9 September 1243
Alas, even a vacation well-earned must wait.
I have been summoned by Headmaster Thomas Snow of Cabotton University to investigate an urgent matter. Something to do with "phantoms" roaming school grounds and darkfire wraythers attacking students.
That's all I know for now. In the meantime, I have set my airship, Scalar, bound for Dock Four at Gentry County Airfield.
10 September 1243
I arrived at Dock Four at Gentry County Airfield and met with Headmaster Thomas Snow, Campus Watch Chief Maynard Winsley, and Cabotton-proper Chief Bryan Kempt. And now I have a better story.
On Saturday September 8, Ivella Ogden went missing. She and her cousin, Glenda Browen, and their roommates, Martin Nodd and Arthur Corbin, were at their residence a couple blocks from the University carrying out a TableQuest session with their paying patrons tuning in from near and afar. Suddenly, the dymensional plane went blank. Glenda was the first one down to check the dymensional plane frame in the living room and found that the core of the dymensional plane, the Algorithms Book, was missing, seemingly forced from its hinges, and that the front door of their residence was wide open. She, Martin, and Arthur called for Ivella, as Ivella did not seem to show up; and that was when they realized that Ivella could not be found.
At that moment, they heard rummaging from Ivella's upstairs bedroom and got suspicious.
Martin Nodd was the first to confront the intruder. He pounded on the bedroom door, and, after no response, kicked it down. The burglar inside flew out and knocked Arthur and Martin unconscious with stun spell discharges. The burglar flew down the steps and out the door before Glenda could catch him.
I will be working closely with Cabotton Watch Chief Winsley as my primary contact to report my findings. We will then cross-examine and report to Headmaster Snow and Chief Kempt.
It is interesting, though, what Winsley said to me. He made it very bold to me that he would be collecting information, both from me and his own investigation, while strongly protecting himself from bias, and encouraged me to do the same. I initially figured that it was a bit of a joke, as we both come from professions deeply rooted in objectivity, but he forewarned me to be aware of political treachery at the University.
I will, of course, do everything in my power to prevent my investigation from being led astray.
**
My first stop for today was at the residence of the first incident: 124 West Mason Street, where I met Glenda, Arthur, and Martin. They gave me a more detailed story of what happened and the events leading up to the incident.
Apparently, they had been running their TableQuest session off of a custom dymensional plane known as the Arturian Realm. Glenda led the session as the Dungeonmaster, but in practice, they governed it mutually as Head Deities. Glenda commanded the region belonging to the Goddess Maersa; Ivella commanded the region belonging to the Goddess Vera; Arthur the region belonging to the God Tersan; Martin the region belonging to the God Sterran; and a friend named Brea Claython commanded over the region belonging to the Goddess Mathena. This dymensional plane was, furthermore, divided into four layers: the Underworld, the Dungeonworld, the Terraworld, and the Divineworld. Ivella and her friends governed over the Divine and Terrestrial layers (the top two), and recruited friends to govern the Under- and Dungeonworlds as deities from the Underworld.
And so they recruited even more friends to join as paying members, creating lesser avatars (or characters) to fit into a hierarchy of power dynamics as to craft and run this world via a dynamic of alliances and hostilities campaigning for or against each other for territory or items of treasure and value. And thus essence of the game. Each Order that emerged and each of their divisions had their own coffer of gold or credit. And each coffer held treasure gained during a campaign or gold generated by the Dungeonmaster for a payment additional to the membership fee paid by every member except for the founders. For the record that membership fee was 1.00 qor per month.
Three months previously came the emergence of a character named Broul. Broul was initially a brand new recruit into the TableQuest session; and the person in reality behind this character was never revealed. Nevertheless, Broul was inducted initially into the lowest starting rank in an organization named the Divine Order of Vera, but demonstrated unusual talent. Within three weeks, he had ascended to the highest leadership position under the Order, at this point, determined to overcome a threat from Greyon, an equally powerful member under one of the Dungeonworld Orders under the Goddess Mathena. Greyon was carrying out a campaign against the nation protecting the Temple of Vera, the nation of Galacia. But Broul, who had recruited and built an effective army of fighters and spellcasters under his banner, defeated Greyon in one fell swoop.
