Microsoft Zone Archive/Asheron's Lore/A Brief History for Travelers/Fever Dreams
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Original Link (now dead) - http://zone.msn.com/asheronscall/ASHEhistory02-02.asp
Fever Dreams
by Brent Schmidt
Turbine Entertainment Software
Dereth: Coldeve PY 13 / Earth: February 2002
After months of simply responding to events, Isparian adventurers were anxious for a chance to take the fight to the "enemy," whether that was Martine or some other force. While their enemy remained unseen, Coldeve did give them a chance to make their mark on the world. And Coldeve yielded clues to some of the land's oldest mysteries.
Surprising rumors quickly spread throughout Isparian lands of a new Tumerok town being established in the north of Osteth. Even more surprising was the rumor that Celdiseth the Archmage had taken one of the Tumeroks as an apprentice. Adventurers who followed these rumors and made the long journey to the northern wilds were quickly welcomed into the fledgling town by Aun Aulakhe, son of Aun Shimauri, and his friend Aun Tikakhe. Initially, Aulakhe directed all visitors to Tikakhe, who warmly received them. Tikakhe instructed them on how to craft a buadren, a magical Tumerok drum. Those who gathered the necessary components and, with Tikakhe's aid, crafted them into a buadren soon found that this exercise was a test of their worth, after which Aun Aulakhe took them into his confidence.
He began by telling them the tale of the great Aun Tumerok warrior, Aun Tanua. Many years before, Tanua had left Timaru in the hope of bringing the Hea Tumeroks back to the way of pure Tumeroks. He never returned from this journey, and many had given him up for dead. Aun Shimauri, however, sent his mind along the pathways of the Lightning-Sea (the Tumerok name for portal space) and felt a glimmer of Tanua's keh, or spirit. Apparently the Virindi had taken Tanua captive at the request of their loyal Hea Tumerok minions. Aun Aulakhe's father sent him out into the world to find a way to free Tanua. Now Aulakhe, after discovering a way to summon a portal to the place where Tanua was held, asked the Isparians to aid him in this quest.
Disturbing and horrific sights greeted those who entered the portal. Among these sights were Virindi creatures called Clusters, creatures of immense power. As they progressed, the adventurers found Lilitha, the long-lost hero and explorer. The manic ravings of her disturbed mind revealed that she had been captured by the Virindi years before and had been the subject of their twisted experiments. After exhausting all hope of freeing her, the adventurers progressed deeper and came across an even more amazing and unsettling discovery. Deep in the hidden recesses of the Virindi facility, they found two imprisoned Empyreans who shared visions of their lives before capture. Again, no way was found to release these captives, and the heroes continued on in their search for Aun Tanua. Eventually, their diligence was rewarded and Tanua was found, but his mind was in the same deranged state as the other captives they had encountered. They searched the area surrounding him, but with the same results as all the others: there was no way to release him.
However, before they had entered the portal he had summoned, Aun Aulakhe had given the adventurers an ember from the new town's fire. A tribal fire is a critical element of Tumerok life. They hold the belief that their council fires link the spirits of the people, past and present, no matter their location. With this small fragment of the fire, the adventurers were able to strengthen Tanua's mind momentarily. Before he slipped back into his deranged state, Tanua infused his spirit into the ember. Escaping with their lives, the adventurers gave Aulakhe this ember, and with this in hand, Aulakhe was able to join Tanua's spirit with the keh of his people. Although his physical form remained trapped, Tanua's spirit was now free to be among his people once more.
In another surprising turn of events, mages, traveling to the various magical Essences, discovered new portals leading to ancient Empyrean constructions. The Arcanum quickly commissioned explorers to map out these facilities and promised Writs of Refugee as rewards for any item brought back. Those brave enough to take on this challenge quickly found that these facilities were overrun with Olthoi, and--to the shock of many--elemental creatures of all varieties, including the never-before-seen elementals of Acid and Ice. Alongside these elementals were powerful Golems, including Pyreal Golems, which mages soon learned to dread. The few that returned reported untold numbers of traps designed to keep them out.
They also brought back prisms of pure elemental force. Unsure of what to make of these prisms, the Arcanum returned them to those that had found them. Through trial and error, the owners of these prisms found that they could be combined in such a way as to create powerful helms that granted the wearer unsurpassed resistance and agility. However, the question of who was behind these facilities, and what their purpose was, remained unanswered.
Along with these revelations and discoveries, Coldeve marked the return of two greatly sought-after items. Ever since Hoary Mattekars had been hunted to extinction, Isparians had been searching for something to match the qualities of the Hoary Mattekar robe. (Britana of Greenspire had come close with her work on Canscent Mattekar pelts, but this still wasn't a perfect copy of the original.) For some reason, Hoary Mattekars began appearing throughout Dereth during the month of Coldeve, to the rejoicing of many. While some wondered why these supposedly extinct creatures had reappeared in the land, most were more interested in how to find them. As if this joyous turn of events were not enough, the abilities of the Shadow Hunter armor smiths returned thanks to magics cast by Nuhmudira. The smiths were once more able to craft armor of outstanding quality and resilience. The return of these items, and successes in other parts of Dereth, gave many renewed hope that they would be able to face the challenges ahead.
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