The
EARTH story - November 23, 1372
November 23rd is cold,
overcast and calm. You continue your trek.
After two hours Jo-owrn stops. You are past the highest point in the
pass, and before you opens up a small valley, completely surrounded by
towering mountains and glaciers. Far below you a few trees grow. It is
a scene of both beauty and desolation. Few people before you have ever
beheld this view, you suspect.
The trail that you have followed for all these miles ends just a few
yards before you...at...a stone bridge abutment. Long ago, ancient
stone masons built this abutment here. Beyond, the land drops away
steeply into the valley.
There is, however, no bridge here.
You move forward and step onto the top of the abutment. The view over
the valley is commanding, but your attention is drawn to a narrow, 2'
long slot in the stonework. It appears as if a lever or a large key
might fit into it...
Equinox casts Protection from Fire and Protection from Lightning on
himself before anyone tries the key.
Key in hand, Al slides it into the key hole.
Jon yells while diving, "Take cover in case it's trapped!"
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Brennon says while also scrambling
for cover.
Mikodin looks over at Brennon, and, smiling, moves a little closer to
cover himself, just in case Jon and Brennon were right.
Staying where he is, Aron wonders, "How come the sudden paranoia?"
Beth, who is watching the key turning with interest, says, "Huh?" and
turns to Aron.
"Oh, it's just Jon. Well, to be fair, if we're lucky, we're about
to open a pathway to another plane. You never know what might
come out."
Drinor, who has been oddly quiet up to this point, steps closer to the
bridge as Al puts the key in. He draws his sword.
"I feel what Jon feels as well - I am eager to see Asgard, but we
should be wary of Hecate's tricks. Be ready!"
Ayazin, who has also been oddly quiet, remains quiet.
Tully says, "Yeah, I am not sure why they are being like this."
He shakes his head.
Al, showing no fear as is his strength and weakness, inserts the key.
Nothing seems to happen. You continue to breathe the cold air.
Then, you notice that it seems to be getting dark. This is unusual,
since dawn was less than three hours ago.
An eerie dimness falls over the landscape. You look about nervously.
The heavy clouds hide your view of the sun, so you do not know why the
light has dimmed.
When the light has faded to the equivalent of late twilight, you notice
something flickering in the clouds to the south.
After a moment a rainbow bursts forth, sparkling in all the colours of
the spectrum, shining with its own holy light. The end of it drops down
out of the heavens, to end at your feet...against the abutment.
The key vanishes.
The rainbow is perhaps 30' wide, and alive with shimmering colours. It
appears to be quite solid. It arches up into the heavens, and
disappears into the cloud deck.
"For Tyr," Aron says as he steps onto the rainbow bridge.
Tully says, "For the love..."
"This is the path our gods have chosen for us. Let's not waste time
checking for traps, casting divination spells to see if this is the
correct path, or whatever. I don't know how long this bridge is
going to be here, but I'm going to use it while it's here," says the
monk as he trots up the bridge. Looking back he adds, "I'm just
checking it out..just in case. Care to join me Al?"
The cavalier is speechless. Tears of joy began to stream down his face
as he knew he was close to seeing his lord and master in the flesh.
Claw sheathed, he begins to walk up the bridge, seeking Thor.
He shakes his head and waits to see if he plummets to his death.
The bridge is solid.
"Well, I've come this far. I might as well continue on," Brennon says, following Al towards the rainbow bridge.
Mikodin, his smile now a grin from ear-to-ear, begins to walk up and
onto the rainbow bridge, sure that Tyr would never trick him.
Jo-owrn, however, hesitates.
"I think this is where we'll be parting company," the ranger says. "My
beat is the forests and mountains of Earth. I'm not ready to head off
to the outer planes yet."
He pauses.
"I think I'll head back down the Long Valley, see what's happening down
Skiilii way. I ain't been down there for awhile, and the winter's are a
bit milder there, too."
"IdliketocomewithyoutooJo-owrn," says Kelar, in classic Doug-speak. "Imnotreadyfortheouterplaneseither."
"You're welcome to join me, friend. Your tent will be appreciated as well," Jo-owrn adds with a smile.
Leslie bites her lower lip, and then steps over to Jo-owrn.
"When I get back I'll look you up," she says in a low voice.
Jo-owrn looks into her eyes.
"We'll find each other, milady," he says.
Suddenly Leslie leans forward. Her lips brush his.
Then, she turns, and follows Al onto the Bifrost Bridge.
Jo-owrn turns and walks away, back the way you came. Kelar shrugs and follows him.
