You are Kaguya Ryōko, an up-and-coming ninja born into a deadly bloodline and trained by a living legend. Now it seems that you’ll be able to put those things on display during a multinational promotion exam held by Konohagakure. While promotion to chūnin would be nice, your official objective here is to make it to the public final round of the exams so potential clients will see that your adoptive village, Yugakure, has not grown so weak and ineffectual as rumors would lead them to believe. Even more importantly, it’s an opportunity to finally begin to validate Tsunade-sensei’s decision years ago to become your mentor.
One shinobi from Konohagakure has just opted not to continue to the final stage of the exams. After all his talk and his apparent efforts, you still can’t say that you quite have a sense for what Kabuto-san is actually trying to achieve. Since you’re no doubt missing some key aspect of the context, his choices have felt inconsistent to you.
“Excuse me, Lord Hokage,” you hear Hiroshi-kun’s voice behind you. “I’ve given it some thought… and if withdrawing is possible, I believe I should as well.”
“What the hell, Hiroshi!?” Akiji-kun demands. “You’re just gonna duck out like this when we’re right there?”
“It might’ve been under unusual circumstances,” Hiroshi-kun explains, “but fact is I had to accept outside help to keep Ryōko-kun from spending her chakra on me instead of resting and taking advantage of us finishing early. It wouldn’t be fair to stay in when other candidates didn’t get that opportunity.”
Ah. So that’s what it was.
“You made that decision on your own?” Akiji-kun demands, unconvinced.
“He did it because he knew I might disagree,” you observe. “But why only mention it now?”
Hiroshi-kun has an answer for that as well. “Because we have an odd number of candidates with Kabuto-san gone. I can’t see either of you two losing your first match, but in order for everyone to have a fight one candidate out of an odd number would have to fight twice. And if you assume two of us are going to win our first fights…”
“There’s a higher chance that one of us would have to fight twice,” you summarize. “That was your reasoning.”
“So it’d be unfair,” Hiroshi-kun declares, “including to the two of you, and would risk not getting our stronger two fighters into the public phase. Even if it’s one in five, that’s too high a risk given our mission.” >1/2
Two thousand years ago, a prince of the Old World called Sversk the Conqueror set sail with an army of his loyal followers into what any would still consider today to be certain death. Yet, where all others in history near and far perished, Sversk’s band triumphed over the implacable Maelstrom, and settled in the New World, forming a new society apart from the old, founding an empire that would last over one thousand years, which only drew its last breath when Sversk’s tale, the story of the ancestors of the Nauk, faded from living memory, to history, to legend.
Now, a new army of ambition, also seeking a new future, returns across the same sea to whence their ancestors came, be they Nauk, Vitelian, Sosalian, or even of a race born solely of the New World. The Aurora Legion, as it is called, do not seek new lands, but to gather money, men, materiel, to gain strength without peer so that they can gain victory for their ultimate cause: to topple the Old Order that controls their world, and free its people that they may bring forth the Future that is Utopia. They are not yet more than five thousand, yet they were once not even one hundred six years past, and though many have been wounded or perished, their sacrifice will not be in vain. Each step taken is one towards the final battle, one that many of them may not see the result of, but they fight nevertheless. Most hope to see that battle. Many see service with the Legion as an honor and a privilege above any other cause that may be fought for as warriors. Some simply have no other place to go.
The conflict they venture to now is a war of a greater power against a smaller, the continental Caelussian Federation against the much smaller but still defiant Kingdom of Petrekora. Some might assume a tale of aiding the underdog- but Petrekora is reactionary, and the Federation far more akin to a state of the future than one run by a king with aristocracy. What is more, the Federation is paying handsomely, and in these times where expansion is limited by lack of coin, the Aurora Legion will not pass up any chance to feast upon silver, for the sake of readying for the Dawn of the New Era…
Doomed princes, cunning vagabonds and greedy mercenaries try to prevail in a decaying world. Amongst all men You are Doomed to Greatness, cursed and blessed in equal measure. You will learn: There is no Truth but that of Eternal struggle.
