Realm 48 - The Nightmare Realm (??? Door)
- Greywalker gently triggers the recall spell on the Excalibur Pass, and they appear in a darkened city with gothic overtones. It is raining. It is cold. Thunder grumbles somewhere overhead.
* Image sourced from Google Images
- Grant knows Ethan best, and he uses Wayfinding to sense the direction - he is far to the east. He feels very distant. As such, he hires a yellow cab and asks to be taken to the airport. There they charter an old plane and take off into the storm. Grant flies the plane with Cal as a co-pilot.
* Image sourced from Google Images
- The plane is bumped around by turbulence, the engines moan. Lightning strikes the plane, resulting in a burning smell coming from somewhere. They travel for many hours before needing to land and refuel. The airstrip is unmanned and they are able to refuel without a problem - but Grant begins wondering where all the people are. Even the airport terminal is silent and empty. Grant concludes that this is the background level of ‘creepiness’ which is natural to the Nightmare Kingdom when the Lord is not paying attention. He assumes that so far that they have not been detected. Nevertheless, they don’t stay long - they refuel and take off again.
Part 2 - The Island
- They quickly leave land behind, and Grant sees something massive below, moving underneath the waves. They climb and fly on through the night.
- After a considerable length of time, when the plane’s fuel tanks are only half-full, Grant spots an island in the distance. It is only a small rocky island, but it rises sharply out of the sea whilst the seas writhe and lash at it. He spots a stone cabin, and some sheep and dogs on the island below and knows that this is the place. He circles, then lands the plane on the flattest piece of ground that he can find, damaging the undercarriage in the process.
- The wind is cold and relentless as they make their way towards the cottage. There, they find Ethan, waiting for them - an unlit lightsaber in hand. He looks at them carefully, measuring them. Grant looks carefully at Ethan and decides that he is the real Ethan, and but just to make sure asks him a question from their childhood. Ethan gives the correct answer, asks ‘what kept him’ but also inquires after the others. Cal, Yaeger Zane and Greywalker are introduced and Ethan takes them inside the tiny hut. There, lying on a crude bed is Isabelle, her eyes closed as if she’s asleep.
- Cal goes to Isabelle’s bedside and asks what happened. Ethan explains that she’s still in her own personal nightmare, and he can’t wake her. Greywalker points out that her chances for being able to wake will improve if they can get her out of the Nightmare Realm, and Ethan asks for more information on their plan.
- At that moment the cabin shifts and the slate tiles on the roof rattle. Then again. Something large is coming, moving up the cliff face out of the sea to reach them. Ethan says nothing but shakes his head and picks up the inert form of Isabelle. Grant is clearly ready to fight, and asks the others if they are with him. Greywalker smiles and tells him that violence won’t be necessary. He then goes to leave the cabin, and opens the door - on the other side is the Gothic city that they first arrived in. The group hurries through just as parts of the roof start falling, and Yaeger slams the door shut.
- Grant stares at Greywalker with new respect, and Ethan remarks that it won’t take long for the Lord of the Nightmare Realm to find them again. Greywalker acknowledges this and suggests that it is time to find an exit. Whilst Grant starts wayfinding, Greywalker closes his eyes for a few seconds and then in a flash, he opens them and leads the way. “Come on,” he tells them and the others follow.
- Greywalker leads them down into a series of streets until he comes to a set of sloping doors that would be used to access a cellar. He pops the door open and tells everyone to hurry. When everyone is in the basement (surrounded by kegs of beer), he then opens the door again.
Part 3 - The Guardian at the Gate
- There is a city on the other side. A half-submerged city. They have emerged from some sort of tomb. There is a terrible smell here which reminds them of rotten fish. Again, Greywalker takes the lead and encourages them to ‘make haste’. They begin picking their way through the strange terrain.
* Image sourced from Google Images
- Occasionally the group spots movement in the waves - there are things in the water that are coming ashore. But they carry on, racing through weedy cyclopean masonry and trying not to look too closely at the loathsome shapes behind them. Finally, ahead of them is a great tomb. This is the Door - the way out. And it is guarded by something massive which sits practically on top of it. It glares at them with fiery red eyes and the Lords of Gossamer are under no illusions that it means to block their exit.
* Image sourced from Google Images
- Grant blazes away with his wrist blaster - it hardly seems to affect it, despite great globules of flesh being blasted away, but it gets the beast’s attention. Cal and Yaeger go to work, splitting up - Cal firing his pistol at the thing, and Yaeger taking to the air and trying to distract it. Greywalker and Ethan stay low, letting the others draw the thing away from the Door before making a run for it. Grant tries using Gorgorin on the creature, but strangely the creature seems to feed on the Umbral energies of the blade - the beast almost catches Grant in one of its massive clawed hands, before breathing a green cloud of noxious vapour at him. Suddenly Grant realises that he’s the only one left in the Nightmare Realm and he makes a run for the Door. Yaeger, Cal, Grant and Ethan try to push the massive stone doors closed (to shut the Door). The ghastly creature puts a clawed hand on each side of the door and pushes forward, striving to get onto the Grand Stair. Greywalker blocks it using a barrier spell (“You shall *not* pass) but is unable to drive it back into the Nightmare Realm. Grant goes to work and severs one hand with Gorgorin, finding it more effective on the Stair itself; and this is enough to tip the balance and drive the thing back. Its hand quickly regenerates but not quickly enough to stop Greywalker from shutting the Door.
Grand Stairway Section 27 - Blue Scales
- This section of stair has blue plates down it like the scales of some great blue lizard. Even the floor seems to be made of scales. It looks quite alien.
- Cal checks a connection with Jessamyn (via the ruby) to confirm that they have actually departed the Nightmare Kingdom and that this is not just an illusion. Yaeger grumbles that he is covered in slime from the creature that they just fought “Gross, Dude”. Ethan goes to look after Isabelle but finds that she is still deep within the nightmare - she hasn’t woken up.
- Grant looks around the place, and suggests that they get moving. He and Greywalker talk for a bit. Grant suggests retreating to Marindar and Greywalker says that it is ‘too dangerous’. This response surprises Grant, but Greywalker explains that Marindar is a realm which is particularly sensitive to Lords of Gossamer - it opens Doors. Lots of them. He warns that if they travel to Marindar, it will likely trigger the creation of more Doors, which is why most of the Lords leave it alone. This revelation stuns Grant - he knew there was a connection between the presence of Lords of Gossamer and the number of active Doors in Marindar, but hadn’t considered the possibility that this was why there were so few Lords who had travelled there recently. Greywalker instead suggests that they find another place to retreat to, to gather their strength and plan their next move. The others agree to this.
And that’s where I’m leaving Part 2. In Part 3 I’ll go through Ethan’s experience and Isabelle’s experience.
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