"Jo-Owrn," Equinox calls out to the Ranger before he leaves, "Do I
recall you saying something about a legend in the North about a magical
bridge and a sword underneath the Bridge? I cannot remember why, but I
think that you once said that the Sword was likely hidden under the
bridge."
Jo-owrn looks back.
"I told you about the legend of the magical bridge," he replies, "But I've never heard anything about a sword under it."
"OK. Obviously I was thinking of something else."
"Now that is cool," Beth says, clearly enjoying what she's looking at. "C'mon, folks, let's go planewalking."
Oblivious to Jo-owrn's parting, with the others Beth ventures out onto the bridge.
Tully shakes his head and follows the others. "We are probably all going to die...this seems too much like a trap to me."
Drinor sheathes his sword and bows his head, saying a humble prayer of thanks before setting forth over the Bifrost Bridge.
Ayazin looks back and forth several times between Jo-owrn's group and
the party headed over the bridge; even after both groups are nearly
gone, he hesitates. At last he mutters, "But you can't walk on a
rainbow..." and scurries onto the bridge, holding his breath the whole
way and peering over his shoulder with every step.
Equinox starts across the Bridge.
Jon, pulls himself us from the side of the rainbow. "Jo-owrn, if you
pass by the Borderlands they may need assistance as they are sorely
pressed. Come on Violet, I always wondered what's at the bottom of the
rainbow...or rather the end of the rainbow..."
He moves onto the rainbow and follows the others.
Violet follows him.
Sharone kneels. Raising her hands, she cries, "IDUN! This is magic not
of your doing. My friends go forward over this bridge, I need your
guidance as to the right path to follow."
"Do I leave this plane to follow this quest?"
Leslie, Laurie, Goodgulf, Rameen, Devlin, Vardui, Op Code, Aldarin, and
Grim step onto the Bridge and set off after the others, while Sharone
awaits guidance from her goddess.
For a moment, Kithus appears to
be unable to decide whether to follow others up the bridge, or not.
Then, he shrugs to himself, and follows others up the bridge.
"We're off to see the wizard!" Op Code sings out in his off-key voice as he steps onto the rainbow.
Suddenly a female voice booms out of the heavens.
"I AM IDUN, WIFE OF BRAGI. ASK AND I SHALL GUIDE YOU."
Sharone communes. The rest of you pause.
"1. Is my following the group over this rainbow bridge acceptable to you?"
"YES."
"2. Is my continuing the quest we follow being true to your teachings?"
"YES."
"3. The time for me to build a shrine to your beauty fast approaches, is the
borderlands a good place to establish this shrine?
"YES."
"4. Are we likely to meet other questing groups across the rainbow bridge who
oppose our success?"
"YES."
"5. What is the weakness of the Black Wizards?"
She gets no answer.
"Is my lord Thor at home and willing to grace me with his presence?" Al asks hopefully.
"After we are done Communing, let
us prepare for battle with the Black Wizards," suggests Equinox to the
party, "Whoever can cast a few Protection from Evil spells might want
to do so, as well as invisibility for as many people as possible,
mirror image, stoneskin and protection from fire, magic or the like
also."
Sharone becomes silent, so after a moment you turn and start climbing up the Bifrost Bridge.
It ascends steeply, but you have
no trouble maintaining your footing. Above the valley you climb, the
clouds above getting steadily closer. Wisps of fog and haze begin to
blow past you...then you enter the cloud deck and Earth below is lost
to your sight. All about you is greyness, limiting your vision, but the
bridge itself provides more than enough illumination for you to see
your way.
You lose all track of time as you
trudge upwards, but eventually you notice that the angle of ascent of
the bridge is lessening. At about the same time you realise that the
cloud is thinning and you are nearing the top of the cloud deck.
However, it still appears to be twilight.
Off in the distance you suddenly
see a figure. As you get closer you see that he is a man, clad in white
furs and leathers that dazzle your eyes. A great longsword hangs from
his belt, and also an enormous horn. He wears a horned helmet atop his
head.
His features are noble and Good, and as you get close enough to discern them, you suddenly drop to your knees and worship him.
"I AM HEIMDALL, GUARDIAN OF THE BIFROST BRIDGE," his voice booms over you. "YOU MAY ARISE."
You look up, and see him standing over you.
"YOU ARE HERE ON HECATE'S ERRAND?" he asks you.
Brennon is so awestruck that he remains quiet while the others speak to
the guardian. Having never been in the presence of a god before, he is
not sure what to do.
