• Graded • The Maze: The End

[Pegasus]

How many years can this man exist, before he's allowed to be free?

How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Yes, 'n' how many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea?
Yes, 'n' how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?
Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his head
And pretend that he just doesn't see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Yes, 'n' how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?
Yes, 'n' how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

"Anthropos apteros, perplexed
To know which turning to take next,
Looked up and wished he were a bird
To whom such doubts must seem absurd.”

Dreams:
Tio, Mute, Toraj.
They chose the door marked "Dreams" and through it they walked, the door immediately disappearing behind them. Three of them chose the realm of Jesine and there, their mortal feet trod on the dreaming realm. They stood, side by side and saw each other in the shifting, but rather beautiful landscape. It wasn't natural, not by any stretch of the imagination; the silver grass and tinkling bells on the massive trees gave that away, the slightly purple tinge to the sky and the ships, complete with oars which floated in it also. All in all, it was a strange and topsy-turvy place and then some.

In front of them (and their animal companions) there was a structure of glittering metal. A metal spire soared into the sky and the three suns reflected on it. Running towards them was an impossibly tall man, maybe fourteen foot high and waving his arms in a flapping, warning manner. He was running right at them.

Reality
Kura, Maxine,
They chose the door marked "Reality" and through it they walked, the door immediately disappearing behind them. The two of them chose the realm of Kielik and there, their mortal feet trod on the dreaming realm. They stood, side by side and saw each other in the solid, incongruent and uncomfortable landscape. It wasn't natural, not by any stretch of the imagination; the angles were wrong, each one too sharp or not physically possible. The ground beneath them seemed to be still, yet to their eyes it undulated, lapping and slowly moving as though they were at sea; the mis-match between what they saw and what they felt was enough to leave a sort of sea-sickness nausea.

Around them were many small huts, most of them burnt out shacks, remnants and memories of what once was beautiful. Ahead, in the distance, there was the trailing smoke of a fire. A child sobbed and shards of ice fell from the freezing blue sky. ....

In front of them, from that sky, landed a single dead crow.

All Of The Above (all 5 of you)

And so, the mortals made their choices. More stood in Jesine's realm, it was true. A child of the Immortals themselves in each real, too. But there was one among them who tipped the balance. One who swayed the outcome more than the others.

Maxine chose the Reality which Kielik offered and a wave of Nightmares washed over the land.

Whilst this happened, of course, other choices were made, other decisions taken. Those decisions would shape the Dreamscape for seasons to come, but the actions of one among them led to a chain reaction which rippled out throughout the Maze, across Scalvoris.

And, all over Idalos, dreamers trembled and cried out in their sleep. The five waking walkers here got to see a being... beautiful wings opened and from him burst sudden, glorious light. It exploded out and they were, for a moment, blinded.

For those who had walked through the doors.... the realm they were in shattered. Like pieces of glass falling from a broken mirror, the pieces fell and the five of them ~ three Jesine-touched, two Kielik-tainted ~ stood as the Dreamscape shattered around them. They heard the scream of a man and that was echoed in the reverberation of the failing landscape.

Then, they were once more where they had been.

All Players

Arisora and Eric

They pictured home, each of them. There was a moment where it felt like it might be the right thing to do. But then, as they did that, there was a loud and piercing scream which filled the air.... and then, a bright white light blinded them both. Then....

Amaris

Move on Amaris did, although Rynata did not go with the no-longer-ghostly one. Was this a good sign or a bad one? Amaris didn't know and as the Vri-cursed stepped forward, darkness fell. It was sudden and absolute, that darkness, enveloping Amaris and wrapping around them like a silken shroud. Then....

And there they were. Where they had begun. Alone, exactly as they had been, except each of them kept their items. Their animal companions were still there, too.

Back to normal, each of them. Anything which had been swapped or changed about them was returned, now that they had both feet firmly in the waking world. Yet each of them knew that, fundamentally, something was different.