<span class="mu-r">”VOULL NE XATA VOK, MARA LOHK”</span>
The walls are melting. The windows are melting. The others had gone ahead, you didn’t need them watching over your shoulder. But now the iron slag sealant spreads between your fingers even without the help of the iontorch. Even alone the persistent sense of being watched remained. Glancing over your shoulder the hallway held no unwanted observer. Empty. The Zariman was becoming less and less real, smearing and spilling free in the void, your mind felt the same. Leaking from your eyes, ears, nose and mouth. Breathing in the stygian waters without that sweet hint of madness.
Illumination bands flicker overhead as humid stale recycled air fills your lungs. Most of the level was secure. Cirlyn’s crash course in engineering kept the life support systems running, other sections weren’t so lucky. A boy that fled from his habitation block claims to have seen entire segments vent into the void as shielding failed. One by one your class moved from bulkheads to access hatches, securing routes to your classroom. Despite that <span class="mu-i">They</span> keep getting through, insane hunting packs move throughout the ship. Sol knows how many were dead.
You arrive to find the battered classroom dark, in the corners bundles of bedding and cushions are home to the curled bodies of the sleeping. A pair keep watch, armed with long pipes and other makeshift weapons, they nod at your arrival, but voices from further down the hall draw you attention. Those holding it together better than the rest were having a meeting, you found yourself among them. So many were whimpering wrecks afraid to step out of the classroom.
Bai Hua, the Crimson War God has been reborn in the body of a young master from the Ming family after he and his companions suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of a being called “The Gatekeeper”. Taking on the identity of Ming Bei, he has repaid the previous owner of the body by doing his clan three graces while following the Dao of Starlight, an unorthodox cultivation path that uses the power of the stars.
During his time in Guang City, he successfully broke through the Qi Gathering and Foundation Establishment stages, reaching Core Formation, establishing a new cultivation method for Ming Bei’s clan and setting it up for long term prosperity. Bai Hua also made contact with a judge of the Underworld, the local master of the Silken Teahouse which has many locations across the world, and a member of the Dragon species which used to be his worst enemies.
In order to recover his former might and challenge the Gate once more, Hua continues his cultivation in a world where the position of the stars, the identity of the Four Symbols and the way to study the firmament have been twisted beyond recognition, only four locations still dedicate themselves to the study of the stars.
Leaving Ming Bei’s clan shortly after reaching Core Formation to travel to one of said locations, he was unable to resist his impulses and took the life of a young girl to aid his physical cultivation, creating an ill fated connection with the Vermillion Bird clan from the Qian region, fortunately enough, the aftermath of a battle between two transcendent beings created a small chance for him to escape the chasing elders by entering the Great Desert’s heart, which he was able to seize at the cost of giving up the opportunity to obtain treasures or techniques from the fighters and having his soul marked with a tracking spell.
Stranded within a small temple in this Great Desert full of spatial distortions, with a firmament that he remembers from his former life, he is able to bring about a small miracle and resurrect the girl. The heart demon born from his actions remains, and he can only get rid of it by aiding the victim of his act to clear his conscience.
To find a way out of the desert and rid himself of this heart demon, Hua takes on the role of an informal mentor, guiding the girl, Liu Jinwu in her cultivation and continues developing the Dao of Starlight, reaching the late stage of Core Formation, helping the girl open half of the Spiritual Points required to break through to that same stage, as well as forging two divine gemstone swords.
During the latest cultivation session, Hua was able to contact the consciousness of a former companion, the Agate Bodhisattva who is also sealed in the desert, as well as awakening and facing off against an ancient automaton named Tian Lang, barely able to eke out a win when it ran out of energy, he is currently negotiating with it.
Chambered lanterns line the narrow, smoothly carved walls. The dim lighting covers only enough area for you to barely see where you're walking, while the guards make sure to stand behind you and keep watch.
