WQ - The Fade

What worried Magdalyn most was the silence.

Perhaps it was not as startling as the graying trees, bereft of the rich greens common this time of year. True, Astorea’s landscape was far from lush, but she still should have been circled by color. Instead, it looked as though the light, the life, had been leached away. And no birds cried from their perch on the upper branches. No wind whispered through the charcoal leaves. No rodents scurried through the shrivelled underbrush.

In fact, the only sounds she could hear were the crunch of dead grass beneath her boots, and her own breath being drawn into her lungs. She made an effort to quiet both, as the thunderous sound of them in the still unnerved her, but all it did was set her heart to pounding. She was stressing herself out.

Had she not know what she was getting herself into? The farmer NPCs had explained the situation when she had met them in the city - farmers all over western Astorea were losing their crops to some sort of plague. Animals grew sickly, plants withered and died, and both had inspired suspicion and paranoia in the hearts of the villagers. The gruff man with the bushy white eyebrows had told her of “the Fade,” something which he and his companions attributed to a vengeful god. Magdalyn suspected magic was at work. Or at least, that was what she had believed.

Now, the woman did not know what to think. Seeing the Fade firsthand complicated her original conclusions, as she had never believed that the destruction could be so vast. As she moved deeper into the affected area, watching the last of the color disappear, she realized that the gray rolled on for miles. How was this possible?

The nearest village was as good a place to start as any, which was why Magdalyn made it a meeting point. She had sent out a general request for help a few hours earlier, but only one player had responded; Mags recognized the name from previous events, though she knew nothing else of the woman. Another player had been added to her party, a paid mercenary who had been hired by one of the town’s NPCs. While she had been unsure how that worked mechanically (was it two different quests, and they all just worked together?), Mags figured three heads were better than two.

So she closed the distance between herself and the town limits, doing her best not to reflect on the feel of the world around her. It was an odd thing to notice, but something simply did not sit well with her. Mags nervously raked both hands through her mess of blue hair before she even realized what she was doing. Was it just the lack of breeze that made the air feel so stale?

@Corvella @Endilix Takagi

 

On her way to the western Astorea, Corvella stumbled on several settlers evacuating from the area; with some of them laying on the wagon already struck with the illness. Asking them provided not much details, since village elders themselves do not know much about this phenomenon. Some spoke of an evil curse, and others theorized an dangerous epidemic making its way to all over Astorea. Continuing her walk to the saturated land, the settlers wished her luck on the investigation and not to become one with the withered.

A request to assist in the investigation was put by a woman named Magdalyn, which was the reason why Corvella is making her way to a village to the west, probably the last one surviving the withering. At first all of it just sounds like a mere plague, but every step she took closer to the western border of Astorea, things just have gotten worse like it's slowly creeping towards the capital.

Withering gray trees decorated the dry, cracked ground on a massive scale. The environment gets more and more saturated, almost at the point that everything is just gray. Then some rotten animal skeletons, they probably tried to escape from whatever it is. Everything just seems... dead. Would she still try to continue investigating after witnessing all of it went to fade?

Occasionally the blonde would check on her location to ensure she didn't stray off path since the surrounding looks entirely the same from when she was walking ten minutes ago. She was sure the meeting point with Magdalyn (and maybe few other people who responded to the request) is just few more minutes walk to go. Regarding the woman, Corvella didn't know her that much except for a fact that the have been in the same group on several fights like the Eastwatch defense, Caylus Plains... wait, what was it? Her mind seemed to block anything regarding that place, but she was sure she already met Mag on more than one occasion.

Nearing the barren, small village, Corvella spotted a blue-haired individual that might be Magdalyn. She walked up to her to greet with a handshake "You must be Magdalyn? I'm Corvella, came here upon your request. Any others joining us today?"

@Magdalyn @Endilix Takagi

 

It was disgusting. Something had not just killed the land. It had decimated it, destroyed it, and otherwise stomped all over it, leaving nothing but dust and ashes in its wake. Even for a video game, this was disgusting.

