RECAP: Just over six weeks ago, the residents of Far-Go witnessed a spectacular heavenly display. Thousands of stars literally "rained" down upon the earth from the night time sky. The high priest, Arx Skystone, awakened from his sleep, and rushed out into the night to observe the cosmic fireworks. This omen frightened him and the next morning the priest announced to all of Far-Go that a great ill would befall the community.

Within a month's time of his pronouncement, the crops began withering in the fields, most farm animals had either died or run away, game had become scarce and some inhabitants showed signs of a strange sickness.

That was six weeks ago. Now, all of the summer's crops lie dead and rotting, not a single animal can be found a live in the area, and 3 people have died from this devastating and mysterious plague.

Arx Skystone is worried because soon there will be no more food surplus to feed his people. He must find a solution soon, or the entire population of Far-Go will have to abandon their homes and seek out a new place to live. This is a terrifying alternative because without food reserves, a mass migration of the village would be extremely dangerous.

Small search parties had been sent out to hunt for food and to try to discover the source of the plague. Each party has returned nearly empty-handed with only a little fresh meat and small amounts of wild fruits and vegetables. Whether they traveled north, south, east, or west, all the parties' tales were alike. Everywhere packs of humanoids to the foulest type of creatures imaginable roam the countryside in search of food. A type of madness seems to have taken over many of the creatures encountered by the search parties. Even a few of those who went out in search of food have returned to Far-Go crazed.


Since the annual Rite of Adulthood is held during the time of the midsummer full moon at moonrise, which will occur in three weeks, Arx Skystone sees this as an opportunity for possibly discovering the cause of and ending the horrible famine. Waiting till then, however, may prove fatal to the townsfolk, so he's decided to initiate it now.

As the sun sets, the young people about to take part in the Rite of Adulthood are summoned to the High Priest's temple chambers. Arx Skystone, a dark-skinned, middle-aged man in purple robes, signals for the participants to enter silently into his living quarters. Sitting cross-legged in a semi-circle on the floor, the small group of young people listens intently as the mysterious high priest begins speaking in the dimly lit room.


"Tonight you embark on a great and perilous adventure," Arx Skystone begins, "and if you overcome the trials which await you then you shall return to Far-Go as an Adult--a true member of our community. Even though you all may not have seen 16 summers yet, and some have seen one more, each of you is still treated as a small child."

"Upon your return to the village, if indeed you do return, you shall have gained insights into yourself and one another which in turn will make each of you a valuable part of Far-Go."

"Only those of you who are ready and prepared shall survive and return to us alive. Let your strength serve you well and let your wits guide you. Work together for you shall not succeed one without each other. No doubt all of you have heard stories concerning the sacred rite of passage into adulthood. Of these tales, some are true and others false. You shall now hear the truth, but to those who have seen fewer than 16 passages of the midsummer moon not a word of this must ever be spoken."

"The purpose of the Rite is to prepare you for the dangers of this world, to create a bond between you and the town, and to help you discover your place in the community. At the rising of the morning sun, you shall leave Far-Go with a week's worth of food and water, and a small quantity of other supplies. From the town, you shall travel south and west until you reach the Great Oad, It shall be your one true guide throughout your trials. Your first task is to stop at the Meeting Place and leave your childhood beads upon the small stone altar to signify the ending of your youth and the beginning of your adulthood."

"The Oad will proceed southward and carry you twice across the River of Blood...the river which reeks of the death of the Ancient Ones. Further to the south, continue on past the town of Fax, avoid its contact for you shall not partake of outside Human company until you have completed your ritual. However, should you come across anyone who is in need of assistance, you shall seek to be helpful and kind."

"The mighty Oad will then finally lead you to your destination...the heart of the Forest of Knowledge. This is where your ritual for the Rite of Adulthood shall take place. A warning to you--enter not the Forest if it be afternoon or evening!"

"Therefore, should you reach the Forest's edge and morning time has gone by, make camp outside the Forest and wait for the next rising of the sun to walk into the Forest of Knowledge. Two to three hours travel by foot upon the Oad into the Forest and you shall see the One Tree. All of you will know the Tree for what it is when you see it!"

"Make for the One Tree and you will discover bushes ripe with berries all about. These bushes grow nowhere else in our world but in the Forest of Knowledge. The berries that grow on them are like no others. Each bush contains the sacred berries of Truth, but, my young friends, there are many truths and you must be wise and choose the One Truth that will lead you to fulfillment. A bush each onto one and one each unto the Truth."

"The ritual first consists of each of you gathering 12 berries before the sun sets in the evening sky. Next, find the small clearing in the woods nearby and build a large fire. Remain close to this fire and meditate. When the moon rises, quickly eat the 12 berries which you have gathered, one at a time, and think of your future in the town. The berries will make you sleep and dream the night away, and when you awake in the morning your ritual will have ended."

"Leave the Forest of Knowledge and return to us... as Adults. Now I give to you words of urgency and words of wisdom. The berries of Truth live for only one week after the night of the midsummer full moon. So if you fail to eat of the berries within the allotted time, return not to Far-Go. You shall be considered an outcast. If you do not perform the ritual and try to return to Far-Go, we shall kill you."

