc, introducing himself again. All he got in return, though, was an instruction to leave at once or he would be the first to die! The last of the pale-skinned creatures departed, again throwing a stone at the floor and stepping through a hole in the world that appeared before it closed after them. That left us in the path of Fire, which had continued straight towards the doors behind us, and the smell of acrid burning became more noticeable as he drew near.

It was then that one of the little dog-faced creatures drew a stubby blade and tried to stab me! Pi was stabbed as well, so at least it wasn't just me. I wondered if I had been impolite, so I tried an apology and introduced myself to the creature. It seemed to just be wild-eyed and drool dripped from its jaws, so I wasn't sure that I was getting through to it.

Pi reacted more violently, turning a bright red colour and swinging his warhammer down onto the one that had stabbed him. There was a sickening crunch, and the thing collapsed into a crumpled mess on the floor. Almost as soon as Pi lifted his warhammer, though, the bits of the body started to come together and reform - what bad air could cause such a thing?!

The Saloroc attacked Pi, his blow clanging loudly against Pi's armour but failing to penetrate the thick metal. A bolt of ice formed in front of Xlotl and streaked into the Saloroc, making him stagger backwards. It was clear that Xlotl wanted us to fight, so I struck at the one that had attacked me, using the air to harden the blow as the way of Kahkohneyinn taught us, and it was knocked unconscious by the force of the air.

I felt the heat as the Fire drew closer still, stepping away as Pi started to smoulder slightly. One of the dog creatures just combusted as it lingered too long, dropping to the floor in agony. I asked Xlotl for his guidance, but I was beginning to suspect that he wasn't the emissary that I was seeking, and he just said that I should defend myself. I struck another of the dog creatures that was attacking me, leaving that unconscious as well, hoping not to kill any if I could avoid it.

Antinniera finally recovered from her sickness and shouted at Xlotl to leave her alone and get out of her circle. I wasn't sure whether she was angry, confused, or both, but she had a stormy temper, so I decided to keep away from her for now. Xlotl gently lowered her to the ground and relaxed his coils to release her, showing no emotion... although I'm not sure how to tell the emotional state of a Coatl.

More immediately of concern, though, was that the body of the doglike creature that had been consumed by fire had melted into the floor, leaving a liquid pool behind. Surely this wasn't supposed to happen? As I stepped around it, Pi was stabbed in the back by the second Saloroc with a longsword! That just wasn't nice. I reached out with my hand and with a flurry managed to focus my mind and give Pi enough energy to recover his feet. He jumped to his feet and cried out: "everybody stop"! For a moment it looked like it might work, but then the Kobolds darted forward again. Instead he started praying to someone called "Lord Admir", but that just disturbed the air even more.

I struck at the Saloroc that had stabbed Pi in the back, the air around my fist blasting into him with some force, but not enough to fell him. Antinniera ran towards us, gripping a long pole with a pointed end and what looked like a axe blade near the top. She was about my height with long, brown hair and piercing green eyes; her skin was tanned, and her shoulders broad and muscular. She wore plain leather armour with a bow across her back and a buckler on one arm. Behind her, Xlotl soared into the combat from the raised platform, using their wings to extend their leap and biting down into a Kobold, picking it up bodily and spitting it back down at the floor. I heard a voice in my mind say: "there is nowhere for their souls to go!", possibly that is why the bodies were changing?

The stone double doors swung open as the Fire reached them, revealing a glimpse of scrubby grassland beyond them. I was still focused on one of the Saloroc, but missed with my next blow and was punished for over-committing with a stab into my side. Pi called out that something was not right - no disagreement there - and then shouted "Boo!" at one of the foe, with no obvious effect. Xlotl bit another, dropping that to the ground as well, as one of the bodies started smouldering before erupting into a cloud of ash and smoke.

I managed to waft the smoke away, dodging backwards, but it seemed to affect some of the Kobolds and Xlotl that were too close to avoid it. I punched the Saloroc attacking Pi again, and this time it was enough to knock him down, clearly out cold. Pi tried another ruse, pointing behind a foe and saying: "what's behind you?" It twitched, but then stabbed him anyway. They didn't seem to be in the mood for entertainment.

Antinniera cut into one with a slow, but powerful, arc of the axe head. Her foe collapsed, blood spurting everywhere, but then the blood started to flow back into the body! I breezed into a gap and struck the other Saloroc, dropping him to the floor unconscious with his companion. Flame erupted from Antinniera's hands, consuming one; as it collapsed, though, ice started to form around it. Was the way the body died important to what happened to it?

