The Turning Tides of New Celest

During the month of Tzarin in the year, 471 ACE for reasons still not known the Tide Lord Murlough of the Red Tide began expressing displeasure that the city of New Celest worshipped and venerated the Supernals while knowing nearly nothing of the Tide Lords and often ignoring them. Daebach was the first to come to the aid of Lord Murlough trying to appease the Tide Lords vowing that the people of Celest cared for them deeply and defended them with their lives, but Murlough was stubborn and would not be swayed from his conviction and insistence that while the Supernals had many statues and signs of reverence, the Tide Lords had either only one or no statues of themselves within the city. While Isabaeu unsuccessfully tried to ask Lord Murlough for information about all the Tide Lords, Jesa went to the Aquamancer library and brought what little scrolls could be found about each Tide. During the conversation, Lord Murlough attempted to show the seriousness of the situation by suggesting that a Red Tide would be coming. Misunderstanding the reference to change and rebirth, many in Celest believed that an attack on the city of New Celest would arrive in the next month if the Tide Lords were not properly mollified. While Daebach and Kreon searched far and wide to understand just where exactly the Tide Lords came from and who exactly they were, Aelmy attempted a contest to gain rituals and crafted items for the Tide Lords but gained little traction having only been offered a recipe for a cupcake. At this same time, some argued that the Red Tide was a process of rebirth and the people of Celest should do nothing, and just accept whatever change was to arrive.

Looking to their Allies, Daebach consulted with Trisanna from Serenwilde and Doman from Hallifax learning about the nature of the Tide Lords but misunderstanding a few key details. The deadline for the assumed arrival of the Red Tide nearing, many returned to the Lord Murlough including Tridemon who, with his vast store of knowledge of lore and history explained in full the nature of the Tide Lords, commenting that while the Supernals granted many gifts and were worthy of adoration and worship, the Tide Lords were most inert and uninterested in the people offering no gifts or powers. Enraged by Tridemon’s words, Lord Murlough briefly consulted with the other Tide Lords and under their strange condition, they agreed to withhold the power of Aquamancy from those connected to the Pool of Stars, reminding many of why in an alternate timeline, Aquamechanics was discovered. Angry, upset and confused, the atmosphere in New Celest quickly worsened, splitting the people between those who wished spread worship of the Tide Lords, those who felt something was off and warned of caution, and those who felt the Tide Lords were acting like spoiled children and deserved nothing but contempt. While researching the accusations against New Celest, Auriella noticed that while Murlough claimed no statues of him existed, there was actually one statue and that something was off, even though there was some truth to the claims of Lord Murlough. When the deadline finally arrived, Auriella working with Cassander approached the Tide Lords and explained that going forward, New Celest would remember that Light without Water was a desert, but that Light with Water is a paradise, and having written a short treatise on the unification of Water and Light pleased the Tide Lords such that they returned the art of Aquamancy and no longer took out their anger and resentment against the people of New Celest.

Then, in Juliary of 471 the incident with the Tide Lords, like a flash flood, leaving the minds of the people as quickly as it came Taer noticed a strange creature, a baby crabstrosity arrive on the plane of water. Attracted to the emotions of vanity, resentment, and anger coming from the Tide Lords, which were amplified within the clear and pure waters of the Plane of Water, the baby crabstrosities arrived through the aetherspace and quickly infested not only the plane of water, but also Celestia, the city of new Celest, the Inner Sea, and beaches across the basin. In addition to these horrendous mutations of lobstrosities invading, and laying foul roe eggs which polluted the waters and emitted a diseased gas, the baby crabstrosities were adapting to every attack such that, as Jesa first noted, one member from each guild of New Celest was required to destroy the horrendous beasts. However, the guilds were fragmented and it was days until the people were able to find one member from each guild to clear out the baby crabstrosities in a timely manner, eventually relying on Firu and Dak to clear the first wave.

Noting that the situation was untenable, the people of New Celest went out to look for other solutions. Caleb, thinking that the baby crabstrosities were the Red Tide promised sought advice from the Tide Lords, but they knew nothing that could help. Tridemon spoke to Praetorian Hamos, a kephera who recently came to guard Lady Elohora and Celestia from the creatures, being given advice to seek a weapon to destroy the eggs left behind by the baby crabstrosities. After consulting with Lady Shakiniel, Lady Elohora, and Lord Methrenton, Tridemon brought the powerful Pearl Staff of Rushing Waters which Methrenton was able to use to forge a new weapon, the Flowing Staff of Sanctification. Armed with the new weapon to destroy the eggs, hope flowed through New Celest, yet the crabstrosities kept on arriving from aetherspace and the people could clear them quickly enough, requiring five people to destroy a single creature. Returning to Lady Elohora, Tracy, Kreon, Ryobi, and Romaan were gathered to Celestia to seek a resolution and wisdom. Lady Elohora noted that the guilds charged with protecting the elemental plane of Water, and the cosmic plane of Celestia were unable to fulfil their duties. She also noted asked what would happen if a member of Celest without a guild attempted to destroy the best. Lynnie volunteered to try, yet before he could return to Prime and test the theory, the selfless and valiant member of the Cantors and Paladins stated with clear conviction that for the betterment of New Celest they would accept the dissolution of their guilds.

