Quest for the God-Spark
Though the calendar read May, winter still gripped the land in its icy clutches. The heroes had hoped that their rescue of the imprisoned elven queen might have shaken the curse that held both crops and flowers in check, yet that was not the case. Then, on the twenty-first day of May, Adarrial Smythe and Eandrynn were summoned by the druid Dorus to the Church of the Elements. There, she related a tale of the goddess Anaerynsia, Mother of Life.
The druid told them that, though a deity--indeed, one of the four gods present at the Primal Bargain that began all things--Anaerynsia was not truly immortal. Much like the world itself, to renew her vitality Anaerynsia had to "die" periodically and be reborn in a new form. When the goddess felt her energy waning, she created a god-spark: a luminous vessel of energy holding the seed of her renewal. This god-spark lay dormant for one year before being given life by Anaerynsia's death. During that time, the god-spark was kept secret and safe by trusted worshipers of Anaerynsia.
Apparently, the long winter besetting the land--and perhaps the slow fading of the elven empire itself--was due to the waning power of the goddess. The secret only known to the most powerful elves of Brithonen was that Anaerynsia's death was centuries overdue; that, in fact, her god-spark had been taken from its place of hiding by forces unknown. Anaerynsia could not risk being reborn while in the keeping of her enemies.
Of course, the elves had quietly been searching for the god-spark for long years, expending great energies upon the task. Until now, they had patiently believed that their efforts would eventually be rewarded, and their goddess's life-force could be rescued before her death and rebirth. Indeed, they had recently even discovered the hiding place of the god-spark, though teams sent to retrieve it had returned in failure...or not returned at all.
But now, the time for patience and secrecy was over. The druid pointed to a single black flower growing upon the mystical tree Semphelon, the ancient reservoir of elven knowledge. That flower, she explained, was the Final Bloom: a sign that Anaerynsia had begun the process of death. In exactly 30 days, Dorus stated coldly, the goddess would die and be reborn.
Unfortunately, that wasn't the worst news. The direst nightmares of the elven leaders had come to pass: Anaerynsia's god-spark was in the possession of an entity with both the power and the knowledge to control the newborn goddess: the Father of Demons himself, Merrshaulk. If the god-spark wasn't rescued from the demon-god's clutches before 30 days had passed, there was no telling what Merrshaulk would be able to accomplish.
What the druid didn't tell the heroes was that she feared that she had unwittingly given Merrshaulk the tools to complete his dominance over Anaerynsia. By sending Beran and his comrades in pursuit of Ashardalon, she had put two parts of the Soul Totem--a reservoir of the power of the fallen god Kulan Gath--in the same place. Suddenly, she realized all too well where the third and final fragment of the Soul Totem lay...
The heroes had precious little time to waste. Their goal, according to Dorus, was a foul region of the Elemental Plane of Water known as the Abyssal Deepening. This place was home to the sahuagin, vicious shark-warriors who were twisted versions of the sea elves.
Returning to Helmsport, the two repeated the druid's tale to Falaster, Duran, and Rexander, relating the importance of their quest. Fearing that they could not spare the time to wait for their other comrades, these five heroes located a portal to the Elemental Plane of Water hidden in a sea-cave southwest of Brithonen. As if warned of their approach, a squadron of sahuagins backed by a powerful aquatic demon lay in wait for the heroes at the portal.
Overcoming this obstacle, the heroes emerged in the City of Glass, a floating city entirely enclosed and protected from the plane. There, they set about gathering information about their destination. One sea elf, Aelenthas by name, offered to take them to someone who might be able to guide them to the Abyssal Deepening. This creature, who the elf called simply "The Weird," lived in an air-filled cavern several days' travel from the city. After agreeing on a price, the group left the city and headed toward the Weird's cave.
Once again, the enemy seemed one step ahead of the heroes, as another team of sahuagins and demons had arrived in advance of them. Despite the ambush, the heroes won out and confronted the Weird--a being of elemental water possessed of oracular knowledge.
Communicating telepathically with the cleric Duran, the Weird confirmed that the heroes' destination lay within the Abyssal Deepening and implanted within his mind the knowledge necessary to locate this dark place. "The goddess Sekolah, foul mother of the sahuagin, guards the god-spark. To retrieve the thing you seek, you must take it from within the goddess herself. Sekolah, you see, is the size of one of your human cities. You will enter her body, make your way into her belly, and defeat the god-spark's guardians. She will be as unaware of your presence as you are of the dust in the air you breathe. Once you find the spark, know this--only those who bear the blood of Anaerynsia may handle it safely."