Xlotl recovered from the smoke cloud, swooping around to bite another Kobold. When that one dropped it burst into flames! Pi smacked a foe with his warhammer, and the colour drained from its face with the pain. Just then, the one that had frozen exploded and sent shards of ice flying everywhere. Antinniera was caught in the spray, passing out with the pain, so I stepped over to revive her. Xlotl picked her up again when she showed signs of life, but as soon as she was on her feet she ran back towards the raised area.

One of the fallen stood back up, having come back to some semblance of life, and clawed at Pi. The claws scraped off his armour painlessly, though, and Pi muttered some words, holding out his hand and making it flinch backwards. I needed to focus on my own fight, though, as I was struck a glancing blow. There was so much strangeness to witness for Lord Aerganion!

Antinniera was picking things off the floor back where the star was, including the part of the gem left by the worm and the black sword the pale-skinned leader had dropped in the explosion when he gem was split. It seemed to cause her pain even to hold it, so she quickly stowed it within the straps on her back. Xlotl bit another foe, and again the body combusted... speaking of which, the last one that burst into flames had turned into a small elemental Fire creature! Xlotl said to leave that one to him, though, and Pi seemed to have some dominance over his opponent, forcing it back simply with words.

I moved away from those fighting with me, calling on the air itself to defend me. With a thunderous clap the air responded to my movements, flowing down and slamming outwards, knocking the foes back. One was killed, actually for the second time it seemed, and for the first time I saw the air swirling in a clear pattern around it.

Xlotl bit down on the fire creature, ice forming where they connected, and the Fire dissolved into nothing. A second one formed, though, from the other body and Xlotl had to recoil from it. Pi picked up a sword from one of the fallen Saloroc and threw it towards this new threat, somehow managing to spin it perfectly so the blade cut into it, and just like that it was extinguished.

For the first time since the fight started there was calm. I optimistically looked to the air again, hoping that it had improved, but it was still chaotic and lacking focus. The others were introducing themselves, and it was then that I learned all of their names. Xlotl bowed to Pi, which surprised me - apparently he was not human, even though he looked it to us. He hadn't acted much like a human, that was for sure.

Sadly Xlotl was not the emissary, and now I wasn't sure how we were to get back home. I didn't even know where we were! This was supposed to be where all winds started, and life for that matter, but it was in chaos and pretty lifeless. I doubted any wind could find a direction to blow in this air. Antinniera and Pi both served someone called "Lord Admir", although I didn't recognise the name. They were seeking Antiva, the bringer of life. This was apparently a gem, of which Antinniera now had half, but the other half had been carried off by a stone worm.

There were six gems at one point, four were taken by the elementals and one split by the dark elf, but one was missing - Xlotl said that the gem of Death had been taken by Verlon already. Verlon was the Prince of the pale-skinned ones, servant of chaos and death. The order of the gems should have been Air - Life - Water - Earth - Death - Fire in a clockwise direction, but now all were gone.

The stone doors were curious, though, being the only original doors here. They were marked with eight-pointed stars, which made me think what happened to the other two points! I headed back to the centre of the room, where Pi and I had appeared, to investigate. Pi seemed bored already, and went out of the doors to see what was outside. He found scrub that was almost dead, and it was dusty and warm in the sunlight. Antinniera looked behind one of the makeshift doors off to the side, finding a rough living area that the Saloroc and/or Kobolds must have used.

I was right! When I searched the centre of the room, having to get on my hands and knees to do so, I found faint marks where once an eight-pointed star had been embossed. Why had they changed it? Xlotl was near the newer, six-pointed star, which looked much clearer. The old star had been ancient, but this look recent. The new symbology was fairly clear - the elements were marked, and life and death were the same but one was the reverse of the other. Xlotl warned that the black glass circle was trying to draw him in, so the weak-willed should stay away from it.

The Compass and an Eventful Journey

Antinniera and Xlotl were deep in discussion over an artifact, a compass, that could show the way to Antiva. It had belonged to Antinniera’s mentor, but he had never got it to work for him. Pi tried placing it in the centre of the old star pattern and orientating it in different ways to see if there was a reaction. I couldn’t resist, when he placed it to point towards where Air was on the new star, having a little fun and blowing the compass towards the edge of the pattern. I confessed before anyone read too much into it, but it was funny to see them think they had found a way to use it. The truth was that there was no reaction, and Antinniera recalled being told that it would respond to life energy.

Xlotl pushed the compass back into the centre, floating it above the floor, which was impressive. More importantly, Xlotl appeared to find a way to connect with the compass. It was indicating that what we sought was in the direction of one of the corners of the room, but apparently it also indicated that the way we needed to go was through the double doors. I jogged ahead and stepped outside, interested to see if the air was different. There was a wall around a compound outside the temple, although it wasn’t in a great state of repair, but there were also more Saloroc and Kobolds within the compound, as I found out when a crossbow bolt slammed into my chest!

