Lorekeeper -> RE: Quests - Read the first post! (5/24/2022 11:51:24)
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Warlic's Mage Shop -> Quests -> Dragonlorn Keep Last Watch Journey to Dragonlorn Keep Finale At the Oaklore Forest Wastes, a shadow of overhead movement rushes along the ground from left to right. <<You>> (Offscreen to the left): Whoa, what was that? The player character enters from the left, then Dante does from the right. Dante is an armored dragonlord with loose brown hair. Dante: You've come a long way, <<You>>. In both senses. But not even an army-stopping hero like you should wander around here any longer. <<You>>: I *finally* found you! Well, the other way around, but there is so much we need to talk about. ...For starters, how do you know me? Dante: You were all that Artix would talk about on the way to Battleon. All he *could* talk about, other than the Exodus. Dante: Besides, I believe you know us as well. But for the sake of getting this over with: I'm Dante, and this is my brother-in-arms, Magnus. Magnus, a very large dragon with brown scales reminiscent of the peers in from the right. <<You>>: ...It's been a long time. I never even got to thank you for saving Battleon. There was so much I wanted to ask, but nobody would talk about... all of this until recently. Magnus: We know. It was more than the laws of time that kept the Paladin's lips sealed. Magnus: The sorrow he hid made it clear that he wouldn't have wanted to speak of our past. Even if the ones who brought him through the Void had not forbidden it. Dante: We saw the gathering clouds again when the Exodus finally arrived. But by then we had a different duty... And we were already helping, from the past. <<You>>: That duty is what I'm here to talk about. Warlic and I realized that the invaders from the great calamity left survivors. <<You>>: It's clear from coming all the way here that you've been holding them off, maybe something worse too, but now some very dangerous people are determined to join up with them. Dante: ...A lot has changed, <<You>>. And now that you've come here, we have very little time to prepare for them to change again. <<You>>: I agree that we need to prepare, but I'm missing something. We beat the Strangers back, and now the kingdoms know to watch out for them. What else is coming? Dante: Their misstep and our intervention allowed for someone very powerful to make it through. The West is no longer unreachable. If I were one of *them*, I'd think I'm out of time to prepare. <<You>>: Prepare for wh- Dante: Pick <<him/her>> up, Wrinkles. It's safer to discuss this at the Keep. <<You>>: Uh oh. Clearing through the veil of darkness, the view advances into a distant view of Dragonlorn Keep: A fortress built from the combined ruins of Oaklore and Dragonsgrasp, surrounded by a gap in the foliage that has been blasted into a wind-swept dustbowl: The Oaklore Wasteland. The shores of the vast northern lake are visible behind it. All dialogue happens offscreen as the Chosen is carried in the claws of Magnus. <<You>>: Is that...? Dante: This is where we live now. What's left of our duty. <<You>>: I can't hear you over this wind! Magnus: Down below! They're already getting started! At the edge of the Oaklore Forest Wastes, Doombinders and other undead emerge from the ground and entering the area of Dragonlorn Keep from the right. Fade to black. WAR! War Scroll: Successfully reaching the Far West has sounded the alarm for the dark forces surrounding its deepest secret! Now it's time to join the last remnants of the Dragonlord Order and defend Dragonlorn Keep! War Scroll Background: Entrance to Dragonlorn Keep Lucretia: <<You>>! You made it! <<You>>: ...Says the woman who somehow made it all the way here too. Lucretia: A stranger helped us against an incursion of mysterious necromancers and told us about you getting here. Lucretia: He said that all the forces that normally make the Far West unreachable were about to concentrate here and surround you! <<You>>: ...A stranger? I think I know who you mean, but how did you actually *get* here? Lucretia: The forces at Terminus were already preparing to cross the desert in case something happened to you. Lucretia: When the enemy retreated, they were able to get all the way to Falconreach, fix up some ships, and start shipping reinforcements from there. <<You>>: That's impressive. If that line of reinforcements holds, we really do stand a chance. Lucretia: You blazed a