As he rode through the endless gray, Endilix couldn't help the perpetual frown on his face. He was a pretty morally unscrupulous guy. He didn't really care about what needed to be done, so long as the job got done. He didn't mind getting his hands dirty. But this was too dirty. Someone, something, had destroyed an entire ecosystem. An entire section of a continent's way of life. This was going too far.

As Endilix rode on, he caught sight of a couple of women meeting at some coordinates he had been provided when he had been hired. He wasn't even sure who hired him for the job. Could've been the Aristocracy, wanting to know more about the plague sweeping the land, could have simply been villagers wanting a strong burly guy in heavy armor to try to solve a problem that heavy armor and a big flail couldn't actually handle. But that wouldn't stop him from trying. And it turned out, as he looked around at the destruction, he actually cared, surprisingly enough.

Once he had rode up, he slid off his horse in front of the women and gave a heavy sigh. He had no idea how to approach this, especially with two strangers. But he would find a way to make it work. Worst case he just had to bring a report back to get paid, right? Even a report of, "I didn't find out jack shit." should still count.

So Endilix put a gauntleted hand out to the women, and flashed his most winning smile, "Hello, Endilix Takagi. I'm here to help try to sort out this hellhole. And before you wonder, yes, I am a hired hand, but that doesn't mean I don't care. This is an utterly disgusting scene, and I'm actually interested in knowing what's going on here. Merc or not, I don't like seeing people's lives decimated like this."

Whether either of the women would shake his hand, he would fold his arms and explain, "That said, I have absolutely no idea how to even begin sorting this out. So if you ladies would like to lead the way, or point me in the right direction to lead the way, I'm happy with either scenario. I have a big flail, and a bigger shield, and the brain of a meathead, so the complicated stuff is probably a bit out of my league. As is magic."

 

I do recognize her, Magdalyn mused as she watched the blonde draw nearer. Against the drab, grey backdrop, there was little else to look at. And besides, considering how very few people were approaching the town - most were leaving - it did not require exceptional brilliance to deduce that this woman was Corvella.

With an easy smile, she returned the handshake. "Yeah, I'm Magdalyn. Most people call me Mags, though - less of a mouthful. It's a pleasure, Corvella." As she dropped the other woman's hand, she planted her own casually on her hips. "From what I've been told, we've got just one more coming. He was hired by someone else, but a mutual friend recommended we work together."

Losing a small shrug, she added, "I don't know anything about him, but I figured the more, the merrier. You were the only one who responded to my request." Her big, golden eyes blinked twice, as if to hide the flash of disappointment within them. Foolishly, Magdalyn had expected a larger turn-out. Most players, however, simply did not care about the NPCs losing their farmlands. Not when there are monsters to fight, Mags thought bitterly.

So focused on the newcomer, Mags nearly missed the newcomer. It was only the horse's snort, and heavy footfalls, that gave them away. She turned to him, just in time to watch the hired hand dismount, and introduce himself. As she had with Corvella, Mags shook Endilix's hand.

"I'll be honest," she told him, "I'm not too worried about why you're here. I just appreciate that you are, and I'm glad you want to help. Both of you." She gave a short nod toward Corvella. "I don't mind taking point on this one. Most magic is out of my league, the exception being nature magic. But I can hold my own in a fight. More importantly, I know farmers - what they're like, and how hard all of this must be for them. That'll probably help us, I think."

After flicking a glance toward Corvella, to make sure the woman did not object, Mags began walking toward the heart of town. "There are a few farmers who have hung behind, some to meet with us, some too stubborn to leave. I was thinking a good first step might be breaking off, spreading out, and seeing what we can find. Talk to people, get a feel for what might be happening here. Sound okay?"

@Corvella @Endilix Takagi

 

The news that nobody else responded to @Magdalyn's request hit the blonde with a thought that not all players care about the world or the people. "Well, that's pretty disappointing. But hey, at least another one is still coming." Speak of the devil, the hired mercenary has just arrived behind them. A rather muscular, red-haired man that doesn't look and act like your usual merc; she doesn't find most to be willing to even properly greet her. "Oh, hello Endilix. I'm Corvella." She introduced herself as she returned Endilix's handshake.

