The day begins as most days begin. Soft sunlight begins to filter through thick tree foliage, creating bright sparks of lights out of the specks of dust floating in the air. The sunlight flows into the room in pulsing waves as the curtains blow lazily in the morning swamp breeze. Smells of freshly baked breads wafted along with the sunlight and following a loud rumble of his stomach, Froggy sluggishly stretches out his limbs and pulls himself from bed. Another day starting just like any other, but little did Froggy know the events of today would change everything.
Grabbing a hunk of steaming bread off the hearthstone he rubs at his eyes glancing around the hut. Father is nowhere to be seen, of course, already at the temple, but he is surprised to note his mother and two younger sisters are nowhere to be found either. Pondering the morning with a mind still shaking off sleep he pulls his Green Mantle Robe over his head becoming instantly tangled in the flowing fabric. Tugging and grunting the sleeves are finally located and his broad froggish face pokes through.
Shoving the remaining lump of bread into his mouth he picks up his stick propped outside his door and steps into his father’s study. He is unable to enter the room without a feeling of wonder. The shelves lining the walls are filled with religious texts, with artifacts, and tokens of great importance. A spike of guilt rises in him to be contemplating ownership and coveting possessions within moments of being awake.
As a Gnostic he strives to learn, to experience, and to grow in his spiritual understanding of the Runiverse and its inhabitants. He seeks enlightenment and understanding beyond that of the Holy Arcanist who created the material realm and all within. Stiving always to ignore the distractions of this realm to strengthen his bond to those powers that lie beyond this plane of existence he takes a deep breath to realign his thoughts.
Among this tribe’s numbers there are two unusually gifted Anurans who have reached the level of enlightenment that allows for direct contact with the realm of Monad. His father a Druid like himself and his uncle a renowned alchemist both transcended the boundaries of this realm and have traveled to the great heights of light outside the physical realm. Based on the rumors and local lore, they are the only two to have conversed directly with an Aeon in generations. The bond they forged is obvious in the glowing Aeons that float slowly around them both, pulsating runes that constantly twist and turn as they drift in and out of existence in the Runiverse. Not entirely in the material plane, yet no longer fully present in Monad, the aeons allow for communication to a realm beyond. The Aeons have granted knowledge and insight to their chosen ones over the years resulting in a long period of peace and growth for their little backwoods village.
As the son, and nephew, of the town mystics, Froggy has been encouraged to spend much of his time in study and devotion to the spiritual teachings. Not yet considered a full master, Froggy, is still considered a prodigy to have obtained the ranking of Druid at such a young age. In a ceremony only a few weeks prior he had been raised rank and gifted with this ‘dumb stick’. A long-standing tradition among the Gnostics, the stick is of course a symbol. It is a symbol that while nothing is as simple as it seems everything of this realm is both less and more than it appears. To learn how to contact the planes of existence beyond his own Froggy must first truly understand the nature of all things within the Runiverse. Only with this knowledge as an anchor is it possible to travel safely beyond the physical realm and return.
With his life devoted to study and scholarly activities he understood there was more than a ritual to the carrying of this stick and he intended to commit and understand this lesson and continue his journey of enlightenment. “Why a stick?” he thought as he rounded the table and sits himself down at the orderly desk centered in the room. “Why not a seed, or a fruit?” something that was still alive or had the potential to create more than it already was surely had more to teach than something that had already reached the end of its journey. A static thing, without life, without…” A scream in the distance broke his line of thought. That…sounded like his sister. His darling, precious little sister who was always carefree and joyful. The terror he heard shot him out of his seat, out of the room, and sprinting out the door of his home. It sounded as though the noise had come from the town square and he made haste to seek its source.
As he approached, he heard more and more people calling out and the morning calm had become a screaming mass. Turning the last bend in the road he had a clear view of the square and the sight that he encountered set a chill to his bones. His uncle hovered several feet above the ground glowing brightly and slightly rotating. His mouth hung slack, a glowing substance coated his lips, and his eyes were dull and unfocused. Froggy could see his father as well, his arms wrapped around the legs of his uncle also hovering above the ground with a slight glow to his flesh.
With every revolution the pair spun faster until their forms resembled nothing more than a tornado of light spinning with such velocity nothing of their human shapes remained. Then they were gone. They did not slowly fade, nor shrink into the distance, but just vanished. Everything in the world froze. There was no sound, no movement. The gap in space inhabited by the pair was replaced by a flash of blinding light and a blast of sound so fierce it blew Froggy onto his back meters away from where he stood.
Pulling himself to his feet he stared around finally noticing other people of the town awestruck and terrified. The final image of his mentors flashed in his eyes with each blink and his ears rang in the silence that followed. Something had gone terribly wrong, but what. How could this have happened? The answers to these questions must be discovered, but where to even begin? The two most learned shaman in town had disappeared in a flash of light leaving Froggy the most advanced of his sect. He noticed the towns people had all gone silent and many began to cast their eyes to their remaining, though novice mystic. Not knowing how it would be accomplished Froggy did know he would be the towns best hope to solve this mystery. He felt, no he knew, the only way to save his father and uncle was to obtain enlightenment, summon his Aeon and follow them into the other realm.
To save his family he must find his rune, and become more than just an adept. Clutching his stick tightly, he returned to his father’s study to gather those artifacts of power he understood along with the religious texts and books of runes. There he remains in study, unwilling to leave the room until he can determine his next steps in the search for his family.
Entered by: 0x6f55…05fe and preserved on chain (see transaction)