I staggered back inside, slumping against the wall to one side and warned the others. Pi was able to heal the wound, which I was grateful for, and Antinniera stepped back from the doors saying that we seemed to be surrounded. With my wound healed, though, I preferred to move like the wind and not stay still like dead air. I raised a disturbance of air around myself and jogged out, headed to one side where one group of the foes had positioned themselves. Pi tried something different, changing into a perfect imitation of one of the pale-skinned creatures. He stepped out and announced loudly that everyone should just leave and let him handle things in the temple. Neither of our approaches was particularly successful, as we both got hit by crossbow bolts!

I kept moving, and found that I was quickly swarmed by Kobolds, with one blade finding its mark. Pi was swarmed too, and a blade also found its mark despite his armour. Antinniera kept back and loosed an arrow, flooring one of the Saloroc with a powerful strike to its torso. Pi crushed a Kobold with his warhammer, which started to melt into water, and Antinniera leapt over the puddle to join the fray, having dropped her bow. I called on the air to defend me again, throwing three of the foes back and away from me, one starting to dissolve into mud where they fell. Pi smashed another one down but was stabbed again and now looked like he was struggling. One of the creatures I had forced back rose to their feet again, looking very unwell. Nothing wanted to stay dead!

Antinneria slashed with her polearm now that she was in the melee, and two more fell. I took out Calm and Storm to fight my two opponents, successfully distracting them enough to cut the throat of one… but again it seemed like it didn’t want to die! I cut it down again, and this time it stayed dead. Antinniera rushed the last crossbow holder, swinging a powerful blow that cut the Saloroc in half. The body immediately started to freeze, and Antinniera moved away, knowing that the last body to freeze exploded. Pi moved up behind the last foe and smashed it down with his warhammer. It seemed that killing them twice seemed to work whenever they refused to lie down.

I took a moment to check the air, sensing a still area nearby, but then recognised it was Xlotl. He was invisible to most eyes, but whenever he moved, I could see the air move around him. We moved up to the exit of the compound and could see some of the lay of the land around us for the first time. We were on a plateau with a track leading down to lower ground ahead of us. The ground was lower all around the temple area but fell away much more steeply to the sides away from the path. It was clear that we were on an island that was narrow but long, and we could see the far shore on both sides. It looked like the island had been a grassy forest, but all the vegetation now looked nearly dead. The trees were devoid of leaves, and there was no fresh green anywhere in sight. Beyond the water around the island, on the right side we could see hills rising, but on the left was a forested plain and a structure of some kind that punctuated the cliffs. That seemed like the best place to head for… assuming we could find a way to cross the water.

We were all sore and wounded from the fight, and we had no idea what we might yet face, so we decided to rest for the night while we had somewhere that was easy to defend. Pi volunteered to keep watch all night, which seemed strange, but it didn’t seem to bother him. He was kind enough to heal my wounds in the morning as well, so I felt quite refreshed when we eventually set off. We followed the trail, as indicated by the compass; we had discovered that the compass sometimes responded to any one of us, but not always, and it was Pi that carried it that morning. As we had noted the day before, the vegetation was dying all around us, but it looked like it had happened quite recently because the leaves had grown before withering and were still attached to the trees and shrubs. It didn’t look natural, that was for sure. I was glad to see an eagle circling high overhead, but there were no other signs or sounds of life as we moved through the forest, or what was left of it. We began to pick up a few signs as we got closer to the water level, although it was still predominantly dead.

The trees started to thin even more as we approached the shoreline, and we could see two crude-looking longboats hauled up on the beach up ahead. They were still some way off, so Xlotl went on ahead (he was still invisible) as we walked more steadily towards them. When he was much closer, he whistled to get someone’s attention, and a Saloroc popped their head up from one of the vessels. He noticed us approaching, although we were still half a mile or so away, and he shouted an alarm. Antinneria sprinted forward for some reason; had she misjudged the distance? I used the air to move quickly and keep pace until she slowed, with Pi not far behind. I suggested that perhaps we shouldn’t look too aggressive as we approached, as we wanted to avoid a fight if we could. She did not heed my words, though, and sprinted off again, this time with Pi matching her pace. I think they were just racing each other at this point and seemed to have forgotten about the boats!

Meanwhile, Xlotl spoke to the alerted Saloroc to try and calm them, but they wouldn’t trust someone they could not see, and just demanded that whoever was talking should show themselves. They were preparing a firing line of archers as we approached, although were in no particular hurry. Xlotl slid into the water, which seemed to be comfortable for him, unnoticed by the Saloroc.

