Scenario:Tiamat - Absent Winds
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Absent Winds
As the Grandcypher sails between islands, Tiamat senses a grave threat to Port Breeze. They find the archipelago engulfed in miasma-filled clouds that return no matter how many times Tiamat blows them away. The crew lands on the main island, Port Eingana, to discover the cause of the uncanny weather.
The Grandcypher cuts a swift path through the clouds, course set for the crew's next adventure.
Tiamat floats restlessly through the air above its deck.
Tiamat: ...
Lyria: Oh... Is something wrong, Tiamat?
Tiamat: ...!
???: It's been so long since I saw the sun...
???: Nn... Hngh...
???: Tiamat, please...
Tiamat's mind is suddenly inundated with fragmentary images.
Their import is clear: Port Breeze is in danger.
Tiamat: ...!
Lyria: What! Oh no, that's awful!
Vyrn: Hey, why the long faces, you two?
Lyria: Well, Tiamat just told me...
Lyria relates the threat Tiamat has just sensed looming over the Port Breeze Archipelago.
Rackam: Must be more than just a little summer rain, huh?
Rackam: Sorry, (Captain), but we're makin' a detour.
Choose: Yeah. We need to help them.
Tiamat: ...!
Lyria: Tiamat's going to summon the wind. Please steer the Grandcypher into it!
Rackam: Roger that!
Tiamat: ...!
With Tiamat's divine wind filling its sails, the Grandcypher speeds toward Port Breeze.
Tiamat: ...
Rackam: What's with these clouds? I can't see anything in front of the Grandcypher's prow. And the wind is blowing every which way.
Lyria: It's hard to believe the skies were so calm just a little while ago.
Vyrn: Hey, isn't Port Breeze under Tiamat's protection? This kinda thing isn't supposed to happen, is it?
The crew's surprise is understandable.
The entire archipelago has been swallowed up by towering black thunderclouds.
Vyrn: It feels like they're tryin' to coil around us like a snake... Freaks me out.
Lyria: I think there might be miasma inside them.
Rackam: Which means we really need to be careful.
Rackam: Tiamat, can you lend us a hand?
Tiamat: ...
The words have hardly left Rackam's lips before Tiamat rockets into the air above the ship.
She summons her three-headed dragon.
Tiamat: ...
With its assistance she calls forth a fearsome gale.
They direct all its power toward the massive clouds.
Tiamat: ...!
The clouds disperse, leaving not a wisp behind.
Rackam: Haha! That's Port Breeze's guardian deity all right!
Vyrn: That oughta sort out all this crazy weather! Case closed!
It does indeed look as if the danger has passed.
Lyria: The clouds! They're coming back!
Vyrn: But how? Tiamat just blew them to kingdom come!
The clinging black clouds re-form all around Port Breeze, threatening to swallow it once more.
Tiamat: ...!
Tiamat rises into the air and pits her winds against the dark clouds a second time, tearing them apart so they fade out of existence.
Tiamat: ...!
Just as before, the clouds re-form and envelop the archipelago.
Rackam: Figures it wouldn't be that easy. Tiamat sensed the danger all the way out where we were, so this is no ordinary bout of nasty weather.
Tiamat: ...
Lyria: Tiamat...
Rackam: Which means we need to root out the source of the problem.
(Captain) and the others land on Port Eingana, the main island of the archipelago.
It seems they have some investigation ahead of them if they're going to get to the bottom of this.
Absent Winds: Scene 2
The citizens of Port Eingana have evacuated to a shelter on higher ground to escape flooding from severe rains. They are all suffering from the effects of the miasma. Tiamat feels helpless in the face of their suffering but is bolstered by their conviction that the guardian goddess will save them. The crew seeks clues.
Port Eingana is the main island of the Port Breeze Archipelago.
It seems entirely changed by the influence of the black clouds massed around it.
Not only is the island mired in darkness—it is tossed by incessant, violent rainstorms.
The town and much of the beautiful natural landscape surrounding it are flooded.
One wall of Ungud Castle, which had been undergoing renovations, lies in ruins.
Tiamat: ...
Vyrn: Yeesh... This place is practically underwater.
Lyria: I hope the residents are all right...
Rackam: They probably evacuated to the big hall located on higher ground. We should head there first.
As Rackam guessed, the townspeople are holed up in a hall built at the highest point of the town.
The evacuees are suffering from a variety of maladies caused by the miasma and seem to be sapped of all their energy.
Rackam: ...
Tiamat: ...
Tiamat remains frozen in place at the sight of the beleaguered residents of her archipelago.
Old Man: ...
Doctor: Here, drink this.
Old Man: Ngh... Thank you...
Doctor: Don't mention it. That's what I'm here for.
Doctor: Oh, Rackam! When did you get back?
Rackam: We just made port. Couldn't stay away, knowing Port Breeze was in trouble.
Rackam: Are you the only doctor taking care of all these people?
Doctor: Everyone's overworked to the point of collapse. I'm the only doctor in town still on my feet.