"We are retrieving the three artifacts of the Saltar Empire at the
direction of Lord Thor," Equinox tells Heimdall, "If that is Hecate's
errand, then the answer is yes."
"YOU SEEK ONLY THE ONE HERE. ANOTHER HAS BEEN FOUND AND THE THIRD IS AS YET HIDDEN."
Beth speaks up.
"None of us serve Hecate, lord," she says. "We are from the land
of Earth, and seek artifacts to combat a growing evil there. Some
here variously serve others, but ultimately we are working for the
people of our land."
"THAT IS GOOD. THESE ARE TROUBLED TIMES, WHEN FORCES THAT WOULD
ORDINARILY BE OPPOSED TO ONE ANOTHER MUST BAND TOGETHER TO SURVIVE.
HECATE SECRETED AWAY THE SCEPTRE OF THE GODS, THE SWORD OF THE EMPEROR
AND THE ROBE OF THE BLESSED LONG AGO. NOW, SHE HAS SENT YOU TO FREE
THEM FROM THEIR HIDING PLACES. WHETHER YOU REALISE IT OR NOT, YOU ARE
ON HER ERRAND...WITH THE BLESSING OF THE ALL-FATHER."
"Who or what are Thor, the All-Father and Hecate jointly opposing?"
"COME HERE AND BEHOLD WHAT YOU ARE OPPOSING...AND WHAT YOU SEEK TO PRESERVE."
You follow Heimdall's direction and move over to the edge of the bridge. He motions downwards, and you look.
Before your eyes the clouds part, and you see the continent of North
Amrica far below, illuminated clearly in bright moonlight. Your eyes
scan the landscape, and you see...
You see Jo-owrn and Kelar, camped out in the latter's tent, some miles from the Gates of Asgard.
To the south, over several ranges of mountains, you see a kingdom of
giants ruled by an evil cloud giant from his castle in the clouds; and
not far from that place the Witch's Dale, where the Black Wizards plot
and plan in their towers. Not too many days west lies the town of
Demon's Neck - Mikodin and Brennon's home - and current residence of Op
Code's followers and his and Tully's friends Vs Spy, Oh Well, Who Knows
and Phil Donahue. You see them preparing their castle for the winter.
Your eyes move south over more mountains, passing over a secret kingdom
ruled by a good ranger, to the lands near the ruined city of Frisco.
There, tentatively exploring the forests and woods surrounding a tunnel
riddled hill and cursing even the moonlight, you see drow.
Guided even farther south you come to the borders of Dorian, the land
of the Grey Elves, and you see Lord Valdar leading a party of warriors
in a battle against a band of giants who seek to enter his land.
You look east, and in the tunnels of the dwarf-land of the Dwardarf,
you see noble dwarves plotting to overthrow their king. South of that
land sits King Goldhine on his throne in the heart of the high elven
land of Aldacan, listening to a minstrel sing.
Farther south and east, you see all of Nlad again under the rule of its
king, as the disorganised armies of Mestom retreat into the mountains.
All of Central Amrica is in flames and chaos, but the greatest battles
are taking place around the rebel city of Casablanca.
Your eyes move north again and east, to the Mississippi delta. There,
you see the land of Riverland firmly under the control of Saltar, and
the reconstruction of the great bridge across that river beginning.
Eastwards, in Atlantia, you see the Emperor Clarvis holding the Sceptre
of the Gods, and directing his minions to rebuild and restore his
empire.
More to the north, you see the dark land of Imrimil the Black Wizard
torn by war. The armies of Saltar control the lands south of Lac Olith,
and a great army of dwarves battles for control of the east. They are
led by a dwarf lord that some of you recognise.
"McTavish!" Leslie exclaims.
To the east, in the region known as the Small Kingdoms, you see petty
wars and plots. And east of that, from islands off of the coast, the
sea kingdoms of Seasham and Calacoon send forth their raiding ships.
West of Nolthen, in a ruined city dominated by a dark, looming tower,
you see a party battling to clear the place of evil. Beth identifies
Kadlian and Rage, but none of the others with them does she recognise.
North again, and not that far from Omaha, you see the foul land of the
Ruined Realm, where creatures of unlife rule, and slowly expand their
domain into the living lands beyond.
Heimdall guides your eyes farther north still and east, and you see in
the midst of a range of mountains surrounded by ice, a complex of dark
towers from which an ancient energy radiates.
