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The Penumbra

Lore, history and other content by the citizens of Underlight preserved for posterity.
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-Lacie-
Ascended Dreamers
Posts: 351
Joined: Fri Apr 15, 2016 1:23 pm
Character Name(s): Purple Lace, etal
Location: Huntsville, AL
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The Penumbra

Post by -Lacie- »

The Crypt was in perfect order, but the Cache was in shambles. A corner had "HIS" experiment in it. Chakrams and Elemens over there for "HIM". "SHE" had made room for stuff by removing items meant to stay. She sat there, rolling an Alteror around on the ledge of the pool. Her pack overflowing with old parchments, crumbling to dust as they sat, tomes tightly bound, and journals. Oh! For the love of Lambent!!! The journals!

On top of them all was an old one, made of lesser quality parchment. The emblem was what caught her eye, the symbol of a Shadow within a Shadow. She knew the tome. She looked away as her hand reached for it. It seemed to be.. calling to her.

She couldn't remember if the memories were real or imagined, but remembered them, she did. They had to be rewritten, it didn't matter if anyone ever read them again... they had to come... out. There had to be a way to connect them together... so that the Truth would be revealed. The real reason for the effort, the pain, the joy... the DreamStriking.


They weren't content with their marriage, their friends, their Combined power (the art of Combine had yet to be created), or the influence they carried with them... just by their presence.

They needed more.

Surrounded by their children, close friends and supporters, they set out to build something that had never been built before. They would succeed, and in ways they never thought ... possible.

She had seen what a single crystal, a Resonance Crystal, was possible of doing. Never in a million dreams had she imagined that this one, small gem, would bring forth a monster like Agogthas. But it had, and had done so while presenting the findings of her experimentation with the same gem. It had been in the EverNight sanctuary that she presented the gem, its abilities and conclusions from the different experiments she had performed on and with it.

Sure, this was the completion of her fifth sphere quest, but it's not like it is today. People didn't ~know~ it was a quest, and people didn't advertise that what they were doing was for a quest. It made it so much more interesting that way...

There, as she stood in front of the Eye, she was detailing an experiment, when all of a sudden, the walls started shaking, the Eye started acting oddly and the alcove behind the eye.... opened.


The Penumbra was much more than that tho. We met in secret, when secrets could be kept in the City. Sense Dreamer didn't exist. MindBlank ruled. Wards were enough back then. Chakrams and FireStorm did the rest to keep out ... intruders.

Our first project was the Chasm of Souls. We had known that there was something close to the plane, another place or time or dimension. All that had to be done, was to find the .... portal. So we would gather there regularly, picks and shovels, obsidian to wedge into the cracks, even a few bombs made by Ravageone (only to be used if all else failed, as they were highly explosive and unstable).

After several weeks of digging, excavating, even dousing for water traces behind the walls, we nearly exhausted ourselves of ideas and places to look. We met on the Firey Path to discuss options. At first, it was no more than a whispered voice, but finally appeared a man who called himself Prelate. He spoke softly and after some conversation and explanation of what we were looking for, he did nothing but point at a spot along the far wall.

We dug, chiseled, excavated and dug some more. There, amongst the rubble, the glimmer of a portal. A portal... to the Citadel. The City may have been at war, and turmoil the word of the day, but we had found a passage to a new plane.


The tome lay unfurled, a bit of smoked fog hug just above the parchment. The smokey fog seemed to be pulling letters, then words from the page. At first, the fog just hung in the Air, then swirled around her twice, whispering to her;

"Darkling child....hungry soul...playing arrogantly with things you do not understand...

Are you worthy?

Oh the wonders that I show, through me is knowledge thus bestowed. Three orbs aligned with mirrored sheen, when closed I am the key to dreams...

Darkling child...hungry soul...you who claim worthiness...what am I?

I come in pairs for all to see, a hidden third resides in thee. With me is light and shadow shown, without me darkness full of woe."


And the Chaos Eclipse falls upon us.... again...

~Lacie~
Screchethan Kabal
~Lacie~
Keeper of the Eternal Shadow
Screchethan Kabal
"Cuz Clever got me this far, then Tricky got me in."
User avatar
-Lacie-
Ascended Dreamers
Posts: 351
Joined: Fri Apr 15, 2016 1:23 pm
Character Name(s): Purple Lace, etal
Location: Huntsville, AL
Contact:

The Penumbra 2

Post by -Lacie- »

Clarity was returning; things were beginning to make sense once more. She hadn't seen what was happening; blazing flames of the Fire cause Blindness. But, as she regained her strength, it became crystal clear what was happening. As she completed each quest, she realized that she had begun to take control of ... herself ... her Fire Within. Each step she took was one closer to the Balance she sought.

She couldn't stop staring at the crumbling parchment on the floor. Whispered to her, it did, and in a language only she understood... she hoped. One curled-up corner finally fell off into a dusty pile underneath the scroll. As she swept the dust away, the jagged edge pricked her pinkie; one drop of blood beaded just under the nail, dripping finally onto the parchment. The words on the tome seem to begin to glow and she thought she heard a whisper from across the room:


"Darkling child, hungry soul..."
"What am I?"


Standing up quickly, her journal, quill and bag falling to the ground, she walked across the Crypt to where the Sphere was. She looked down, saw it glowing faintly. She smirked wickedly and nodded once...

"What are ye... indeed? I have solved ye riddle."

She picked up the Sphere and turned it over in her hands. The three rings which had given her so much distress glowed slightly as her thumb outlined each of them....knowingly. She brought the Sphere back to her journal, picking up her quill and made a few notes.


Journal Entry XXXI - Mysterious Sphere - notes

1. Upon examination, Eldryck Venym noted the Sphere seemed to be a sort of Cryptex. This would imply there is some sort of word or sequence that would open the Sphere, revealing a message or treasure within. What I had not thought of, was that it could also be... a Symbol, which unlocks the Sphere.

2. Penumbra - (def.) A space of partial illumination (as in an eclipse) between the perfect shadow on all sides and the full light. We formed our guild with this name, so long ago, to be that shadow ... within the Shadow.

3. The Umbra must be protected and guarded at all costs. We will hold the trust sacred and the secrets to our own demise. Infidels do what infidels do. True believers need no House or bobble or trinket to know the Shadow.

4. Conclusion - The Kabal is called to gather mid-week, mid-eve. We need to open this Sphere and learn of its contents. We also need updates on member projects.
~Lacie~
Keeper of the Eternal Shadow
Screchethan Kabal
"Cuz Clever got me this far, then Tricky got me in."
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