Vyrn: What! Geez, you guys are in rough shape!
Doctor: Yeah, you ain't just a whistlin' pixie. We could really use some extra hands on deck, if you can spare 'em.
Doctor: I really appreciate it.
Lyria: Just tell us what to do, Doctor. I think you could use some time off your feet too.
Doctor: Thank you, young lady. Really glad to have you.
Choose: Even if we don't know what we're doing?
Doctor: I've already examined pretty much everyone. It'd really help me out if you could handle some of the simpler tasks—changing bandages and the like.
Vyrn: Yeah, we can do that! Just point us in the right direction!
Doctor: That'll be a huge help. Thank you.
Continue 1
Rackam: While we're helping out, let's see if anyone knows what might've caused all this.
(Captain) and the crew talk to the townspeople as they help tend to their injuries and ailments.
Old Man: Well... All of a sudden, this doozy of a storm whipped up...
Old Man: Before I knew it, the miasma had knocked me clean out.
Vyrn: Did anybody pull somethin' shady right before that? Wreck a holy sanctuary or something?
Old Man: I can't say for certain, but I haven't heard anything like that from the people here.
Lyria: I see...
The crew members talk to everyone they can, but in the end, there's no compelling information to be gleaned.
As she drifts through the hall, Tiamat's gaze is arrested by a young girl suffering from a high fever.
Little Girl: Ngh... Hnh...
Tiamat: ...
Lyria: Has she had her medicine yet?
Doctor: Yeah. But that fever's a stubborn one.
Tiamat: ...
Despite her position as the island's guardian, Tiamat can think of no way to help this little girl.
Lyria: Tiamat...
Rackam: Hey. You may be a primal, and a guardian goddess, but you're not omnipotent. This isn't your fault.
Rackam: Still... I know how you feel. It's killing me too.
Tiamat: ...
Little Girl: Tia... mat...
Tiamat: ...!
Doctor: Don't worry. Tiamat will save us.
Doctor: Not just us. She'll save the whole archipelago. All you need to do is rest up and wait for her.
Little Girl: O... kay...
Reassured by the doctor's gentle smile, the girl sinks back into sleep, breathing more easily.
Lyria: Everyone here believes in Tiamat, don't they?
Doctor: Of course we do. It's thanks to her protection that our home has flourished for so many years.
Doctor: Young and old, everyone knows how much we owe her.
Doctor: This too shall pass. No one is in any doubt of that. We have faith in Tiamat.
Tiamat: ...!
The man's words of earnest belief stir Tiamat from her dejection and rekindle her resolve.
Rackam: You're right, Doc. These piddlin' clouds are no match for Tiamat's divine winds.
Rackam: Am I right?
Rackam looks at Tiamat as he finishes speaking, and she nods, determination blazing in her eyes.
Tiamat: ...!
(Captain) and the crew set out to chase down whatever leads they can find.
Absent Winds: Scene 3
Tiamat heads out into the storm alone to seek more information on the abnormal weather in Port Breeze. She finds miasma spewing from deep fissures in the earth and cliffs. A sudden earthquake rocks the island, prompting her to return to the evacuation shelter. On her way back, Tiamat saves a man.
Tiamat: ...
Alone, Tiamat leaves the evacuation site and ventures into the raging storm to discover the cause of the unnatural weather plaguing Port Breeze.
As she explores, she finds fissures opened in the earth and the cliffs all around Port Eingana.
Tiamat: ...
She descends to the flooded ground to investigate the cracks spreading in every direction.
Tiamat: ...!
The miasma damaging the island is spewing forth from the cracks in the earth.
No matter how she tries to blow away the miasma, she can't get at the source, and more only billows forth to take its place.
Tiamat: ...
As Tiamat considers this, the ground begins to shake.
Tiamat: ...!
With an earsplitting rumble, the cracks delve deeper and farther into the island, belching dirt and mud that rains down over the town and verdant forests.
The fissures reach as far as Ungud Castle, the very symbol of Port Eingana. The walls seem to cry out as they give way.
Tiamat clenches her fists as Port Breeze is ravaged before her very eyes.
Tiamat: ...
Tiamat: ...!
Remembering the citizens who have evacuated to the hall on the hill, Tiamat turns back.
On her way there, she spots something.
Tiamat: ...!
A lone man battles his way through the elements toward the shelter of the hall.
Carpenter: Huff... Pant... Damn it! Nearly there... Just... a little... further...
Tiamat: ...
Tiamat hoists the unconscious man over her shoulder and hurries toward the shelter.
Meanwhile...
The tremors have collapsed one section of the hall, and (Captain) and the others are leading the evacuees to a safer part of the building.
Vyrn: Phew... Is the ground done shaking?
Rackam: Everyone okay? No one was caught in the collapse, were they?
Doctor: Only some light injuries. That was a stroke of luck.
Lyria: That was a really big quake just now.