And still father north, to where the ice cap, miles thick, creeps
slowly but inexorably south...driving all before it. Everywhere you see
orcs, goblins, trolls, giants and their evil ilk creeping through the
forests and woodlands, slinking across the tundra and prairies, moving
steadily south...to the civilised lands.
But even the ice cap is not uninhabited. You see great ships of wood
and steel sailing across the glaciers and snowfields, linking towns,
camps and settlements. Here and there a mountain peak thrusts itself
above the ice, and you see cities and mines in these places. The ice
spans the northern ocean as well, you note, providing a bridge to the
lands of old Earth as well.
You look away, and the clouds close in again.
Brennon watches the world pass below.
"I never realized how big it was," he mutters. "Where do we even begin?"
Mikodin looks over at his
childhood friend, and says, "We all become lost on our way now and
then. I try to concentrate on the task before me, and let others
decide the larger issues. Or, sometimes, those larger issues seem
to take care of themselves if you only take care of matters at hand."
Looking troubled and distressed,
Kithus sneaks in a few words. "Lord Heimdall, if that is your
honourific, you say that forces that would ordinarily be opposed would
band together to survive. What forces do you mean? And from what are
they hoping to survive?"
"THE FORCES THAT WOULD SEEK TO DESTROY US BY DESTROYING OUR FOLLOWERS. THAT IS YOU."
"Also, you spoke that one of the
three items is found. Could you tell us which one has been found and
which is here that we must find?"
"THE SCEPTRE HAS BEEN FOUND - BEHOLD THE EMPEROR. YOU SEEK THE SWORD."
"Is one of the items we seek in that icy realm?" Al asks.
"I DO NOT KNOW."
Ayazin clears his throat. "Didn't
the rhyme say that the third item was in a tower? It looks like
Kadlian's group is fighting their way toward a tower right now."
Leslie, who has been whispering with Laurie and Vardui, looks over at the druid and shakes her head.
Drinor remains speechless, his eyes brimming with tears as he is unable to take them off Heimdall.
"It looks that there is a bit of work to be done," Equinox comments with remarkable understatement. "What would You have us do?"
"YOU MUST FIND THE SWORD AND
DELIVER IT TO THE EMPEROR CLARVIS. THE SWORD IS HIDDEN AWAY IN THE EVIL
REALM OF JOTENHEIM. THE BRIDGE WILL DELIVER YOU TO ASGARD, ON THE BANKS
OF THE RIVER IVING, WHICH SEPARATES ASGARD FROM JOTENHEIM. YOU WILL
FIND A SMALL CRAFT TO CROSS THAT RIVER HIDDEN NEARBY. ON THE OTHER SIDE
IS A FAINT TRAIL WHICH YOU WILL FOLLOW BACK INTO THE HILLS, OVER THE
MOUNTAINS AND ACROSS THE SNOWFIELDS, UNTIL YOU FINALLY COME TO THE
TUNNELS OF THE SWORD.
"BE CAREFUL AND MOVE WITH STEALTH
IF YOU MAY. THE ARRIVAL OF THE BRIDGE MAY ATTRACT THE NOTICE OF THE
EVIL CREATURES WHICH INHABIT JOTENHEIM. THE TRAIL IS GUARDED BY TROLLS,
GIANTS AND DRAGONS. YOU MUST DEFEAT THEM TO PASS. THESE CREATURES ARE
MORE POWERFUL THAN THEIR EARTHBOUND SIBLINGS."
"Trolls, Giants, Dragons, oh joy..." Brennon says, shaking his head ever so slightly.
"Trolls, giants, and dragons, oh
my!" Kithus echoes Brennon's words, but changing them slightly to quote
from a once famous children's tale.
"Trolls, giants, and dragons, oh my!" repeats Mikodin, doing an odd dance step as he does so, and linking arms with Brennon.
Ayazin, who has been looking a
bit glum until now, perks up a bit. "Rivers and mountains? Trails and
snowfields? It sounds like just the thing I need. No more dungeons for
me!"
In awe of one of his lord's kin, it takes some time for Al's voice to be heard.
"Great Heimdall, is my lord Thor available to see?" he asks slowly.
"DO NOT BE A MEATHEAD, AL."
"What?" he asks, a frown crossing his face, seeing that he said something wrong, but not knowing what it is.
Drinor chuckles and puts his arm
around Al. "I think Lord Thor would be much more glad to see you AFTER
you retrieve the sword. Stand before your Lord in victory! Come now,
say your farewells and let's be on our way."
"Hmmm," he snorts, "fine, let's go."
Leslie turns to Heimdall.