Epilogue
In the aftermath, there were questions. The first one was what they did with the piece of ribbon they each realised they were clutching in their hands. Should they look, it was the length of a hair ribbon and it was a mass of swirling, changing colours.

If we spirits have offended, think but this and all is mended.....

Ok, so, that is ENTIRELY not the ending I had planned. However, this thread ending was brought to you because of player actions, which is ALWAYS the best way to end a thread!!

You may all post ONE more time, then I will review. Please note the following:

1. Any and all "weird swapping" has stopped.
2. The five of you in the "Dream" and "Reality" groups now have the Dreamwalking Skill. I am awarding you each 5XP in it (that's the equivalent of 5 dream threads).
3. There will be other things. These will become apparent in the review.
4. This thread will lead on to an emea-based plot next season. You are all invited....
5. The choices made in this thread (especially the doors) will have a major impact on the outcome of the thread(s) which will be running next season.
6. What you do with the ribbon is an important decision. Please let me know in your next post. I will review on 23rd January

Well done all! Hope you enjoyed it.

[Amaris]

Timestamp: 1 Vhalar, 718th

When they stepped out, they were as they had been before. No longer was the mixed blood a living being again. It was for the best, they reminded themselves. If they had kept the crystals and walked off, Rynata would be the one dead. They were glad it was over, at the very least. The feather remained in their possession. Perhaps as a reminder of what they had experienced. But there was something else - a ribbon and...Mr. Fiver. Still ghostly, but still very much there. While he was not really anything new or strange to them now, the ribbon was.

Much like their hair, it changed colors. Out of habit, or recollection, they touched the strands that were in the process of fading into a pale blue color. They were reminded of the colored winds that had brought the change about in the first place. Was this supposed to be some sort of link? Had they been connected? Amaris could not be sure but they were certain that something was very wrong. The mixed blood wasn't entirely certain of what should be done with the ribbon, but there had to be some sort of importance to it. Otherwise, why would they have it? They wrapped it around their hair, tying it as neatly as they could.

They turned to their companion. Fiver wasn't supposed to be like this, was he? An unseen entity with their curse - task? quest? - forced upon it. Scooping up the hare, they gave the creature a rueful look. "You're doomed to be like me now, it seems. What are we to do now?"

Just another question to add to a growing list.

[Tio Silver]

"One day," Tio sighed, massaging his temples gently with his fingers. "One day I'm going to have some emean adventure where I actually understand what the bloody hell is going on."

The dream door had clearly been a good choice, as beyond it lay a truly epic, beautiful landscape. A whole new world, glistening in pale grace, that looked like something that'd been brought to life straight out of a painting made by a master artist. It had to be one of the most beautiful places he'd ever seen. Yet unfortunately he couldn't properly appreciate it, since his attention was grabbed by the gigantic man running towards them making some kind of weird flapping motion. What was he supposed to make of that?

Suddenly there was an explosion of light, and Tio caught a glimpse of a pair of magnificent wings. The world around him shattered and crumbled away like glass, and Tio was standing back among the streets of Almund. To his relief Fred was still there, as were the items he had picked up within the labyrinth, but any other sign of the glistening world he had just seen had vanished.

"...I still have no idea what just happened." He sighed again, turning to Fred. "And at this point I doubt I ever will. Still it's good to see that you're still here. Does this mean you're gonna be sticking around? I could always use a partner in crime in you're interested.

[Rei'sari]

It felt right. Ari'sora was almost certain that they were doing the right thing as they spoke of their homes. But when a loud scream pierced the air, she began to have her doubts. She shuddered as she looked around for the source of the scream. Whoever, or whatever had caused it must be in a great deal of trouble.

Ari'sora didn't have long to wonder what was going on. A bright flash of light blinded her...and when she could see again, she found herself standing on the road that led to the library. People went about their business as if nothing strange had happened. Had they really not noticed her appearing out of nowhere? Or had she really been there the entire time? Could she have fallen asleep where she stood and dreamed everything that had happened?

