Episode 6: “A Duel at Midnight” | — under the cover of darkness, when the city sleeps and secrets are bold enough to speak aloud.

Vero is the first to hear them—whispers, faint and persistent, calling from somewhere just beyond the edge of understanding. Drawn by forces he doesn’t yet recognize, he attempts to slip away unnoticed in the dead of night, only to be caught by Solaris. Rather than stop him, she chooses to walk beside him. Together, they make their way toward the town square at midnight, unaware that they are not alone.

From the shadows emerges Draylen, revealing he’s been following them the entire time. His warning is sharp and urgent: if they’re discovered outside the church after curfew, they’ll be expelled without question. Still, the three press on—and what they find waiting for them is anything but ordinary. In a narrow alley, they come upon a warped wall of living, magical flesh, pulsing and shifting as if reality itself has been wounded.

Vero steps forward, compelled by something deeper than curiosity. Solaris and Draylen follow—and the trap closes. At the far end of the alley, a masked figure emerges, calm and deliberate. He addresses Vero not as a student, but as “young lord,” insisting Vero must return to his destined path or risk plunging the world into an endless night.

The warning is rejected. Steel and spell answer instead.

An arrow strikes the figure’s shoulder. Draylen unleashes his magic, only for each spell to shatter harmlessly against a summoned black mirror. The tide turns violently—Draylen falls, and the fight becomes desperate. Solaris backs Vero without hesitation, the two pressing a relentless onslaught that nearly ends the masked figure then and there.

Cornered and wounded, the figure offers a deal. The clash pauses just long enough for terms to be struck—uneasy, unresolved, and heavy with consequence. Moments later, the alley is empty once more. The trio slips back to the church unseen, shaken but alive, while the masked figure disappears into the night.

a quiet, dangerous truth: the duel is over, but the game is not. And though our heroes don’t yet realize it, the figure they faced beneath the moonlight is the same presence that barked orders from the shadows, proof that the threads pulling at their fate have been tightening all along.

Episode 5: “A Wrinkle in Time”

bending the story back on itself, replaying the events of the previous chapter—but this time through Solaris’ perspective, transforming familiar moments into something far more revealing. What once seemed like absence, coincidence, and confusion is exposed as careful timing, hidden movement, and unseen influence.

Jimbo and Shnnr never truly disappeared. While Solaris searched for them, the pair were quietly pulled into a side mission for the ever-mysterious Ratman. Their detour was anything but grim—Jimbo walks away with a bold new jacket that immediately becomes part of his identity, while Shnnr indulges in her own priorities, amassing an impressive collection of cheese. Lighthearted on the surface, their actions hint that even small errands in Riverwood ripple outward in unexpected ways.

Solaris’ own path diverges for a reason she couldn’t have understood at the time. Her attention is stolen by a strange orange cat, elusive and almost deliberate in the way it draws her away. What first appears to be a simple distraction becomes a guiding thread, leading Solaris to exactly the right place at exactly the right moment. From a safe distance, she witnesses Silith being stalked by two shadowed figures—hunters with a singular purpose: to remove him from the board entirely.

Solaris listens as the confrontation unfolds. The hunters press their intent, Silith disappears, and the tension sharpens into something far more dangerous. The encounter is abruptly overshadowed when a new entity makes itself known—summoning itself from a grotesque, fleshy wall deep within a dark alley. Its presence is overwhelming, unnatural, and final. The message is clear and chilling: if the hunters fail, their lives are forfeit. Silith is not merely a target—he is a linchpin in a much larger design.

Shaken but resolute, Solaris withdraws without revealing herself, carrying knowledge she was never meant to hear. She reunites with Vero, Jimbo, and Shnnr for one last quiet moment before returning to the church and the Resistance of Fate. Though the group stands together again, Solaris is no longer the same—now burdened with secrets that threaten to unravel everything they thought they understood.

Episode 5 reframes the past, deepens the mystery around Silith, and reminds us that time doesn’t always move forward. Sometimes, it folds—revealing that every distraction, every choice, and every shadowed alley exists for a reason.

Spells & Scepters — Episode 4: A Rest in Riverwood

The journey slows as the party arrives in Riverwood, a small town brimming with quiet wonder and overwhelming magic. Here, the recruits finally meet Father Tailius, alongside numerous other hopeful students and the seasoned Adventurer Guild members chosen to lead them.

Amid the glow of Riverwood’s arcane atmosphere, Father Tailius unveils the Aether Crucible, using this rare moment of awe to test each soul’s potential. Visions stir, destinies whisper, and magical premonitions hint at paths yet to unfold.

What follows is a rare breath of peace. The town opens itself to exploration—markets, vendors, and hidden corners alive with charm. Vero and Solaris lose themselves among trinkets and side adventures, striking deals and stumbling into trouble the way only curiosity can.

But not everyone is accounted for. Jimbo and Shnnr vanish somewhere within the bustling market, their absence lingering until nightfall. One by one, the party regroups atop the hill where the Church of the Resistance of Fate stands watch over Riverwood.

Reunited at last, the four retire within the church, resting beneath its quiet protection—knowing that with dawn, their path will finally lead them onward… toward Mistveil.