Obsidian Sea - Epilogues

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Obsidian Sea
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Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2015 3:09 pm
Location: London, UK

Obsidian Sea - Epilogues

Postby Obsidian Sea » Mon Apr 15, 2019 9:38 am

Obsidian Sea


The following posts are intended to provide some closure and final memorial for characters whose time on The Easting Reach has ended. Chatting with a dear friend who I had the pleasure of playing on The Easting Reach with has prompted me to look back at some of the writing I did for the server. And that encouraged me to put some final thoughts to paper (or its electronic equivalent) on how I imagined these character's stories would have ended, largely informed by what we achieved as a community during their careers on The Easting Reach.

I am aware that there are still stories being told on the server, some of which interacted with my character's stories, and which might take a different path from whatever is implied here. Please be considerate that these epilogues are how I choose to see the story of my characters: if what is written here conflicts at all with your character, or things that are still happening on The Easting Reach, then please do take the liberty to consider those epilogues non-canon. These posts aren't intended to have any impact upon on-going events with the server, they are just a source of closure and nostalgia that I felt like sharing.

With all that being said, I hope you enjoy what follows, and the time you spend on the server.
Heomar Bloodstone

Previous Characters
Aryen Caladras
Tristan Thalavar
Nathaniel Askovar
Elizabeth van der Lowe

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Obsidian Sea
Posts: 699
Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2015 3:09 pm
Location: London, UK

Nathaniel Askovar - Epilogue

Postby Obsidian Sea » Mon Apr 15, 2019 1:44 pm

Nathaniel Askovar

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When The Two Swans Tavern opened in Sarshel, Nathaniel Askovar took to wandering the realms again. Life was short, and it was dangerous, but all that one could do is say “yes” to life, and so live fully. The coin had landed on edge the day that Nthanda was born, but it had been spinning ever since. Life said “go”, and he said “yes”.

Action taken against the Zhentarim in Baytown would ultimately push Nathaniel out of Impiltur for good. Complications in the mission had revealed the young Harper to his enemies. Scarcely escaping the town with his life, Nathaniel would never step foot in the kingdom again.

After returning to his Harper allies in The Vast for a time, Nathaniel would wander The Dalelands and collect the stories scattered there. As in Impiltur, the Shaaran boy was to be considered atypical by all those he met, but found himself making boon companions wherever he went. He soon earned a name for himself as a musician, swordsman and wandmaker, accomplishing good deeds and bringing the people of the Dales closer together.

Throughout his travels, Nathaniel spoke of the many friends and experiences that Impiltur had given him. It was clear to all that enjoyed the boy's company for extended bouts that his time spent upon The Easting Reach had left a great impression upon him, and rarely could he reflect on that period of his life without a smile, or a far off look of contemplation in his wise eyes. As a matter of fact, the larger-than-life exploits of Ms Peveril and her Halfling companion, Quickfoot, began to gain such traction with Nathaniel's listeners that the Bard was commissioned to write a series of novels about the duo! He declined, however, assuring publishers that the story “was still in the process of writing itself”.

Most agree that Nathaniel's life after Impiltur continued to be one of camaraderie, music and adventure – a happy life, indeed, but not without its trials. By the time he arrived in Cormyr, the Bard was seen to have receded somewhat from the physical demands of adventuring, serving in a more artistic and advisory capacity when he sought to make changes in the world. He maintained his autonomy within the Harpers, serving their agenda in the manner of his own preference. Shortly upon arriving in Cormyr, Nathaniel had insinuated himself into the court of a powerful Cormyrian noble house, acting as a minstrel.

Rumour and intrigue would have one believe that the young Shaaran won the heart of a Cormyrian prince, though at best their dalliances could have been called an open secret. Many historians see a clear correlation between the prince's developing political agenda and the relationship he kept with Nathaniel, whom he never truly ceased to mourn after the Bard's passing. Aiding the noble house of his prince in battle against an Orc uprising, Nathaniel's talents would prove to be instrumental in mobilising Cormyr's armies against this tide of Evil. A poisonous Orc arrow, however, found its resting place in Nathaniel's chest. The poison spread too quickly for Nathaniel to be able to recover, and he died shortly after battle's end, at the modest age of 23.
Heomar Bloodstone

Previous Characters
Aryen Caladras
Tristan Thalavar
Nathaniel Askovar
Elizabeth van der Lowe

User avatar
Obsidian Sea
Posts: 699
Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2015 3:09 pm
Location: London, UK

Elizabeth van der Lowe - Epilogue

Postby Obsidian Sea » Tue Apr 16, 2019 8:48 am

Elizabeth van der Lowe

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The van der Lowe family would have its moment in the sun during Elizabeth’s time spent in Impiltur. Her quest to locate her uncle and attach herself to the family business soon became an investigation, scrutinising the misfortunes that had assailed the family business, and which had led to her uncle’s murder. She emerged from these events not only as a Rogue of some proficiency, but as an equally capable Wizard. Elizabeth would utilise these skills and the contacts she had acquired during her investigation to prop up the van der Lowe trade network once again.

