part 1
The group arives at the Stepstones. They are greeted by an old man. “Help me!” The old man says. “My name Ren! My leg is broken and I can’t get up! I need to find my friend!” “I can help.” MC replies. Ren is suspicious. “You’re awfully concerned about a random stranger’s business, young one. Be careful, I may just mistake you for a hermit…” The MC is confused “Hermits are mean and they attack people.” “Hermits are not cool! and we are cool!” Iris shouts angrily. “ok” Ren says. “If you want to help me, climb up the Stepstones and reach Cirrus Island. Ask the sky people if anyone visit the island”
MC and Iris go up the Stepstones. Edward Kenton stays behind and cooks some fish with Ren. Reaching Cirrus Island, they go to ask the question. Iris instead asks about Ravenna and the MC gets lost in the Island The two return to each other. “Did you learn anything?” asks MC. “I asked if anybody knew about Ravenna, however they did not, I did hear something about a group of hooded figures dragging away a bleeding man with a strange Fork in them. They left down the Stepstones, refusing to answer anything the townspeople asked” replies Iris. “We should find out who they were.” says MC. Iris is confused. “Why? The townspeople said they had a logo that doesn’t sound like the Ravenna symbol.” The MC is sad. “We have to find out because the bleeding man might be Ren’s friend!” Iris sighs “Alright, but if they aren’t related to Ravenna I’m leaving.” The MC asks the townspeople for answers and meets a white man “hey… I overheard you talking about the hooded figures. Are you looking for them?” “Yeah.” replies MC “Look at Skycliff Island to the North-east of here. I heard some fighting over there before those guys came dragging that man through town.” replies the white man. “Thanks, but who are you?” asks MC “Neviro. By the way, if you’re going to that island, you’re going to need a skyship, the first skyships were invented by the great grandfather of Grant Cirro, who designed a hull that fits Skyalises, an arcanium device that absorb and repel the magic energy of the island clouds. The Cirro family has been refining the shape and placement of the sails until they designed the modern day skyship, which you can rent from the docks… but be wary, there are still hooded figures lurking in the sky somewhere. I didn’t see all of them leave.” MC is about to leave to Skycliff Island, but remembers that Edward Kenton is cooking fish. Reaching the bottom of the Stepstones, the four characters enjoy some cooked fish. MC explains what happened in Cirrus Island. “Mn… smack I see… if this tale of hooded figures and a strange fork is true, I fear my friend may be in grave danger.” “How do you know?” MC asks, confused. “A strange fork embedded inside of someone could only be a Devourer. That means that the person they were dragging away was the very person I was looking for. A man named Beringer.” replies Ren. “What are Devourers?” asks MC “I’ll tell you some other time. For now, go to Skycliff Island, beat up the hooded figures and take their cloaks. It is imperative that I learn what group the symbol belongs to, but I cannot climb the Stepstones because my leg is broken.” replies Ren. Reaching Skycliff Island, MC beats up the hooded figures. They all seemed suspicious, but they could never be hermits. Hermits don’t like people. Returning with their cloaks, MC gives the cloaks to Ren. “Ah, one of their cloaks. Well done. Let’s see this symbol…” “Interesting… I’ve seen this insignia somewhere before, but I can’t quite remember where… well, I believe you’ve helped me get all the information I need out of these sky islands. I had better go search for Beringer, he could be anywhere, and the information he carries is crucial to my cause.” Iris asks a question. “Wait, could the symbol be related to Ravenna in some way?” Ren replies. “Hm, Ravenna? Why, I don’t know… what might spark such a strange question?” “My father was taken by Ravenna, and hasn’t been seen since. Could it be related to this?” replies Iris. “I believe I can help figure that out in some way, but first we must discern the truth of this hooded group’s intentions, to determine if they are related to your situation at all. But where to start…” “Ah, I remember there being an ancient library in the sky South-west of Cirrus Island named The Myriad. Perhaps one of its books will explain the symbol and its origins, which would help both of us. MC, Help me up these Stepstones will you?” MC climbs up the Stepstones with Ren, leaving Edward Kenton all alone ): then sails to the Myriad. Iris is forgotten. Entering the Myriad, Ren grabs a book. “Ancient Symbols of the Sea Book” “A book. In a library?” “‘Ancient Symbols of the Sea’… That certainly sounds like it’d be helpful. Let’s take a look…” “The Order of Hermits? How is that possible? I haven’t encountered them in many years.” “What is the Order of Hermits?” asks MC.