That's right—you were arrested by the palace guard, caught in the act after a heist gone wrong and robbed of any chance of getting out of this hellhole.
The very people who now have you in chains are the same ones who found your family the first time. Your family was forced into servitude under a very wealthy minor house, the Ducards. They were a prominent family from a major faction in their homeland, though compared to the powerful nobles who had recently expanded into the western lands, they were merely minor lords in a realm of constant political power struggles.
Making sure you can't get up to anything, the two guards stop in their tracks for a moment.
"Stop where you are!" one of them shouts. The command in their voice resonates throughout the narrow corridor.
You have no choice but to freeze. There's little other option besides death, and what you were just caught doing will earn you nothing less than a death sentence. The irony isn't lost on you as you stare at the floor in shame.
The guard leading from the front walks up to you. They place a hand on your bare shoulder from behind, as if trying to hold you in place.
"When you enter, you're not to look him in the eyes. You are to know your place—a dog by comparison," the guard tells you.
Before you're given any time to respond, a sharp sting shoots through your spine. Your heart sinks when you realize a blade has been pressed against it. You push the doors open and see a figure seated upon an exquisitely crafted throne. Realization quickly dawns on you, and, as if by instinct, you do as you're told and avoid looking at them.
Brief laughter fills the room, just barely audible. The person before you seems to be enjoying the sight of you.
"You've been given an opportunity. Serve with gratitude, and you will go far," they state.
Still avoiding the gaze of the royal seated before you, you keep your eyes locked on the floor. To do otherwise would mean certain death.
"Guards, would you please explain once again what this person's crimes are?" they ask, a hint of slyness hidden within the question.
<span class="mu-i">The year is <span class="mu-s">5 AB (After Bloom)</span>, and you live in what is now called <span class="mu-s"><span class="mu-b">Biltmore City</span></span>, a community of survivors settled in the ruins of the historic Biltmore Estate in Western North Carolina.</span>
<span class="mu-i">The year was 2009, and the time was 3:31:54 AM EST on Friday, April 10th when <span class="mu-s">The Bloom</span> occurred. In the span of 12 minutes and 49 seconds, the entire Earth experienced a super-rapid forestation of all terrestrial surfaces.</span>
<span class="mu-i">Trees erupted from the ground and into full maturity, regardless of any manmade materials present - asphalt roads were obliterated, buildings were toppled, and underground structures were perforated with roots. All human infrastructure was rendered essentially inoperable and unsalvageable due to the density and ubiquity of the trees. Some areas burst instead into fields of exotic flowers, and buildings or vehicles therein were merely engulfed by vines, instead. In many other places freshwater springs surfaced inexplicably, generating ponds, creeks, or even rivers.</span>
<span class="mu-i">The biodiversity of this perpetual forest defies common logic. Banyans, alders, acacias, eucalyptus, olives, and towering sequoias can all be found inside of the same ten acres, regardless of geographic location, sometimes twice or three times their 'natural' size. Animal life appeared in much the same manner, out from behind trees or from warrens revealed by new roots, equally diverse and at home in all locales. Lions now prowl the slopes of what were the Rocky mountains and pythons hang from the branches of magnolia trees in the now forested Siberian steppe.</span>
<span class="mu-i">The most devastating element of <span class="mu-s">The Bloom</span>, however, was what it did to the human population.</span>
<span class="mu-b">ANTON PEAS:</span> that’s your name… don’t wear it out! Feels like it’s been ages since a botched summoning ritual brought you to <span class="mu-s">ZORAL</span>: a fantasy world shrouded in perpetual darkness… but you’ve really only been here for a few days–and BOY have you been busy!
Your memories? Foggy! A way home? Uncertain! People trying to kill you? Very Yes! To say this new world is treacherous would be an understatement, to say the least, and to make matters worse, an archdevil who calls himself <span class="mu-r">’RED’</span> is your best chance at remembering who you were!
