THE DIRGE OF DISSOLUTION by Jericho Fel

This forum contains articles, research papers, novels, histories, dictionaries, poems, prayer books... everything you'd find in a library.
Post Reply
shine_a_light
Posts: 62
Joined: Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:10 pm

THE DIRGE OF DISSOLUTION by Jericho Fel

Post by shine_a_light »

THE DIRGE OF DISSOLUTION by Jericho Fel

This tale begins, as many such tales do, within the dusty forgotten tomes of a library. It was a hushed and commonplace beginning for a series of events which would bring an entire demiplane to its knees, but that is where it began; almost as though Oghma himself raised a finger to his lips. There, in the library of Triumvir, a studious bard, Kurchin the Kobold, plumbed the pages of many a codex of lost lore, searching for information regarding an entity called the Vodak. He sought to prevent its summoning by a reckless Banite. As the gritty pages of a mouldering book, there our story unfolds.

The Library, now vanished into the Hells, was itself somewhat sentient, and featured an orb that would bring bookshelves to researchers with relevant material. It provided Kurchin with three ancient lexicons to read. The first two provided some little knowledge, though not enough to arm he and his allies against an entity such as the Vodak. The third, however, provided him with much more than he ever would have wished. Decomposed, much like an ancient corpse within a crypt, its pages seemed as liquid, and when he opened it, it when for his snout.

After a great paroxysm of coughing and sneezing, Kurchin recovered and managed to expel all the mucous-like sludge from his nostrils. Just then, his mentor, Elorathall came by, and the mucous-like substance attacked the second bard as well. After a similar fit, and a temporary loss of his voice, Elorathall seemed to recover. Kurchin reported to the Salandran Temple, where he was given a clean bill of health, while Elorathall stayed behind to continue the research. In the end, the would-be Banite summoner proved to be little threat, having been duped by a ‘sample of the Vodak’ that was nothing more that common swamp muck. All seemed well.

However, the seed had been planted. The entity that would come to be called the Neo-Vodak had lain in dormant slumber within that book for centuries, awaiting its opportunity to be released. It had infected Elorathall, unbeknownst to his pupil, Kurchin. All seemed well during the following weeks, as Kurchin, Elorathall and a number of other bards prepared the stage in Triumivr for a grand festival. However, the Neo-Vodak, wearing the body of Elorathall like a meat suit, began to single out and infect other bards and members of the Triumvir community; anyone he could get alone for a few moments. Its ancient and nebulous plans were coming to rotten fruition.

On the night of the festival, torches burned brightly throughout the heart of Triumvir. Bards great and novice travelled from across the land to attend and participate in the performance. A large crowd of spectators gathered in breathless anticipation of the performance. Children played and danced in the streets. The Demiplane of Music echoed with the sound of singers warming up with vocal exercises and instruments being tuned.

As the musicians began to perform, the evening was filled with the magic of Cantomancy. The night came alive with music and the audience laughed at bawdy songs, wept at ballads and were swept away by the ethereal beauty of the haunting melodies. However, this played right into the plans of the Neo-Vodak, and it glutted itself on the magical energy. It is uncertain whether it was part of the Neo-Vodak’s original nature or whether spending so long trapped in the Demiplane of Music had warped it so, but the being could feed on music and the emotions which it evoked, and was itself a powerful practitioner of Cantomancy. The festival gave it all the power it needed to assume its terrifying true form and begin its assimilation of Truimvir.

It was when a band of bards all possessed by the Neo-Vodak took the stage that all hell was released upon Triumvir. At first the music was merely discordant and inspired uneasiness in the listeners. As the music continued, this built to a sense of overwhelming dread. Survivors have reported feelings of dizziness, light headedness and nausea. Then, as the Neo-Vodak took on its physical form, the very laws of physics seemed to bend. Angles became odd, clear perceptions seemed impossible, and reality itself seemed to waver and liquify. Neo-Vodak mucus poured from the mouths, noses, and other orifices of the possessed bards, as they fell unconscious to the stage, and the puddle of slime collected into an immense blob that began attacking and devouring any bards it could find.

Elorathall and a few of the other possessed bards were rescued, but most were assimilated into the mind and amorphous body of the Neo-Vodak. The blob began attacking and absorbing any bard it could find, along with any bystander unlucky enough to find themselves in the path of the ravening ooze. Many died that terrible night. The spectators and surviving bards were forced to flee, fighting a delaying action so that the portal could be activated to flee the Demiplane, with no other means to leave. The survivors narrowly escaped dissolution at the slimy pseudopods of the Neo-Vodak.

A rallying cry was sent throughout the land, and a brave company of adventurers was assembled to return to Triumvir and fight the Neo-Vodak. Little did they know what awaited them on the other side of the portal. The Neo-Vodak had absorbed virtually all the biological life as it overwhelmed Triumvir, and had grown to gargantuan proportions. Even more deadly, it had reaped the songs and inspirations of all the bards it had absorbed, and as it was attacked, issued forth a masterful song which reached epic levels of Cantomancy. This song lulled any who heard it into rapt fascination, unable to fight or even flee as the Neo-Vodak dissolved and absorbed them. Many more brave adventurers were lost, and the company was forced to flee again. Afterwards, the Neo-Vodak completely overtook Triumvir, closing all portals to it’s newly taken realm.

Back in Amia, the surviving bards and their allies regrouped. Cantomatic countersongs were written and rehearsed that would allow any who participated in a renewed assault to resist the Neo-Vodak’s Dirge of Dissolution. Also, a means back into the sealed Demiplane of Triumvir was sought. Eventually, after much research, effective countersongs were prepared and a means of planar travel using ley lines was discovered. Scrying into Triumvir, the group were able to determine a safe point of arrival in Triumvir, though the Neo-Vodak sensed the incursion. Kurchin opened a portal rapidly, and the final battle commenced.

The battle was a protected and perilous affair. However, with the ability to resist its paralyzing song, the company of adventurers were able to attack and damage the Neo-Vodak’s amorphous body. They fought with flame, cold, acid and other magic. It was still a terrible foe, and the destruction of its massive form was a painstaking endeavor. However, in the end, after a titanic struggle, the company were able to overwhelm the Neo-Vodak and destroy it entirely, freeing Triumvir, and reopening portal travel. The Demiplane of Music was saved.

However, despite the victory, Triumvir has never recovered. Once a hub of art and music, it is now relegated to a planar way station, with cautious travellers rarely lingering long; its citizens and merchants nervous and wary and its taverns and cafes sitting largely empty. The great stage, once host to a wealth of fabulous musical performances, lays silent and unused, and large portions of the plane remain vacant and neglected. Kurchin the Kobold, the valiant hero of our story, hopes that one day Triumvir can again be returned to a thriving hub of art and music. However, he is a creature of great sorrow, and wears the guilt for the events related to the Neo-Vodak around his neck like and albatross, despite his obvious valor in the face of absolute horror.
Post Reply