The Truth

[High_On_Math 398]

Spoiler

 

[!] You find a long missive/short book somewhere.  It seems it's been mass-printed and distributed across Almaris.

 

ABOVE US AND BELOW US, IN THE HEAVENS ALL AROUND US, A WAR OF PRINCIPALITIES AND POWERS RAGES. 

 

 

       Since the beginning of time, the anguldaemons, the inferi, and other beings have been fighting a war amongst themselves.  Fractured into countless factions, they do not merely fight descendents, but fight each other as well.  And, at the end of time, this war has now spilt into our realm.  Now, they have fallen from the skies, and seek to carry out their conflict on our earth.

 

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       As this book is being written, Inferi are invading Haense.  This is not the first time inferi have placed a descendent city under siege.  The events now occurring on Almaris are similar to those that occurred on Arcas.

 

      This book is based upon the book ‘Bloodmaris’ by Luthriel Xatophon, though she now expands on her work in this book, providing new information. 

 

 

This book will:

1. Describe the destruction of Arcas and its similarities to the events now occurring on Almaris.

2. Describe Almaris-specific information.

3. Describe unexplained phenomenon that MUST be investigated as swiftly as possible

4. Types of monsters fought in Arcas and Almaris

5. Provide plans for defense.

 

 

PART 1: THE DESTRUCTION OF ARCAS.

 

We currently live on the continent of Almaris.  However, in 1776, we lived on a continent called Arcas.  Descendent kind immigrated from Arcas to Almaris due to an inferi invasion that destroyed the continent (Song, 4).

 

Lights proceeded by a large red and purple orb were seen in the sky throughout the continent.  A purple and red eclipse occurred, and all things in the sky froze (Song, 5).

 

5 meteors fell out of the sky.  Only 2 hit Arcas.  A blood-red meteor has recently fallen out of the sky in Almaris, and soon after, Haense was assaulted.

 

One meteor landed on the Urguani mountain side.  This meteor was revealed to be the skull of the Kharajyr’s creator and god, the daemon Metzli (Camian, 5).  This skull seemed to be the impetus for the inferi coming to Arcas.  

 

Surrounding the craters of the meteor’s impact were many monsters.

 

In his book, Unknown Invaders, author Talos Song claims to have spoken with one monster.  The creatures had built a wall around the crater, and the creature said that the wall’s purpose was to keep descendents out.  The creature proceeded to attempt to eat Song out of hunger.

 

Around one of the craters on Arcas was an aura which gave descendents mental trauma (Song, 12). 

 

After the comets, the sky rained blood.  It rained blood here, in Almaris, around the year 1870.

 

Next, inferi generals appeared.  Cities were taken.  The sky rained with the corpses of the fallen (Aeonn).

 

In his account of the attack on the Orenian city of Helena during this time, Ri’Haskir’Kul notes that the assault was composed of undead beings led by an inferi general.  He notes that inferi cannot animate the dead.  A ritual site was found nearby.  A pig’s head was attached to the corpse of a sheep (Notes on the Undead Assault).

 

Large, bug-like creatures appeared (20-30 meters high).  These were led by inferi generals.  They adapted to all man-made weapons used against them (Aeonn).

 

Biologist Yasmin Alcaide observed that the creatures would collaborate without verbal communication, prompting her to hypothesize that the creatures were part of a hive mind. 

 

The inferi and the bugs began to terraform the desert of Arcas, known as Korvassa, turning it into a hellscape (Aeonn) (On Al-Faiz Daemons, 12).

 

The sand of the Arcas desert turned blood red, or turned scorched black (accounts differ).  Malflame burned everywhere.  A strange tree (or trees) made of wailing flesh appeared (Aeonn).  The bug-like creatures appeared to live as a Hive beneath the mountains at the edge of the desert.

 

Alcaide speculated that the beings were creating an ecosystem.  The presence of fire may mean that they require low levels of oxygen.  The inferi also created large flesh and blood pits, possibly for feasting (On Al-Faiz, 17).

 

Nina de Alcaide, the granddaughter of Yasmin Alcaide notes that the inferi ecosystem resembles that of the Nether (The Inferi of Arcas, 17).

 

The descendents decided to push further into the hell-scape of Korvassa. During this battle, the knights of Malchediael first appeared.  Angels appeared, blessing descendent-kind and fighting alongside them.

 

At the center of the inferi and bug mob, inside the desert-turned-hell, was a gigantic blue skull covered in flesh (Aeonn) (Ri’Haskir). This was the skull of Mitzli, which had originally crashed into the Urguani mountain side, but was taken by the Hive to the desert (Camia, 25).  Flames appeared to surround the skull, but they were mirages, or illusions.  The ground beneath the flames was made of flesh.

 

Alongside the skull was a gargantuan egg containing a gargantuan humanoid form. The Angul of New Beginnings, Gazardiael, called this egg “The Egg of the New World.”  It is believed that the skull of Mitzli was needed to power the ritual by which the egg could be hatched.