And that's when things began to go wrong.
Broul, despite having defeated Greyon, continued the campaign of looting and violence against Greyon's former base, slaughtering indiscriminately and taking coffers. And furthermore, Broul was only sharing the spoils with his inner ring and keeping more for himself. The lower-ranking members under his own banner demanded him to stop this, but Broul only responded with attempting to ostracize outspoken dissidents. His lower base then attempted a mutiny against him, to which Broul responded by slaughtering them; in other words, slaughtering his own fighters. His Superior, Mordon, serving as a Saint under Vera, moved to strip Broul of all his titles in consequence, but Broul had already grown too powerful.
That was when Broul did the unthinkable. He recruited random powerful avatars, by some questionable form of oathcrafting, and destroyed Mordon's temple, taking his coffer in the process. Mordon, being immortal as a Saint, was unable to be slain. But Broul had also carried out tasks to make himself the immortal equivalent of a Saint, though the Divine Temple of Vera did not officially accept him. Nonetheless, Broul was powerful enough to establish an illegitimate Temple of his own and carry out a campaign in an attempt to topple the official Temple of Vera.
Mordon and the other Divine avatars alerted Vera of what was happening; and Vera organized a campaign with them to subvert the growing threat of Broul. However, Broul fought back with unprecedented ferocity, prompting Vera to call a council with the Deities Maersa, Tersan, Sterran, and Mathena.
And that was when "the Father" showed up.
Whether human or "daemon," as their characters took the shape of in this Realm, the true form of "the Father" is unknown. And also a mystery was the unknown character's class and rank. No one knew what the avatar looked like, for "the Father" appeared only in spirit form; and no one knew the person in the real world behind this character. But "the Father" was the reason for Broul's ultimate defeat. With cunning strategy and rallying appeal, the Father was able to unite all fighters under all the Deities, and fight a hard but successful Realm-wide war against Broul.
It was costly and brutal, but Broul was defeated.
Or so it would seem.
Afterward, Glenda, the Dungeonmaster of the TableQuest session, offered to temporarily waive the 1.00 qor per month fee to returning members whose characters were killed by Broul, and offered to resurrect these characters as well as remove any curses, injuries, or afflictions the characters received from Broul.
And it seemed that the Realm was to recover in short time.
However, more recently, Broul returned and began reigniting his old agenda. This time, "the Father" could be nowhere found. After careful searching, Ivella, with her avatar, Vera, finally found him and called a council with him and the other seven Deities.
And that's when everything went blank.
The reason for the outage is still unknown. However, Brea Claython had informed authorities that she had suspicions of Broul being played by a wrayther (That's a darkfire conjurer and merchant for those of you who do not know.). I took note of her reasons leading up to her suspicions.
And it is also interesting to note something else that Glenda told me on my visit to 124 West Mason Street today. Accordingly, the missing Algorithms Book belonged to Ivella's late granduncle, Merlin Kent Ogden, who specifically crafted the Book with scripts to prevent wraythers from storing darkfire scripts or markings of darkfire floans in his dymensional plane. So a wrayther would not be able to heist his dymensional plane and use it as a selling point for darkfire dealers and other users, as wraythers usually do.
So I can understand the desire for a wrayther to get his hands on this Book, to find the preventative scripts so that he could circumvent around them. And so it would seem a couple nights ago that the said wrayther, whoever he was, or his accomplice, snatched the Book and abducted Ivella.
Indeed, it is alarming, and the quest to get to the bottom of this is ever more urgent.
**
I went next to the Northwest Corner of Fleming House in the center of the University campus, the location of the second confrontation. I came across a multitude of students and professors alike reporting a flurry of spellfire discharges lighting up the campus on the night of September 8th. It was like a "fireworks show" as described by one student. It seems to me that the students and staff are still in shock over this.
