Entrancement Stone Ritual
As observed by Calysto
I was invited to witness and chronicle an event performed by members of the Shadow that led to the destruction of the Entrancement Stone. As an outsider, I cannot give real meaning to what happened. I can only describe the actions as I have seen them. I hereby endeavor to record this story with an objective eye.
The evening's events began in the house of the Shadow. After a prayer of preparation in the Shadow's Celebration hall, Mokkan brought forth a stone vessel brimming with rank liquid from the chaos font in Fayd's Fortress. Star Scream uncovered a calcified object, a blade thickly encased by ancient minerals. (Patro later explained that the blade was found many years ago embedded in the walls of Shadow threshold.) The blade was bathed in the liquid from the chaos font to prepare it for what followed.
Patro held up the Entrancement Stone as all watched silently. She chanted a short prayer before draining and corrupting its essences, channeling their powers into herself. When finished, we departed and regrouped in Teng's Treasure Hoard, Lost Caves.
The faithful took their positions. Four stood around the central pillar while others guarded the portals outside. After Isis led prayer, Patro unsheathed the calcified blade and swiftly struck the Entrancement Stone, breaking the String of Harmonics and causing the artifact to fragment into its four components. The four shards were distributed between the foci: Arlyana Jax the Dreamseer, PAMSWEETS the Gatekeeper, Hrrum the Soulmaster and Skuld the Fatesender. The fragments were softened under the intensity of the insight, will, resilience and lucidity and cast in molds to replicate the Shadow's key to Teng's.
As the four placed the keys within their locks, light spilled over the cave and the central pillar radiated with power. Suddenly the Datoken Budash appeared, wrecking havoc within the room while the participants resolutely held their places. Writhing in pain, Patro and the four finally completed the circle, unlocking the cavern pillar. The glow from the pillar became blinding as it shifted and turned, and the sound of Bear Crusher's horn blared through the caves.
Suddenly a loud crack echoed through the city and trembled through the halls of the Great Houses. I thought perhaps I caught a shadow fly across the room, (though it may have been a trick of the light), followed by a cry from an unknown source: "FREE AT LAST." Diabolical laughter was heard throughout the cavern, and PAMSWEETS ordered those who were not critical to the ceremony to abandon Tengs. Here my notes become almost illegible as I quaked with fear. I braced myself against the wall as falling darkness clouded my senses. As the shadow passed, a low tremor rose up from deep within the stone, growing more powerful, and wrenching all of us from the city.
Upon returning I sought Lost Caves and found myself warded in Umbric Cavern with Tzayak, Sharque, Ra'zr and Budash. That night Tzayak purged many of us into Threshold Caves, leaving us to wander the maze as soulspheres seeking sanctuary. It is yet unclear why Tzayak ordered an assault on Keepers of the Eternal Shadow. Dreamers from every house came to help defend the Shadow against the Kotoke. Foulmoth appeared briefly. The mysteries persist and many questions remain unanswered.
I hope I have remained true to my purpose in recording these events. It is very possible that my recollection has been tainted by the confusion of the evening, and if this is the case, please forgive me. Thank you to the Shadow for allowing me to record these actions and share them with the city for posterity.