After hearing of the next leg of their quest from Duran, the heroes knew that they needed reinforcements before proceeding. Though they had defeated those who stood in their way so far, things would only get tougher after this. They rested and recuperated in the Weird's cave until Thomas, Thorgrimm, and Seth arrived a few days later. As the assembled group prepared to depart, the Weird spoke to Duran once more, delivering a strange warning: "I see you standing by the one you call Seth, but I see only one future, one destiny, between the two of you."
Unnerved by this cryptic message, but knowing that he had little time to ponder such things, Duran departed the cave with his friends, heading into the inky depths of the Plane of Water. For nine long days the heroes descended, leaving all light behind them. Then, in the darkness ahead they perceived a faint luminescence, revealing a collection of spires standing beside a yawning chasm. Whether this was the bottom of an infinitely large planar ocean or merely part of an immense island of rock floating at an inestimable depth was a question that would be left to later philosophers. For now, the heroes knew only one thing: they had found the Deepening.
The Weird's directions took them toward the tallest spire, which stood less than a hundred yards from the pitch-black chasm. Using illusion to mask their identities, the heroes slipped past the sahuagin warriors guarding the tower. Farther down, however, the team encountered wary sharks who sensed the falsehood and moved to attack. The heroes fought their way through the guards before them and walled off pursuit from those behind, finally making their way into the throne room at the base of the tower. There, they battled the mighty priest-king of the sahuagin himself, along with many other powerful defenders.
Though victorious, the struggle wearied the heroes. They knew full well that they couldn't rest yet, as the entire city behind them would soon be roused. Entering a secret passage concealed in the throne room, the eight brave souls swam down a long, dark shaft. Eventually, this tunnel opened out into the chasm itself, miles below the city.
Some distance below floated a creature of enormous size. As its eel-like tail swung sluggishly from side to side, its vast toothy maw hung open. At first, the heroes believed the thing to be the size of a small castle, but as they grew closer they realized that the specks they saw flitting about the thing's mouth were in fact sharks of titanic size. The Weird had spoken the truth--Sekolah would pay less heed to them than a horse does to a fly.
Battling past the enormous sharks guarding the goddess's mouth, the heroes swam down the creature's very gullet. The passage toward Sekolah's stomach was treacherous, as blasts of digestive juices and crushing constrictions of the esophagus threatened their survival. Eventually, however, the heroes emerged in the belly of the beast.
Here, they faced the final defenders of the god-spark--demons, demonically infused water elementals, a half-demon sahuagin prince, and a dragon-sized eel-like demon commanding the entire group. Knowing full well that there would be no time for a second opportunity, the heroes fought bravely, and they fought well. One by one, the vile minions of Merrshaulk and Sekolah fell until none was left.
In a side pocket of the gut, the heroes found the object of their quest: a glowing sphere of energy the size of a platter. After hearing the Weird's warning, the group had already decided that Eandrynn--who bore a bloodline that marked him as a true heir of the ancient power of the elven race--would be entrusted with the retrieval of the god-spark.
But before the elven archer could act, several of the heroes each had a sudden (and separate) realization, inspired by the presence of the god-spark. Duran, Eandrynn, Thomas, Adarrial, Thorgrimm, and Seth each knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the power of the god-spark could drastically augment the power of his bloodline. If he were only to take the divine essence in hand and claim its power as his own, he would ascend beyond mortality and become a god.
Each of the six heroes reacted to this knowledge in his own way. Eandrynn saw himself as the reborn god of the elves, leading his people to glory once again, while Duran mulled the possibility of ensuring human dominance on the continent forever. Others greeted it with confusion, bemusement, or simple acceptance. True to his down-to-earth nature, Thorgrimm simply rejected the idea flatly.
The heroes eyed each other suspiciously, wondering if their comrades had received similar knowledge, and if so, what action would be taken next. Falaster and Rexander, both bereft of any information, simply stood by puzzled by the strange reaction of their allies.
The next few seconds were a bit of blur, with the characters variously lunging for the god-spark or diving for cover. Then it was over--Eandrynn stood before the spark alone, and the rest of the heroes held their breath.
But Eandrynn didn't want godhood on this day. Instead, he rejected the temptation that gnawed at his mind, and took hold of the spark with the intent of returning it to Brithonen.
As the elf grasped the energy-sphere, two sensations washed over the heroes. The first was a wave of pure life-energy, as the gracious spark rewarded its saviors with the ability to heal their own wounds with the merest thought. The second, however, was much less welcome, as a strange mystical force took hold of the heroes, pulling them across many dimensions. Light faded into darkness as the heroes felt themselves falling through the multiverse. A single sibilant sound resonated in their ears, drowning out all other noises, and growing louder as they fell.
Somewhere, far below, a serpent hissed.
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