Based on the words of the people of New Celest, Lady Elohora severed the bindings that kept the guilds together, declaring a new age of New Celest where all would be in one guild, united against any threat, no matter which plane of creation the threat arrived on. And so in the month of Juliary, 471 ACE, the guilds of New Celest all disbanded, and Kreon, Caleb, Kagato and Auriella set forth for many days, now guildless, to destroy the baby crabstrosities who were unable to adapt quickly enough to the changing styles which the Celestians used to destroy the threat. With the Flowing Staff and Sanctification, and their new determination, the people of Celest, acting as one, and united as one were able to remove the baby crabstrosities and their roe eggs, yet still the pollution remained, and the baby crabstrosities, though easily dispatched, continue to flow into the elemental plane of Water.

Then in the month of Shanthin, 471 a krokani hymnodist of Raziela named Zeasha Novikei, from the famous krokani bannerhouse came to New Celest to help cheer up the people from their loss of guilds, having heard of their plight. After learning the full story, Zeasha noted how odd the behaviour of the Tide Lords was before the arrival of the infestation and suggested that she could sing a hymn to them to remind them of who they are and how they are cherished. When the hymn was sung, to the surprise of everyone, the crabstrosities looked confused and aimless, and some even went back to aetherspace. However, Zeasha wasn’t certain how to end the hymn. With the help of Daebach, who held a contest until Estar of 472, and Auriella a new hymn was written and performed before the voice of Rhapsody who agreed to sing the song to the Lords of Tide as a constant vigil to keep the crabstrosities away for good.

While the new hymn was being worked on, another traveler from far away, Yanitone Symfale, from the famous Symfale family of ship captains, heard that the children in New Celest were suffering from a horrible disease caused by the pollution, and despite the efforts of the people of Celest, kept getting sick again and again. So, Yaniton, a merchant marine brought to New Celest a shipment of 6,000 purity wafers bolstered by healers from far off lands which helped the children boost their immunity and be more receptive to the purity wafers offered to them. Using the new shipments, Jesa and Kagato were able to quickly heal the children, though Yanitone stayed to see what other help he could provide for the poor and sick, the ones most often overlooked during times of crisis such as this one.

With the crabstrosities gone, the children healed, and the Tide Lords acting one again like their normal selves, all that remained was the pollution from the eggs which needed to be cleaned up. Towards this goal, Lord Loch of the Low Tide helped empower the Flowing Staff of Sanctification such that it could sanctify entire areas, and return them to their clean and pristine state. After days of hard work investigating all of New Celest, Reyqae and Tridemon found a few stubborn areas which the staff could not cleanse, and so with a trusty old bucket, Reyqae scrubbed while Tridemon supervised, and the threat, and effects of the invasion of the crabstrosities, and the odd behaviour of the Tide Lords was finally resolved.

Then in Urlachmar of 472, three unrelated events transpired. Yanitone Symfale, having watched the city and listening to the words of Grand Duchess Bleuu, request aid in building a community centre for the poor and sick of New Celest, calling it the Rising Tide Community Centre, for the rising tide lifts all ships. Around the same time Elohora announced a desire for a new form a worship, one united to a single purpose of balanced knowledge, and called for a Lighthouse to be built on a newly discovered island to house the Church of the Guiding Star, devoted to both herself and Lord Loch of the Low Tide, in recognition of the achievements that can be made when Light and Water come together to form a paradise. Then, learning the story of the Lovers and saint Loathys from Tridemon, Zeasha contemplated what she could do to help restore sanctity, balance and purpose to the guildless New Celest. While Yanitone and Hamos called to the people to donate material to build their new projects, Zeasha meditates and looked inward searching for answers.

While New Celest was in this vulnerable state, the tainted heathens of Magnagora conducted a ritual, weakening Lady Raziela and invaded Celestia slaying her. Seeing the power of the new Flowing Staff of Sanctification, Lord Methrenton remembered the ancient shrine of Saint Loathys which was currently not as pure and sanctified as it could be. Making use of the staff, Lord Methrenton had the shrine sanctified, and using the innate connection between the shrine and himself, Lord Methrenton summoned forth a fiery host of righteous burning angels attacking and penetrating the city of Magnagora and the psychic shield which the Necromentate projected to protect the city. By some dark ritual, Magnagora retaliated with a great wall of the Midnight Legion striking New Celest. Though the Star of Celest protected the people inside the city, it collapsed, and the poor and destitute who resided outside the city walls were destroyed and turned into wights. Kreon single handedly destroyed the wight army, and though he was unable to save the shanty towns and soup kitchens outside the city walls, even with the Flowing Staff of Sanctification, he was able to return normalcy to the rest of the city.

Then, in Dioni of the year 472 ACE, Hamos declared that a Church is not just a building and that people would be needed to join the Ecclesiarchy of Light to lead. Yanitone shouted that the community centre itself would not be enough and called for like-minded individuals to join together as Archons of Justice to help keep New Celest from forgetting those who are often forgotten. And finally, Zeasha awoke from her meditations to call on the people who wished to restore New Celest and all that was wrong in the world, to join the Sanctifiers of Saint Loathys.

Where will these new guilds take the city of New Celest in the years to come? What caused the Tide Lords to behave erratically and set off this whole chain of events? Will the Lighthouse of the Guiding Star spread the teachings of the new church behind the Ecclesiarchy? Will the Sanctifiers manage to cleanse the world of corruption and achieve Lumosis? Will the Archons of Justice keep New Celest focused and protect those who are unable to protect themselves?