Pi was winning the "race", as Antinniera stopped again to catch her breath. I waited with her and called to Pi, who obligingly slowed down. As soon as she was able, though, Antinniera ran off again. I jogged behind and again asked that people calm down as we didn’t want the sailors to think we were attacking them. Pi said that he needed to run, so I suggested that he tried running sideways to appear less threatening. Only too happy to help, Pi turned sideways and started side-stepping in the same direction. He was certainly a strange one.

When we were within four hundred yards or so, Pi called out that we were friends, although the charging warrior next to him was probably not selling that idea to the Saloroc. As we entered bow range, a brazier "fell over" in the boat, probably helped by Xlotl, and the vessel almost immediately started to catch fire! Pi said a prayer, which he assured us would aid and protect us, whilst half of the Saloroc started to push the other boat out to keep it safe.

Some of the archers had held the line, though, and a warning volley thudded into the ground ahead of Antinniera. About the same time, a cloud of steam erupted from the burning boat as if water had been sprayed onto the fire – which I also put down to Xlotl, perhaps a master of water? The Saloroc shouted for us to stay back, to which I simply replied “OK”. They did seem to be dealing with quite a lot, after all.

Antinniera shouted back: "but we need your boat"! Whilst true, this perhaps did not help to diffuse the tension. I tried asking if we had come at a bad time, but there was no answer. Pi ran forward anyway, despite the warnings, and the only thing that prevented him from being an immediate target was a sudden downpour of rain that just fell on the line of archers out of nowhere. Xlotl was certainly up to something!

Antinniera didn’t wait, though, loosing an arrow at them. It fell short, but they responded by attacking Pi, as he was the closest, and one arrow found its mark. Xlotl suddenly appeared in the moving boat, wings flapping, and air buffeted the Saloroc, knocking one into the water and leaving another clinging to the side. Pi surprised us all by changed his form into a Saloroc, calling out that his spell had worn off and that he was one of them! I suspected it was a ruse, having seen him change before, but I didn’t have long to think about it as two arrows clipped me – the Saloroc had switched targets.

Xlotl jumped off the boat again, getting punched on the way, and I was struck with another arrow. I used the air to run as fast as I could, closing down on the archers so they couldn’t keep firing at range. Pi started running… this time away from Antinniera, who now suspected him of being in league with the enemy!

Xlotl pulled another Saloroc off the boat, and both Pi and Antinniera closed up with me, ready to fight in melee. One of the Saloroc just dropped to his knees in front of Antinniera, clearly intimidated, so she put her foot on his head and pushed it into the sand, getting no resistance. Pi smashed his warhammer into one of the foes fighting me, crushing it with the force of the blow, and its body started dissolving into water.

Xlotl got back into the boat and threw one Saloroc into the side, winding him, whilst coiling around their leader to pin him. Xlotl quickly followed up, tipping one over the side and stunning another. I punched my foe, staggering him, but then a tentacle of water reached out of the puddle that had formed and grabbed my ankle. As soon as it had me, it froze and an icy chill made me shiver involuntarily.

Xlotl battered another Saloroc off the boat, whilst still constricting one. I hit my foe with another punch, knocking him senseless, but I couldn’t pull my leg free of the ice. Another tentacle reached out for my other leg, and I passed out as the chill spread up my body. Pi crushed his foe, twice because it kept twitching and he didn’t want it to come back, then grabbed my shoulders to stop me sinking into the ice.

Antinniera had joined Xlotl in the boat and grabbed a Saloroc that Xlotl had stunned. She couldn’t lift him out of the boat, though, as she slipped on the wet boards. Pi used a prayer to heal me, keeping me alive but not able to revive me. Antinniera found her feet then and hoisted the Saloroc into the water. Xlotl simply slithered over the side and plopped into the water, still gripping the Saloroc leader. It was a while before they resurfaced, with the Saloroc spluttering and gasping for air when they did. Pi could just make out the leader shouting “take the fucking boat” when he could speak again! Xlotl left him splashing in the water.

Pi finally hauled me out and managed to revive me, for which I was very grateful. After a moment, I stepped over and took a look at the boat that was still on the shore. It was charred but intact, but as I looked it over the Saloroc leader hauled himself into the far end out of the water. He looked very unimpressed with the whole situation. I apologised for the misunderstanding, but he made it quite clear that he just wanted us to “fuck off” with the other boat and leave him alone.