"Shadow?!" she called in alarm, searching frantically for her new friend.

Ari'sora breathed a huge sigh of relief when she found the black cat standing beside her. She almost panicked again when she remembered her missing wings, but after frantically feeling her back, she realized that they were still there too. Eric was nowhere to be found, but she had the items she had had with her in the maze. There was something new as well. She was clutching a length of ribbon...but it was unlike any ribbon she had ever seen before. Beautiful was far too pale a word to describe the swirling mass of changing colors Ari'sora has in her hands.

For several trills, she just stared at it in awe. In some ways, it looked like a rainbow...one that she could touch and hold in her hands. But this was even better than a rainbow. It had colors that no rainbow could boast of, and it shifted through them endlessly.

That it was a magic ribbon was obvious. What kind of magic ribbon, and what she was supposed to do with it...was not. Ari'sora looked down at her companion, thinking to ask her what she should do with it. But before she could, she remembered something that Shadow had told her. Before all of this had started, Shadow had been a normal cat. It was only when the whole incident with the maze had started that Shadow had gained the ability to talk. Did that mean that she was back to being a normal cat again?

Ari'sora stared at the ribbon in her hands for a few trills more. Then she knelt down, and tied the ribbon around her friend's neck, and wished as hard as she could.

Please...I don't know what kind of magic ribbon you are, or what you are meant to do in this world. But please...please let Shadow keep the ability to talk. She's my friend, and I want her to be happy. She told me that she wanted to be able to keep the ability to talk. So please...please let Shadow keep the ability to talk. We have a lot more stories to share with each other.

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Kura looked around the landscape she found herself on after she went through the "reality" door and let out a sigh. "Of course the bloody "reality" door doesn't lead to actual reality." she said with a low growl before she noticed Maxine standing next to her. "Max? Didn't expect to see you caught up in all this nonsense." she said, grinning slightly as she looked at the undulating, warping landscape before them. However, for all that it seemed to moving, it felt still under their feet, a rather disconcerting feeling to say the least. The dead crow falling from the sky was not any more comforting. "Nightmares then? This could be trouble." she growled, flexing her clawed hands. This whole scenario was too unnerving to be dreams and she knew enough of Kielik to be nervous about having to face the Lord of Nightmares if they couldn't find a way out before he took notice of them.

As fortune would have it, it turned out that she had gotten worried for no real reason. The winged being made her nervous when it showed up, and she shielded her eyes from that blinding light when it exploded. The cry of the man was not any more comforting, nor was the shattering of the world around them, leaving them standing in a black void. "Be ready, Max. Worse may yet come." she growled, dropping into a sort of crouch, not unlike that of an animal that was prepared to pounce at the first tine of danger.

Then she was sitting in her rocking chair on her porch, her pipe in her hands, though it had gone out in the time she had been gone. Standing up, Kura paused at the sight of Ornery perched on the railing of her porch, next to Speck. The two owls eyed each other for a moment before Kura spoke up. "Ornery, this is Speck. Speck, this Ornery." she said, introducing her two owls before she looked at Ornery. "So do you still talk at all?" she asked, before noting a ribbon in her hand that had most definitely not been there before. "If we spirits have offended, think but this and all is mended..." she said, her tone quiet, but calm. The world had changed, she could feel it. It was on edge, and she had a feeling that there would be more trouble to come a result of what had happened that night. Still, it was the time of prophecy, was it not? Idalos already stood on the brink of change, however ignorant many of the world may be of that fact. After a moment, Kura set her pipe on the railing of her porch and wound the ribbon into a tight circle. Then she picked up her pipe and went inside to her dresser, opening the top drawer.