Elizabeth’s entrepreneurial action would come to an inauspicious end, however. Setting her sights upon the Sembian city, Selgaunt, from whence she came, the last written record of an ‘Elizabeth van der Lowe’ of the period sees her registered as a denizen of the same gaol to which Elizabeth's father had become resigned 2 years prior. If this was the same Elizabeth, or if she was some other, regardless there is insufficient record to know what became of her after this time. Some stories, it seems, reach unsatisfying conclusions…
Heomar Bloodstone

Previous Characters
Aryen Caladras
Tristan Thalavar
Nathaniel Askovar
Elizabeth van der Lowe

User avatar
Obsidian Sea
Posts: 699
Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2015 3:09 pm
Location: London, UK

Tristan Thalavar - Epilogue

Postby Obsidian Sea » Mon Apr 22, 2019 11:43 am

Tristan Thalavar

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And what of Tristan Thalavar, the renegade heir to one of Westgate's foremost noble houses? As one might imagine, the prodigal Sorcerer's final days in Impiltur were shrouded in a sense of enigma, and disquietude. As the storms closed in on The Easting Reach, Tristan's presence within the ramshackle community of Thelnam seemed to climax, and then, like the storm, vanish, leaving behind a sense of awe, and calm. The thoughts, desires, and movements of the young man suddenly ceased to exist in the context of Impiltur. Thereafter they would survive as echoes; unanswered mysteries, and fuel for speculation in the months to come.

After the storm had passed, Thelnam locals went down onto the Sound, where Tristan had boldly gone whilst the storm was still in its infancy. They did not find him there. Across The Easting Reach from Thesk, utterings began to reach Impiltur of a young man that had washed up on their shores on the brink of death. He indoctrinated an entire community, it is said, into assisting with his recovery. In the months ahead, many theories were passed about in hushed whispers as to the story of the man from the sea, but when he at last opted to leave the townsfolk behind him and travel again, still none could claim to have truly known him. They saw a man of perfect dimension, whose very aura was so great as to seem material around him; but he was also distant and detached, weighed heavily upon by some unspoken burden that he had carried with him from his past. Here before them they saw a man who would consciously beshrew close companionship, with no trust to give, and a heart untouchable – cool and inviolable as the marble from which his body had been carved. To confuse Theskans further, although he showed little concern for the people around him, he frequently sought information on travelers and Rangers that neared the town, as though forever anticipating the visitation of something – or somebody – for reasons he would never divulge to the countrymen.

Several years later, Tristan Thalavar was to return to Westgate. His parents found him greatly changed from the empty, ornate vessel they had desired him to be, ready to be filled full of the obligations of his birth and little more; nor was he the desperate runaway they had watched in disbelief as he fled the family home all those many years ago. The life of Tristan Thalavar, in all the seasons since his family had last laid eyes upon him, had made him unto a fury.

None know precisely what occurred in those moments after the doors of Castle Thalavar closed behind Tristan. Flashes of lightning and crashes of glass could be perceived in every visible window of the castle that night; mighty gusts of wind were expelled from its ancient orifices. By morning, every occupant of the castle – from lowly scullery maid and loyal footsoldier, up to and including the Lord and Lady Thalavar themselves – had been swiftly and unapologetically murdered. As the first fearful few approached the castle again and pushed open its doors, there in the midst of a massacre sat Tristan Thalavar upon the throne, looming with august majesty over his great work.

But Tristan's reign over the Thalavar house was brief and dispassionate. The boy had returned a mighty Sorcerer with whom none dared take umbrage, and for whom every perceived slight; betrayal; and personal grievance would be tallied and dealt with accordingly. None perceived him to be happy in his seat of power. Here before them – with reverence and woe – the Westar beheld a man who was the product of every resentment he had ever collected, each one nourished and sated by the enormity of his power.