Pi, directed by Antinniera, had reached her bags. She had wisely left them before entering the water, and had kept some drafts of an unknown liquid she had found in the temple within her pack. She wondered whether they might help to heal our wounds. Pi passed me a piece of chalk, asking me to choose a hand and keep it behind my back. This was unusual, but I went along with it. He picked the wrong hand, though, and as a result decided not to drink the liquid, passing it to me instead.

I had no idea what it was, so I wasn’t about to drink it, but I asked the Saloroc if I could offer it to him by way of some compensation. He simply said “yes” and drank deeply from it! Antinniera seemed a little upset that I had given it away, but I pointed out that it was not ours in the first place. She didn’t seem happy with my logic, though.

We gathered our things and boarded the boat that the Saloroc had kindly invited us to “fuck off” in. We discussed what was happening to bodies when people were killed for a moment, although we couldn’t really work out why. Antinniera was still unsure whether Pi was friend or foe, so I described how he had saved my life, which made him a friend as far as I was concerned. I also asked why we had to be so violent all of the time – if we had done as the Saloroc had asked and just waited we might have been able to explain our position and ask for their aid.

Pi eventually decided that he wasn’t welcome, or perhaps even safe, around Antinniera and simply disappeared! I bowed my head and a sad, lamenting noise played through the ropes of the boat as I wondered whether we would see him again. Xlotl tried to pick up my mood, saying that I was more than just a messenger now, and perhaps I should try to connect with Lord Aergarnion. The very idea shocked me, but I reached out to sense the air again. It was so chaotic, though, that I couldn’t “see” beyond where we were right then, let alone reach into another Realm!

We rowed slowly around the island, those of us with arms anyway! I was relieved when, after a while, Pi reappeared. Unfortunately for him, he appeared in the water beside the boat and not in it! Just as he did so, Xlotl warned that he had seen a water creature keeping pace with the boat on the other side. Xlotl splashed into the water, taking hold of Pi to keep him from sinking in his heavy armour. At the same time, I tried speaking to the water shape in Common Elemental, hailing it and asking what its intentions were. All I got in return, though, was a little splash and the boat being bumped.

Xlotl spoke to it through the water, but it was clear that the elemental was single-minded in its obsession with the gem that Antinniera was carrying. It just said "Mine!" repeatedly, and the water started to slam into the side of the boat with more force. Pi had managed to grab hold of an oar that Antinniera was offering him, and climbed into the boat, but some of the boards were starting to crack and splinter under the assault from the water creature.

Pi didn't seem phased by his appearance in the water, and apparently had communed with Admir directly! I politely acknowledged that this was good... but we were under attack! He tried concentrating for a moment, but nothing seemed to happen and then another blow from the water smashed a hole into the side of the boat, thakfully above the water line. This was quickly followed by another strike that made it worse, and a splinter of wood drew blood from Antinniera.

Pi healed the wound, saying that "trust has to be earned", although I wasn't sure whether he was trying to earn her trust or asking her to show her worth. Xlotl was still trying to speak to the creature that was attacking, but wasn't even getting a response at this point. Pi picked up a basket that had been left in the bottom of the boat and lobbed it over the side, somehow arcing it perfectly so that it struck the centre of our attacker. It was disrupted for a moment, but quickly reformed.

It ducked under the boat, possibly because Antinniera was on the other side, emerging close to her and lashing out again. This time the water struck her directly, and almost unbalanced her. It seemed to want to knock her into the water, which made sense. Xlotl swam towards it, emerging to try and engage it but missing. Pi fell off the boat! Thankfully it seemed deliberate, as he turned into a shark and quickly swam to assist Xlotl.

Another jet of water caught Antinneria, and this time slammed her against the side of the boat. She caught her head and fell unconscious, luckily staying inside the boat for now. Shark-Pi bit the creature a couple of times, swift in this new form of his, and I knelt by Antinniera and revived her with a burst of energy.

Whether worried about her own safety, or trying to save the hull of the boat, Antinniera decided that she should start climbing the mast! She did well, to be honest, getting about ten feet up using the ropes for grip. Xlotl, though, bit the creature and hurt it badly, manging to wrap coils around and constrain it. It just wanted to take the stone to his Lord, but Xlotl convinced it that the stone was being protected (having a chunk bitten out of you and a snake coiled around you can be very convincing). When Xlotl released it, the creature sank into the water and we never saw it again. Pi returned to a human form, joining us in the boat, and we continued rowing without any additional interruptions.

We soon approached the structure we had seen from the island. The dock appeared run down and abandoned, and we softly crashed into the jetty so that we could scramble out. I tied the boat to the jetty, although it was looking a little worse for wear now, and we searching the structure for anything of use. We did find some more of the potions the Saloroc had used, so we shared them between us. There were also some live insects that Xlotl and I were able to catch and eat, giving a brief sense of normality before we had to move on.