To an an unobservant eye, the drawer was filled with junk. A wolf mask, a stuffed chicken, a jeweled dagger, two halves of a broken bow, a pirate coin, a treasure map, a small stone and other miscellaneous objects. None of it seemed to have much value, much like the ribbon she carefully placed in there now. She knew better, however, and many of these items had special abilities. They were relics of past adventures, both wanted and unwanted. She wondered what the ribbon did, but for now, it was perhaps best that she save whatever effects it may have for a time when she might need it more. After all, one never knew what might happen next and what you may need at any given moment.

[Max]

The ambrosia junkie stormed through the door with little more than violence toward a certain winged sleeper in mind. With Beatrice at her heels, she stepped into that other side and let fly a flurry of profanities. The man who dragged her into this dreamscape did not conveniently await her punishment. All that laid in her path now was a world that resembled nothing she'd seen before. For a trill her hands extended to help maintain balance before she realized her feet and eyes did not align; the ground moving and yet so solid beneath where she'd planted herself. Darkness littered this ravaged landscape. A heavy aura of malevolence settled over her, and that was likely exacerbated by the trail of death and decay that seemed to populate as far as the eye could see. Nothing about this place felt...right.

Wrong fucking door. Shit.

A familiar voice beside her distracted her from her angry scanning of this new environment. Her brow rose and she pivoted to find Councilwoman Kura before her. Her caramel eyes were sown with distrust. Between talking animals, attacking light, and random strangers thrust into her path, there was little in this Maze she was willing to accept as real. Then she heard her name spoken and spotted the grin on the woman's face. The ex-convict let out an exhale. The Mortalborn beside her seemed too self-aware to be an Emean manifestation. Strange. Breaks ago, in the waking world, Maxine had shown up at Kura's cabin with every intention of starting a fight. Now, even after agreeing to undergo a suicide mission under false pretenses, she had to admit that the woman's appearance was nearly a comfort.

"Councilwoman," Maxine greeted her before casting her gaze back toward their unnatural surroundings. "Always showing up right before my world goes to shit. I'm starting to think you're a bad omen for me." Cultist kidnapping. Arrest, trial, and incarceration at Slags Deep. Now they were standing side-by-side in what could indeed only be described as a nightmare. At this rate, she wouldn't be surprised if Kura was tied to her ultimate undoing. The crow came soaring down from the ominous sky and died at their feet in time with a child's cries. "Great. Another good sign."

If this was all indeed part of Emea, the very place Kura had spoke about, there was more merit to the threats facing Scalvoris than Maxine had been previously prepared to entertain. A Grand Fracture linking this world and the island suddenly became an increasingly unsettling thought. Whether Scalvoris was pulled within or elements of Emea came spitting out into reality, any link to this demented landscape spelled nothing but something to despair. The winged man she came to strike burst into bright light and his scream echoed in her ears. Was this the fate she was leaving Kura, Rey'na, and Sephira to in Scalvoris when she inevitably ditched their cause to undertake her own agenda?

Stay the course. If they're smart, they'll take a page out of your playbook and get out before it's too late. What happens is on them. Survival of the fittest, remember?

"Worse is always on the way," Maxine mused darkly with a half smile, taking note of the world as it faded to black. "Watch your back, Councilwoman." Then, just like that, it was all over. She was back in the street where she'd been, surrounded by strangers and riding the ambrosia high like there'd never been a lapse in space and time. High. Is that why the damned badger was still there? She rubbed her eyes with mild irritation, blinking them open afterwards to find Beatrice staring up at her. The honey badger was as stubborn as they came. Perhaps that was fitting if she really was what she'd claimed: a piece of Maxine as much as a piece of Emea.

B wasn't the only anomaly. When she'd lowered her hands from her face she noticed the bizarre ribbon in one of her palms. Max raised it to her eye level with a furrowed brow, observing its dynamic color change. She shook her head and shoved it in her pocket. If she wasn't so hopelessly addicted to the stuff, a trip this intense might've warded her off her smoking vice. Dreams. Reality. All of it was blurring together. With Beatrice at her side, Max continued on. A pessimistic inner voice warned her she likely wouldn't have the luxury of forgetting the Maze any time soon.