Doctor: There have been a lot of them at that intensity lately. I don't know how much more this hall will stand.
Rackam: Miasma-filled clouds, typhoons, and serial earthquakes?
Rackam: This can't be a coincidence. What's causing it all?
Vyrn: I hope Tiamat found some kinda clue.
As the crew rack their brains, the hall door bursts open.
Tiamat: ...
Rackam: Oh, you're back. What'd you find out there—
Carpenter: Hrngh...
Rackam: What's up with that guy? Is he hurt?
Doctor: What're you standing around for, Rackam? Help me treat him!
Rackam: R-right!
Rackam and the doctor rush forward to take the injured man into their care.
Absent Winds: Scene 4
The man Tiamat saved turns out to be a carpenter working on the Ungud Castle renovations—he'd fallen into a hitherto undiscovered cave below when they demolished a wall. Thinking the cave may lead deep enough to investigate the source of the miasma, the crew decides to go spelunking.
Carpenter: Huff... Huff...
Doctor: It's all right now. You're safe. You can relax.
Carpenter: Heh... Heh heh... I owe you one, miss. If you hadn't found me out there, I'd be a goner...
The exhausted man's legs give way, leaving him in a heap at Tiamat's side.
Tiamat: ...
Doctor: I'll take it from here. Vyrn, get me that first aid kit!
Vyrn: Roger!
Tiamat: ...
Rackam wrests his attention from the doctor tending to the injured man.
Rackam: Tiamat... Did you see anything strange out there?
Tiamat nods, then turns to Lyria to explain.
Tiamat: ...
Lyria: Huh? Miasma was coming out of them?
Rackam: What? You found the source of the miasma?
Lyria: Um, well... She says there were big cracks in the earth and the cliffs, and miasma was pouring out of them...
Vyrn: Hmm? So the miasma wasn't coming from outside the island...
Rackam: But inside. All right...
Vyrn: Say. Are there any tunnels or caves that lead all the way to the island's core?
Rackam: I mean... we've got caves, sure. But all the way to the island's core?
Rackam: Never heard of anything like that. Not even in legends.
Lyria: Oh...
Vyrn: I guess if we wanna get to the bottom of this, we're gonna hafta literally dig.
Carpenter's Voice: Won't be any need for that.
The crew turns around to see the man Tiamat saved, fresh from his emergency treatment.
Carpenter: ...
Rackam: Hey, you'd better lie down before you pass out again.
Carpenter: All I've got going for me is my resilience. Don't take that away from me.
Carpenter: More importantly, let's get back to what you were just talking about.
Carpenter: You said there weren't any caves leading all the way to the core of the island.
Rackam: ...
Carpenter: I didn't think there were either, but I was wrong.
Carpenter: There's a huge one right below Ungud Castle. Incredibly deep.
Rackam: Under the castle? First I've heard of it.
Carpenter: Not surprising. I only found out about it a few days ago.
The workman haltingly begins his tale.
Carpenter: I'm a carpenter, you see. I was working on the Ungud Castle renovations.
Carpenter: That day, we'd suspended work on the south wall because there was even more deterioration than we'd expected.
Carpenter: After some discussion, we decided the best course of action was to completely demolish it and build a new one from the ground up.
Carpenter: So we set some charges and kaboom! We took the wall down all right.
Carpenter: But the explosion caused a cave-in right under our feet...
Vyrn: Oh boy...
Carpenter: We fell through and found ourselves in this huge cave.
Carpenter: I was hurt all over and separated from my team... I didn't know what to do.
Rackam: Hang on. Are you saying the cave you guys fell into was under the castle the whole time?
Carpenter: Yeah. Had to be.
Carpenter: The place we blasted happened to be where the cave came closest to the surface. I think it goes pretty damn deep.
Carpenter: I don't see why anyone would wanna build on a hollow foundation like that though.
Rackam: Yeah, and I get the feeling there's some reason why no one in the present day knows about it.
Tiamat: ...
Lyria: She says the miasma might be coming from deep in that cave.
Vyrn: Well, that's a clue, anyhow! All we gotta do now is check it out!
Carpenter: Hey. You all are heading into that cave, right? Can I ask you a favor?
Carpenter: I thought I'd find my boss and the rest of my team when I got here, but I don't see 'em...
Vyrn: Say no more, Pops! We got this, right, (Captain)?
Hoping to cheer up the dejected carpenter, (Captain) stands as straight and tall as possible and declares the other construction workers are as good as saved.
Carpenter: Thank you, skyfarer!
With no further ado, the crew heads to the south side of the castle to investigate the cave beneath.
Categories:
- Scenario Character: Tiamat
- Scenario Character: Lyria
- Scenario Character: ???
- Scenario Character: Vyrn
- Scenario Character: Rackam
- Character Fate Scenario
- Lvl Cap Fate
- Scenario Character: Old Man
- Scenario Character: Doctor
- Scenario Character: Little Girl
- Scenario Character: Carpenter
- Scenario Character: Carpenter's Voice