Red hair and a Japanese last name, this man looks more like Emerath the longer she look at him, save for the more toned and muscular body. His older brother, perhaps? Offering a small talk, the blonde asked @Endilix Takagi out of curiosity. "Uh, I suppose you are not related to Emerath Katou of the Lightning Ironworks, are you?" Too weird just to be a coincidence, really.

She looked back at the blue-haired woman in agreement "I have no objections, but I really hope that we don't need to use any kind of force, except when it comes down to the worse." And so, Mags (Corvella is still not comfortable with calling her with this name) advised them to split off and look for clues. "Sounds good, I'll go ask around." Corvella said before she took off, waving her hand to the party.

There's not much activity going on the village itself, as attempts to do farming activities are almost futile at this point. In fact, it almost looked like a ghost town by how gray it was. Luckily, she was able to find a farmer resting nearby. A sickly old man, sitting in front of his house by the porch spending his time smoking pipe. "Excuse me," Corvella asked politely while bowing, "May I ask some information regarding the situation here?" The old man, inhaled and exhaled slowly several times before finally responding weakly. "Well, everything you see here is the answer, young miss. We are just as clueless are you." The knight decided to sit beside the old man to hear his story.

It was just a normal day, no signs of anything. The Fade came, creeping up to this land slowly as it's killing lives. It is just a matter of time, He paused to look at Corvella's face, Why do you waste your time coming here, dear? We cannot be saved.

The old man is right, she might not be able to save him, but she can save everyone from suffering this fate. I won't let it claim more lives. The girl spoke with a glint on her green eyes.

Reacting to her bravery, the old man smiled and pointed to the west. Very well. The only thing I know is that the graying came from that forest before it hit the village. Good luck, young miss.

Corvella left to take a clear look at the dying forest. Isn't there where the western Astorean border lies, according to the map? After getting her first hint, she went to knock on the other doors for more clues before going back to her party to piece the information together.

 

@Pandora

 

Further investigation lead to no more clues. What a bummer, since the blonde thought she had this investigation. This is going to be the last door she knock before rendezvousing the group, but..

I, the Dark Descender, Elica Mirg has descended... and.... so on, so forth!

Someone, the Dark Descender, has just loudly introduced her presence to the world, and particularly to Corvella. Surprised with this act, Corvella looked at the girl with the long black garb as she shouted other series of words that sounds like something pulled out from a lovecraftian book.

Mgah'ehye's get fahf shuggog quest llll!

Okay, that shouting was very weird, and now they are awkwardly staring at each other. Corvella has her mouth half open while trying to process the words coming out from the unknown girl... What what what quest? After seconds of silent staring, the blonde knight decided to start making her way towards the all-black girl slowly, politely bowing while asking. "I am sorry, I don't think I get what you said Miss.. Elica?" Somehow the presence gave Corvella the vibes of evil dangerous anime mastermind girl, but experiences told that she shouldn't judge people by their appearance. Hope that she didn't hear her name wrong.

"I suppose you might know something about 'this phenomenon'?" She slowly asked a following question to the girl. Where's her party to break the tension? She looked around.

 

Magdalyn huffed out a breath as she exited the town's tavern. She had questioned every man and woman inside, interviewing them as she had seen in all of the best cop dramas. Every time, she had been met with variations of the same answer - no need to worry yourself.

"No need to worry myself?" she growled aloud, hardly realizing she was speaking until she heard her own voice; it held the tight strain of the annoyed, and slightly offended. Their crops were withering, their animals were dying, and their worry was plastered clearly across their faces. Yet she had no need to worry herself? These NPCs were either concerned for her safety, and hoping that she will leave to save herself, or just plain stupid. Or programmed to act this way, she admitted, grudgingly. That did not improve her mood though.

Realizing that she was pouting like a child not given her way, Mags finally glanced up from her boots. Fortunately, she did so just in time to spot her group mate, Corvella, conversing with a very strange woman. Immediately, Mags felt a sense of unease wash over her, the cold sensation like breath on the back of her neck. Don't jump to conclusions, she cautioned herself, increasing her speed to close the distance between them. It could very well just be the black clothes, after all.

But Mags was keenly aware of the spear strapped to her back when she halted beside Corvella, on the off-chance she was given need to use it.

"Everything okay?" she asked her companion.

@Corvella