The futility of his reign would end nearly as soon as it had begun. The gravity of Tristan's presence was soon to be eclipsed, and laid low by the presence of something infinitely his greater. For the first time in millenia, before all the denizens of Westgate, rising from the waters of The Dragon Coast came its very namesake: it was, reader, a Dragon.

It's silhouette shone against the sun; water fell radiantly from it's wings as they stretched out against that burning orb, dropping like pearls back into the ocean. A being all cast in bronze and fury, the Dragon turned itself upon Castle Thalavar. It's mighty maw parted, and it's voice was the Law: righteous, furious, and terrible. The pact had been forgotten; the gifts misused. For a second time, Castle Thalavar was lit up with arcs of cleansing lightning, and the Bronze Dragon filled every hall with its vengeance. It's body, crashing into the ancient walls of the building, collapsed every ceiling. The Thalavar house was no more.

As for the Dragon – seeing that none could have survived its vengeful reckoning – it sank back into the sea again, nevermore to permit itself contact with the race of men.
Heomar Bloodstone

Previous Characters
Aryen Caladras
Tristan Thalavar
Nathaniel Askovar
Elizabeth van der Lowe

User avatar
Obsidian Sea
Posts: 699
Joined: Mon Nov 16, 2015 3:09 pm
Location: London, UK

Aryen Caladras - Epilogue

Postby Obsidian Sea » Mon May 06, 2019 7:51 pm

Aryen Caladras

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The time that Aryen Caladras spent upon The Easting Reach would not shrink from his memory with the passing of the years. As the sun grew ever brighter, and devotees of the moon came to pay homage at the site where Malakht of the Seven Stars had first appeared, a Ranger knew that his time of guardianship over The Silverwoods had come to an end. Farewells – brief but heartfelt – were shared with but a few, and having each one been uttered, Aryen Caladras passed quietly out of the kingdom of Impiltur, like a shadow seeking the darkness.

But where there was darkness, Aryen was to bring hope. Impiltur and those whom Aryen had met whilst there had changed him: the man once composed of sorrow and regrets had been transmuted to one of honour, experience, and purpose. In the years that would follow, a new faction would arise across the north: The Brotherhood of the Mourning Moon.

Committed to the battle against destruction and oppression – and Lycanthropy, above all else – this loosely organised league of Rangers and swordsmen earned a reputation for braving the darkest, most unapproachable depths of the wilderness, and for bringing safety to the pilgrim paths that regional military forces would oftentimes overlook. For this organisation, Aryen Caladras had been a paragon: a man of action rather than one of words, who symbolised all that the brotherhood stood for, and guided it through example.

In the same manner as it had begun, the Brotherhood of the Mourning Moon would eventually disband: quietly, without fanfare. Men would eventually choose to retire from a life of peril and adventure, seeking the stability of marital and domestic life. In each instance, Aryen said goodbye to his brothers freely, wishing them well, but still he remained tireless in his quest. Even into the respectability of middle age, Aryen Caladras would not forsake the lonely path that Selûne had granted him.

But battle never claimed him: and the path was not as lonely as it often seemed. At the age of 46, in the glittering city of Silverymoon, Aryen Caladras passed away peacefully on a deathbed surrounded by close friends. A stranger to the city, there were few within who knew anything of his deeds elsewhere across the north. None had seen fit to record the activities of a humble Dalesman with little desire to speak of them, after all. Inquiries into the life of Aryen Caladras would come later, only after the day of his funeral.

His procession was attended by Elf and Dwarf – and both parties called him 'friend'. Accompanying one of the Great Druids of the north, the creatures of the wild bore witness to the ceremony. Some of the highest representatives of the Impilturan Church of Ilmater - Knight and Abbess alike - bore his coffin to the burial plot, personally. His eulogy was delivered by the one they had come to call Lathander's First Lady.

The path was not as lonely as it often seemed. When Aryen Caladras' time in this world had come to an end, his friends knew that it had been forged more by the happy memories, than by the sad ones. When the path seemed dark – as once it had seemed too dark to navigate – these memories brought a light which would not fade. How unlikely it once had seemed that Aryen Caladras would pass from this life to the next with a smile upon his lips. But, reader, he did. And for the friends that made this possible – no matter the time or distance they spent apart – Aryen was eternally thankful.
Heomar Bloodstone

Previous Characters
Aryen Caladras
Tristan Thalavar
Nathaniel Askovar
Elizabeth van der Lowe


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