Mission:Glory and Dark Tidings - Chapter Four: Operation Sciritae (part 2)
Briefing
We have no time to waste, Character. If there's information to be learned from that vile rock, then the Mystics of Midnight would know how to get it.
If there is a greater threat, we need to know now or all could be lost! Go, go now!
- I'll bring the crystal to them.
Valeria begins to walk towards her attendant, glancing over her shoulder periodically at you. It seems she may be preparing for the worst, just in case.
Unnecessary Solicitation
Valeria is unable to assist you at this moment.
Mission Objective(s)
- Bring the Shard to the Midnighters
The Midnight Squad mage looks at the crystal and breathes deeply of its essence.
It's always interesting to meet a being that is so engrossed in its own philosophy that it cannot see past its own faults. Not unlike the Rikti, this being is devoted to the world of science, leaving no discussion available to the alternatives. This leaves them dreadfully vulnerable to the potency of magic, which they can no longer comprehend - power through faith.
You'd be wise to remember this lesson, Character - nobody is perfect, and the best of us do not dismiss a dissenting opinion with derision. To succeed in all things is to be able to see and understand all sides of the issue.
- Hopefully there's a spell to disrupt the network?
- You tap your foot anxiously, hoping the Midnighter can work some hefty magic through this crystal shard. After a minute, he looks up at you with a cheerful smile, though you can tell he's going to be giving you news you don't want to hear.
- Alas, friend, I cannot disrupt the crystal network, for it is too vast and complex for the time we have or the means at our disposal. I can, however, offer you an alternative - through the fabric of this being's power I have traced where the single Shadow Cyst exists.
- The ritualist pauses for a moment.
- I may have spoken too soon. I recall a movie that was based on the Rikti War. An enterprising scientist uses the Rikti's own programming language against the mothership to disable the shields long enough for Statesman to take it down.
- The ritualist floats the crystal in front of him as flecks of blue and purple energy swirl into it from the edges of your peripheral vision.
- This should work. I have harnessed enough ambient Nictus energy from these lands to corrupt this crystal with a hexagonal lattice of energy compressed within. When it makes contact with another crystal, it should exponentially inflate and decompress.
- Bring this close enough to the Cyst, and it should merge, inflate, and collapse the Cyst. The last bit relies on hope, however - every crystal connected to the Cyst should also be destroyed in the process.
- Lastly, Dorjan will most likely be guarding this cave himself. If you dont know about Dorjan, I can offer you a replica of his Midnighter dossier. He's been a subject of interest since we arrived here, but he's a ghost in the sands of time.
- Thanks.
- (You tap your foot anxiously) Can we sever the network, please?
- This selection loops to another branch of this conversation which is already documented.
Little is known historically, even to the Midnighters, about a Cimeroran General named Dorjan. Despite him being a faithful and effective leader under Imperious's and Romulus's leadership, Dorjan is only mentioned a few times in written history. Luckily, the Midnighters were able to record some oral tradition passed down by descendants of the traveling merchants and nomads that trace their lineage back to this time, and they speak of a 'Dorjan' as a ruthless agent of chaos and evil. He's painted in the same light as the snake from Genesis, tempting Romulus to give in to his fears and seek out power in the worst ways. Oral tradition is the finest form of embellishment, but something tells you there's a lot of truth in this hearsay.
Debriefing
Sister Valeria listens to the recounting of your story.
Intriguing. So, the Mystics of Midnight are relying on war tactics from a battle yet to come, aggrandized in the realm of theatre?
You'll forgive me if I am skeptical. At the least, they were able to divine where the central crystal, a 'cyst', is located? Let me check this information against the map.
Valeria unfurls the map and begins to triangulate with her compass. After a few minutes, she breathes a sigh of relief.
Yes, the Fates smile upon us all today. The location is true, the Cyst is likely accessible from a place just to the east of the Castellum Quarter. If this plan from the Mystics bears fruit, we are going to live on, we are going to survive this war.
Today we may celebrate our freedom from the darkness!