“They were a group of hermits that was founded on the goal of unlocking the true power of hermits. They always spoke through letters and rarely grouped up to do stuff, despite the risks. The book says they died out two centuries ago.” replies Ren. MC finds the story odd. “I thought hermits hated people, and what were the risks?” Ren is surprised. “You don’t know? Hermits are evil people who explode when in large crowds.” MC thinks “I know a hermit. They were rude but they were not evil!” Ren continues. “Stronger hermits can survive in larger crowds. They do hate people but the Order of Hermits do not care if it is to become stronger.” “Anyways, I must go now. Beringer may already be dead, but I have to be there and control the damage” MC is sad. “Will we meet again?” “I’ll make sure of it. If you continue on your current path, you will become a powerful warrior someday. When that time comes, we will meet again, and I will tell you all my secrets. I thank you for your honest help, I was certainly wrong to assume you were my enemy from the start. Farewell for now.” replies Ren. MC returns to Cirrus island. “you’re back, did you find anything?” Iris says. MC replies. “The hooded figures are called the Order of Hermits, a group of hermits looking to unlock the true power of hermits.” “Hmm, never heard of them. I couldn’t get any more information out of the townspeople. Are they related to Ravenna at all?” replies Iris. “They could be anyone.” says MC. Iris is frustrated. “Maybe that poopoo head over there knows where we can find them. If we can find one we can torture the information out of them.” MC says “Torture is distasteful.” MC walks up to Neviro. “Leave me alone.” Neviro says, annoyed. “What do you know about the hooded figures?” asks MC. “…I don’t know who they are or what they want. Did you fight them at Skycliff Island?” replies Neviro “Yeah, there were three of them.” says MC. “Three? Only half of them left, so there should be more of them. Maybe they’re hiding on another sky island.” Neviro says. MC thanks Neviro. Finally finding the island the rest of the Order of Hermits are staying at, MC beats them all up. “So which one are you, a Cirrus Island r##, or perhaps an Azura seeking revenge? Either way, you’re too late. The Order already has Beringer and will soon have possession of not one, but two new Sea Curses.” MC beats up the weirdo easily because they are not good at fighting. “No… I… I must send that letter.” “Who are you?” asks MC. The weirdo replies. “I’m Elius, a hermit from Ravenna. The Order doesn’t give a second chances, so I’ll tell you everything.” “We were on a mission to capture Beringer and were led by a Baron of the Order. Half of us were ordered to stay and wait in the sky until an opportunity came while the Baron and the rest of the initiates took Beringer away. I don’t know where they took him.” MC remembers something from before they fought. “You mentioned Sea Curses. What are they?” Elius is confused. “You don’t know what Sea Curses are? Almost everyone in the Wars Seas have heard of them. Ahem… Through the years 112-227, King Arthur Pendragon, who would later be known as Cursebeard forced Prometheus, the god of fire to create the Sea Curses, Cubes of pure magic energy that contained the true power of magic. Only one Sea Curse was created for every magic known at the time. When a Sea Curse is absorbed by a mortal, they become immortal, remaining in their prime forever and become one with the curse, allowing them to phase between their physical and elemental form, making all physical attacks useless. One downside of absorbing a Sea Curse is that sea water will damage you. That is why it is called a Sea Curse. As the Curse user is one with their Sea Curse, the complexity and power of their spells rises significantly. The War Seas are constantly fighting over Sea Curses, trading and killing for them. Without a Sea Curse a kingdom is weak.” MC asks “Why was Beringer stabbed with a weird fork?” Elius continues. “When a Curse user dies, normally their Sea Curse shoots out somewhere far away. A Devourer is a tool created in the War seas by Soaking arcanium in seawater for decades, creating a special type of arcanium that has the capacity to hold even a Sea Curse. When stabbed, the curse user dies and instead of being shot out into the world, it is absorbed by the Devourer. A Sea Curse is so powerful however that it will destroy the Devourer after one use and the Sea Curse will revert into a cube where the user died.” “So, Beringer has a Sea Curse?” asks MC. “Yes, he has the Cloud Curse. One of the weaker curses, but the Order of Hermits will take it all the same. However the Order of Hermits will not let him die. Not until he spits out the location of another curse. One the Order of Hermits really wants.” MC asks “What will the Order of Hermits do with the Sea Curses?” Elius replies “They will either keep them in storage, until the Oder of Hermits can achieve their goal, or they will trade them with a kingdom for boku bait” MC is confused “If Sea Curses are very powerful and hermits want to become strong, why don’t the hermits absorb them?” Elius is shocked. “You don’t even know that? Hermits were cursed by someone to not absorb Sea Curse. Now that I’ve told you everything I know, leave me to my injuries.” MC returns to Cirrus Island because killing is bad. Iris sees MC “Hey, did you find out where the Order of Hermits was hiding?” “Yes, their leader was Elius, a hermit from Ravenna.” MC replies. Iris is shocked “What? I know that name! Their adoptive father has pretty close connections to the ruler of Ravenna. If a hermit from Ravenna tried to join, then the Order of Hermits must be closely connected to Ravenna somehow… I can’t believe it.” MC continues “They said they captured the man named Beringer because he knows the location of a powerful Sea Curse.” “Sea Curses huh… We should track the Order of Hermits down to find out more.” replies Iris. “Where should we start?” asks MC. “I don’t know. We could split up and search for beringer. If we’re not too late we could still find them with him. If there are others in the Order of Hermits that are affiliated with Ravenna, they probably would be hiding somewhere in the Bronze Sea. I guess we’d better get searching…” replies Iris “I think I’ll head to Silverhold, ask if they’ve seen any suspicious ships. You should head to Sailor’s Lodge. Its a place to the South where word spreads fast.” Iris gives MC a quest: “Reach Sailor’s Lodge” TBC i think
i like reading these