 

A large rune appeared in the sky of the inferi hellscape.  Nina hypothesizes that this is from sacrificial magic (The Inferi of Arcas).

 

It became clear that the angul of New Beginnings, Gazardiael, was attempting to end creation, and thus Malchediael sentenced Gazardiael to death (Camia, 26).  The Rex and Grand King delt the killing blow.

 

Someone used a weapon to shatter the skull (Aeonn). This caused the hell-scape desert to explode.  

 

Some inferi and bugs remained, and these were hunted down.

 

The /first wave/ of the invasion had been defeated, but a second invasion was about to occur.

 

Earthquakes shook Almaris.  Cloud Temple collapsed.  Monsters, some of which were undead, began to appear (Aeonn).

While the monsters were ultimately defeated, Arcas was left in ruins, and thus descendent-kind immigrated to Almaris.

 

PART 2: Almaris-specific information.

 

Many decades ago, the city of Luciensburg (near Yong Ping, Urguan, old Lubba’s Keep, and Pinemaw) was overtaken by Ratiki.  The leader of the Ratiki sacrificed his underlings to obtain great power, and then left the destroyed and abandoned city of Luciensburg, traveling to the desert city of Kivdrona.  There, he played a role in a grand scheme to unleash alchemical gas on the populace.  Upon breathing that gas, the citizens of Kivdrona all turned into monsters.

 

A portal to another realm filled with demons was discovered in the abandoned sewers of Luciensberg.  While that portal has now been destroyed, there still stands a shrine to a strange being in the ruins of the city.  Around the shrine are corpses which were sacrificed to the being, and in blood, the being’s name is written on the shrine.  A hole in the middle of the shrine contains a snake.  

 

This very being, presumably summoned by the Ratiki king, was discovered in Kivdrona, where it killed a man and resurrected him, turning him into it’s own slave.  This man was not undead.  He seemed very much alive, indistinguishable from a normal descendent, and aurum did not harm him.

 

The being is non-corporeal and extra-dimensional.  Unfortunately, it is said that even thinking about the being, or knowing his name, makes him stronger.  However, secrecy is also an ally for him, and we must expose him to fight him.

 

This being has now been located in a city called Karkosa.  Furthermore, there is a portal in Karkosa that leads to this being’s realm.

 

Strange missives have been found linking this Being to the end of the world.

 

The capital city of Haense, which is now under siege by inferi, had a Ratiki infestation in its sewers approximately 60 years ago.  Furthermore, a destroyed portal-like structure can be found in its sewers.

 

Given the nature of the being’s shrines (it requires blood sacrifice), its association with Ratiki (which tend to be almost exclusively evil and devious), its connection with the corruption of Kivdrona’s populace, its cruel enslavement of a man, and its association with portals to worlds filled with demons, we can assume this being is evil and at least partially behind the events we have been witnessing.

 

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Some say Iblees has returned.  He has returned by being reborn in the form of the “Widu Tree”.  While we do not know if he has fully returned, it seems that he has at least some presence on Almaris.

 

Others say that Widukind is currently impersonating Iblees, and thus Iblees has not returned.

 

The Widu Tree is currently using a gigantic worm - large enough to destroy a city - to kill Azdrazi titans (dragons).  The dragon Cloudbreaker has already been killed.  There have been great rumblings felt all across Almaris, but the earthquakes originate from Krugmar, where the worm seems to have been most active.  Most fauna has now fled Krugmar, and a sensation of dread seems to flood every crevice of the volcanic lands on the edge of Krugmar.  These phenomenon are likely caused by the worm.

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Shortly after the rumblings were felt, the sky was filled with red lighting.  This red lightning lasted a while and then went away.  It seemed to stretch across the sky horizontally, like a system of tree roots.

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A land of poltergeists and ghosts existed near Norland.  Coming into contact with the water of this land brought great depression.  In this land are also many ancient ruins.  While the ghosts have now disappeared, the ruins remain.  Inside the ruins lies an enormous gate.  As one approaches the gate, one is filled with depression and dread.  In front of the gate lies a gigantic broken chain.

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Inferi temples have been located in the southern desert as well as in the sewers of Providence.  Both are now long-ruined.

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The siege of Haense ended in Haense being victorious.  First, comets rained down, destroying the Karasograd Palace.  Second, fire rained down from the sky.  This time, there were both bugs and inferi soldiers.  The inferi soldiers wore demonic steel. 

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An active cult worshiping a Daemon associated with the realm of Moz-Strimoza exists on Almaris (Valro, 7).

 

PART 3: Areas for investigation

 

• What caused the bloodrain?  Why did the bloodrain fall several decades before the inferi invaded?

• What role might the Ratiki and the Being have in this invasion?

• Are the portals which the Being seems to be related to the gateways by which the inferi are entering our world? 

• The coordinates of all flesh pits should be identified so that the feeding pits may be destroyed. 

  • Coordinate of suspected feeding pit: 1086 / 163 / 3285

• What is the gate in Norland?  Should it be destroyed?

• How might the worm be combatted if it is turned upon descendents?