Dialogue|Thoughts

[Mute]

"Silence Reigns . . ."

I knew almost immediately that I found myself in a place that I belonged. There was a magic here that went beyond what mortality could comprehend. Yet there I stood, tangible. A door had been opened within me--mind, body, and soul--and with it came an opportunity. I had a chance to mold all of this surrounding me, with time and effort, into a world in which I understood. I didn't know how I knew this, but I did. A hunch, it was safe to call it. A beautiful, awe-inspiring hunch.

I noted the two men that stood alongside me, one that I recognized and one that I did not. It seemed looking at Tio Silver through that mirror was not a waste, after all. And there so we were, acquaintances and strangers alike, in the shadow of a metal spire, strengthened by three suns in the sky. A similar shadow grew elsewhere as a giant ran towards us. Ah, just another twist in the to-trial's tale. I could do little besides brace myself for the next chapter, silent and stoic.

As for the shimmering ribbon I found clutched between my hand, I simply stuck it in my pocket. Best to save that particular thing for later. There was always a better time for that kind of stuff. For now, the spire and the man, and hopefully an end to his twisting maze. At least, I could only dream.

[Toraj]

So much had happened since this nightmare started. That's still what he thought it was, even as he stepped through the door and into the realm of true Dreams, Jesine's own, in the shelter of her presence---however distant it was, at the time. Toraj didn't know one from the other and it would become harder still to tell the difference as the topsy turvy around him sent his mind reeling into a spin of confusion and conflict as he looked around in a frantic, growing sort of panic... trying to figure out where he was and why, where Maxine had gone and who the shades were that appeared alongside him in this strange, surreal landscape they found themselves in. For a split second, Toraj thought he spied a familiar face.

"Tio...?"

His attention was stolen by the running man that charged right in their direction, the tower in the distance inspiring some vague sense of dread in the Mortalborn---perhaps the warning behind the running man's flailing had something to do with that, though. His eyes fell to the dead critter in his arms and he hugged it closer to his chest, protectively. He still needed to find someplace to bury the poor creature, else... And then, a scream, and the landscape fell away all around him. Like the broken pieces of a mirror, they fell away and left the landscape around him dark and barren like he stood at the precipice of consciousness, just waiting to burst through the surface, back into the light...

And wake up.

When Toraj reappeared in the real world, he sat at the side of a road. It took him a while to remember where he was and where he'd been going---Almund's light shimmered in the distance. In his arms rested still the Hare, Half the Hare, or Spirit as he'd been called... And Toraj's heart sank in his chest as the memories of the nightmare they'd endured together pressed intrusively into his waking mind. His grip on the creature tightened and his breath hitched while he processed the events of the night. His mind swam with memories, new and old, some of which he had never asked for to showcase the life of a man he didn't know but who wore his face and cowered in the dirt of some faraway place that he couldn't bear to place in his mind. Some of his memories were still foggy, and his life was largely shrouded in mystery... but what little he'd gleaned in that mirror and through the touch of Maxine's soul within the dream... It was more than he could've ever asked for and, in hindsight... more than he wanted.

He didn't want these memories.

Yet, he knew he'd have to live with them, like he'd have to live with the reality of the creature he cradled against his chest like he was trying to shield it from the rest of the world, ignoring the fact that there was nothing left that could hurt it. He'd already done enough harm to it, already. If there was anything or anyone that Half the Hare needed protection from, it was Toraj himself. The realization hit him hard, stealing his breath away for just a moment.

His attention was caught by the ribbon in his hand.