trail, and the enemies turned their back on us. We simply seized the opportunity. Lucretia: Besides, some of us remember the way. ...I used to have family here, when I was little. Lucretia: Anyways! You did remember to buy any special potions before I brewed you some for the journey, right? I did, remember? (Flashback time!) / I will next time! (Stay here.) Twilly: None of this is like I remember it... It's so sad here. People left, but their sadness is still here. So many... Twilly: Oh! <<You>>! Twillies is so glad to see you! Twilly: Are you okay? We heard you went through the entire West by yourself! Do you need healing? Heal me, please./I can handle this! 25% At a cliff overlooking the Oaklore Wasteland, the Chosen is camping with Rhiannon and Aodh. Rhiannon wears a female version of the worn Dragonlord armor with red details. Aodh is a black-colored fire dragon with golden eyes and opaque membraned wings, blending in with the night. Rhiannon: Thank you for joining us for the night watch, <<You>>. <<You>>: Don't mention it, Rhiannon. This way we can have more pairs of eyes looking out for the reinforcement ships and still look out for enemies if you have to fly off. Rhiannon: ...Yeah. We're just... not used to working with other people. <<You>>: Is it really just the four of you left? Aodh: As far as we know. We took a lot of casualties during the war. We were so wrapped up in the chaos of it all that we didn't realize we weren't just taking losses. We were being hunted down. <<You>>: Warlic did tell me that something terrible happened right here towards the end of the war. He thinks the war built up to it, but experience has me assuming it was more of a screen. Rhiannon: You're both right. The war kept us spread thin, trying to get civilians out of the way and convince anyone who would listen to stop fighting. Aodh: Some who wouldn't listen, too. Blasted Frostgale, always the crusader... Still hurts to know how far she fell. Her followers in this age made warmongers out of the Ice champions. Rhiannon: That wasn't all that they were covering up for. They grew their champion right here, under our noses... Rhiannon takes a hand to her face. Rhiannon: ...Sorry. If we ever met someone again... Just one person, let alone so many, I imagined I'd share everything that happened. Rhiannon: I'm not as ready to talk about it as I thought I'd be. Just give me some time. If we get through this, we'll have so much less to worry about. <<You>>: With how hard it was for Warlic to open up, I can't imagine how much worse this has to be for you all of a sudden. Aodh: We've been here for twenty years now. Hunting, fighting... Rebuilding. Trying to ease the spirits of my brethren, to keep the shadows away from them... This is our life. Aodh: As long as the enemy was out there, claiming victims and gathering strength, we had to stay here. Now we finally have help, but... The Keep has also never been in more danger. <<You>>: Listen. You're so strong that you endured the kind of isolation that would have broken many heroes. And the east may be safer, but we've been through a lot as well. Rhiannon looks forward again. <<You>>: We've got your backs. We WILL get through this. Rhiannon: I'm going to have to stop giving Dante a hard time about bottling it up now. But you're right. One last stand, and then... Then we can really rebuild. 50% Dante and Galanoth are standing at the entrance to Dragonlorn Keep. Dante: Burn my hair and call me a slayer, if it isn't Galanoth. I have to admit you're the last one of the lot that I expected to find here. Galanoth: Is that how you're greeting me after two decades? Dante: Don't get me wrong, I'm pleasantly surprised. You've been around us for a while and I've not seen you complain or brandish that blade even once. Galanoth: Rhiannon warned me that you'd turned into a mix of brick wall and an absolute donkey. Dante: I don't mean to be hostile. We just parted on poor terms. You'd made a lot of progress, then went back to- Galanoth: Don't you go there. I've helped lead the alliance with the Vartai for YEARS and I still get grief- You weren't there, so I'm going to cut you this much slack. Dante: You can't blame me. It's a hard impression to shake. Your renewed hunts were half the reason we couldn't get a lot of dragons out of the war- Galanoth: And those dragons were the WHOLE reason I couldn't save a lot of people! Dragons like those are why good kids went astray, and why I lost my BROTHER. Dante: No. No, Demento...? Galanoth: YES, Demento. And dragons like THEM were a whole lot of the reason why dragons like YOURS weren't around anymore. Galanoth: So get that attitude in check before I have to do it for you. Galanoth storms out. The player character enters. Dante: ...Gods, I really did miss the old man after all. <<You>>: Any reason you waited for him to walk off before blurting that out? Galanoth (Offscreen to the right): I missed you too, kid. Stop growing up so much or I'll knock you back down to five feet. Dante: Great, I forgot his ears actually work. <<You>>: Stoicism isn't going to work on him, you know. Of all the people who have been shutting their feelings in since before I took up adventuring... He's probably the worst. He can tell how much you care. Dante: Look, <<You>>, you caught me being nostalgic, but *caring*... It's been a long time. I'm not sure I can even manage that much anymore. We have different ways to cope than you. <<You>>: If you didn't care, Dante, you wouldn't be fixing up Falconreach. Dante: ...How did you know? <<You>>: Human hands at work, no dragon tracks... It was a fifty percent shot. Besides, you can't tell me you put up with the ghosts and the visions if you can't care anymore. Dante: ... What visions? Beat, then fade to black. 75% An exterior view of Dragonlorn Keep and the dragons standing tall enough to look over the walls is shown. Cut to a view from the walls, with the dragons looking over from behind the edge to talk to the Chosen. <<You>>: Dragonlorn Keep... I understand the name. But I hope you'll get a reason to change it one day. Magnus: ...I appreciate the sentiment, hero, but I don't think any of us will live to see that day. We really are the last of the Order. Aodh: The Dragonlord assassinations weren't just an attempt to get us out of the way. They were trying to make sure our numbers kept going down - They hunted us for the amulets. Aodh: When we lost contact with a key priestess, we knew they had cut off our ability to forge new bonds. And of the remaining amulets... Most were lost in our last sacrifice. <<You>>: There are neither new amulets nor the means of obtaining new ones? There really is no end to what was lost back then... And what was this sacrifice? Magnus: While the casualties are the greatest loss, it IS cutting off the restoration of the amulets that was the biggest enemy victory. As of the sacrifice, you're standing on it. <<You>>: What? Magnus: Part of this place used to be a flying fortress. Pulled across the sky by the toughest of us... We called it Dragonsgrasp. It was essential to our neutrality. Magnus: And at the very end of the war... It was the weapon that finally stopped the Calamity. We... We were badly wounded, so we couldn't do anything. They threw all four of us into the water, then... They sacrificed themselves. Aodh: The enemy raised a titan that they'd hidden right under Oaklore. It was devastating everything, spreading darkness to all the land. But for some reason, it suddenly focused on attacking something in the desert. Aodh: Our remaining friends saved us, then crashed into the corrupted Vizalain. They did something to the heart of Dragonsgrasp, and everything went dark. It was all over by the time we came to. <<You>>: ...I don't know what to say. They went to such an extreme sacrifice to save us, and we went this long without knowing while you toiled away here. Magnus: Then don't say anything. Just keep fighting on our side. Help us get used to having allies again, before my rock-headed partner faints from actually experiencing feelings. <<You>>: Absolutely. Aodh: Excellent. We'll be counting on you. That... that feels good to say. <<You>>: I just have one question... How does the fort look this solid? Magnus: The foundation didn't survive the Darkness collapse, but two titan dragons make for very good builders. The heart of the fortress is still untouched, though. We had to build around that entire place. Aodh: Not even we can go near. The spirits of our brethren haunt the place. They're the source of the wind that blows everywhere from here... And part of what we're protecting. 