The Whiteout in Icemule is Over, The Mayor is Dead and Some Queen Daukhera Rises
Oubar summarizes the events leading up to the death of Mayor Nihala in Icemule and the rise of this Queen Daukhera…
Category: Towns
Topic: Icemule TraceDate: 02/26/2018 05:39 PM CSTFrom: CANNELSubj: Icemule Trace Events Report – 2-24-2018Feastday, 24 Fashanos 5118From the journal of Oubar Il’Prelay, Originator of White Haven
My soul is in turmoil this evening. Though it is far past the hour when I should have given my praises to the Lady and retired for the evening, I cannot do either. The events of this evening will resonate with me for a very long time, I fear.
Where to begin?
An invasion broke out in the center of town, waves of creatures attempting to overrun the city. As we have been wont to do, we banded together and drove off the invaders in short order. While I was attending to the fallen at the Ice Garden, word came of a disturbance back in Town Center. When I made my way there, I was stunned to see an oculoth attacking the town’s defenders. Despite the strength of this foe, it too was dispatched. Nearly on its heels, we were confronted by a vathor, which also met its fate in short order.
A figure appeared in the center of town, purporting to be Daukhera herself. She was not yet fully freed, but she insinuated that she had been working towards that end on her own. She also repeatedly referred to us all as her ‘friends’, while at the same time lambasting us for not freeing her. She ranted over and over about how we needed to free her, though we assured her that we had not the means to do so. She demanded Hibbits be produced, but once again we had no way to make this happen. We explained to her that Hibbits had gone into hiding, but she merely smirked at that, then disappeared.
Hibbits slipped out of the shadows at that point and said that we needed to free Daukhera, as that was the only way she could be defeated. A great many of us questioned this, and questioned his wisdom in suggesting it. The Deputy Mayor’s appearance was greatly changed, seeming to be almost completely swallowed by the shadows which have plagued him to this point. He claimed he had found two more of the ‘keys’, and handed them off to individuals who were present.
It was then insinuated that the remaining clues were right under our noses… so close we could smell them. We eventually realized that the orbs might hold some information and inspected them. Underneath each orb was another fragment of the clue. At this point we had seven of the words, and speculation was rampant amongst us. Should we free Daukhera? We were split, to say the least.
Nihala made an appearance then, outside of Clovertooth Hall. She was extremely weak, and said she felt like she was being ‘pulled’. Against her will, she was dragged northward, then westward, clearly being drawn towards town center, and the electrum span. Enestrie presented her with a symbol of Lorminstra which she had been instructed to collect in the Lumnis Commune some time ago, and Nihala seemed greatly strengthened when she put it on. We all breathed a collective sigh of relief, then the Mayor was once more yanked against her will into Town Center proper.
It’s hard to think back on even now. An ancient seer wandered in as Nihala struggled against the pull of the electrum span. The seer handed Nihala the final clue, which would complete the phrase we’d been assembling. The word… was SACRIFICE. Though we begged and pleaded with her to allow one of us to be the one to sacrifice ourselves, she remained adamant that it was her duty. The void sucked her in, in horrific fashion, and she died. Then, to our great horror, her soul was lost to the demonic… which was something we did not think was possible any longer.
I cannot accurately describe the depth of the feelings we are all struggling with. I believe Dirvy will be arranging a memorial service for her, which I will be sure to attend.
Queen Daukhera rose out of the ground shortly after, stating she was going to go retrieve “her” tome. She made her way to where it was on display, casually unlocked the podium, but then found herself unable to retrieve it. She flew into a rage, killing a number of the onlookers, then stormed off. Shortly after she left, Hibbits revealed himself, stating that he had somehow pulled some sort of a trick that kept the tome from Daukhera’s hands. He warned us that there were others watching, and that we must strive to keep her from reaching her full power.
My mind reels with all of this, and it’s impossible to process in my grief over the sacrifice of Nihala. She was much beloved, and will be sorely missed. I worry about the direction of this town, though I am heartened by the stalwart defeners who have thus far risen to every challenge. I pray to the Lady that this continues to be the case.
~Oubar