Pi told us that the compass was directing us up a path that led away from the jetty up the slope. We had only gone a couple of hundred yards, though, we we saw what looked like a pile of bodies on the path up ahead. Antinniera ran off the path suddenly, calling out that she had "found it". She had seen one of the worms that had emerged in the temple and grabbed the other half of the stone. It was ready for her, though, and bit into her leg as it rose from the earth. Antinniera passed out from the pain, and the worm dragged part of her leg into the soil.

Pi and I rushed over; he focused on healing her first, but then we both pulled until we were able to rip her leg free. We had to do this a second time, though, as the worm latched on to her again! Antinniera started stabbing at the ground madly, which just led to her being bitten again, even though we were shouting at her to get back on the path. She seemed to have this objectionable habit of refusing to listen to others or do what they suggested! Pi even tried to carry her back, but couldn't get hold of her as she was focused on stabbing into the earth again and again. At one point she did seem to connect with something, but that just encouraged her to keep doing it!

Xlotl had joined us by this point, and used his mind to blast the earth, which I certainly felt, and gave me a headache for a minute or so. A few minutes passed after this without incident, giving us hope that the threat had passed. Antinniera still didn't get back to the path like we had suggested, though! We continued, leaving her for a few moments, and found that there had been a battle up ahead. The pale-skinned tall creatures, Saloroc, and Kobolds had fought, and bodies of all of them were lying dead on and around the path.

Antinniera was finally taking the hint and moving up to join us as I reached this scene. The air itself seemed dead here, so I decided to walk around where the bodies laid... but doing so meant that I was attacked by one of the worms! It was my turn to pass out in pain, although Antinniera was able to pull my leg out. This time it left a hole, though, perhaps because it had already let go and was moving on to another target.

Xlotl attacked the earth with his mind again, then seemed happy with the result. Once he had done this, he made a flask of potion appear from nowhere and it moved towards Pi, who was happy to take it.

I was revived by Pi. Sespite his strange nature, I appreciated his help and attention; it felt as if I could grow to like him and his wild naivety. He helped me back to the path, and this time we were able to walk on for hours without being disturbed. Towards the end of the day we reached an actual forest with green leaves! This sign of life was uplifting, but it did make the path harder to follow.

We made camp for the night, with Pi again keeping watch. He woke us early in the morning, warning that something was moving nearby. I sensed some good air at last, so I went to investigate. Pi woke Antinniera as well, and she tried to climb the tree to reach Xlotl. She ended up falling before she could reach him, though. Pi shouted something loudly, but that didn't wake Xlotl either.

Meanwhile I spotted someone moving through the trees, so I started to greet them but suddenly found a sword was at my throat! A voice whispered that they had come for the sword, and from the look of the hand they were more of the pale-skinned pointy-eared people. I realised they meant the black sword that Antinniera had picked up, so I sent a warning to Xlotl with my mind and called for Antinniera to bring the sword over to me quickly.

I tried to use a burst of air to push him away so that I could escape, but his sword barely waivered and it bit into my neck as I turned and ran. These people meant business! I suggested to Antinniera that this fight wasn't one we could win, so she should consider just giving them the sword. She wasn't keen on the idea, though, which wasn't really a surprise. One appeared right next to her, ordering her to stop as they held their sword out... but then they just dropped dead! Having said that, they then slowly climbed to their feet and stood staring into the air. Maybe they weren't dead, then? It wasn't clear.

Despite this turn of fate, we were hopelessly outmatched. Thankfully Antinniera changed her mind and placed the sword down. One of them picked it up, used it to kill their companion that was just staring into space, then slashed the air with it to open a way to another Realm, and they stepped through quickly to leave us. It was a strange encounter, but I suppose it was inevitable that they would come for the artifact at some point.

We took some time to heal the wounds some of us had sustained, and then set out to follow the compass again. We actually had a day of travel that didn't involve any more fighting, which was nice! We reached a line of hills and the compass led us to turn and follow them but staying witin the forest. When the light began to fade we rested again, and this time managed a good night's sleep.

The Surprisingly Unnecessary Fight

The next day, as we were still traveling through the forest, Xlotl warned of Kobolds up ahead, quite close, and we could hear the sound of yapping and hollering from our right. Most of us took cover, but Antinniera just kept wandering forwards. There was at least one Saloroc with the Kobolds, directing them as usual.