100% The Dragonlords, their dragons, and the Chosen, are gathered to the right of Dragonlorn Keep, in the small grassy area before the wastes. Dante: They've never been this quiet. Remains are being left where they stand... I think we smoked out all the binders behind this assault. Rhiannon: Look who's sounding hopeful all of a sudden... But we can't discard the possibility that some cut their losses and ran. The West just got safer even if that's the case, but we have to be vigilant. Rhiannon: We have never known them to be anything short of relentless, even if they were the ones with the advantage the last time armies were involved. Rhiannon: We need to reorganize the defenders, just in case we're being given a false sense of security. Keep anyone from giving chase into the woods until we've done some flying passes... <<You>>: I had been wondering where the Dragonlord that did that out by Terminus was hiding... Aodh: Grainne is a friend. She... doesn't have a Dragonlord anymore, but still lends a hand sometimes. We don't know where she roosts, though. Rhiannon: She's the last living descendant of Sunscale. Every bit as zealous as her ancestor, since losing her companion to the invaders. Rhiannon: After noticing the familiar I sent Warlic, she checked in with us and agreed to hunt down any enemy remnants that you flushed out. <<You>>: Sunscale? That's another name that Warlic mentioned, but there wasn't time to explain anything else. Streaks of the dark green aurora from the Forest Wastes fly through the screen while darkness sounds play. Magnus: ...I know that feeling. <<You>>: They must have been up to something after all. Move out, everyone! Enlarged Doomed Archfiends emerge from a darkened patch of sand in the Oaklore Wasteland, projecting dark auras from which more minions pour out. The player character enters from the left. <<You>>: Where are they even bringing those in from?! I'm cut off! Aodh and Magnus peer in from the left. Aodh: We've got this, keep going! Magnus: Find where that power surge is coming from before they catch the army out of position! We'll catch up in no time! Wasteland Shore - An east-to-west perspective of an area where the dusty shore meets the edge of the darkened sand. Rising cliffs surround the beach. An undead warrior rises from the water; a twitching amalgam of body parts, corrupted bones, and partial Doom Knight armor. The Chosen and the dragonlords enter from the left. Skeletal Doom Knight: An undead, thoroughly consumed looking wearer of almost-complete doom knight armor. Most of the armor is complete, but the torso, helmet and shoulders look as though broken pieces had been attached to a body and fused into it, eventually consuming it until there was only bone. Black dialogue bubbles from the ShadowScythe spirit in part 5. The bubble's symbols hide two sets of words: "Unlive" and "make it stop" A dark-bordered aura that seems to open to the Void. Billowing dust clouds to signify stronger winds Start with an empty scene, then a closeup to the water as the Doom Knight slowly steps out of it Terminator style. Once it has emerged, Rhiannon, Dante and the player character enter. <<You>>: Is that...? Rhiannon: No. It can't be. Dante: That's not him. But some of that armor... The Doom Knight speaks in dark symbols as a tear to the Void spreads from its body. Rhiannon: ...That's not Darkness magic I know. Is that the Void?! Dante: No. Not one step further. We finally had a chance to make things right without having to worry about YOU- A strong wind picks up in the area. Dante: The wind is picking up... Rhiannon: The dragon spirits are roaring? What is going on? The Doom Knight raises a hand, which glows with red energy. Dante: Careful, <<You>>! The Doom Knight blasts the player character, who doesn't move. Rhiannon: ...<<You>>? <<You>>: ...Invader. The scene transitions to a diagonally split vision divided by a splatter of blood. The top left is a fragment of the negative color Guardian Tower, while the bottom right is a jagged, crimson-tinted view of the Void. An illuminated hand clad in an armored dress reaches down from the top left, as the bottom right side shows a hand in Doom Knight armor reaching toward it -- But frozen in the middle of falling away. Checkpoint. BOSS BATTLE: The Betrayal. Full heal before and after the fight. Description: The power to save them from danger. The power to save them from themselves. Even to try to save them from death. But once you have the power, once no one can save you, who will save them from you? The scene returns to the shore with a fiery flash. Rhiannon, Dante and the player character stand to the left. Magnus and Aodh peer from each side. Only burnt remains lie where the Doom Knight stood, in the middle of a patch of sand seared into glass. <<You>>: Wait, what just happened? I was fighting... Wasn't I...? It was like back on Falconreach... Dante: You caught fire. A lot of fire. Rhiannon: You were really out of it. Then you and the enemy were caught in a pillar of fire. I thought it was an enemy attack, but then it stopped and... Well, take a look. Magnus: Kid, you lit that thing the heck up. I'm not sure how much like Sepulchure that thing was, but we've never seen something like it taken down in one hit. <<You>>: One hit? I could have sworn I just had a long fight with... That's who it was. I saw Sepulchure. I felt rage, darkness, sorrow. <<You>>: And there was a power from beyond reaching into this enemy-- Oh, my head is *killing* me. ...Wait. All you saw was fire? Aodh: A whole lot of it. The last time I saw something like that was when people were trying to fight the corrupted Vizalain titan... <<You>>: ...I don't know if I should be relieved. I'll figure it out later. How about the rest of the enemy force? Magnus: Gone. We didn't leave a lot standing, but the few that were left booked it the moment the fire went up. Aodh: We still need to organize a push into the woods to make sure nobody is falling for a false retreat and feeds their numbers, but... It's over. Thanks to all of you, it's finally over. Rhiannon: After all this time of fighting on our own... We can finally focus on bringing peace to our fallen friends. I hope their spirits will listen. We have good news for them for the first time in twenty long years. Dante: ...Oi. Hero. Magnus: It might not be the time for that tone, Dante. I can feel your turmoil. Dante: Can it, Wrinkles. Let me just... do this at my own pace. Please. Listen, <<You>>. <<You>>: ...Yes? Dante: Thank you. And the others, too. Thank you all so much. There is so much we have to do, and so much I want to show you, that I don't know how to put it in words. Dante: I'm just... glad. Glad that the world kept growing. That someone like you has been there to protect it. Rhiannon: ...You're making me look bad here, Dante. Here I was having a hard time sharing, and you're finally opening up. I'm proud of you. Dante: Don't make me regret it, Rhia. Rhiannon: Still, I agree. We're not done protecting Dragonlorn Keep from whatever is left out there... Or the land from what lies inside. But it feels like for the first time, even if just for a while... We can really rest. Rhiannon: Thank you. For everything. <<You>>: We were all in danger here. I couldn't stay away from it. And to the four of you as well... Thank you for your long vigil. <<You>>: Take as much time as you need. There are many mysteries left, and a lot of people who will want to talk to you... We'll take it step by step. Rewards: Weapons: Aodh's Intervention Shields: Magnus's Tremor Top Wins Variants: Magnus's Grand Tremor/Searing Bastion Description: A shield personally empowered by Magnus, successor to a Great Earth Dragon, who wields Fire through his bond with Dante! Aodh's Radiant/Blazing Intervention Description: A crystallization of the power of Aodh, Fire Titan Dragon whose bond with Rhiannon has bestowed with Light powers! This <Light/Fire> version can be activated to unleash a Burning breath with your next attack! Titles: Title Name: Pilgrim In-game description: After two decades, you were the first to make the journey to the once impenetrable west. (10 victories) Title Name: Hero of Two Lands In-game description: From the Last Dragonlords of the West to the Guardians of the east, all know you as a hero. (50 victories) Title Name: Protector of the West In-game description: A land far from home, plagued by troubles from before your time - It matters not. 50 foes lie at your feet as you stood your ground in its name. Title Name: Oaklore Avenger In-game description: One hundred minions met their end at the hands of the hero who put the name of Oaklore back in the deepest fears of its final foes. Title Name: Dragon Avenger In-game description: A trail of 200 enemies marks your rampage as you enact justice for the memory of the fallen Dragonlords. Title Name: Honorary Dragonlord In-game description: Back in its time, the order would have gladly trained you. You have burned that impression into 500 servants of their greatest enemy. Title Name: Dragon Savior In-game description: Trampling a thousand minions of a great enemy from before and beyond, you have saved the dreams of many fallen dragons and their companions.
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