"My wisdom to you upon your journey... Seek not to destroy but to protect. If enemies lurk about, look to make them your friends. If you face death, conquer it for only then shall you continue to live. Finally, remember this also, there is Truth in dreams."

"Our entire town is being ravaged by a plague of unknown origin and soon it will destroy all the land we love and call home. Unless this horror stops within a month we shall have to leave our town and seek a new home. This, my young ones, is where you might aid us all. As you travel to meet your destiny, look for fresh lands to make a new homeland. If luck should smile upon you, perhaps you may discover the reason and even a means to end this awful misfortune of ours. I wish you the success you need to complete your trial and may you help all of Far-Go as your travels take you southward. Be careful and I implore you to return to us no later than the day of the following new moon. Sleep now for the morning will come soon."

You notice that there are sleeping mats in this room, one for each of you. It seems as if you are expecting to spend the night here... as part of the ritual.

Arx Skystone waits for a few minutes in case any of you have questions.
This message was last edited by the GM at 08:17, Tue 09 May 2023.

Percy glanced around nervously at the others. In spite of being part of the community, he never really felt quite accepted. Sure, there were half a dozen Mutated Animals that live in Far-Go now and were productive members, but it still seemed as if the Pure Strain Humans either didn't like them or didn't know what to make of them.

He certainly hadn't seen 16 summers! Just 7. But then his species matured more quickly... and didn't seem to live as long as the others. Alas, there weren't any rumors or tails about Mutated Animals going on the Rite of Adulthood, so it was all going to be mystery to him.

He understood the long-winded explanation the Arx gave well enough, he guessed, and didn't have any questions. It was what it was.

This year was different, of course. The whole town was at stake... not just the lives of a few kids. Even in the face of disaster, it seemed silly for the Arx to stick to the ritual so religiously.

So Percy just waited to see what the others had to say.

Sarcoflex smirked from the shadows as Arx Skystone wound up his speech.  It all sounded like a lot of pompous fluff to him, but then again, he was only a visitor here: he would never truly belong to Far-Go.

He flexed one bicep, caressing it lovingly.  The scars gave it a pleasing texture.  He was, of course, far too old to participate in this ritual himself, having seen twenty-two years of this world… and already far more of it than any being would really want to.  But he had the feeling that he would be called upon to help guide these youngsters.  So be it.  In this world, you kept moving, or you got moved on.

That stuff about being banished from town for life if you failed the initiation sounded a bit harsh to him.  But hey… that was how they did things here.  Who was he to judge?  At least Arx wasn’t a slave-driver… they were the lowest of the low.  Sarcoflex had felt enough whips across his back to know that.

From the heels of his feet to the top of his head, he flexed every muscle in his body, held the contraction for several seconds, then slowly released all of the tension.  He had to relax before things really got started around here.  He had to be ready.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:35, Mon 24 Oct 2022.

     A young man's voice speaks up,

     "Um ... I have a question, High Priest Skystone..."

     Looking over -- and down -- to where the voice comes from, everyone sees what looks like a typical 16-year-old PSH young man, dressed in plain work-type clothing (a white pull-over linen shirt, khaki-colored canvas trousers, and what look like a pair of hiking boots that could be of 'ancient' manufacture).  Clean-shaven and bald, the kid is sitting cross-legged on the floor.

     Well ... maybe he doesn't look like a typical PSH youth, exactly -- seeing as how this lads frame is as well-muscled (maybe over-muscled) as Sarcoflex', and his skin tone is a solid Robin's egg blue.  But in every other respect, he looks PSH...

     "I'm Drudge, sir.  Son of Grubber the Blacksmith and Travail the Farmer." The youth adds, identifying himself.

     "Forgive me, please -- I'm not so good with numbers, of course -- but when you say we all have to 'choose the One Truth that will lead us to fulfillment' and 'a bush each onto one and one each unto the Truth', are you saying that we each need to eat twelve berries from just one bush, or do you mean we have to eat twelve berries picked from the one type of bush?  And does it need to be twelve identical berries, or twelve different kinds of berry?"

     Oh, yeah -- he's that kid. Everyone's probably seen him around the village -- working on some job or other -- usually something involving digging, or lifting things, or some other manual labor.

     He's the Village Idiot.

---

OOC: Robin's Egg Blue is a sky blue with a slight greenish tint. Very slight.

"There are several bushes, each with a different berry," the Arx replies.

"It is up to you to decide which bush to eat from. And, yes, you must eat 12 berries from just that bush."

Arden sat quietly listening to Arx Skystone and his somewhat cryptic instructions. Of course he figured that was all part of the initiation.

He had heard a few tales about the rite but he was sure what was true and what was fantasy. He had so many questions he didn't really know where to start. Thankfully Drudge spoke up and one of his many questions got answered. Of course the answer made him wonder if anyone had made the mistake of eating from more than one bush.

For now he would wait and see if the others had questions.

Sarcoflex grins at the mention of 'just one bush'.  No fun, Arx.  No fun at all.