The Saloroc was wary of Antinniera, but seemed happy when he found out that she served Lord Admir. In fact, the whole patrol were going to pass peacefully, but Antinneria had to have the last word. I can't even remember what was said, but she was basically insisting that they were only "allowed" to pass with her permission. The Saloroc was wound up by this, and it was all starting to kick off! I tried rustling some leaves nearby to distract her, which did seem to de-escalate the situation slightly. Xlotl also reported that he had noticed a pale-skinned short humanoid (not the same as the tall ones we had seen before) stroking one of the worms that had taken the gem shard, and that it was on the hillside to our right.

At that moment, though, Antinniera dropped to the ground without a sound! Alarmed, I ran over to see if she needed help. This startled the Saloroc, though, and he ordered me to stay still. I explained that I was just trying to help my companion, but he kept threatening me if I didn't stay still. Frustrated, and not knowing whether Antinniera was in danger, I Ran forward and punched him instead!

This caused the Kobolds to go into a frenzy, rushing to attack. Xlotl sent an ice bolt shooting into one of them, although it didn't seem to do much damage. Pi leapt into air, transforming into an eagle and soaring into flight! I punched one unconscious, and then was surprised to see Antinniera jump up (apparently unhurt), grab the Saloroc and kiss it on the head! She told him to stop fighting, but he tried to headbutt her, apparently not convinced.

There was lots of shouting between us and the Saloroc, but we did at least seem to agree that we should back off as fighting wasn't helping anyone. Unfortunately the Kobolds didn't get the message and one stabbed me, causing me to pass out with blood loss. Xlotl rushed forwards, terrifying all of the foe, and bit deeply into the one that had attacked me, killing it outright.

Pi, as an eagle, soared over the hillside and spotted the pale, short figure and the worm. As he watched they both sank into the ground out of sight. He banked back towards the forest, screeching. Despite what had just happened, both sides on the ground were starting to back away from each other. That was until the eagle dived onto the Saloroc and its talons left one lying on the floor bleeding.

Antinniera managed to force some of the healing liquid down my throat, and I woke up spluttering. I saw the majestic eagle flaring its wings as it turned to climb, so I jumped up and rushed towards it, crying: "Are you the emissary? Are you here to take me away?" As it flew off, I heard it say "I might be"... but then Xlotl stilled my excitement by telling me it was just Pi in a new form.

The moment was well and truely lost when the other Saloroc loosed an arrow that pierced eagle Pi right through his body. He tumbled to the ground, turning back into human form as he fell. The Saloroc was overjoyed, asking if we had seen what a shot that was! To be fair, it was a good shot. Unfortunately, Antinniera lost her patience and ran behind the growling Kobolds, flames suddenly shooting from her hands and engulfing the unsuspecting creatures. One died at once, and one looked a little charred but still standing.

I ran to look at Pi's body; I had never seen a body so broken, with all the bits smashed and caved it, but somehow there was still some sign of life, with blood still spurting from some of the wounds. I tried healing him, which didn't do much, but I did feel some transfer of energy so it might still be possible to save him. I had no idea how much power it would take, though.

I jogged back to the others, explaining that his body was broken but somehow still had some life. Xlotl intimidated the last of the foe, and they wisely chose to leave in a hurry. There was just one left, which had reanimated after being killed. We fought badly, but eventually I was able to cut it down from behind as the others kept it busy.

Alone at last, we all moved to Pi's side, noticing a figure sinking into the earth near him as we approached. Could we try the stone of life, we though? I noticed that the air was particularly chaotic around the stone, and it seemed to have spread to Antinniera as well, and she certainly wasn't happy to part with the stone when Xlotl asked for it. I let Xlotl know my suspicions, and between us we were able to trick her; Xlotl whipped it out of her hands with his mental powers, throwing it at me as he did so. I was able to catch it, but it wouldn't respond to me either and then Xlotl had to force it out of my hands too!

Finally, Xlotl tried to use it himself and had more luck. The stone responded to him, and we saw Pi's body knitting back together before our eyes! After a minute he was whole and awoke with a start.

I was overjoyed to see him live, giving him a hug and excitedly asking about his flight and how it felt. To soar through the air with your own wings must be incredible. The others seemed more interested in how the stone had worked, and the effect it had on some of us. Pi ended up giving Xlotl a turban which he could wear with the stone nestled inside atop his head.

We continued to travel what we reckoned was west, and came across a cart track towards the end of the day. The track crossed our path, running from north to south, and Antinniera got quite excited that it was one she recognised - apparently it linked her temple with a nearby town. We crossed over, as the compass was still directing us west, and found a spot in the forest to rest for the night.