"Milord, McTavish is an old
friend of ours to whom we owe our lives many times over. It seems that
he needs our help now. We would like your leave to join him."
Heimdall nods.
"GO TO HIM. I WILL ENSURE YOU SAFE PASSAGE."
Leslie bows, and looks to Laurie, Goodgulf, Vardui, Grim and Devlin.
"I'm with you, Leslie," says Goodgulf,
Laurie looks to Sharone.
"You are a high priestess now,"
she says, "And Meathead is a high priest, too. My abilities would be
put to better use down there."
Sharone bows to Laurie, "Had I not been guided by Idun, I too would go to McTavish's aid. That grumpy dwarf has spilt much blood on my behalf too. And I could do with a refresher course of the dwarven language, the Mctavish way. I will try to serve the group as well as you have, and look forward to further adventures together."
Vardui sighs.
"I don't owe loyalty to many
people," he says, "But McTavish is one of the few that I do. I think
it's time to pay him back for all the blood he has shed for me over the
years."
"I am a druid of Sylvanus," says
Grim. "Traveling to the realm of the chaotic Norse gods holds no appeal
to me. I prefer my feet to be upon solid earth."
Devlin shakes his head at Leslie.
"I know the dwarf only slightly
and owe him no debts," he says in his baritone voice. "These people
need my abilities and my leadership more than he does. I will continue
after the sword with them."
Leslie walks over to Beth.
"I hope our paths cross again.
When all this is over come back to our stronghold, and we shall go and
explore the Space Port together."
Beth nods, and says to Leslie, "I will definitely do that. Thanks to my recent studies, I can travel distances much easier than previously, and I know your stronghold well."
"I am glad to have met you all,
and I wish you good luck in your quest," Brennon says to the others who
are leaving. "May the Gods protect you all."
Sharone bids the rest of the departing group well. "Goodgulf, Leslie, Grim, Vardui...'til we next meet."
Jon says to them, "Laurie,
Goodgulf, Vardui, Grim and Devlin you would happen to have a spare wand
for a loan while we go sight seeing on this plane thingie? I think we will need the fire power. Thanks for your help Vardui. Where can I look you up in future?"
Vardui looks at Jon, who is
already already festooned with magic armour, magic wands, magic nets,
magic swords, magic rings, magic scrolls, magic potions, magic cloaks
and magic feather tokens.
He shakes his head.
Jon looks to Vardui. "Willing to swap or trade? Just didn't think you'd want to give one up for good."
Drinor does so himself, clasping
arms with Laurie, Leslie, Goodgulf, Grim, and Vardui in turn. Ayazin
bows and offers them blessings. "I am sorely tempted to join you in the
struggle against the Witch Lord of Nolthen, but I feel I might strike a
harder blow here. If he turns against the Blackwood, however... send
for me, and I will stand with you to defend my homeland."
"We will indeed," says Leslie with a smile. "I have a feeling that we will be adventuring together again."
"Farewell thee all," Al says to
those leaving. He kisses Laurie's and then Leslie's cheeks, "I will
miss you," he says to each of them.
Then, Leslie, Laurie, Goodgulf, Rameen, Vardui and Grim step off of the Bifrost Bridge and float downwards and back to Earth.
After a few moments they disappear into the clouds.
Jon holds up the Jupiter 2.
"Lord Heimdall once we get the
sword how do we get back? Are we supposed to use this? Oooh and
thanks for the show. Hope we succeed."
"I DO NOT KNOW."
"Let's go kick some ass!" Al
smiles as he is eager to recover the sword. "My thanks, Lord Heimdall,
may we see you soon," he says with a low bow, hoping that Thor will make an appearance before they leave.
Heimdall stands aside, and you pass.
The Bridge begins to arc
downwards, now. Hour after hour you walk, the slope becoming steadily
steeper. You keep your footing, though. All around you is darkness.
Then, a warm glow begins to
permeate the air. Through the haze ahead and below you see a land
opening up before you. It is a land of towering coniferous forests and
enormous, snow-capped mountains. The air becomes cooler, and you taste
the scent of pine.
At last you reach the bottom of
the Bifrost Bridge and step onto the plane of Gladsheim. You are in a
meadow surrounded on all sides but one by the tallest trees that you
have ever seen. To you left, though, is a river, and on the far side of
the river is more forest. Off in the distance you see a range of
hills...and beyond that mountains. The air is cold and refreshing here.
The sky above is devoid of a sun...instead being illuminated uniformly
in a glow. Occasionally it seems to flicker, like a white flame.
Next day