Furthermore, the Chaplain of the University, Father David Connor, has been carrying out a campaign against the idea of dymensionalism and the playing of TableQuest at Cabotton University. I first came across this in an article from the University paper: the Flagstaff. And I brought this up to Winsley, asking if this was what he was referring to. Winsley stated that this was precisely what he meant, and informed me that through informal sources, he heard that the Chaplain wants TableQuest and all other forms of dymensionalism banned among all students and staff, and to even prohibit Cabotton scholars from playing TableQuest even when they are not on school grounds.
**
Winsley and I were called to the Office of Headmaster Stone, where we conferred with him and Chief Kempt verbally on our findings thus far. We certainly made progress in our investigation, but we have yet to sort through our information to find who exactly the culprit is. Furthermore, we have no leads yet on the whereabouts of Ivella Ogden.
Winsley and Kempt departed after our short meeting, but I decided to remain in the Office and speak more with Headmaster Snow. I brought up what was said both in the Flagstaff and of Winsley regarding the University Chaplain. And the Headmaster confirmed the level of charisma that was being displayed by the Chaplain, who the Headmaster further admitted was "invading" Cabotton University Council meetings.
"We are a democratic institution," Snow said. "We elect our leaders, administrators, council members. We, in fact, have served as the inspiration for the foundation of our Republic five years ago. And I fear the Chaplain is trying to subvert us, our University. I'm afraid that if anything, his campaign to whitewash Cabotton University of its secularity in the name of religion may be of greater concern than the darkfire agenda at play."
And indeed I am concerned. However, I am not surprised. During my conversation with Winsley, I learned that Father David Connor is an actual Cleric. Clerics are methodical and flawed, coming up with ideas founded on absolute principles. Nevertheless, I hope I find evidence proving this darkfire incident a fluke before Father David Connor sways the University Council into voting on something unreasonable.
**
We met again this evening at the Headmaster's Office for Winsley and I to report further findings in our investigation.
Winsley spoke to a few witnesses reporting numerous "phantom" sightings. More details of these testimonies report that a lot of these sightings are happening in and around the Planetarium, more specifically with these mysterious figures wondering to the East side of the Planetarium in its marginal corridor.
Meanwhile, I finished investigating the cordoned-off part of the Fleming House, which turned out to be one of the basement meeting rooms. And I am afraid to say that things are much worse than what we've all feared.
After careful analysis and cross-examination of the wood pieces with my special illumination and photography tools, I have managed to get personal darkfire script signatures. And these signatures show that the perpetrators are accomplices of Darius Weller.
As a wrayth-hunter, I have spent over a decade and a half chasing after Darius Weller, for he is the most infamous darkfire conjurer aside from the Dark Lord Holz Finzi. I've been well-aware of Weller's criminal career, which involved leading a nationwide ring of darkfire-crafting and trade, taking place in the most impossible nooks and crannies in places never suspected by the upper authorities, and heisting the minds of spellcrafters and non-spellcrafters alike. He is the most elusive of them all, as I have never been able to catch him.
The closest I came was my most recent encounter with him; and that was over two years ago. I busted a large darkfire ring in the Basin District and saw him with my very own eyes. I chased after him, first on my airship, then on foot, when I landed right by the dark waters of Lake Maern. As I chased him, I realized that he was running to seek help from the Dark Lord Finzi residing on Mount Carris on the Western End of the Lake. While chasing Weller, I came within the limits of the foothills of Mount Carris. I was mere yards away from Weller here when I began to feel the effects of Finzi's Disorientation Barrier. Next thing I knew, I was miles South, not being able to sense North, South, West, or East. And by the time I came to my senses, Weller was miles away.
But here he is now, in the small and insignificant town of Cabotton, Ereautea. Or at least he could not have gone far.
Two students of the Flagstaff were present at this meeting; and we permitted them to report our findings thus far. This would be important in proving that it is a specific figure in the darkfire community, Darius Weller, causing all of the ongoing grief, and not simply the "corrupt nature of dymensionalism and its tendency to tempt mortal humans into playing God," as the Chaplain keeps saying at the Council meetings.
My next plan, in the meantime, is to hide near the Planetarium tonight, and this time, I will have my catch-rope.