His price? Slaying <span class="mu-r">THE FOUR LORDS:</span> a kooky quartet of tyrants and beasts who jealously rule their slice of Zoral with an iron fist… or claw… or whatever they have! Having just put an end to the overdue reign of <span class="mu-r">ARCHMAGE TRIER</span> in the never-sleeping city of <span class="mu-s">UMBERAL</span>, your aggressive altruism freed none other than <span class="mu-b">KNODD</span>, Earthmother and god of the land!
Juiced up on divine powers and named the <span class="mu-i">first</span> <span class="mu-b">’CHAMPION OF THE GODS’,</span> your new status attracted the notice of several high-rung folks, chief among them <span class="mu-r">THE STAR-CLOAKS:</span> a clandestine cadre of mages devoted to maintaining order in Zoral, no matter the cost! Weirder still was when you met their Guildmaster: <span class="mu-b">VOLKIR</span>! Volka’s adoptive father and curmudgeon par excellence, the old coot didn’t waste much time in tossing a new crisis your way: per what you heard from Trier, there’s a <span class="mu-r">SIEGE</span> headed to <span class="mu-s">CROSSROADS</span>! Who’s planning it and why? The details are foggy, but who better than you is there to help save the day?
Having just acquired several Emergency Supply caches for the city from a pair of Spice Cartel Holdouts, you turn your heroic attention towards your next task: investigating a group of <span class="mu-r">HEDGE MAGES</span> holed up in one of Crossroads’ many parks… and maybe even recruiting them to your side! With the trade hub bursting at the seams from civil unrest and outside influence, you can use all the help you can get your mitts on… something tells you this ain’t gonna be easy!
Making your way across a rapidly-deteriorating city, THIS is where your story continues…
Recounting Our Hero's last adventure, A young man strikes out into the dangerous, ungoverned land of Axegaurd to make a name for himself. Formerly a librarian from the frigid northern kingdom of Holuthheim , This hero uses his smarts and his skills with a blade to tackle the quests he was given. At his side is a former soldier, a Beastwoman with a foul mouth, a noticeable drinking problem and an unmatched skill with hand to hand weapons. Khyber, as she is called, offered to temporarily join our hero but agreed to stay by his side a little longer, so long as he'd provided an adequate amount of alcohol . Our Hero's second party member is a neurotic but well meaning mage. Her name is Xiphos and the esoteric school of magic she follows demands the worship of strange beings of light that grant her holy abilities. She is here to fight the worshipers of darkness who plague these lands, even if she is anxious about everything. Including fighting darkness.
Our previous tale ended with a beginning, a farmer offered nearly all the coin to his name to Our Hero and his party. The job, on paper, is simple "get rid of the succubus that has been attacking my town by any means necessary". What this band of heroes will soon find out is that this job will not be as simple as they believed it to be. For night has fallen on this lawless lands, and in the cover of darkness the succubus lurks
Humankind has finally begun its eminence over the world.
The nations are thriving, populations are booming, and the peoples of the surface have finally been granted the freedom and comfort to pursue finer pursuits like music, art, and crafting of frivolous things like toys and trinkets. At day, the Lights Above protect the world as they always have, and, even at night, their illumination is now harnessed to protect the settlements of man from the abyssal hordes. This peace, however, has been thrown into doubt.
Something is brewing beneath earth, out of the sight of the Lights Above. Cultists worshipping the Core and its false gods have been exploding in population, more and more Magecorps being corrupted to their cause. Monster activity has heightened, and the rate of their mutation has increased. Nobody quite knows how to explain all of these coinciding phenomena, but almost everyone can agree on this— whatever's happening, it cannot be good.
You, for better or for worse, are on the frontlines of this developing battlefield. Your party, the <span class="mu-s">Dawnseekers</span> is a relatively new Corps from a relatively new guild. Serving under the Dawnstone, your merry band of Spelldivers, for their own personal reasons, have opted to risk their lives to combat the Core's darkness. You, regardless of motive, are humanity's first line of defense.