Without thinking, he drew the ribbon out through both his palms to stretch it out to its full length, letting it wrap around his hands for a moment before he reached down to tie it gently around one of the creature's ears. It was a beautiful ribbon. He didn't know what else to do with it, not yet. Once he'd found the courage to stand again, Toraj intended to carry Spirit with him and find a place, for real this time, to bury him. He'd be buried alongside everything that he still carried from the Maze, a true tribute and gesture of finality, in his mind. He didn't deserve to carry the rewards, his recklessness having cost someone their life and wounded another. Toraj shook quietly as he neatly tied the bow around Spirit's ear, the guilt bearing down its crushing weight on the Mortalborn's chest. This wasn't the first death caused by him, nor would it be the last. Was this what fate had in store for him, truly?

He was so consumed by his guilt and grief that he didn't notice the first time.

The second time, however... He jumped as the Hare's leg twitched.

He very nearly dropped the creature, but instead he caught it and wrapped his arms tight around it to hold it close, dipping his head down to bury his face against the creature's furry belly. "I'm sorry," he muttered under his breath, teeth gritting. Another twitch. "I'm so sorry..."

[Eric Karlson]

Everything changed in a flash and the field of brambles was gone so was the girl and her companion and all that was left was him and Gorm right back where they had started. The ribbon in his hand was interesting, something left over from the maze for him to try and work out with the liberty of time now and freedom. This was something he would have to consider with some great depth.

Standing back in the mountains where he belonged Eric couldn't forget the girl though, she had seemed sweet like someone who he would like to know better. Sighing the Shepherd took a seat on a nearby stone and looked out over the mountain side reaching out for Gorm to pat as he rested his worn out mind. It had been one hell of a day and one he would never forget, still he sat and rested wondering how things could have gone different.

Afterall the Shepherd was quite sure he had not seen what lay at the centre of that maze looking back down at the colourful ribbon he raised it up to the light and raised his eyebrows with curiosity. "Curious this is, curious." Tucking it into his pocket he stood and started the walk back home.

[Pegasus]

Touch my tears, with your lips. touch my world with your fingertips...

There's no time for us
There's no place for us
What is this thing that builds our dreams
Yet slips away from us?
Who wants to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
There's no chance for us
It's all decided for us
This world has only one
Sweet moment set aside for us
Who wants to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
Who?
Who dares to love forever
Oh, when love must die?
But touch my tears with your lips
Touch my world with your fingertips
And we can have forever
And we can love forever
Forever is our today
Who wants to live forever?
Who wants to live forever?
Forever is our today
Who waits forever anyway?

Epilogue:
There are moments in your life. Those moments which shape every moment thereafter. Moments which, as they unfold, you know were destined to be from the very first breath you took. Fate, destiny, the forces of light and dark ~ it didn't matter what brought them here, to this place and this time. It was inevitable that here was where they would be. Because here, and now, was when and where it had to happen.

Jesine reached for her brother, as he did for her and wave upon wave of after-effects rippled out into reality. Dreams became nightmares, feeding on dreams. Nightmares transformed into pleasant slumber which grew as it overcame the darkness of night terrors, and Vri came to collect the souls of his children. As he did, each person there knew, as though they had watched it themselves, exactly what had transpired here for each and every other person, as they made their way through the Maze. Whether they had completed the whole thing or not, so long as they had started it, everything done and said in the Maze was known to everyone who had got to this point. Which made any secrets told tricky, of course.

Who waits forever, anyway.....?

All

1. You all are completely aware of everything that has happened in any and all threads in this event. You don't know what pc's thought, but anything they said or did, you know.
2. You have an invitation to the follow up. This will be a high risk, high reward thread which will be, fundamentally, potentially world changing. There is a chance of PC death, maiming or seriously bad times. There is also a series likelihood of major heroics, weirdness and a chance to making yourself famous. There might even be a weasel.
3. You all have your animal companions as NPCs. They are just normal examples of their species, except for the fact that they are intelligent and can talk. When they talk, you the PC (and any other PC who completed this event) can hear them. To everyone else, they sound like they're making normal animal noises.
4. If you kept your mirror Next time you look at it, it is shattered into pieces. Yet, the pieces do not come out of the frame. Over the course of the Cycle it will get more and more broken and nothing seems to fix it.
5. Your notebook seems to be just a notebook. Unless any of you throw it into the fire. In which case, you'll find that it's a fireproof notebook. Go figure.
6. The crystal is glass, pretty and shiny and nothing else.