• A comet was seen in the sky before the siege of Haense.  Was that comet another skull? We must determine what, exactly, the large, blood-red comet that fell was.

• The entirety of Almaris should be explored, and any invasion-related sites reported and immediately dealt with.

 

PART 4: Types of monsters fought in Arcas and Almaris

• Most inferi have a humanoid body-type.  Thus, the bugs and other non-humanoids fought were most likely not inferi.  However, some witnesses claim they fought non-humanoid inferi.

• During Arcas, a supposed inferi Aeonn fought looked like an eyeball.  It manipulated his mind and attempted to cause him to hate himself (Aeonn).

• Alcaide notes a color scheme used by the inferi invaders and their bugs during Arcas.

  • Orange: support

  • Purple: combat

  • Blue: navy

• Alcaide documents four types of purple/combat creatures, two types of orange/support creatures, and one type of blue/navy creature.

  • PURPLE COMBAT CREATURES:

  • Death Horn:

    • Bipedal

    • Large white horn

    • heavy back to counterbalance the large horn on its head.

    • Tail for balance.

    • Human-like arms yielding twin weapons.

    • Side-facing eyes

    • Theropod, has 4 toes

    • Chitin-like armor

    • Armor vulnerable at joints

    • 25 meters high, 20 meters long

    • Frequents feeding holes

    • Looks like praying mantis

  • Stag Beetle:

    • Quadrupedal

    • Tall back covered in horns

    • Toothed pincers 

    • Glowing sack attached to front legs.  May contain corrosive material.

    • Forward facing eyes

    • 35 meters tall

  • Pulta-Pillar

    • Larvae

    • Could potentially become moth or butterfly if its lifecycle is similar to earthly creatures

    • Has many legs, though they seem to not work

    • Mandibles

    • Forward facing eyes

    • Catapult constructed by inferi is attached to its back

    • May create corrosive green goo

    • 20 meters high, 35 meters long

  • The Condemned

    • Seemingly resurrected undead humanoids

  • ORANGE SUPPORT CREATURES

  • The Orange Brutes

    • Bipedal

    • High muscle mass

    • Forward facing eyes

    • Intelligent: plan their own logistics, wield tools and weapons, construct forts

  • Flying Monkeys

    • Bipedal

    • Looks like human-bug hybrid

    • Resource gatherer

    • Hooked arms

    • Humanoid head with sharp teeth

    • Carry heavy loads while flying

    • 2.5 meter wings

  • BLUE NAVY CREATURES

  • Muerta de Paleta

    • Shark-like, has paddle tail

    • Powerful bite.  Can breach a ship.

    • Light blue fins, rest of body is dark

    • No side fins

    • Will eat small ships

• OTHER SOLDIERS AND CREATURES

  • Inferi Footsoldiers

    • Various humanoid forms

  • Imps

    • Small, humanoids with wings.  Used for spying

  • Red Elephants

    • 40 meters high

  • HellHounds

    • Hound-like beasts

    • 5 meters high

 

PART 5: DEFENSE STRATEGIES

Large cities should prepare for invasions by:

• Hiring transportation mages to stand by and aid in evacuation in the event of an attack

• Fire-proof all buildings

• Plan escape routes

Individuals should protect themself from blood rain by:

• Having a pancho available at all times

• Armor may substitute in an emergency

• Tea containing Oracle Wood may counteract negative mental effects from the bloodrain and other disturbing phenomena.

• Water-proofing their homes.

Fire-rain and comets

• Some sort a dome may work to shield an area from the fire-rain

• Underground bunkers may be better protected from comets

General mental distress:

• The following herbs can ease certain forms of mental distress:

  • Oracle wood gives unnatural clarity of mind

  • King’s Ivy boosts energy

  • Shade Leaf (does not require ST item, unlike most herbs) provides major calmness and helps with trauma

• Upon consumption, the Saint Felders’ Vitality potion eliminates all fear and mental distress for a period of time.

• Certain magics can ease mental distress.  Practitioners of these magics should be identified and distributed throughout Almaris.

Undead:

• Aurum and voidal magic harm the undead

  • Weapons and Armor should incorporate aurum

  • Cities should incorporate aurum in their architecture

  • Weapons such as aurum nets should be prepared in case of large-scale inferi invasion

Inferi Terraforming

• Inferi terraforming has 2 key parts: flesh and fire

• Methods for fire-proofing should be researched.

• Alchemical potions for decreasing temperatures, coating armor to protect from heat, fire-proofing, etc. should be produced in mass.

• Wood buildings should be replaced with stone ones.

• Voidal water mages should be on-call in the event of an inferi-related fire.

• Methods for combating mal-flame should be identified and pursued

• Saffvil should be collected in mass.  Saffvil is a plant that grows in dead flesh, consuming it.  In case of terraforming, it should be planted in order to consume the growing flesh.

Combat:

• The inferi quickly adapt to weapons.  A plethora of weapons should be invented for /single use/ in inferi combat.

• Through trickery, one can turn the bugs against each other.  This method is optimal.