Most of the night passed uneventfully, but in the early morning Pi heard something close by and woke me. I stood with him, listening, but could not heard anything out of the ordinary. I did sense that he air was moving slightly, though - the first hint of a breeze, however faint, was very welcome! With nothing else happening, though, I returned to my feathered mat to rest and left Pi as sentinel as usual.

About half an hour later, Pi's leg was grabbed from within the earth - not by a worm, but by a hand! Pi managed to stomp on it with his other foot, crushing it slightly before it sank into the ground again. He hurriedly moved back to the tree we were resting against, standing on a root to stop any hands from grabbing him again, but nothing returned. He did spend the rest of the night watching nervously, though.

The next day was quite pleasant, and we traveled through the forest whilst deciding to avoid any patrols (which we could hear some way off due to the yapping of Kobolds). It was a relief to pass peacefully, even if our progress was slowed slightly. Towards the end of the day, we reached a body of water with a structure projecting into the water from the shoreline. Antinniera recognised it as an abandoned moathouse that once guarded the waterway here. It seemed the water was flowing slowly from our left to right.

Stone, Air, Death and Pervading Chaos

Move into cover and watch, and see an orc and kobolds approach the structure and walk through the doors, which were ajar. Flashes of light just seen from within, but not sure what or why. Xlotl scouted ahead invisible, finding a hole that he might enter through to the right - had to enter through the water, and noticed a tentacled beast beneath the drawbridge, although curled up and resting.

Xlotl found a way in, but just a room with large rats inside, although did hear something in Elemental Air telling someone else to stop. Returned to water and saw a strange translucent creature slide out of the crumbled wall and into the water, moving quickly towards him. He turned the corner to get behind the moathouse, noticing that there was still flashing of light inside. Returned to us to consider our options.

Antinniera starts distracting them loudly from the door. Xlotl smacks at wooden cover over gap and it collapsed impressively. Door closed on Antinniera who was being quite annoying. Orc looks out of gap where Xlotl was, and he could see they had barred themselves in and looked like they had been fighting.

I jump over channel and scale the wall easily. Some roofing, some better than others, but no second storey. Courtyard near the door. I loop rope around crennelation and try to throw it to Pi, but not a great throw. Second throw works, and Pi swings over with a bit of a splash and climbs up to join me. Move along the walls, but do get seen. A yapping sound and then an orc shouted "Good luck"! Not worrying at all.

Antinniera started swimming towards where Xlotl was as we went along the wall. Xlotl in the room antagonising the survivors, although still invisible. Better state of wall on far side, so closing on corner as Antinniera reaches the breach. Pi says that what we seek is straight down from us, but want to find the others first if we can.

Antinniera makes an entrance, they're keen on her going through the door or leaving, didn't want to underestimate her after all. Something appeared out of the air and they are terrified of it. We start to see a massive air elemental made of storms, lightning occassionally arcing off it. One bolt near me, and another blows the door off and into Antinniera.

The Air emmissary is here! Holding the stone. We must stop them Ginperbonreaper - chaos here is too much then elemental explodes through ceiling with him following. We must stop them, kill them if you must. Drop down into room full of scorch marks. Follow compass into corner and find stairs leading down steeply with light from below.

Pi emerges into room with orcs, who challenge him and draw weapons. Tries to say we are friends, but ignored "don't belong here". Start fighting, so I rush down and punch one, fairly ineffectually. There are four orcs, though, and Antinniera joins so we are in a semi-circle.

Antinniera inexplicably waving buckler around and then gets stabbed and falls. Pi crushes one with a warhammer, with body turning to dust as it falls. I fight with Storm and Calm, and each manage to hit in turn, blood spurts but again the blood and body turn to dust as it falls. I join Pi in combat, scratching one that Pi then smashed with his hammer, again turned to dust. Then Pi smashes the last one and it turned to dust.

Antinniera remembers that she needs her pack, which she left on the edge of the forest. Xlotl will retrieve it. Have to wait. Prison cell like corridor in one corner. Strange arrow-slit like depressions in one wall, but still stone within. Two doors on the other side.

Pi calms down, but two more orcs come out of guard area, slits opening. Call me an abomination and demand I leave before rest can pass, but Pi not having it so a fight breaks out. Antinniera tries talking too, but still ends up stabbing one. Pi and Antinniera slaughter the two that wouldn't comply. I blow their dust out of the corner and step in, out of the firing line. Pi looked down in interest and got a faceful.

Eventually Xlotl joins us. Pi barged door down in one hit and we rushed in. Pi smashed down one foe and I slashed another. They unload crossbow bolts and point blank range, and Storm whipped across my face and deflected it! Antinniera stabbed one and that crumbled to dust too. Antinniera whacks the last one with a buckler and knocks him out.