Amaris

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 10 (did you see that dead girl!?)
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon which you tie into your ghostly hair. It immediately becomes part of said ghostly hair and you can not get it out. Hmm.
Companions: One ghost-hare who talks to you. Fiver's destiny is now inexorably linked with your own; he is currently dead but, should Amaris become not-dead at any point, Fiver will follow suit. Fiver, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.

Tio

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 15 (oh, and now everyone knows you're a Yludih. Errrgh....)
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon. If you are joining the follow up - I need to know what you did with this ribbon.
Companions: Fred the Fox. Fred is a walking, talking, real life chatty fox who speaks. When he speaks, you hear him, his words. Others just hear fox noises. He, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.
You now have the Dreamwalking skill and are able to access Emea. You have 5 XP in this skill. This is somewhat odd, for a Yludih, and when in Emea, you appear in your "true" crystal form. Fred is with you in Emea, whenever you choose to go there, and his skill increases with yours. He is never in Ulediah.

Ari'sora

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 10
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon which you tie around Shadow. It will not come undone / be taken off.
Companions: One cat called Shadow who talks to you. When Shadow speaks, you hear the words. Others just hear cat noises. Shadow, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here. Ari'sora and Shadow are also able to communicate telepathically.

Kura

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 15
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon, safe in a treasure drawer.
Companions: Ornery the Owl. Ornery is a grumpy, talking, ornery owl. When Ornery speaks, you (and the rest of your menagerie) hear words. Others just hear "twit-twoo" noises. Ornery, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.
You now have the Dreamwalking skill and are able to access Emea. You have 5 XP in this skill. Ornery is with you in Emea, whenever you choose to go there, and their skill increases with yours.

Maxine

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 15
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon. If you are joining the follow up - I need to know what you did with this ribbon.
Companions: B. the Badger...... a walking, talking, real life badger who speaks. When she speaks, you hear her, her words. Others just hear whatever noise badgers make. She, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.
You now have the Dreamwalking skill and are able to access Emea. You have 5 XP in this skill. B. is with you in Emea, whenever you choose to go there, and her skill increases with yours.

Mute

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 15
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon, safe your pocket. It's always there. Whichever pocket you happen to have at the time.... funny that
Companions: Oddity the Owl - a talking owl. When Oddity speaks, you hear words. Others just hear "twit-twoo" noises. Oddity can hear your thoughts and can, therefore, converse with you. Over time, Mute will learn how to project / send specific thoughts to Odddity. The small owl too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.
You now have the Dreamwalking skill and are able to access Emea. You have 5 XP in this skill. Oddityy is with you in Emea, whenever you choose to go there, and their skill increases with yours.

Toraj

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 15
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon, tied to Spirit the Hare.
Companions: Spirit the Talking Hare. Who loves you, is immensely grateful to Toraj for all he's done and who will need to be carefully nursed back to health. In Spirit, Toraj has a loyal and loving companion. When Spirit speaks, you hear words. Others just hear weird little snuffly hare-like noises. The hare, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.
You now have the Dreamwalking skill and are able to access Emea. You have 5 XP in this skill. Spirit is with you in Emea, whenever you choose to go there, and their skill increases with yours.

Eric

XP: 20 for the event (some of the individual threads will not have XP)
Renown: 10
Knowledge: None in this thread.
Items: This thread: 1 x ribbon, safe your pocket. It's always there. Whichever pocket you happen to have at the time.... funny that
Companions: Gorm the Goat - a talking goat. When Gorm speaks, you hear words. Others just hear the range of very odd noises goats make. Gorm, too, knows exactly what happened to everyone here.

Well done all! Hope you enjoyed it.

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